Some Musings on Sasha Alexander
WARNING: Long preamble. If you just want to get to the Sasha is Awesome parts, skip to the gigantic OKAY.
You know how you can go your whole life without realizing either that something exists or how fabulous it is? That’s how I was about cheese for about 18 years. Until then, I’d only had Kraft singles, and had no idea that that’s about the least interesting example of cheese - if you can call it that - you can get. So when patient housemates introduced me to the delights of cheese soft (mmmm, Camembert) and hard (Gruyère!), it was like stepping into a fantastic kingdom that had all along been just across the road, not even particularly well hidden by rose briars or whatever. How could I have missed it for so long??
So it has been for me with Sasha Alexander (incidentally, an avowed cheese lover herself). Even though I lived with someone who was mildly obsessed with Dawson’s Creek, I didn’t watch it myself and had no idea SA played Pacey’s sister. I knew of NCIS as a CBS ratings stalwart, but it wasn’t my cup of tea, so I was oblivious to Kate Todd’s illustrious presence for two seasons and her exceptionally shocking death). It wasn’t till Rizzoli & Isles that I first encountered Sasha’s Awesomeness as an actor, and that turned out to be a springboard to appreciating some of her other dimensions (out of the gutter, people, it’s only the second paragraph!).
Now I have to say that, personally, I experience varying levels of discomfort with celebrity adulation. After all, Hollywood stars are generally beautiful, rich, and famous, and already have thousands of adoring fans, so why do they need my emotional energies as well? Furthermore, as someone who aims to maintain something of a critical perspective on media, shouldn’t I distance myself from the sort of fannish drooling over actors that happens because they’re hot? More specifically, I’ve felt and seen discussed the conundrum that arises when a, uh, enthusiasm for attractive women makes some of us feel torn between being lesbian/bisexual women and being feminist (Dorothy Snarker has written both seriously and tongue-in-cheek about this). On the one hand, there’s something affirming about being able to revel openly in queer desires, even from afar. On the other, given the troubling sexual objectification of women in the mass media, does the fact that the gaze is female make enough of a difference, particularly since that gaze often reinforces a rather narrow (i.e. young, slender, and readable as white) definition of female beauty?
Different people will no doubt answer such questions in different ways, but the way I’ve reconciled them for myself is that:
(1) Episodes of a canonical television show definitely provide particular kinds of enjoyment, but for many of us, extratextual elements magnify the pleasures of being a fan. And I have to say, Sasha Alexander has been one of the best such parts of the R&I fandom for me. In other words, I get something out of it too!
(2) While I’ve included some pretty pics, this post is primarily about how I see Sasha coming across as a public person to her queer and queer-friendly fans. So I’m not so much going for an “OMG, Sasha is so hot!!” upshot as much as “Wow, Sasha Alexander is smart, articulate, funny” and other character stuff along those lines, such that the latter is both context as well as fodder for the former response. God, could I sound any more contorted? If no one understood the sentence before last, let’s just all move on, if anyone’s still with me!
Also, there’ve been other LJ commentaries on Sasha Alexander’s acting, and that’s not going to be the focus of my post, although I was thrilled to see Sasha win the Women’s Image Network award for her role as Maura on Rizzoli & Isles. I’d like to just point to a couple of posts here: onlyjustwhisper’s post on the film The Last Lullaby, for which Sasha won an acting award at the San Diego Film Festival, and jetgirl78’s delightful “10 Scenes that Made Me Love Maura Isles”. (And for a comprehensive list of what SA’s been in, there’s always imdb and wikipedia.)
What I’m going to present here is a pretty idiosyncratic take on Sasha from her Twitter account, recent interviews, and public appearances. Oh, and before I go on, a note about Twitter (and then I swear I’ll get to it!): unlike face-to-face interviews, we don’t, of course, know for sure who’s tweeting for a particular account. However, barring a brief and slightly mysterious few days last year when the tweets from Sasha’s account came from a Blackberry versus the iPhone that had been used consistently for the months before that, the iPhone/iPad tweets build a fairly coherent picture to me, so I’m going to assume that Sasha is behind the bulk of those.
OKAY.
So one of the earliest things that struck me about Sasha was how she handled questions and comments about Rizzles with graciousness and good humor. During the airing of Rizzoli & Isles Season 1, she was asked daily on Twitter about the prospect of seeing Jane and Maura as a couple on the show, how she felt about fans shipping them, and even what she thought about various fanworks like vids and photo manipulations. One of the earliest questions and responses I’ve found is this one:
From biaregina:
@SashaAlexander1 my friends were talking about R&I, about how they look like a couple. Do you think it’d happen a romance Jane/Maura?
9:49 PM Jul 24th via TweetDeck in reply to SashaAlexander1
SA’s reply:
@biaregina I don’t see it going in that direction, but one never knows!
Saturday, July 24, 2010 10:01:53 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to biaregina
Rizzles hearts no doubt fluttered at that; however, from August 2010 onwards, SA’s been pretty consistent in predicting that the show won’t be pairing the two leads up romantically. For example:
From ocean1blue:
@SashaAlexander1 So will R & I be a couple on S2? Imagine funny scenes with Lorraine Bracco when she finds out. She would play your MIL!
