Hi Honey, I'm Homo!: Sitcoms, Specials, and the Queering of American Culture | 
A wonderful book about LGBTQIA+ representation in television. It was written before the 2024 election. I cried reading the last chapter, which talked about the potential backlash that could undo the progress that‘s been made in TV.
I love this pic of Cam, Mitch, and Lily from Modern Family. Image from Modern Family Wiki.
I was never a fan of All in the Family (I thought Archie was just mean); this footnote made me laugh out loud. (I‘m sorry 😞)
My first introduction to the concept of homosexuality was when my father forbade me from watching Three‘s Company. I was 12. I didn‘t understand! 😳😱 I expect this book to be a fascinating revisit and re-education of some pieces of my childhood.
For #AsheCoNCReadingChallenge2024 category Lambda Award winner 🏳️🌈
pickJust finished this excellent work of nonfiction. Baume writes about the history of queer rep in American sitcoms, using them as a framework on which to hang discussions of important milestones in queer history. Baume‘s voice, as heard in his excellent video essays, shines through. I would recommend this even if you have never seen any of the TV shows Baume writes about. One caveat- most of the queer rep discussed is gay or lesbian. See comments ⬇️
I‘m really enjoying this so far- it‘s the July pick for my LGBTQIA+ book club. The chapters seem to be adapted from Baume‘s excellent video essays, but the book format gives them a different feel. It makes me realize how good Baume is at condensing historic moments, using them as a context for what was happening on TV while also using the TV moments to show how media representation can have a quantifiable effect on real life. #catsoflitsy
pickAn extremely fascinating read! I learned quite a bit and just how far back the representation stretches. I for one would have never thought of All In The Family as being groundbreaking for any minority group- but I‘ll be damned.
Be aware there are era appropriate slurs, so if you‘re sensitive to that don‘t get caught off guard. It‘s a very respectful and nuanced look at the past both distant and near.
pickThis was fun and informative! Baume takes a look at queer representation in sitcoms from Bewitched to Modern Family. I did appreciate that he went back to the 60s and 70s because similar pop culture books have started with Ellen and Will & Grace (those are covered here, too). He writes about Samatha on Bewitched as a metaphor for closeted queer culture, a recurring drag queen character on All in the Family, and queer characters on Barney Miller.
