TRADITIONALLY, women and minorities and hard-hitting storylines have been sidelined on TV. Cagney and Lacey changed all that. And Sharon Gless, who played Cagney, is still pushing boundaries.
She and Tyne Daly created history when Cagney and Lacey proved two women could carry a hit show. Its working title was Paul Newman and Robert Redford – a direct reference to what the producer, Barney Rosenzweig, was trying to do; emulate the success of buddy movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, with a sex-change.
And he pulled it off.
Every year it was in production either Gless or Daly took the Best Actress Emmy. The show was banned at various times in America due to storylines about alcoholism and abortion. And it was actually cancelled three times, and brought back due to demands by outraged viewers.
Since then Gless continues to push the envelope on shows like Queer as Folk, now on DVD again in Australia after being off the shelves for some time.
Indeed she has more in common with her character on that show, Debbie Novotny, than any other of her famous roles – alcoholic cop Christine Cagney, lead roles on Burn Notice, Nip/Tuck and her latest, Adoptable, debuting soon.
She was the lynchpin of Queer as Folk which ran for five seasons in the early 2000s, forever changing the way gay viewers could expect to see their lives depicted on screen.
Debbie Novotny was the original fairy godmother with attitude. Loud, brash and loving, she was the placard-waving straight mum eager to push every gay kid out of the closet, starting with her own son.
Like Norah Walker on Brothers and Sisters after her, she was a dream role model for parents of gay kids. And just as Sally Field is an outspoken gay ally – for Brothers and Sisters she drew on her own son’s coming out – Sharon is a champion of gay rights and equality.
Sharon Gless was on the line from her home in Florida.
Gay viewers were always starved of role models, then along comes Queer as Folk. Thank you so much for saying that. I really appreciate it. The thing is, women and minorities have always been considered amusing. We had Lucy and Ethel, we had Laverne and Shirley, so there were women in twosomes but it was comedy. Cagney and Lacey finally put women on the map.
Then the gays. We had Will and Grace but no one ever took it seriously. Then we have Queer as Folk and we actually see gays with feelings, you know? It just takes a while, I guess. The original was huge in England. And then our version was huge in America. But the awards would never acknowledge us. I think everybody watched it but nobody admitted to it.
How did you get the role? I went after it! I was asked to do The Lion in Winter. I thought that's a little over my head. I asked my agent to get me the finest drama coach in the city and he came up with the best who was also a theatrical agent. He had this script called Queer as Folk which I'd never heard of. He said Sharon I just read this script and it's not a big part but you'd be so wonderful in it. He said it's a big hit in England and America's bought the rights to do their version. Let me send it to you. I said OK.
Well, I read it and I picked up the phone and called Showtime. I'd never done such a thing. I knew the boss’s assistant – she’d been assistant to my husband Barney for 20 years. [Barney Rosenzweig produced Cagney and Lacey; they married later]. I said have you cast this Queer as Folk thing? She said no. I said well I want it! Who do I do? [laughs] She said Sharon, you know there's no money in it. I said I don't care, it’s the most wonderful thing I’ve ever read. If they have the nerve to do it.
Well, the head of Showtime sent me a message: tell Sharon I like the idea, I think she'll bring a little class to the project. I sent a message back: Tell him class is not what I had in mind! [Laughs]
So I met the producers and I got the job that day. When I walked in I said before we even start talking are you gonna shoot this script as I read it? And they said we're gonna shoot every scene, every frame. I said well send me in coach ’cos I want to be part of this!
The TV industry used to always play it safe but you’ve always pushed the line. I'll take that as a compliment! Back on Cagney and Lacey, TV Guide called us dykes. We were thrown off the air three times and there were some episodes with abortion and stuff some cities wouldn’t air. I love America, it’s my country, but we're a little uptight!
I actually wore a binder on Cagney and Lacey ’cos I had large breasts. The binder would hold them in so I wouldn't be “the blonde with the tits”. I refused that tag – that’d be too easy for them. [Laughs] This is probably stuff you're gonna delete, right? [Laughs] Lots of dialogue got us into trouble. Like the time I muttered a line about another cop: “His time of the month or what?” All hell broke loose at the network!
Cagney and Lacey changed the history of television for women. And it was also the first time in the history of television we were brought back after we were cancelled. After that I wanted to do a series abut a lesbian. No network would touch it. Then along came Queer as Folk and we were breaking ground again.
Queer as Folk series 1-5 on DVD is now available at The Bookshop, Darlinghurst.
Read Ian's other star interviews and reviews here.
We were thrown off the air three times and there were episodes some cities wouldn’t air. I love America but we're a little uptight.
- Sharon Gless, who played Cagney on Cagney and Lacey