8:58 PM Aug 18th via Echofon
SA’s reply:
@ocean1blue I don’t think that is the direction the show is going, sorry...
Thursday, August 19, 2010 1:22:47 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to ocean1blue
From Crystallblue44:
@SashaAlexander1 HI! Good morning/night There is a lot of subtext, between Jane and Maura’s friendship! what do you think about that?xoxo!
12:43 PM Aug 28th via web in reply to SashaAlexander1
SA’s reply:
@Crystallblue44 I like the dynamics of their friendship... That is all I see it though, as very close friends.
Monday, August 30, 2010 3:19:26 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to Crystallblue44
And I believe this was her earliest response on Twitter that explicitly referred to “Rizzles”:
From wndrlndbby1123:
@SashaAlexander1 just curious... are you guys aware of the rapidly growing lesbian following/shippers you have for R and I?
2:07 AM Aug 17th, 2010 via DestroyTwitter
From SA:
@wndrlndbby1123 yes, we are aware... I have seen the whole 'Rizzles' campaign! :)
Tuesday, August 17, 2010 9:18:02 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to wndrlndbby1123
Not only was Sasha aware of the shipping, she also stated that she was not at all bothered by it:
From ReesesPieces79:
@SashaAlexander1 does it offend u when people say u & Angie have chemistry or that there's "subtext"? Hope not, cuz u 2 R great together! :)
1:56 PM Sep 8th, 2010 via web
From SA:
@ReesesPieces79 no, I take it as a compliment!
Wednesday, September 08, 2010 5:53:32 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to ReesesPieces79
In the last part of her interview with Duncan Scheib answering fan questions, Sasha addressed the whole subtext/UST issue more extensively when she responded to the question, “I think someone should ask Sasha what she thinks about people talking a lot about her onscreen relationship with her costar, Angie Harmon.”
(Screencap courtesy of the amazing onlyjustwhisper)
With a knowing smile that said, “Aha - I was wondering when I’d get a Rizzles question!,” SA laughed “Okay!” and started with a note of playful gravity, “Well, you know, Angie and I are on the Hot List for TV Guide this week for our ‘womance’. And, initially, I was like, ‘Womance?’, and I spoke to Angie, and she was like, ‘Womance? What does that mean? Like a bromance, a womance?’”
Yep, Sasha (and Angie), I believe that’s exactly the parallel that the article was drawing; it was TV Guide that put House and Wilson on the cover a couple of years ago with the headline “Isn’t it bromantic?” http://images2.fanpop.com/images/polls/125553_1223375298203_full.jpg
She continued, “Uh, you know, I think Angie and I both think it’s really fun, and- Look, I think it’s great that you have two strong female characters that are adult women who have an adult female relationship. If people read into that and make that what it is and if that’s [laughs] sexy in some way, then cool! I mean, you know, I don’t-”
So essentially, SA pointed out the positive aspect of portraying a relationship between two grown women (which Janet Tamaro has also said we don’t see often enough on television), acknowledged that Jane and Maura are shipped, and said that she’s fine with it. Now, the way she emphasized “fun” and laughed a little as she said “sexy in some way” indicates to me that she expects Jane and Maura will never actually get together and probably not even express real attraction to each other on the show. But that’s no surprise.
She ended her response, “I think it’s really fun, and I’m proud of the show, and I’m proud that it’s reaching so many women, and that they’re strong females. I hope that we continue to write and do things that speak to women - and men, of course - but, like, that speak to women and represent women in a way that’s authentic and not catty or gossipy or like, we’re fighting over the same boy. But like, two women who are actually working women and who, you know, are trying to find love and are dealing with their own relationship. So, I think it’s cool.”
What this says to me is that SA is cool with both the shipping and the large number of queer women that the show “reaches” (and thrills and delights!); I mean, she says simply “women,” but I think I’m reasonably reading between the lines here.
Rizzoli & Isles aside, Sasha’s played a lesbian before, which I’m sure 99.2% of you know. Until I started working on this post, I’d only ever seen a brief clip of SA kissing Sarah Silverman. In my research, I found all of her scenes from Greg the Bunny on Youtube.
First, barring the slightly bizarre scenario (from what I gather, this is a behind-the-scenes look at a Muppets-like show), this was pretty entertaining to watch, and hats off to Sasha for her ability to act opposite talking animal puppets. In fact, the titular character is the first person to whom Laura expresses her interest in Alison (Silverman), and he gets to give her a massage! (No, of course I am not jealous of a tiny puppet bunny.) Second, I thought the episode did a good job in featuring a lesbian character (and same-sex kiss) without sensationalization; it was a source of humorous misunderstanding in the context of all the zany goings on at that set, but Laura Carlson wasn’t a “stunt lesbian,” and she not only got to emphatically express her complete lack of interest in a male character (Jimmy, played by Seth Green), but Alison ends up taking her home. Yay!
On a slightly tangential note, SA also guest starred on a season 6 episode of House that featured one of the most bromantic plotlines ever, even for that show. Nora was the hottie in an adjacent apartment whom House and Wilson were both interested in, but she assumed they were a gay couple for most of the episode, was all supportive of trying to help House with his boyfriend problems (awwww), and even witnessed an on-the-knee proposal from Wilson to House at a candlelit restaurant (yes, at a textual level it wasn’t for “real,” but still, no doubt some stand-out dialogue and imagery for lots of House/Wilson shippers).
