He's A Lady

''He's a Lady'' is an American reality television series broadcast by TBS. The six-episode series premiered on October 19, 2004, and concluded on November 23, 2004. Filmed in Los Angeles, California, the series depicted eleven cisgender men in competition for a $250,000 reward over who could pass themselves off as a more convincing woman. The contestants were required to cross-dress and adopt feminine personas, which were then introduced to their family and friends. The contestants additionally competed in weekly challenges that required them to embrace femininity. The competition culminated in a beauty pageant, which was judged by a celebrity panel. The series was hosted by American television presenter Tony Frassrand.

''He's a Lady'' was a part of TBS's intent to capitalize on a rising interest in LGBT-themed reality television shows. The series was met with unfavorable reviews by critics, who believed that, despite an interesting concept, the series was poorly executed. ''He's a Lady'' additionally received fierce criticism from the American Family Association, a Christian fundamentalist organization, who urged the series' sponsors to pull their advertisements and financial support due to concerns of misandry. The series premiered to 1.70 million viewers, although its viewership quickly waned over the course of the season. In 2004, ''He's a Lady'' was the subject of a copyright infringement lawsuit filed against TBS and production company Evolution Film & Tape.

Format

Set in Los Angeles, the six-episode series depicted eleven cisgender men in competition for a reward of $250,000. The contestants initially believed that they were competing in a fitness competition titled ''All American Man''; upon arrival, they learned that they would be required to cross-dress in an effort to pass themselves off as women. The contestants, who adopted feminine personas, were required to move into a boisterous, pink-and-purple dwelling referred to as "The Doll House". In an effort to "live as a lady," the contestants were taught about brassieres and jewelry in addition to competing in weekly gender-specific challenges; challenges included modeling, wedding planning, serving as a bridesmaid, and household chores. A contestant was eliminated from the competition each week at the discretion of a celebrity panel, which included Morgan Fairchild, Debbie Matenopoulos, and John Salley. At the culmination of the series, the finalists competed in a beauty pageant, in which they had to explain what they "learned about being a man" over the course of the competition. The series was hosted by American television presenter Tony Frassrand.

Production

''He's a Lady'' was green-lit in early 2004, with production commencing shortly afterward. The series was filmed in Los Angeles, California, over the course of three weeks. TBS executives intended to capitalize on the rising success of the reality television genre, in which they hoped ''He's a Lady'' and '' The Real Gilligan's Island'' "would pioneer a genre we call comedic reality". On August 27, 2004, TBS officially announced ''He's a Lady'' through a press release. The release described the series' premise as "11 macho men ho are giventhe opportunity to walk a mile in women’s shoes". The series was initially set to premiere on October 12, 2004, although this airdate was ultimately delayed to October 19, 2004. According to TBS spokesperson Gina McKenzie, the series was intended to "break down barriers between men and women" and illustrate how gender roles function in society. Executive producer Tom Campbell further explained that he wanted to assist the hypermasculine contestants in becoming more sensitive to the needs of women and change the way they approach women in the future. Speaking on his experience, contestant Ryan Katz stated: " 'He's a Lady''was terrifying, tumultuous; it took my testosterone away. It was something I've never experienced."

Following the recent controversies and cancellations of other LGBT-themed reality television programs, executive producers Campbell and Douglas Ross were "anxious" to not offend the LGBT community. The producers were specifically concerned about the series' perceived depiction of transgender people and they did not want the contestants to "equate the change of gender with a change of sexual orientation." The network offered the media monitoring organization GLAAD an advance copy of the series for review, however, GLAAD later claimed that they were the ones to reach out to producers after examination of the series' press release. GLAAD was concerned about the series' portrayal of LGBT people and wanted to ensure that it depicted LGBT representation more tactfully than the cancelled Fox special '' Seriously, Dude, I'm Gay''. Through their consultation with GLAAD, Campbell claimed that the organization helped the producers to "bec e more aware of transgender issues and the double standards of beauty." One of the changes that producers implemented was using the phrase "in character" as opposed to "in drag" when they referred to the contestants' personas.

Episodes

Reception

''He's a Lady'' drew sharp criticism from Christian fundamentalist organizations, including the American Family Association and the Traditional Values Coalition. The American Family Association claimed that the show was humorless and promoted "life as a transvestite" while the Traditional Values Coalition similarly condemned it as a "new homosexual-inspired transvestite show." The organizations called for a boycott of ''He's a Lady'', in which they urged its sponsors to drop the series. S. C. Johnson & Son, who served as the series' principal sponsor, pulled their advertising and financial support due to pressure from the organizations.

Lawsuit

On November 23, 2004, ''He's a Lady'' was subject to a lawsuit filed by screenwriters John Phillips and Derek Gerard. Known as ''Phillips v. Turner Broadcasting System'', the suit was filed in the United States District Court for the Central District of California and targeted the series' production company, Evolution Film & Tape, alongside the series' network, TBS. The plaintiffs sought a reward of $3,000,000, in which they alleged copyright infringement, breach of implied-in-fact contract, and unfair competition. The plaintiffs claimed that their script ''Sex Change'', which was previously pitched to TBS, was copied by the production company and network for ''He's a Lady''. The concept of ''Sex Change'' was based on Phillips's experience as an "all-American" athlete who later underwent gender-affirming surgery; he claimed that the production company and network "stole part of my life" with the production of ''He's a Lady''. The plaintiffs and Evolution Film & Tape previously shared the same booking agent, Cal Boyington. On October 3, 2005, the court dismissed the suit with prejudice; the parties bore their own legal costs and fees.

International Versions

A Portuguese version under the name '' Senhora Dona Lady'' (''Lady Dona Lady'') hosted by Herman José & Sílvia Alberto aired on SIC in 2005.

A Russian versionHe's a Lady - Russia
/ref> aired on Russian channel TNT

See also

* Cross-dressing in film and television

References

Sources

*

External links

* at the Wayback Machine
*

{{TBSNetwork Shows

2000s American LGBTQ-related reality television series
2004 American television series debuts
2004 American television series endings
Cross-dressing in television
American English-language television shows
LGBTQ-related controversies in television
TBS (American TV channel) original programming
Television controversies in the United States
Television series by Evolution Film & Tape
2004 LGBTQ-related television