The 100 Most Important Women in Television, 51-75
Issue #41
By Kirsten Kilponen, Julia Korol, Alysse Dalessandro, Jake Giles & Christine Bejasa
Published: September 1st, 2009 | 12:00am
51. Ida Lupino
At a time when female actors were racking it up for production companies as contracted cash cows, Ida Lupino was choosing roles and directing her own films. Her ambition has earned her two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and the distinction of being the only female director of her era.
Lupino’s ambitious career started almost the day she was born on February 4, 1918, in London, England. Her dad was a music hall comedian, her mother was an actor, and they both encouraged Lupino to enter into show business. She trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, and made her film debut in ’31, but her legacy would come later, from behind the camera.
In the mid-1940s, Lupino turned down a role, which eventually resulted in her departure from Warner Brothers. She seized the opportunity to form an indie company, The Filmmakers, and became a director, writer, and producer of low-budget films. Her first directing job came when the male director for the film Not Wanted had a mild heart attack in ’49, and couldn’t finish the film. That’s when Lupino took control, finished the film, and broke one of the highest ceilings in Hollywood. After a slew of issue-oriented features, television was a natural next step for Lupino. Before her death in 1995, she directed over 50 television episodes, including The Donna Reed Show, Batman, Alfred Hitchcock Presents,and everyone’s eerie favorite, The Twilight Zone. — KK (photo courtesy of rarephiled.com)
Betty White has enjoyed 60 years in television and film, and the 87-year-old is still going strong. Best known for her roles on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Golden Girls, White’s has a distinct blend of crass and class. Her trademark witty zingers make her a favorite for typecast roles as the “funny old woman” and a gay icon in the celebosphere. This Golden Girl won an Emmy for hosting the ’80s show, Just Men!, making her the first woman to win a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Game Show Host. Off camera, White is known throughout Hollywood as a huge animal rights activist, sometimes turning down roles that involve mistreatment of animals in anyway. She even has a book called, Betty White’s Pet Love. White’s many iconic roles have secured her not only a place in the Television Hall of Fame, but also in the hearts and homes of viewers worldwide. — JG (photo courtesy of Betty White)
Venezuelean director, producer, screenwriter, and Telemundo exec Perla Farías Lombardini’s parents, actress Gioia Lombardini and director Daniel Farías, are famed in the Latin American entertainment world. But the younger Lombardi made a name for herself with the development of Dame Chocolate. Airing on Telemundo in 2007, It chronicled the adventures of a simple girl named Genesis who left her home in rural Mexico to go to Miami to work in the chocolate industry. Following the typical structure of a telenovela, the program only aired for a limited amount of time making audiences itch for more. Dame Chocolate ignited the modern telenovela genre and mastered the art of global product placement. — LU (photo courtesy of weblo.com)
Leslie Uggams is best known for her harrowing role as Kizzy in Roots, which garnered higher ratings than network executives had ever seen in 1977. At six years old, she made her television debut on Beulah, portraying the niece of Ethel Waters. In 1969, CBS began airing The Leslie Uggams Show making her the first African American woman to have her own variety show. The show also turned the production side of the industry on its head by hiring a mostly black crew. The show was cancelled after 10 episodes, which sparked controversy among black organizations such as the NAACP and the Urban League. Leaders of these organizations publicly criticized CBS for not giving the show a chance to develop, as well as cutting off job opportunities for black entertainers and technicians. The controversy highlighted inequality in the industry. Uggams showed them their mistake when she made history in Roots. — CB (photo courtesy of Leslie Uggams)
Let’s face it, the clothing on Sex and the City was always the fifth girlfriend at cocktail hour — Carrie’s shoes. Miranda’s power suits. Charlotte’s cardigans. Samantha’s dresses. Patricia Field outfitted the ladies of SATC for all six seasons, bringing high fashion to the masses. Already an Emmy-winner for costume design, Field met Sarah Jessica Parker on the set of Miami Rhapsody in 1995, and Parker brought Field on to her new show. She never repeated a look and immortalized the style of Carrie Bradshaw in the process. Field won four Costume Designers’ Guild Awards and an Emmy. Her work on the film, The Devil Wears Prada even nabbed her an Oscar nomination. She continues to work in costume design for both film and television, run her eccentric boutique, Patricia Field, in NYC, and maintains her claim to fame as the inventor of the modern legging. — AD (photo courtesy of manuelsantelices.wordpress.com)