(Screencap from http://housecaps.fanfusion.org. What is it about SA getting massages when she’s a guest character?)
Back in the real world, SA has publicly supported LGBT activism, making an appearance at Lambda Legal’s event in September 2010.
(Thanks again to onlyjustwhisper for the screencap!)
She says, "Well, I’m here to support the community, of course, and many of my friends, and what Lambda’s doing, you know. I think it’s beyond important, so that’s what I’m here to support. … It’s a human thing more than a political thing to me, so .. I think there’s so much politics involved, and the maneuvring, the navigating of the direction that we’re going. The important thing is that I do believe that there’s strides being made all the time; I do believe that. I see it, so I hope that there will just be breakthroughs, I hope that we will continue to move in the right direction, that we will continue to open people’s minds and stick together as a community to make sure that people are aware, and that they understand, they see paths around prejudices and everything else."
Of course, it’s not a requirement that entertainers share my political sensibilities even broadly for me to appreciate their work; hey, I’ve been entranced by the lush Romanticism of Richard Wagner many a time. And - I feel like I shouldn’t need to say this, but recent experience suggests that I do - it’s not because I’m conflating the actor with the character they play, and hence somehow think that their speaking in support of gay rights makes it more likely that the actor and/or the character is (secretly) gay. But I do find it particularly gratifying when an actor with a large queer following is willing to take a public stance in favor of LGBT rights and identities. First, because we still have a ways to go in various domains - legal and political, media representation, and perhaps most crucially, “the hearts and minds” of Middle America etc. - so every voice counts, especially those that are more prominent than average. But at a more personal level, I feel better about being a fan of someone who stands in my corner on an issue that gets to me at a more visceral level than other worthy causes, like, say, research on a particular disease or combatting climate change. So all that’s a verbose exposition of “Yay, Sasha, for the Lambda Legal thing!”
SA has also provided responses about Rizzoli & Isles that I found particularly interesting from a feminist perspective. In this clip, an unidentified female interviewer asked this question:
"It seems like there’s a real shortage of female-led shows on television, with the exception of, like, Desperate Housewives. What do you think is the benefit for you guys for having just a female main co-star?"
(Another pretty picture courtesy of onlyjustwhisper)
AH answered first, and talked about the show “putting back into the mainstream” the idea that girls can do anything if they put their mind to it, including unusual occupations for women like homicide detective and medical examiner. There’s undoubtedly an important role that media representations play in providing examples of characters with which impressionable young viewers identify: as just one example, Dr. Mae Jemison, the first female African-American astronaut, told actor Nichelle Nichols that seeing her as Lt. Uhura on the original Star Trek inspired her to pursue her dreams. So AH’s point is a valid one, and at the same time, an argument that has particular traction in the sort of feminism (not that I’m claiming that Angie Harmon would identify herself as a feminist) which emphasizes enabling and empowering individuals to attain their potential. Since I am someone who focuses more on the structural and contextual conditions of our lives, though, I was struck by SA’s reference to these in her response:
"You know, the other thing as well is- I mean, it’s unusual to work on a series that was written- The books were written by a woman, it was created by a woman, and you have two very strong female characters, you know, within the show. And for me it’s different because I feel like - and that’s not to say that I don’t think there’s fabulous writers that write women different ways - but these two women can be all things. We can be silly, and, you know, vulnerable, and sexy, and strong, and angry. You know, I’ve worked on a lot of stuff where I was told, “Don’t be too angry; don’t get too this, don’t get too that!” We’re not given that. Like, we’re both a lot, and these are two different women with different points of view and different backgrounds who can express that, all those sides of themselves."
That is, SA took the core of the original question - having a co-star who’s also a woman - and (a) situated it in the broader female-heavy production context of the Rizzoli & Isles; and (b) highlighted how that context positively impacts how the characters are written and portrayed in more complex ways than other experiences she’s had (she doesn’t say, but I’d hazard a guess that she was probably less free to express strong emotions on NCIS). It’s a perspective that provided me with something I hadn’t heard before about television production and working with women (and I’d previously read a bunch of stuff about the set of The L Word, where several of the actors noted how warm and supportive it was).
The same interviewer later asked:
"Are we going to get some more insight into the background of the friendship? Because it’d be kind of I think fun to see maybe a flashback as to when these two first met."
(Aside: Watch the interview to see AH cracking up the reporters with her funny rendition of an 80s flashback à la Sex and the City … which of course we won’t get since Maura and Jane didn’t know each other then.) SA’s response to this question also brought in a bigger picture, as she located the Jane-Maura friendship in the context of the ways that close female relationships tend to get depicted:
SA: The thing I’ll say is this, because it’s a personal- because I really like this about the show: I feel that a lot of times with girls, they make you want to love them both right away, like “They were best friends since they were young!” or “They’re sisters!” or they’re whatever it is. We don’t have that. These two women met at work, I think [to AH],
AH: Mm-hm, mm-hm.
