Women – Page 75 – On Screenwriting and Media with Dr. Rosanne Welch

Today I Became a Citation: Little Women, Feminism and Me!

I usually use Google Alerts to find mentions of The Monkees but this weekend something interesting happened. Google Alerts found my name in an essay on the JSTOR Daily about the new BBC miniseries version of Little Women, adapted by Heidi Thomas of “Call the Midwife”) from a novel by a female writer (Louisa May Alcott, as if you didn’t know) and directed by a woman (Vanessa Caswill).

My Summer of Watching Little Women by Benjamin Winterhalter

The writer of the essay was a male, JSTOR Daily’s features editor Benjamin Winterhalter and he was reminiscing about a summer in his elementary years when his mother and friends dissected all the filmed adaptations of the novel in preparation for writing an article — “A Feminist Romance: Adapting Little Women to the Screen” for Tulsa Studies in Women’s Literature.

Read the Journal Article

Winterhalter’s article came up because along his research way he came across an Op-Ed I had written for the Los Angeles Times, “What ‘Little Women’ Is Really About” about the 1995 Robin Schiff adaptation (starring Winona Ryder) which I had framed as both a more deeply feminist interpretation but, more importantly, accessible to all as the story of a writer finding their voice.

How fun to be reminded of that Op-Ed and to see how accessible my earlier work can be with archives going digital. It’s also good timing as I often recommend to screenwriting students that they write for various local publications in order to get their names out there and to fill out their writing CVs. Here’s an example of a piece I wrote when I had a passionate idea ( the one about how this is more the story of a writer finding their voice than merely a bunch of sisters surviving the Civil War). Since I did not see that idea represented in the mainstream press, I brought it to their attention and they noticed it and presented it to their readers.

10 The New Companions from Gender Diversity in the Who-niverse [Video] (0:59)

Watch this entire presentation: Gender Diversity in the Who-niverse: Paving the Way for a Lady Doctor with Dr. Rosanne Welch [Video] (36:58)

For her 5th Doctor Who lecture to the CPP community, Dr. Rosanne Welch discusses how society – and the show’s writing staff – prepared the audience for a major change in this 50-year franchise – the creation of the first Lady Doctor!

Transcript:

…and through Russell, we’re going to gain a new look both female and male characters particularly his first companion he is going to invent is Rose and Rose is very strong. We’re going to talk about how in a minute. We’re going to have Martha Jones who happens to be one of my favorite companions and I’ll explain why, because Iknow there are some people don’t like Martha and how she was treated. I think Martha was actually stronger than people are giving her credit for. Then, Donna Noble who was just a “friend” and there’s a whole discussion about the idea that women didn’t have to be a sexual or a partner companion, they could just be friends as of maybe Y’all actually have friends who are of the opposite sex. Really? That’s possible? I don’t know. Right? So that was a new thing. And of course, Captain Jack Harkness who was the first openly gay, but also omnisexual. He’s had sex with women, men, aliens, you name it he was good for it and that was an interesting thing to be said on a television program. And he’s just so gorgeous, what can you say?

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Dr. Rosanne Welch

Dr. Rosanne Welch teaches the History of Screenwriting and One-Hour Drama for the Stephens College MFA in Screenwriting.

Writing/producing credits include Beverly Hills 90210, Picket Fences, ABCNEWS: Nightline and Touched by an Angel. In 2016 she published the book Why The Monkees Matter: Teenagers, Television and American Pop; co-edited Women in American History: A Social, Political, and Cultural Encyclopedia; and placed “Transmitting Culture Transnationally Via the Characterization of Parents in Police Procedurals” in the New Review of Film and Television Studies. Essays appear in Torchwood Declassified: Investigating Mainstream Cult Television and Doctor Who and Race: An Anthology. Welch serves as Book Reviews editor for Journal of Screenwriting and on the Editorial Advisory Board for Written By magazine, the magazine of the Writers Guild.

Watch Dr. Welch’s talk “The Importance of Having a Female Voice in the Room” at the 2016 TEDxCPP.

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09 Regeneration of Doctor Who from Gender Diversity in the Who-niverse [Video] (0:57)

Watch this entire presentation: Gender Diversity in the Who-niverse: Paving the Way for a Lady Doctor with Dr. Rosanne Welch [Video] (36:58)

Transcript:

The show was canceled in 1989. It had finally run its course at that time. In 2005, this gentleman, Russell Davies, who I was so excited to actually, — this is an article that I wrote about him in a magazine for the Writers Guild, so I got to interview him when he came to the United States and was working on his show Torchwood. He was the most successful producer at the BBC for this show, Queer as Folk. He happens to be a gay man and he was an openly gay man and so he wrote Queer As Folk. Huge success. It also was redone her in the United States, but because of the success of this program, the BBC said to him “What would you like to do next? Invent any show you like.” And he said, “I want to bring Doctor Who back.” Which had never happened to a show. Show’s canceled. It’s done. We’re finished with it, but they were like, “Hmm, whatever you want, Russell, you can do it!” So he revived the show, which is an amazing step.

