Best Art, Best TV & Film and Best Female Hosted!
Susan and Sharon are thrilled to sit down with award-winning singer, songwriter, actress -- and stuntwoman -- Marneen Fields. As a gymnast, swimmer and stuntwoman in the 1970s and 80s, Marneen’s career sky-rocketed with roles on Scarecrow & Mrs. King, Lou Grant, Quincy, Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, The Man from Atlantis, The Fall Guy, Murder She Wrote, Dynasty -- as well as the Clint Eastwood film The Gauntlet.
Learn MoreSusan and Sharon get all dressed up and strut their stuff with legendary 80s and 90s TV and Film costume designer Eilish Zebrasky. For over 25 years, Eilish Zebrasky was Aaron Spelling Productions Costume Department Head, responsible for all the amazing clothes you saw on classic shows like “Murder, She Wrote”, “Dynasty”, “The Love Boat”, “Charlie’s Angels”, “Hart to Hart”, “Hotel”, “Fantasy Island”, “Vega$” and “Charmed”.
Learn MoreTumble out of bed/and stumble to the kitchen/pour yourself a cup of ambition
And yawn and stretch and listen in as Susan and Sharon talk "Nine to Five": The TV Series with pop culture podcaster and founder of Weirding Way Media, Chris Stachiw.
“What do we want? Fair Pay! When do we want it? NOW!”
The 80’s TV Ladies fast-forward from the 1980s to the RIGHT NOW – for a special "breaking news" episode about the ongoing 2023 WGA Writer’s Strike that is having a major impact on television production – and the future of entertainment as we know it.
“To be able to see it represented on TV means so much to a young mind." Susan and Sharon continue their celebration of Pride Month by welcoming JD and Denise, hosts of "The Rainbow Remix", a podcast featuring LGBTQ lifestyle news, music, arts, media -- and mixology!
Learn MoreWhat did Queer representation look like in 70s, 80s and 90s television? Could you say gay?Susan and Sharon kick off their Pride Month celebration with author, podcaster and video maker Matt Baume. His latest book, “Hi Homey, I’m Homo!” traces the evolution of LGBTQ+ characters on American sitcoms. His previous book - “Defining Marriage” - chronicles the personal stories of people who fought for marriage equality over the last forty years.
Learn MoreIn Part Two of our conversation with Cynthia Bemis Abrams, host of the “Advanced TV Herstory” podcast, we continue our discussion of feminism in American culture and its effect on television as we delve into sports, politics, female stereotypes – and the unsung feminist heroes of Hollywood’s mysterious “Secret Sisterhood”.
Learn MoreWelcome to 80’s TV Ladies: Season Two!
Susan and Sharon kick-off the new season with Cynthia Bemis-Abrams, the host of sister podcast “Advanced TV Herstory” -- a fascinating deep dive into the backstory of women in television, that connects the dots between TV, feminism, American culture and politics.In Part One of a two-part conversation, we’ll talk about the shows, actresses and characters that stood out as landmarks for women over the past five decades.
Susan and Sharon celebrate the finale of their first season with a wrap-up on “Cagney & Lacey.” How did a little idea about having a female “Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid” buddy movie turn into a legendary TV series that spanned 7 seasons, 125 episodes and 4 two-hour TV movies?
Learn MoreWhat do those crazy 90s kids think of 80s Cagney & Lacey? We’re gonna find out!Susan and Sharon welcome back Serita Fontanesi, Megan Ruble and Sergio Perez – the 90’s TV Babies are back!
Learn MoreWhat was it like to break into directing in the 1970s and '80s? Let's find out! Sharon and Susan are honored to talk with Emmy-winning director Karen Arthur. Karen started out as an actress on such shows as “Get Smart”, “The Streets of San Francisco”, “Mannix”, “That Girl” and “The Monkees”.
Learn MoreSusan and Sharon are thrilled to sit down with show business legend Sharon Gless. Multi-Emmy and Golden Globe winner, Sharon Gless has appeared in dozens of television shows such as “Nip/Tuck”, “Rizzoli & Isles”, “The Rockford Files”, “House Calls,”The Bob Newhart Show”, “Station 19” and “The Exorcist.” She has created iconic and ground-breaking characters in the shows “Burn Notice”, “Queer as Folk”, “The Trials of Rosie O’Neill” and of course “Cagney & Lacey”.
Learn MoreMeet the woman behind Mary Beth Lacey. Sharon and Susan are excited and honored to talk with Emmy and Tony Award winning actress and the star of Cagney & Lacey, Tyne Daly.
Learn MoreWait! There were THREE Cagneys?
In Part 2 of our conversation with creator/executive producer Barney Rosenzweig, we follow along as the massive success of the Cagney & Lacey TV movie launches it directly into a weekly series for CBS and into a very tumultuous road from multiple cancellations to hit ratings and 14 Emmys. The rest, as they say, is 80’s TV herstory…
Buckle up, kids - We’re kicking off our series on Cagney & Lacey!
Sharon & Susan begin their look back at the classic 80’s TV series Cagney & Lacey with a conversation with the show’s creator and executive producer, Barney Rosenzweig. Rosenzweig’s career spans five decades and hundreds of hours of television including Charlie’s Angels, Daniel Boone, Christie, Twice in a Lifetime, and The Trials of Rosie O’Neill.