SA: They met through work, and they are in a point in their relationship where they’re learning a lot about each other. And that’s what is kind of interesting to me. We’re not forcing the audience or anybody to say, “You gotta love these two women because this is what’s going on.” You are experiencing it as we are. There’s a lot of things that happen, even in an episode we’re shooting now where Jane finds out some stuff about Maura that make her question Maura’s loyalty to her, just strictly from her background. And so a lot of that stuff is interesting because we are learning it as well, about the friendship, as we’re shooting it. And I personally like that. I find that unpredictable, I find that it’s not forcing you to have to love something. It’s organic and that’s what to me the relationship works, because you’re not- you know, you’re discovering it and you’re figuring- you’re getting to make that natural, you know, step into it.
It’s a response that shows a thoughtfulness and broad grasp on popular media and representations of women and their relationships with each other, again, making a point that I’d never come across before. So … thanks, Sasha, for sharing your insights with such coherence!
I’m going to close this post by commenting on how I’ve seen Sasha relate to others. First, she’s been unfailingly gracious about her co-star, Angie Harmon. In a July 2010 interview, she noted, “Look, Angie is a beautiful and stunning woman. It's not easy to find a right person to go with her. So I think that we both have really good qualities that kind of complement each other. … when we do scenes together, I do feel a certain click and a certain magic that I you know you can't say always happens.”
And on Twitter, SA’s said the same sorts of things about Angie Harmon and their chemistry:
From Crystallblue44:
@sashaalexander1 Hi, thank you for answering to my ?? You and Angie Harmon have an incredible chemistry, how do u describe working w her! xo
6:27 PM Aug 27th via web
From SA:
@Crystallblue44 love her! She’s got more energy than anyone I know... She keeps if fun and fresh! Saturday, August 28, 2010 4:34:16 AM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to Crystallblue44
From @Kezleigh:
@Angie_Harmon I envy you for getting to work with the gorgeousness that is @sashaalexander1 :)
3:15 PM Dec 28th, 2010 via Twitter for iPhone
SA’s reply:
Thanks @Kezleigh but what about the gorgeousness of @angie_harmon?? I think she holds her own just fine!
4:57 AM Dec 29th, 2010 via Twitter for iPhone in reply to Kezleigh
For a celebrity - and one who now has two young children - Sasha has also been unusually generous in interacting with fans on Twitter who ask daily for all sorts of things, from hellos and birthday wishes to relationship advice, her response to jokes, and even off-the-wall questions like what weapon she’d pick during a zombie apocalypse (I swear I did not make that up). While she often can’t respond to everyone during a session, it’s obvious that she tries to “spread the love,” so that she isn’t focusing on certain posters at the expense of others.
Finally, Sasha has shown grace and humor in responding to questions where fans - mostly female - openly adore/lust after her:
From JosieMonster_:
HOLY YUM! @SashaAlexander1 gets naked and showers in this epi of NCIS.. the epi is SWAK. for anyone wondering... ps, im not a creep/perv!!
Wednesday, September 01, 2010 5:08:17 PM via mobile web
Oh shit... @SashaAlexander1 is gonna see my last tweet to her... O.O cuz shes online... O.O
8:00 PM Sep 1st via mobile web
From SA:
@JosieMonster_ I saw what you said, ha ha! :)
8:12 PM Sep 1st via Twitter for iPhone in reply to JosieMonster_
From tilnightfall:
What’s it like knowing that so many women are crushing on you?
SA’s reply:
It’s flattering, thanks...Happily married though, sorry! :) RT @tilnightfall: What’s it like knowing that so many women are crushing on you?
Thursday, October 07, 2010 6:33:41 PM via Twitter for iPhone
From Al3xa13x:
@SashaAlexander1 Watching NCIS. This show<3 @SashaAlexander1 I love you, will you marry me?
{C}1:15 PM Nov 2nd via txt
SA’s reply:
@Al3xa13x ;)
Tuesday, November 02, 2010 12:32:58 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to Al3xa13x
My personal favorite, though, is actually this exchange:
From pibby:
Hmm. My husband just humped my laptop because @SashaAlexander1's interview is playing.
8:32 PM Oct 18th, 2010 via TweetDeck
From SA:
@pibby ummm...wow!
8:50 PM Oct 18th, 2010 via Twitter for iPhone in reply to pibby
From pibby:
@SashaAlexander1 Just wanted to assure you that it's not just the lesbians that are lusting after you ;)
8:50 PM Oct 18th, 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to SashaAlexander1
From SA:
@pibby ha ha, thx! ;)
Monday, October 18, 2010 8:52:55 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to pibby
No, it’s not just the lesbians, though we are proud to claim many of the front row seats! And it’s not just lust that we feel for you, dear Sasha. Admiration for your acting, including, needless to say, the ways that you have brought Maura Isles to life as well as the breadth of roles you’ve chosen over the years; appreciation for both your willingness to play gay onscreen and to support the LGBT community offscreen; witnessing your intelligent, thoughtful responses about your work and issues beyond that; and the delight of seeing glimpses of your off-screen self (as you choose to reveal and present them, certainly) - all these combine into an intoxicating mix that I experience as the best sort of fangirly attachment. In other words, the “Good God, you’re gorgeous” response (which I have deliberately refrained from highlighting) is, for me, more of a “Good God, and you’re gorgeous,” i.e. the icing on an already substantial, delectable cake. As Maura Isles said “Yummy, fudge clusters,” permit me to say in closing, “Mmm, so much to appreciate.”