Follow Dr. Welch on Twitter and Instagram
https://twitter.com/rosannewelch – http://instagram.com/drrosannewelch

Dr. Rosanne Welch

Dr. Rosanne Welch teaches the History of Screenwriting and One-Hour Drama for the Stephens College MFA in Screenwriting.

Watch Dr. Welch’s talk “The Importance of Having a Female Voice in the Room” at the 2016 TEDxCPP.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

08 MacGyver, Douglas Adams and Doctor Who from Gender Diversity in the Who-niverse [Video] (1:10)

Watch this entire presentation: Gender Diversity in the Who-niverse: Paving the Way for a Lady Doctor with Dr. Rosanne Welch [Video] (36:58)

Transcript:

Now if you know anything about the old, and new, MacGyver, very similar to Doctor Who in that MacGyver doesn’t carry a gun. he makes changes in the world with his brains his science knowledge and his ability to think fast in a situation. So in essence, nobody knew it but he was an American Doctor Who if you think about it. That personality of male and I have to cop to the fact that I haven’t watched the new MacGyver. I’ll bet you that it’s lovely but I can’t get past Richard Dean Anderson. That’s my MacGyver, so too bad. But that’s what Terry Nation brought into the story. Many of you, if you’re science fiction fans will know Douglas Adams. Maybe not from Doctor Who but he did, in fact, did write for Doctor Who and was a story editor for one season. So, of course, we know him from The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. He wrote a few episodes of Doctor Who including The Pirate Planet and he worked with this character, Romana, who was a lady Timelord. So naturally, we know that in their alien species there were female characters and she’s intelligent and she matches the Doctor for wit and for charm and all that so we had the early feeling of, there can be women doing this adventuring.

Follow Dr. Welch on Twitter and Instagram
https://twitter.com/rosannewelch – http://instagram.com/drrosannewelch

Dr. Rosanne Welch

Dr. Rosanne Welch teaches the History of Screenwriting and One-Hour Drama for the Stephens College MFA in Screenwriting.

Watch Dr. Welch’s talk “The Importance of Having a Female Voice in the Room” at the 2016 TEDxCPP.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

07 Terry Nation, Doctor Who and MacGyver from Gender Diversity in the Who-niverse [Video] (0:50)

Watch this entire presentation: Gender Diversity in the Who-niverse: Paving the Way for a Lady Doctor with Dr. Rosanne Welch [Video] (36:58)

Transcript:

Later in the era of Doctor Who we get Terry Nation and Terry Nation is a really cool writer. He invented the Daleks. So without him, we wouldn’t have the world’s coolest villains, right? We wouldn’t be able to “Exterminate” any time we wanted. So I think that’s really cool, but what’s excellently interesting to me about Terry Nation as a writer is that he also invented this character, Sara Kingdom and she’s a secret agent who changes sides to work with the Doctor. She’s a bad girl who uses her badness to help the good guy. So that was a concoction of Terry Nation’s in the early days of the show and then you’re asking yourself “why is this old picture of MacGyver up there?” How did this one thing affect another, exactly? Terry Nation came from England and over to the states to work in America in television and he helped create MacGyver.

Follow Dr. Welch on Twitter and Instagram
https://twitter.com/rosannewelch – http://instagram.com/drrosannewelch

Dr. Rosanne Welch

Dr. Rosanne Welch teaches the History of Screenwriting and One-Hour Drama for the Stephens College MFA in Screenwriting.

Watch Dr. Welch’s talk “The Importance of Having a Female Voice in the Room” at the 2016 TEDxCPP.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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Display in Special Collections at Cal Poly Pomona Library via My Instagram

Display on myself, my editing partner, Peg Lamphier and other women doing important work in Special Collections at Cal Poly Pomona Library.

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06 Barbara Is 1st Strong Female Character from Gender Diversity in the Who-niverse [Video] (0:25)

Watch this entire presentation: Gender Diversity in the Who-niverse: Paving the Way for a Lady Doctor with Dr. Rosanne Welch [Video] (36:58)

Transcript:

So this was their invention, and I think it’s important to recognize that from the very beginning barbara is not a housewife

She’s not passive. She’s not boring

She’s a teacher who is very excited about these adventures she chooses to go on them

And she learns along the way she often lectures the doctor the older man

About how he should be behaving in the other worlds that they visit so we started with a strong woman. Let’s just remember that

Follow Dr. Welch on Twitter and Instagram
https://twitter.com/rosannewelch – http://instagram.com/drrosannewelch

Dr. Rosanne Welch

Dr. Rosanne Welch teaches the History of Screenwriting and One-Hour Drama for the Stephens College MFA in Screenwriting.