Could you be a stuntwoman? Find out what it takes. Susan and Sharon are honored to talk with legendary award-winning stuntwoman Debbie Evans Leavitt. In a career spanning six decades, Debbie has risked life and limb in classic television shows and massive blockbuster movies. She talks doubling Stephanie Zimbalist on Remington Steele and what that moment between take-off and crash-landing feels like. Debbie has flipped and fallen and raced in Charlie’s Angels, Scarecrow and Mrs. King, Vega$, ChiPs, The A-Team, Hill Street Blues, Magnum, PI, Cagney & Lacey, CSI, NCIS: Los Angeles, Fear the Walking Dead, Major Crimes, and Criminal Minds.
Learn MoreIt’s the return of the 90’s TV Babies! Susan and Sharon welcome back Serita Fontanesi, Megan Ruble and Sergio Perez to get their 90s TV take on “Remington Steele”. We asked them to watch three episodes and share their thoughts:The pilot: “License to Steele”Episode 121, “Sting of Steele”, featuring Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. as Steele’s mentor Daniel Chalmers – and Beverly Garland, making a return appearance as Laura’s mother, Abigail HoltEpisode 203, “Red Holt Steele” – you know, the one where Laura’s house blows up and she almost sleeps with Remington… The 90s TV Babies loved “Scarecrow & Mrs. King” – what will their verdict be about “Remington Steele”? Let’s find out!
Learn MoreSusan and Sharon sit down with “Remington Steele” assistant director Jerram Swartz. In a career spanning 5 decades, Jerram has worked on movies including “E.T.: The Extraterrestrial” and “The Blues Brothers” as well as 80’s TV classics such as “The A-Team”, “Cagney & Lacey” and “Riptide”. In this episode, he shares stories about the fun, excitement and controversy of working on the fifth – and final – season of “Remington Steele”.
Learn MoreIn 1980s television, cars were the stars -- From “Knight Rider’s” KIT to Miami Vice’s Testarossa to the A-Team van, everyone knew who drove what -- and why. But what did the women get to drive? The 80s TV Ladies sit down with television writer and auto aficionado Evan Ball (“Stargirl”, “Colin in Black and White”, “Mayor of Kingstown”) to talk Remington Steele and 80s cars.
Learn MoreSusan and Sharon take on Season Two and Three of “Remington Steele” as they talk TV tropes, favorite episodes and the introduction of Doris Roberts as fan-favorite Mildred Krebs!
Learn MoreSteele Chatting: Susan and Sharon continue their talk with award-winning stage, TV and film actress Stephanie Zimbalist who created the 80s icon, Laura Holt…
Learn MoreSusan and Sharon sit down with a true show business icon and classic 80’s TV Lady -- “Remington Steele’s” one-and-only Laura Holt -- Stephanie Zimbalist. In a career spanning six decades, Stephanie has performed on stage and screen with everyone from Alec Baldwin, Walter Matthau, Jessica Tandy, Anthony Hopkins, John Goodman, Patricia Neal, Alfred Molina, Tommy Tune, Jimmy Stewart AND her own father, the legendary Efrem Zimbalist Jr.
Learn MoreBut did they?Join Part Two of our interview with TV writer/producer Robin Bernheim, to discover the complicated answer to the burning question: Did Stephanie Zimbalist and Pierce Brosnan get along while filming “Remington Steele”?
Learn MoreFrom Remington Steele to Princess Switch -Susan and Sharon sit down with legendary television writer Robin Bernheim. Robin’s career began in her mid-twenties with the “Remington Steele” episode “Steele in the Chips”, co-written with series star and long-time friend Stephanie Zimbalist. In a career spanning five decades, Robin has gone on to write and produce episodes of “MacGyver”, “Matlock”, “Quantum Leap”, “Star Trek: The Next Generation”, “Star Trek: Voyager” and “Mystery 101”. Robin is the creator, writer and executive producer of Netflix’s hit “Princess Switch” franchise starring Vanessa Hudgins
Learn MoreThis week, Susan and Sharon begin their examination of the hit 1980s series “Remington Steele”. Premiering on October 10, 1982, “Remington Steele” starred two relative newcomers to the network TV landscape -- Stephanie Zimbalist and Pierce Brosnan. The premise was simple: Private eye Laura Holt finds that clients are reluctant to hire a female investigator. So she invents a fictitious male “boss” named Remington Steele to increase business. The ruse works perfectly until the day a former thief and con-man shows up and assumes the identity of Remington Steele, setting into motion a classic romantic comedy -- with plenty of mystery and danger thrown in for good measure.
Learn MoreAka - Some Gals Have All The Luck!
Sharon and Susan talk with “Scarecrow & Mrs. King’s” one-and-only “Francine Desmond” – actress Martha Smith. Our conversation covers everything from her early days as a model for the Ford Motor Company to her “National Lampoon’s Animal House” adventures and finally to working on the show she first knew only as “The Secret Kate Jackson Project” – we’ll find out why Martha Smith truly is the “Gal With All The Luck”!