(Photo from Sasha-source.org)
You know how you can go your whole life without realizing either that something exists or how fabulous it is? That’s how I was about cheese for about 18 years. Until then, I’d only had Kraft singles, and had no idea that that’s about the least interesting example of cheese - if you can call it that - you can get. So when patient housemates introduced me to the delights of cheese soft (mmmm, Camembert) and hard (Gruyère!), it was like stepping into a fantastic kingdom that had all along been just across the road, not even particularly well hidden by rose briars or whatever. How could I have missed it for so long??
So it has been for me with Sasha Alexander (incidentally, an avowed cheese lover herself). Even though I lived with someone who was mildly obsessed with Dawson’s Creek, I didn’t watch it myself and had no idea SA played Pacey’s sister. I knew of NCIS as a CBS ratings stalwart, but it wasn’t my cup of tea, so I was oblivious to Kate Todd’s illustrious presence for two seasons and her exceptionally shocking death). It wasn’t till Rizzoli & Isles that I first encountered Sasha’s Awesomeness as an actor, and that turned out to be a springboard to appreciating some of her other dimensions (out of the gutter, people, it’s only the second paragraph!).
Now I have to say that, personally, I experience varying levels of discomfort with celebrity adulation. After all, Hollywood stars are generally beautiful, rich, and famous, and already have thousands of adoring fans, so why do they need my emotional energies as well? Furthermore, as someone who aims to maintain something of a critical perspective on media, shouldn’t I distance myself from the sort of fannish drooling over actors that happens because they’re hot? More specifically, I’ve felt and seen discussed the conundrum that arises when a, uh, enthusiasm for attractive women makes some of us feel torn between being lesbian/bisexual women and being feminist (Dorothy Snarker has written both seriously and tongue-in-cheek about this). On the one hand, there’s something affirming about being able to revel openly in queer desires, even from afar. On the other, given the troubling sexual objectification of women in the mass media, does the fact that the gaze is female make enough of a difference, particularly since that gaze often reinforces a rather narrow (i.e. young, slender, and readable as white) definition of female beauty?
Different people will no doubt answer such questions in different ways, but the way I’ve reconciled them for myself is that:
(1) Episodes of a canonical television show definitely provide particular kinds of enjoyment, but for many of us, extratextual elements magnify the pleasures of being a fan. And I have to say, Sasha Alexander has been one of the best such parts of the R&I fandom for me. In other words, I get something out of it too!
(2) While I’ve included some pretty pics, this post is primarily about how I see Sasha coming across as a public person to her queer and queer-friendly fans. So I’m not so much going for an “OMG, Sasha is so hot!!” upshot as much as “Wow, Sasha Alexander is smart, articulate, funny” and other character stuff along those lines, such that the latter is both context as well as fodder for the former response. God, could I sound any more contorted? If no one understood the sentence before last, let’s just all move on, if anyone’s still with me!
Also, there’ve been other LJ commentaries on Sasha Alexander’s acting, and that’s not going to be the focus of my post, although I was thrilled to see Sasha win the Women’s Image Network award for her role as Maura on Rizzoli & Isles. I’d like to just point to a couple of posts here: onlyjustwhisper’s post on the film The Last Lullaby, for which Sasha won an acting award at the San Diego Film Festival, and jetgirl78’s delightful “10 Scenes that Made Me Love Maura Isles”. (And for a comprehensive list of what SA’s been in, there’s always imdb and wikipedia.)
What I’m going to present here is a pretty idiosyncratic take on Sasha from her Twitter account, recent interviews, and public appearances. Oh, and before I go on, a note about Twitter (and then I swear I’ll get to it!): unlike face-to-face interviews, we don’t, of course, know for sure who’s tweeting for a particular account. However, barring a brief and slightly mysterious few days last year when the tweets from Sasha’s account came from a Blackberry versus the iPhone that had been used consistently for the months before that, the iPhone/iPad tweets build a fairly coherent picture to me, so I’m going to assume that Sasha is behind the bulk of those.
OKAY.
So one of the earliest things that struck me about Sasha was how she handled questions and comments about Rizzles with graciousness and good humor. During the airing of Rizzoli & Isles Season 1, she was asked daily on Twitter about the prospect of seeing Jane and Maura as a couple on the show, how she felt about fans shipping them, and even what she thought about various fanworks like vids and photo manipulations. One of the earliest questions and responses I’ve found is this one:
From biaregina:
@SashaAlexander1 my friends were talking about R&I, about how they look like a couple. Do you think it’d happen a romance Jane/Maura?
9:49 PM Jul 24th via TweetDeck in reply to SashaAlexander1
SA’s reply:
@biaregina I don’t see it going in that direction, but one never knows!
Saturday, July 24, 2010 10:01:53 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to biaregina
Rizzles hearts no doubt fluttered at that; however, from August 2010 onwards, SA’s been pretty consistent in predicting that the show won’t be pairing the two leads up romantically. For example:
From ocean1blue:
@SashaAlexander1 So will R & I be a couple on S2? Imagine funny scenes with Lorraine Bracco when she finds out. She would play your MIL!
8:58 PM Aug 18th via Echofon
SA’s reply:
@ocean1blue I don’t think that is the direction the show is going, sorry...