As Erica Kane on the ABC soap All My Children, Susan Lucci has led the pack of daytime’s divas for four decades. The highest paid actor in daytime television, Lucci claims Erica Kane is one of the best roles ever written for a woman, and she milks it for all it’s worth. The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences has taken note — nominating Lucci for 21 Emmys (more than any other actor, primetime or daytime). It took 19 Emmy nominations before Lucci finally won in 1999. When her name was called she received a four-minute standing ovation. — SC (photo courtesy of susanlucci.com)
You may have never seen the face of Jeannie Epper, but you’ve definitely seen her work. She has appeared in more than 200 films and television shows as a stuntwoman. In a profession that didn’t even receive screen credit until the ‘70s, and is still not recognized by the Academy Awards, she is a pioneer.
In 1958, then nine-year-old Epper’s first television stunt was on 77 Sunset Strip. The young daredevil went on to double for Kate Jackson on Charlie’s Angels and even took on Linda Evan’s notorious Dynasty catfights. In her long career, Epper gathered credits on shows like Bionic Woman, Hill Street Blues, and Starsky & Hutch, but her most impressive role was as Lynda Carter’s double on Wonder Woman, where she proved that behind every good woman is another woman to take the hits.
Amanda Micheli chose to highlight Epper’s death-defying career in her 2004 documentary Double Dare. The film shows Epper as an industry icon and a mentor to the film’s other star, Zoe Bell, stuntwoman for Xena. In 2007, nearly 100 stuntwomen presented the Taurus World Stunts Lifetime Achievement Award to Epper. She was the first female to receive this honor. She now serves as Vice President of the United Stuntwomen’s Association. At 68, Epper can still be commissioned for stunt work. Badass. — AD (photo courtesy of Jeannie Epper)
With a more than 40 year career beginning 1966, Barbara Claman has become one of the industry’s most influential casting directors, making and breaking Hollywood’s biggest actors. Claman pioneered the way for women in Hollywood. She thrived in a male-dominated world, running her own company, and leading the way for professional women. Instead of following her parent’s wishes and marrying a nice Jewish boy, Claman moved to Greenwich Village and became a production assistant for the Dumont Network. Claman was mentored by some of the most powerful women in television, and she quickly became a casting director, starting her own company, Barbara Claman Inc. Her eye for talent saw her casting then-unknown Richard Gere in Days of Heaven and giving Jerry O’Connell his first tv role on Sliders. Her casting prowess led to the nickname “Queen of Commercials,” and a long resume of sitcoms and TV specials. The Casting Society of America nominated her for seven Artois awards for Best TV casting, four for her work on the soap opera Santa Barbara. — SC (photo courtesy of womenbehindtv.com)
While black women are still underrepresented in the television industry, Debra Lee epitomizes the art of rising in the ranks. As the current CEO of Black Entertainment Television (BET), Lee is in a position to make her mark. Beginning her career in 1986 at the network, she landed her current gig in 2005 which made her the highest ranking African American female at BET’s parent company, Viacom. Over the past four years, Lee’s goal to expand its audience by providing a more holistic representation of African American culture has resulted in the addition of scripted shows, documentaries, original movies, talk shows, and news programs. Although the network has been known for raunchy hip-hop videos, BET held its first inaugural gala for Barack Obama. BET Honors was added to the lineup to provide a place to honor the accomplishments of members of the African American community. Her efforts have not gone without notice as she received the Distinguished Vanguard Award for Leadership from the National Cable Television Association in 2003, making her the first African American woman to receive the prestigious award. — LU (photo courtesy of washingtonlife.com)
Christine Craft raised the quintessential case against television execs over being fired for her appearance thus opening the door for future anchors, especially female, to take action when faced with similar discrimination. Craft wasn’t always making a case with the law — raised in sunny California, she spent her initial years out of college as a classroom teacher and a competitive surfer. Although she started her TV career reporting the weather, CBS hired her to do a “Women in Sports” segment — but not before she underwent a makeover. This wouldn’t be the last time execs asked her to alter her appearance.
