“And you are to love those who are greys, for you yourselves were foreigners in the pending comments.”

For some context on why TV didn’t have a problem doing so in the 70s, highly recommend a read of something that’s become a little obscure and dated but is still the best on the subject - Articles of Faith: A Frontline History of the Abortion Wars.

They were subtle but they showed her as having a sex life. She was on the pill. There were a couple of scenes where she invited guys up. A scene where she entered her apartment after a night out, got dressed and left for work. Lots of jokes about the inconvenience of her (lack of) bed.

Mary had a sex life. She had broken up with a fiancé, and she was on the pill. Quietly, without fuss. It’s one of the things I really valued as I got a bit older.

You really should get a chance to watch Maude if you want to see early treatment of abortion on TV. Later seventies, an All in the Family spinoff starring Bea Arthur. Not only do they talk frankly about abortion, but Maude has one, no guilt.

Thank you. It’s hard to overestimate how Laura Petrie’s intelligence, talent, and assertiveness helped pave the way for Mary Richards. There simply had never been a TV wife like her before, and the 60s audience was smart enough to know that the Petries’ relationship was a partnership in which she would put up with no…

Also, it was a real coup because she was the first woman ever to appear on TV in pants, and not a dress.

No one ever thought of Laura Petrie as a put upon wife who didn’t get to shine.

What does tv salt mines mean? I understand she was a housewife on the Dick Van Dyke Show, but it was a pretty great sitcom for its day (and is actually still funny), and she won awards for her work.

I remember an interview about her role as Laura Petrie and MTM wanting to wear capri pants on the show. Back an forth with the studio and they finally relented, as long as the pants “...did not cup her buttocks..”.

Calling the brilliant Dick Van Dyke Show the saltmines is a bit much. She was a stay at home wife but one of Rob’s fellow writers was Sally (Rose Marie is still kicking!). And Laura was a fully developed character not just just his wife. They were very much equals.

I know, xoVain was there to half fill the hole millihellen left in my heart.

Well, what HTY?

God, I miss the Toast so much. I don’t think a smarter, kinder, crazier group of people has ever existed on the internet. Where else could we talk about how butterflies are objectivist nightmares? Or a ranking of childhood spells? Or find out what books all white men own?

Oh THAT cunt. God damn her to hell.

Was the sandwich lady story first on xoJane? The one who was clearly angling for a book deal about making sandwiches for her boyfriend while simultaneously ruining love and sandwiches?

I am glad it is going. I always thought it was unfair that garbage like xoJane (see: this article) survived while the beauty that was The Toast (see: one commenter donated a kidney to another) did not.

“xoJane’s Death Was a Blessing.” Too soon?

Also xojane had an author who said that Jews should’ve just dyed their hair blonde to get out of the Holocaust. Recently they deleted a story featuring a woman defending her brother’s abuse of his infant. Such a shit show. And the contributors were lucky if they got their 50 bucks. Often they were shortchanged…