Season 3 of “Scarecrow & Mrs. King” is a fun, and kind of bonkers, 22-episode journey that is anything but straight-forward. International intrigue, poisoned food and wine, eclectic guest stars and a herky-jerky path to romance all add up to a season with surprising rewards – and puzzling road blocks.
Learn MoreSusan and Sharon sit down with the co-creator of “Scarecrow & Mrs. King” - Eugenie Ross-Leming - to get some real behind-the-scenes insight on the Kate Jackson action comedy, feminism in television, and managing long-term success in Hollywood.
Learn MoreWhat the heck happened in Season 2 of “Scarecrow & Mrs. King”? Oh, we have all the dish on 80s TV Ladies™. More action, more romance, more Europe – and more opportunities for Amanda to show off her skills as a legit spy – and a mom.
Learn MoreBut really: How much fun is it to be a spy and a mom? In this episode, Susan and Sharon continue their conversation about the TV show “Scarecrow & Mrs. King'', focusing on how Amanda balanced her home life with her new (secret!) career as a spy and how her desire to embrace this new career drives the Season One episodes. And did Kate Jackson’s foot injury nearly derailed the season? Along the way, we also discuss…
Learn MoreWhat TV show shall we cover for our first time? How about the pilot of Scarecrow and Mrs. King, starring Kate Jackson and Bruce Boxleitner? Susan and Sharon talk about the show, the stars, and the mysteries of this hit 1983 TV action-comedy drama.
Learn MoreWhat the heck are we doing? In Podcast Zero, hosts Susan Lambert Hatem and Sharon Johnson take you to the fabulous and exciting television past. and particularly, that special time in pop-culture and water-cooler conferences about big-hair television: the 1980s!
Learn MoreA nice Business landingpage to showcase your business, services and products!
Look Back in Order to Leap Forward
80s TV Ladies™ is a new podcast devoted to the beloved, female-driven TV shows of the 1980s (with some nods to the 70s and 90s).
On our show you’ll hear a breakdown how those shows got made, how they were influenced by the times and, in turn, how they influenced pop-culture trends to follow. You should listen if you’re interested in 80s pop-culture, the spill-over decades and television, especially looking at it through the “two-steps forward, one-step-back” lens of media-driven feminism.
Why This Podcast?
We grew up on 80s TV and we’re curious how 80s television reflected - and didn’t reflect - the real world, but more importantly, how it made us see the world ahead of us. This podcast will be exploring 80s TV shows - starting with action shows - from a modern and feminist lens and how these ladies shaped both television and our ideas of women. We’ll be looking at how these shows got made and what ladies were working in front of and behind-the-scenes to make them. Also how much we loved these shows and forgave them for their faults.
Calling all fans! If you love 80s TV Ladies and would like to support us, consider becoming a Patron! As a Patron you can listen to ad-free episodes, join our Discord community with other 80s TV lovers, and gain access to exclusive digital content from the 80s TV Ladies.
A nice Business landingpage to showcase your business, services and products!
Susan is an indie writer, producer and director of a lot of cool stuff you may have never heard of. She made her Off-Broadway playwright debut in 2019 with Confidence (and The Speech), a semi-finalist for the Eugene O’Neill. Her play, My Dinner with Andrea was an Ashland New Play Festival and Henley Rose Competition Finalist. Her company, 134 West, has a mission to develop new work and diverse voices across theatre, film and audio. Projects include The Flirt Bar, Five Players in Search of a Win, O Baby Mine, Ty The Pie Guy, and the critically acclaimed Bend in the Road: The Anne of Green Gables Musical.
Susan was Director of Creative Content for Walt Disney Studios, producing over 100 digital marketing film campaigns, including Finding Nemo, Pirates of the Caribbean and The Incredibles. She developed the first Disney Pictures mobile site and holds a patent for Disney’s first online entertainment ticketing system. Favorite 80s TV shows: Remington Steele, Scarecrow and Mrs. King, Cagney & Lacey, The Facts of Life, Cheers, Designing Women and despite its lack of ladies, Hardcastle and McCormick. Find out more at SUSANLAMBERTHATEM.COM.
Sharon is a television and podcast enthusiast who lives in Glendale, CA. She’s worked as an underling in a production company and a television network since the 90s. However, Sharon’s watched television for as long as she can remember. She was such an avid viewer that at about 10 years old, she volunteered to watch Sesame Street with her much-younger sister (her mother wanted someone to be there in case her sister had questions. 😃 ) Thanks to peak TV, it’s now impossible for her to consume as much television as she would like, but she tries to keep up with what’s out there to help her determine what she may want to add to her television diet.
Camerawoman, Entrepreneur, Good Deed Doer
Hosted by Susan Lambert Hatem and Sharon Johnson
Produced by 134 West
Producers: Melissa Roth, Susan Lambert Hatem
Audio Engineer & Editor: Kevin Ducey
Associate Producers: Meghan McKerinan, Sergio Perez
Featuring the 90s TV Babies: Serita Fontanesi, Sergio Perez and Megan Ruble
Tell us how you are liking the show. And tell us what you think defines an 80s TV Lady!
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