I AM WOMAN, HEAR ME ROAR
We're making progress, and we have to strike while the iron is hot to keep this momentum going. These two women will soon be up in the ranks alongside late night all stars, and they will only open the door for more women to get their shot at a late night talk show. Maybe, seeing the success of Handler and Bee will inspire execs to allow women to not only host their own program, but keep it on for a long enough time for an audience to grow and the comedic structure to form.
There's an obvious need and want for women to make a mark on the late night world, as evident by the media and news articles. These women are being recognized for their outstanding talents and there is a clear demand for them to host their own late night show.
So, after analyzing the history of late night and the reasons why men still run the show, it's time to put our words to action. Is there a solution to this problem? Even though many women comediennes have failed with their own programming, is there still a way for women to push through and make it the norm?
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Yes! Of course the answer is yes. There are many ways to execute a woman hosting late night television. It may take a bit of extra work and patience, but it can still be done.
There seems to be an uprising of female comediains within the last ten years, due to thier starring roles in cable televison programming and movies. Other late night programming such as Saturday Night Live and The Daily Show has introduced mainstream audiences to intelligent, funny women. From these platforms, women are able to further their careers in the entertainment world. Tina Fey and Amy Poehler scored 19 million viewers as award show hosts, Amy Schumer is slowly dominating both TV ratings and the box office, and now late night is getting a fresh start.
Chelsea Handler, arguably one of the greatest late night hosts in recent years, is returning to her late night roots on Netflix this coming May. Samantha Bee, fresh off of her work from The Daily Show, is making waves with her own late night program on TBS. These are two momentous events happening in late night, where these two women are pushing their way through the sea of male hosts and making a splash. These are two women who know how to produce, write, and orchestrate their own segments. Things may finally be turning around for women and the opportunities to host late night talk shows. The public now has two funny, educated women anchoring late night against a handful of tired old white men who have been doing the same shtick for the past few decades.