Thursday, August 19, 2010 1:22:47 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to ocean1blue
From Crystallblue44:
@SashaAlexander1 HI! Good morning/night There is a lot of subtext, between Jane and Maura’s friendship! what do you think about that?xoxo!
12:43 PM Aug 28th via web in reply to SashaAlexander1
SA’s reply:
@Crystallblue44 I like the dynamics of their friendship... That is all I see it though, as very close friends.
Monday, August 30, 2010 3:19:26 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to Crystallblue44
And I believe this was her earliest response on Twitter that explicitly referred to “Rizzles”:
From wndrlndbby1123:
@SashaAlexander1 just curious... are you guys aware of the rapidly growing lesbian following/shippers you have for R and I?
2:07 AM Aug 17th, 2010 via DestroyTwitter
From SA:
@wndrlndbby1123 yes, we are aware... I have seen the whole 'Rizzles' campaign! :)
Tuesday, August 17, 2010 9:18:02 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to wndrlndbby1123
Not only was Sasha aware of the shipping, she also stated that she was not at all bothered by it:
From ReesesPieces79:
@SashaAlexander1 does it offend u when people say u & Angie have chemistry or that there's "subtext"? Hope not, cuz u 2 R great together! :)
1:56 PM Sep 8th, 2010 via web
From SA:
@ReesesPieces79 no, I take it as a compliment!
Wednesday, September 08, 2010 5:53:32 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to ReesesPieces79
In the last part of her interview with Duncan Scheib answering fan questions, Sasha addressed the whole subtext/UST issue more extensively when she responded to the question, “I think someone should ask Sasha what she thinks about people talking a lot about her onscreen relationship with her costar, Angie Harmon.”
(Screencap courtesy of the amazing onlyjustwhisper)
With a knowing smile that said, “Aha - I was wondering when I’d get a Rizzles question!,” SA laughed “Okay!” and started with a note of playful gravity, “Well, you know, Angie and I are on the Hot List for TV Guide this week for our ‘womance’. And, initially, I was like, ‘Womance?’, and I spoke to Angie, and she was like, ‘Womance? What does that mean? Like a bromance, a womance?’”
Yep, Sasha (and Angie), I believe that’s exactly the parallel that the article was drawing; it was TV Guide that put House and Wilson on the cover a couple of years ago with the headline “Isn’t it bromantic?” http://images2.fanpop.com/images/polls/125553_1223375298203_full.jpg
She continued, “Uh, you know, I think Angie and I both think it’s really fun, and- Look, I think it’s great that you have two strong female characters that are adult women who have an adult female relationship. If people read into that and make that what it is and if that’s [laughs] sexy in some way, then cool! I mean, you know, I don’t-”
So essentially, SA pointed out the positive aspect of portraying a relationship between two grown women (which Janet Tamaro has also said we don’t see often enough on television), acknowledged that Jane and Maura are shipped, and said that she’s fine with it. Now, the way she emphasized “fun” and laughed a little as she said “sexy in some way” indicates to me that she expects Jane and Maura will never actually get together and probably not even express real attraction to each other on the show. But that’s no surprise.
She ended her response, “I think it’s really fun, and I’m proud of the show, and I’m proud that it’s reaching so many women, and that they’re strong females. I hope that we continue to write and do things that speak to women - and men, of course - but, like, that speak to women and represent women in a way that’s authentic and not catty or gossipy or like, we’re fighting over the same boy. But like, two women who are actually working women and who, you know, are trying to find love and are dealing with their own relationship. So, I think it’s cool.”
What this says to me is that SA is cool with both the shipping and the large number of queer women that the show “reaches” (and thrills and delights!); I mean, she says simply “women,” but I think I’m reasonably reading between the lines here.
Rizzoli & Isles aside, Sasha’s played a lesbian before, which I’m sure 99.2% of you know. Until I started working on this post, I’d only ever seen a brief clip of SA kissing Sarah Silverman. In my research, I found all of her scenes from Greg the Bunny on Youtube.
First, barring the slightly bizarre scenario (from what I gather, this is a behind-the-scenes look at a Muppets-like show), this was pretty entertaining to watch, and hats off to Sasha for her ability to act opposite talking animal puppets. In fact, the titular character is the first person to whom Laura expresses her interest in Alison (Silverman), and he gets to give her a massage! (No, of course I am not jealous of a tiny puppet bunny.) Second, I thought the episode did a good job in featuring a lesbian character (and same-sex kiss) without sensationalization; it was a source of humorous misunderstanding in the context of all the zany goings on at that set, but Laura Carlson wasn’t a “stunt lesbian,” and she not only got to emphatically express her complete lack of interest in a male character (Jimmy, played by Seth Green), but Alison ends up taking her home. Yay!
On a slightly tangential note, SA also guest starred on a season 6 episode of House that featured one of the most bromantic plotlines ever, even for that show. Nora was the hottie in an adjacent apartment whom House and Wilson were both interested in, but she assumed they were a gay couple for most of the episode, was all supportive of trying to help House with his boyfriend problems (awwww), and even witnessed an on-the-knee proposal from Wilson to House at a candlelit restaurant (yes, at a textual level it wasn’t for “real,” but still, no doubt some stand-out dialogue and imagery for lots of House/Wilson shippers).