After being called in for an interview at a Kansas City station, Craft accepted under the condition that she not undergo another makeover. Despite the station's acceptance of her conditions, eight months later, at the age of 36, she was demoted from her anchor position when a focus group decided she was “too old, too unattractive, and wouldn’t defer to men.”
Craft went public with her disagreement at the decision and took Marcomedia, Inc., ABC, the station’s affiliate, to court. Though the original jury awarded her $500,000, subsequent appeals ended in the overturn of the decision. Though she didn’t win her case against the company and ended up receiving no compensation, the public attention she drew was a favorable result.
These days, Craft is more likely to be found in a courtroom practicing employment law or behind a radio microphone than on camera. Although she is no longer on the small screen, females everywhere owe her thanks for taking a stand against unfair treatment. — JK (photo courtesy of museum.tv)
The frozen dinner changed the way in which people watch television and couch potatoes everywhere have Betty Cronin to thank. Although the inventor of the TV dinner falls under debate, the Swanson Brothers, Gilbert and Clark, often receive the credit. Technically, the invention came from their company but not from the brainpower of any man. Cronin, a 21-year-old bacteriologist was working for Swanson in 1952 when she patented the frozen TV dinner. The challenges with Cronin’s plan were that people didn’t all have television sets or freezers. According to the book Patently Female, Cronin recalled the technical challenge as finding ingredients what could all cook for the same amount of time. She coined the turkey, corn, and mash potatoes combo which remains the highest-selling TV dinner today. So why no credit for this female frozen food extraordinaire? She sold her patent to her company for $1 and then Swanson sold itself to the Campbell Soup Company. Cronin continued to work on her creation throughout her career and retired as the director of Campbell’s Microwave Institute in New Jersey. — AD (photo courtesy of fvhuskers.com)
Way back when MTV actually emphasized the M and long before Carson Daly brought his monotonic, boyish charm to TRL, the network introduced five video jockeys, or “VJ’s” including Martha Quinn. Her girl-next-door appearance combined with her interest in music made her the archetype for the perfect best friend and lover. Previous to her VJ days, Quinn frequented commercial spots, including being the McDonald’s chicken McNuggets girl (of which we’re sure she’s quite proud). She debuted along with MTV in 1981and was there for a successful decade. Rolling Stone and its readers even named her the “Best-Ever VJ” in MTV history and Allure Magazine referred to the ‘80s decade as "the Martha Quinn years." Most recently, Quinn lends her personality and music knowledge to “Martha Quinn Presents Gods of the ’80s” on Sirius Satellite Radio. Although MTV is now an empty shell of the influential music machine it was, music critics today still mourn the loss of Quinn from MTV programming. — JG (photo courtesy of pessimistic.com)
63. Loretta Young Much of what we know about glamour and grace comes from Loretta Young who showed beauty can come with a backbone. Young made history with her own television program,Letter to Loretta aka The Loretta Young Show which became the first and longest-running anthology drama series to feature a female star as host and actress (1953-1961). Showcasing fashion and shying away from celebrity guests, Young earned three Emmys for Best Actress. Her talent saw her rise out of her single-mother’s boarding house and into Hollywood’s elite. She began picking up bit parts as a child, but it was her roles in films through the ’20s, ’30s and ’40s that made her famous. In 1947, she won the Oscar for best actress for her role in The Farmer’s Daughter. Even her characters were ambitious — the farmer’s daughter works her way up to Congresswoman. Though Young was known for her sweetness and charm, she had no problem standing up for herself, suing NBC in 1972 for rerunning The Loretta Young Show, in violation of her contract. — SC (photo courtesy of myvintagevogue.com)
