In this week’s FFR, Anita’s off on another one of her damn fool adventures so it’s up to Ebony and Carolyn to captain our flagship podcast! In a nod to Carolyn’s love of classic cinema, we discuss the classic 1940 “comedy of remarriage,” His Girl Friday, starring Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell. Despite being nearly 80 years old, the film has more interesting gender politics than many contemporary movies, with its portrayal of an ace reporter who is at least the intellectual equal of her ex-husband and who is encouraged to continue being an ace reporter rather than settling into the traditional role of wife and mother that was the cultural standard at the time.
Then, in recognition of Ebony’s love of crime fiction, we check out the new British series Prime Suspect: Tennison, also known as Prime Suspect 1973. The series serves as a prequel to the outstanding series Prime Suspect which starred Helen Mirren. Here, we meet Jane Tennison as a fresh young officer working her first murder case. The original Prime Suspect was noteworthy for many reasons, among them the way that it used the crimes Tennison investigated not just as mysteries, but also as ways of exploring complex social issues including sexism in the workplace, racism dividing communities, and the marginalization of queer people. Does this new show live up to that legacy? Listen to our conversation to find out!
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Segment Timestamps:
:00 a special message from Carolyn
1:05 podcast intro
2:55 How are you feeling, Ebony?
3:45 Pop culture news: Roman Polanski on MeToo, Brooklyn Nine-Nine gets picked up by NBC
9:57 His Girl Friday (1940) and the comedy of remarriage genre
25:55 Tennison/Prime Suspect 1973
44:02 What’s Your Deal? Ebony on The Bridge, Caro on Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
50:20 wrap-up
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