(Screencap from http://housecaps.fanfusion.org. What is it about SA getting massages when she’s a guest character?)
Back in the real world, SA has publicly supported LGBT activism, making an appearance at Lambda Legal’s event in September 2010.
(Thanks again to onlyjustwhisper for the screencap!)
She says, "Well, I’m here to support the community, of course, and many of my friends, and what Lambda’s doing, you know. I think it’s beyond important, so that’s what I’m here to support. … It’s a human thing more than a political thing to me, so .. I think there’s so much politics involved, and the maneuvring, the navigating of the direction that we’re going. The important thing is that I do believe that there’s strides being made all the time; I do believe that. I see it, so I hope that there will just be breakthroughs, I hope that we will continue to move in the right direction, that we will continue to open people’s minds and stick together as a community to make sure that people are aware, and that they understand, they see paths around prejudices and everything else."
Of course, it’s not a requirement that entertainers share my political sensibilities even broadly for me to appreciate their work; hey, I’ve been entranced by the lush Romanticism of Richard Wagner many a time. And - I feel like I shouldn’t need to say this, but recent experience suggests that I do - it’s not because I’m conflating the actor with the character they play, and hence somehow think that their speaking in support of gay rights makes it more likely that the actor and/or the character is (secretly) gay. But I do find it particularly gratifying when an actor with a large queer following is willing to take a public stance in favor of LGBT rights and identities. First, because we still have a ways to go in various domains - legal and political, media representation, and perhaps most crucially, “the hearts and minds” of Middle America etc. - so every voice counts, especially those that are more prominent than average. But at a more personal level, I feel better about being a fan of someone who stands in my corner on an issue that gets to me at a more visceral level than other worthy causes, like, say, research on a particular disease or combatting climate change. So all that’s a verbose exposition of “Yay, Sasha, for the Lambda Legal thing!”
SA has also provided responses about Rizzoli & Isles that I found particularly interesting from a feminist perspective. In this clip, an unidentified female interviewer asked this question:
"It seems like there’s a real shortage of female-led shows on television, with the exception of, like, Desperate Housewives. What do you think is the benefit for you guys for having just a female main co-star?"
(Another pretty picture courtesy of onlyjustwhisper)
AH answered first, and talked about the show “putting back into the mainstream” the idea that girls can do anything if they put their mind to it, including unusual occupations for women like homicide detective and medical examiner. There’s undoubtedly an important role that media representations play in providing examples of characters with which impressionable young viewers identify: as just one example, Dr. Mae Jemison, the first female African-American astronaut, told actor Nichelle Nichols that seeing her as Lt. Uhura on the original Star Trek inspired her to pursue her dreams. So AH’s point is a valid one, and at the same time, an argument that has particular traction in the sort of feminism (not that I’m claiming that Angie Harmon would identify herself as a feminist) which emphasizes enabling and empowering individuals to attain their potential. Since I am someone who focuses more on the structural and contextual conditions of our lives, though, I was struck by SA’s reference to these in her response:
"You know, the other thing as well is- I mean, it’s unusual to work on a series that was written- The books were written by a woman, it was created by a woman, and you have two very strong female characters, you know, within the show. And for me it’s different because I feel like - and that’s not to say that I don’t think there’s fabulous writers that write women different ways - but these two women can be all things. We can be silly, and, you know, vulnerable, and sexy, and strong, and angry. You know, I’ve worked on a lot of stuff where I was told, “Don’t be too angry; don’t get too this, don’t get too that!” We’re not given that. Like, we’re both a lot, and these are two different women with different points of view and different backgrounds who can express that, all those sides of themselves."
That is, SA took the core of the original question - having a co-star who’s also a woman - and (a) situated it in the broader female-heavy production context of the Rizzoli & Isles; and (b) highlighted how that context positively impacts how the characters are written and portrayed in more complex ways than other experiences she’s had (she doesn’t say, but I’d hazard a guess that she was probably less free to express strong emotions on NCIS). It’s a perspective that provided me with something I hadn’t heard before about television production and working with women (and I’d previously read a bunch of stuff about the set of The L Word, where several of the actors noted how warm and supportive it was).
The same interviewer later asked:
"Are we going to get some more insight into the background of the friendship? Because it’d be kind of I think fun to see maybe a flashback as to when these two first met."
(Aside: Watch the interview to see AH cracking up the reporters with her funny rendition of an 80s flashback à la Sex and the City … which of course we won’t get since Maura and Jane didn’t know each other then.) SA’s response to this question also brought in a bigger picture, as she located the Jane-Maura friendship in the context of the ways that close female relationships tend to get depicted:
SA: The thing I’ll say is this, because it’s a personal- because I really like this about the show: I feel that a lot of times with girls, they make you want to love them both right away, like “They were best friends since they were young!” or “They’re sisters!” or they’re whatever it is. We don’t have that. These two women met at work, I think [to AH],
AH: Mm-hm, mm-hm.