While sitting on your couch watching laugh-crazy shows like How I Met Your Mother, and our nerd-boy fantasy, The Big Bang Theory, you’re probably not thinking about the network execs that keep them on air. And if you were, you’d probably assume that it was some fat-cat man, in a suit, giving the final say on such programs. In actuality, Nina Tassler, President of CBS Entertainment since 2004, is the person giving the green light on all of the network’s entertainment programming for prime time, late night, and daytime. The powerhouse prez joined the CBS team as Vice President of Drama in ’97. Since then, Tassler has been instrumental in pumping out popular shows, like CSI, Without a Trace, and Judging Amy. Born to a Puerto Rican mother and Jewish father, she won a 2005 Imagen Award, which gives accolades to Latinos who have made contributions to the entertainment industry. The award comes deservedly so— she’s the highest profile Latina in network television. — KK (photo courtesy of slt.com)
A dedicated journalist with a glowing personality, Connie Chung is the only Asian-American journalist to achieve the prestigious position as a network anchor. Although she is the beacon of professionalism on camera, she takes a lot of heat for her marriage to Maury Povich due in part to their contrasting bodies of work: Povich's daytime talk show typically revolves around paternity testing or strange phobias while Chung’s tackles hard news. She began her career in 1969 and joined CBS News in 1971 as a Washington correspondent where she covered the Watergate scandal and the 1972 presidential campaign. Chung joined Dan Rather as co-anchor of the CBS Evening News from 1993-1995, which made her the second woman (after Barbara Walters) to hold a network anchor position. Chung provoked controversy because of her interviewing style, and career choices, but accomplished success because of these same decisions. — LU (photo courtesy of washingtonpost.com)
From Fame to A Different World, Debbie Allen contributed her wide range of talent to producing great television — behind the scenes to front and center. After Allen graduated from Howard University in 1971, she developed her talents as a dancer, actress, and singer on Broadway, and eventually on television and movies. In 1988, she became director of the television show A Different World. Allen’s time at historically black college partly inspired the show, and was a smart and vibrant depiction of HBC life and it earn acclaim as it dared to explore subjects that had no place on television at the time, such as AIDS, racial discrimination, and date rape.
Allen went on to host her own television special,The Debbie Allen Show, and blazed the stage as choreographer for the Academy Awards from 1991 to 1994. She stayed busy with appearances on Over the years, she’s appeared on several TV shows, such as Good Times and So You Think You Can Dance, as well as directing episodes of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Everybody Hates Chris, and That’s So Raven!
Allen’s moves might be most recognizable as dance instructor Lydia Grant in 1980 movie-musical-turned-TV-series, (1982-1987) Fame, about a group of students who attend a performing arts high school in New York City. Although it’s been more than 30 years since Allen first graced the Fame dance studio, she can be seen as Principal Simms in the much-anticipated remake of the film alongside Kelsey Grammer and Megan Mullally. While Allen continues to add to her lengthy resume for film and television, she finds herself not so far from the role that made her famous — heading world-class dance academy in California. — CB (photo courtesy of Debbie Allen)
It appears that Terry Louise Fisher took the age-old advice to 'write what you know' to heart. Fisher began her career as a lawyer in the Los Angeles district attorney's office before she worked in entertainment law. Fisher then wrote and produced for Cagney and Lacey (1983-1985), a popular police drama with a feminist mindset. The show's cast and subject matter of rape, incest, abortion, and rape challenged the network's standards. She is best known as the co-creator and supervising producer of L.A. Law, a '80s legal drama which enraptured its audience long before Law and Order marathons even existed. L.A. Law combined humor and drama while dealing with hot button issues of the day such as abortion, AIDS, gay rights, and racism. The show was so successful that it won the Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series in 1987, 1989, 1990, and 1991. — LU (photo courtesy of Wikipedia)