Watch Dr. Welch’s talk “The Importance of Having a Female Voice in the Room” at the 2016 TEDxCPP.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

A History of Screenwriting 58 – Smilin’ Through starring Norma Talmadge, Written by Alan Langdon Martin (aka Jane Murfin and Jane Cowl) (original play), James Ashmore Creelman (scenario), Sidney Franklin (scenario) – 1922

A History of Screenwriting 58 – Smilin’ Through starring Norma Talmadge, Written by Alan Langdon Martin (aka Jane Murfin and Jane Cowl) (original play),
James Ashmore Creelman (scenario), Sidney Franklin (scenario) – 1922

Smilin’ Through is a 1922 silent film based on the 1919 play of the same name, written by Jane Cowl and Jane Murfin (together under the pseudonym Alan Langdon Martin). The film starred Norma Talmadge, Harrison Ford, and Wyndham Standing. It was co-written and directed by Sidney Franklin, who also directed the more famous 1932 remake at MGM. The film was produced by Talmadge and her husband Joseph M. Schenck for her company, the Norma Talmadge Film Corporation. It was released by First National Pictures. Popular character actor Gene Lockhart made his screen debut in this film.[3][4]

The story is essentially the same as the popular Jane Cowl play, with Talmadge in the dual role of Kathleen and Moonyean. Kathleen, a young Irish woman, is in love with Kenneth Wayne but is prevented from marrying him by her guardian John Carteret. John is haunted by memories of his thwarted love for Kathleen’s aunt, Moonyean.

The story was an especially popular one and was filmed twice more by MGM: in 1932 with Norma Shearer and 1941 with Jeanette MacDonald. – Wikipedia

Learn More About Norma Talmadge with these books

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A History of Screenwriting 57 – New York Nights starring Norma Talmadge, Written by Hugh Stanislaus Stange and Jules Furthman – 1929

By Employee(s) of United Artists – http://doctormacro.com/Movie%20Summaries/N/New%20York%20Nights%20%281929%29.htm, Public Domain, Link

New York Nights is a 1929 American pre-Code crime film, directed by Lewis Milestone, and based on 1928 play Tin Pan Alley by Hugh Stanislaus Stange.[2] The film is known for being leading actress Norma Talmadge’s first sound film.

Jill Deverne is a chorus girl married to alcoholic composer Fred. She wants to show Fred’s latest song, A Year From Today, to racketeer Joe Prividi. Prividi is the producer of the musical show in which she is working, and agrees to use his song. Fred, however, refuses any favors and rejects Prividi’s offer. When Prividi uses the song anyway, Fred and his friend Johnny Dolan become drunk and show up at a nightclub.

In a raid, the police discover Fred with chorus girl Ruthie. Jill is disgusted with his behavior and dumps him. She is soon courted by Prividi, who is very overprotective. At a private party, a gambler forces himself on her and is shot by Prividi. Prividi is arrested and sent to jail. Jill does not want to be left behind, and plans a future with Fred. Prividi becomes jealous and sends gunmen to shoot and kill Fred. He is eventually stopped and put in jail, while Jill and Fred ride off in a train to start a new life. – Wikipedia

Learn More About Norma Talmadge with these books

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** Many of these books may be available from your local library. Check it out!
† Available at the LA Public Library

A History of Screenwriting 56 – Male and Female starring Gloria Swanson – Written by Jeanie Macpherson – 1919

Male and Female is a 1919 American silent adventure/drama film directed by Cecil B. DeMille and starring Gloria Swanson and Thomas Meighan.^[2] Its main themes are gender relations and social class. The film is based on the J. M. Barrie play The Admirable Crichton.^[1]

A previous version was filmed the year before in England as The Admirable Crichton.

The film centers on the relationship between Lady Mary Loam (Swanson), a British aristocrat, and her butler, Crichton (Meighan). Crichton fancies a romance with Mary, but she disdains him because of his lower social class. When the two and some others are shipwrecked on a deserted island, they are left to fend for themselves in a state of nature.

The aristocrats’ abilities to survive are far worse than those of Crichton, and a role reversal ensues, with the butler becoming a king among the stranded group. Crichton and Mary are about to wed on the island when the group is rescued. Upon returning to Britain, Crichton chooses not to marry Mary; instead, he asks a maid, Tweeny (who was attracted to Crichton throughout the film), to marry him, and the two move to the United States. – Wikipedia

Learn More About Gloria Swanson with these books

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* A portion of each sale from Amazon.com directly supports our blogs
** Many of these books may be available from your local library. Check it out!
† Available at the LA Public Library