SA: They met through work, and they are in a point in their relationship where they’re learning a lot about each other. And that’s what is kind of interesting to me. We’re not forcing the audience or anybody to say, “You gotta love these two women because this is what’s going on.” You are experiencing it as we are. There’s a lot of things that happen, even in an episode we’re shooting now where Jane finds out some stuff about Maura that make her question Maura’s loyalty to her, just strictly from her background. And so a lot of that stuff is interesting because we are learning it as well, about the friendship, as we’re shooting it. And I personally like that. I find that unpredictable, I find that it’s not forcing you to have to love something. It’s organic and that’s what to me the relationship works, because you’re not- you know, you’re discovering it and you’re figuring- you’re getting to make that natural, you know, step into it.
It’s a response that shows a thoughtfulness and broad grasp on popular media and representations of women and their relationships with each other, again, making a point that I’d never come across before. So … thanks, Sasha, for sharing your insights with such coherence!
I’m going to close this post by commenting on how I’ve seen Sasha relate to others. First, she’s been unfailingly gracious about her co-star, Angie Harmon. In a July 2010 interview, she noted, “Look, Angie is a beautiful and stunning woman. It's not easy to find a right person to go with her. So I think that we both have really good qualities that kind of complement each other. … when we do scenes together, I do feel a certain click and a certain magic that I you know you can't say always happens.”
And on Twitter, SA’s said the same sorts of things about Angie Harmon and their chemistry:
From Crystallblue44:
@sashaalexander1 Hi, thank you for answering to my ?? You and Angie Harmon have an incredible chemistry, how do u describe working w her! xo
6:27 PM Aug 27th via web
From SA:
@Crystallblue44 love her! She’s got more energy than anyone I know... She keeps if fun and fresh! Saturday, August 28, 2010 4:34:16 AM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to Crystallblue44
From @Kezleigh:
@Angie_Harmon I envy you for getting to work with the gorgeousness that is @sashaalexander1 :)
3:15 PM Dec 28th, 2010 via Twitter for iPhone
SA’s reply:
Thanks @Kezleigh but what about the gorgeousness of @angie_harmon?? I think she holds her own just fine!
4:57 AM Dec 29th, 2010 via Twitter for iPhone in reply to Kezleigh
For a celebrity - and one who now has two young children - Sasha has also been unusually generous in interacting with fans on Twitter who ask daily for all sorts of things, from hellos and birthday wishes to relationship advice, her response to jokes, and even off-the-wall questions like what weapon she’d pick during a zombie apocalypse (I swear I did not make that up). While she often can’t respond to everyone during a session, it’s obvious that she tries to “spread the love,” so that she isn’t focusing on certain posters at the expense of others.
Finally, Sasha has shown grace and humor in responding to questions where fans - mostly female - openly adore/lust after her:
From JosieMonster_:
HOLY YUM! @SashaAlexander1 gets naked and showers in this epi of NCIS.. the epi is SWAK. for anyone wondering... ps, im not a creep/perv!!
Wednesday, September 01, 2010 5:08:17 PM via mobile web
Oh shit... @SashaAlexander1 is gonna see my last tweet to her... O.O cuz shes online... O.O
8:00 PM Sep 1st via mobile web
From SA:
@JosieMonster_ I saw what you said, ha ha! :)
8:12 PM Sep 1st via Twitter for iPhone in reply to JosieMonster_
From tilnightfall:
What’s it like knowing that so many women are crushing on you?
SA’s reply:
It’s flattering, thanks...Happily married though, sorry! :) RT @tilnightfall: What’s it like knowing that so many women are crushing on you?
Thursday, October 07, 2010 6:33:41 PM via Twitter for iPhone
From Al3xa13x:
@SashaAlexander1 Watching NCIS. This show<3 @SashaAlexander1 I love you, will you marry me?
{C}1:15 PM Nov 2nd via txt
SA’s reply:
@Al3xa13x ;)
Tuesday, November 02, 2010 12:32:58 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to Al3xa13x
My personal favorite, though, is actually this exchange:
From pibby:
Hmm. My husband just humped my laptop because @SashaAlexander1's interview is playing.
8:32 PM Oct 18th, 2010 via TweetDeck
From SA:
@pibby ummm...wow!
8:50 PM Oct 18th, 2010 via Twitter for iPhone in reply to pibby
From pibby:
@SashaAlexander1 Just wanted to assure you that it's not just the lesbians that are lusting after you ;)
8:50 PM Oct 18th, 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to SashaAlexander1
From SA:
@pibby ha ha, thx! ;)
Monday, October 18, 2010 8:52:55 PM via Twitter for iPhone in reply to pibby
No, it’s not just the lesbians, though we are proud to claim many of the front row seats! And it’s not just lust that we feel for you, dear Sasha. Admiration for your acting, including, needless to say, the ways that you have brought Maura Isles to life as well as the breadth of roles you’ve chosen over the years; appreciation for both your willingness to play gay onscreen and to support the LGBT community offscreen; witnessing your intelligent, thoughtful responses about your work and issues beyond that; and the delight of seeing glimpses of your off-screen self (as you choose to reveal and present them, certainly) - all these combine into an intoxicating mix that I experience as the best sort of fangirly attachment. In other words, the “Good God, you’re gorgeous” response (which I have deliberately refrained from highlighting) is, for me, more of a “Good God, and you’re gorgeous,” i.e. the icing on an already substantial, delectable cake. As Maura Isles said “Yummy, fudge clusters,” permit me to say in closing, “Mmm, so much to appreciate.”
(Photo from Sasha-source.org)