In an era of femme-fatales and impossible waistlines, Eve Arden didn’t play to typecast-- she brought the sassy, quick-witted woman to the screen well before Rhoda moved to New York. Arden had a long career before Our Miss Brooks hit the radio waves in 1948, but her sharp tongue and clever quips were more suited to sidekicks. With Our Miss Brooks,Arden was able to step front and center as schoolteacher Brooks, a sardonic, sophisticated single woman. The show was the perfect showcase for Arden’s comedy, and it was successful enough to be adapted to television in 1952. The adaptation saw the show lose some of its uniqueness — for instance, Miss Brooks now stopped pursuing men, instead becoming the pursued. The show, however, continued on for 130 episodes before being cancelled in 1956. Arden went on to pursue other supporting roles, notably as wise-cracking Principal McGee in Grease and Grease 2. As always, she was a smart, funny, whole woman, never a caricature. — SC (photo courtesy of timespast.ning.com)
With Katie Couric anchoring the evening news on CBS, it can be hard to imagine a time when women were barred from the broadcasting world. Pauline Frederick made these opportunities a reality for future women through her pioneering career in television news where she set a standard by producing work that rivaled her male counterparts. In 1938, she began her career in broadcasting at NBC as the director of woman's programming. She held several different positions at NBC but quit when dissenters discouraged her from expanding to more hard - hitting work that they felt was not suitable for a woman. Frederick’s big break at ABC came when there wasn't a man available to cover a foreign ministers' conference. She got the job done and was permanently hired to cover international affairs and politics. Her pioneering 40-year-career in international news at ABC, NBC, and finally at NPR, warranted the many honors she received along the way, including being the first woman to receive the Peabody Award for excellence in broadcasting in 1954. — LU (photo courtesy of stanford.edu)
Women have a place in sports — holding up a trophy and smiling a Vaseline-wide smile. It’s usually not a speaking role. Hannah Storm is something else entirely. Although Hannah Storm could be found most recently as an anchor for The Early Show on CBS, she began her career breaking down barriers in sportscasting. She became the first female anchor for CNN Sports Tonight. She continued her string of firsts as the first solo anchor of a major network’s sports package with NBC’s NBA coverage from 1997-2002. Storm was also the network’s only female host for four Olympics (1992, 1996, 2000, 2002). Today Storm is so closely associated with sports broadcasting that she appeared on an episode of Scrubs as the host of Sports Center. While sports may continue to be an area where women are often overlooked, and Storm continues to strike lightning as one of the biggest names in sports broadcasting. — SC (photo courtesy of newsday.com)
With paintbrush planted firmly in hand, Phyllis Craig brought to life a sassy, orange cat; mischievous, spotted putties; and the boy who wouldn’t grow up. Widely respected as an animator, Craig got to work with the very first Xerox camera while in production for 101 Dalmatians. In fact, as a 45-year veteran in the industry, she’d just about seen it all.
Starting off as a painter on Peter Pan (1953) and moving on to the color key department at Film Roman, the studio famous for Peanuts, Garfield, and King of the Hill among others. Working at all the prestigious animation studios from Disney to Marvel, she was the first color key artist honored with a nomination for Individual Achievement in the Field of Animation for her work on Tom & Jerry: The Movie.
Before Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox of Transformers fame were even born, Craig worked on the original cartoon series in 1984. The series has spawned numerous spin offs. Whether or not you're old enough to have watched the original in the '80s, Transformers remain a staple on the pop culture radar.
