A new one-hour drama next year will star Geena Davis as the first female president.
Davis stars with Donald Sutherland in “Commander-in-Chief” on Tuesdays. She assumes the presidency with twin teen-agers and a 6-year-old at home, and a party that wants her to resign rather than take over for a dying president.
“It’s not a political story,” said Stephen McPherson, ABC entertainment president. “It’s the story of a woman; it’s the story of a wife; it’s the story of a family.”
Or, as my friend is calling it: “The Breast Wing.”
Do you remember a sitcom from the 1980’s called HAIL TO THE CHIEF, in which Patty Duke played the first female president? I remember liking it, but it didn’t last long. Anyhow, Patty Duke also rose to the presidency following the death of the previous president.
I don’t understand how it could NOT be a political story. Presidents don’t have the option of having personal lives in the same way that others do. I think a show that sets this as its premise is missing a huge opportunity by ignoring politics. After all, everything a President does is politics. Davis’ character, by the time of her achiving the Vice-Presidency, would have figured out how to balance her family with her demanding job. You don’t just quit Starbucks and become President, after all.
Of course it’s not “political” but “womanly.” That’s the only way to have a woman prez, right? (And I’m not even a feminist, I’m just mocking TV.)
Mushlette, you just made a good, basic feminist comment. Don’t be afraid. McPherson’s comment makes me want to scream.