Craig’s drawing skills aside, she’s been a mentor and inspiration for aspiring youngsters, most notably as founder of Women in Animation, a non-profit dedicated to aiding women involved in all aspects of animation. From establishing scholarship funds to opening art galleries for showcasing the work of animation professionals, she worked closely with students.Though Craig didn’t make it through complications from brain tumor removal surgery in ’97, she is survived by the numerous former interns and members of her organization who owe it all to her. — JK (photo courtesy of awn.com)
As president of Nickelodeon for the past 13 years, Cyma Zarghami has shaped the way kids look at the world. It’s hard to think about childhood without thinking about Nickelodeon —oddball kids’ shows like All That, The Fairly Oddparents, and Chalk Zone, teaching an entire generation of kids that being weird can also be kind of cool. Nick at Night, Nick Jr., and SNICK are all her brainchildren, and SpongeBob SquarePants, Dora the Explorer, and Rugrats: All Grown Up all owe their success to her. Zarghami brought power to kids, creating vote-for-content shows likeU Pick Live and Slime Time Live and running a “Kids Pick the President” campaign to involve children in politics. She’s also turned Nickelodeon into a destination. The Nick theme park in the Mall of America took shape under Zarghami’s watch, as did a line of Nickelodeon-themed Royal Caribbean cruises. Through all of her work, Zarghami has built the Nick brand into a major player, rivaling Disney. — SC (photo courtesy of nick.com)
Kitchen appliance sales in the’40s and ’50s just would not have been the same without the influence of the “Westinghouse Lady,” Betty Furness. But she wasn’t always opening freezer doors on TV commercials saying, “You can be sure if it’s a Westinghouse,” and making hundreds of Americans run out their doors to buy refrigerators. Furness was always a looker, and by 1930, she was ready to be on top as a model. In 1932, she made her first film appearance in Thirteen Women, but her scenes were deleted before the films’ release. That didn’t put out Furness’s fire; she appeared in more than 30 films in the’30s. In 1948, she became an actress for Studio One. Her charm shined through when she filled-in on an appliance commercial that the “Westinghouse Lady” was born. Soon she was receiving a thousand pieces of fan mail a week, and got her own talk show, Meet Betty Furness, in 1953. She even served as Special Assistant for Consumer Affairs under President Johnson. Furness earned two stars on the Walk of Fame. — KK (photo courtesy of starletshowcase.com)
A producer by persistence, Marian Rees has been honored with 11 Emmy awards and 30 other nominations. She moved to Los Angeles in 1952 to embark on a career in television. Little did she know that her first job as a receptionist for NBC would lead to her future success as a producer. Rees left NBC to become an associate producer on An Evening With Fred Astaire and later became an associate producer on the pilots for All In the Family and Sanford and Son. In 1982, Rees formed her own production company Marian Rees Associates. After four months of seeking network approval, CBS picked up her first production, Miss All American Beauty. She produced a line of hits and seven of her productions have been part of the Hallmark Hall of Fame series. Rees served two terms as President of Women in Film. Rees has worked for women's rights in the television industry. — LU (photo courtesy of museum.tv)
Rachel Axler earned a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Writing in 2006 for The Daily Show. She shares the credit with 16 men including Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. Although not the only female writer in the show’s 13-year history, she is the woman with the most shows credited to her name at 297 episodes from 2005-2007.
After completing an internship with the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences in Los Angeles and her earning a master’s degree in Playwriting from University of California-San Diego, Axler moved to New York City with hopes of landing a writing job on her favorite program— The Daily Show.
While working on Late Night with Conan O’Brien, she learned of an opening on her dream staff. During the interview process, she was questioned about how she would handle being the only woman on the writing staff. Axler accepted the challenge. In the age where a show on Comedy Central is some people’s only source of news, it’s significant that a woman was one-part of the male-dominated, Daily Show team
When the Writer’s Guild of America strike hit on November 2007, The Daily Show writers were still in their first year of contract with the WGA. Axler was not about to stop writing or cross the picket line so she penned a popular strike diary for The New York Times. She chronicles the early days of the strike. With punchy style, Axler offers up the funny while showing the importance of the cause.
After leaving the men at The Daily Show behind in 2008, Axler can now be found writing for Amy Poehler’s Parks and Recreation. With only four years in the biz, this writer has plenty more laughs to give. — AD (photo courtesy of Jon Coit) ---
More from our list of 100 Most Important Women in the History of Television:
1-25,
26-50,
76-100
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