The One with the Lesbian Wedding

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

“The One with the Lesbian Wedding”
Friends episode
Episode no. Season 2
Episode 11
Written by Doty Abrams
Directed by Thomas Schlamme
Original airdate January 18, 1996
Episode chronology
← Previous Next →
"The One with Russ" "The One After the Superbowl, Part One"

"The One With the Lesbian Wedding" is the eleventh episode of season two of the television situation comedy Friends. It attracted mild controversy and censorship as a result of its portrayal of same-sex marriage.

First aired: January 18, 1996

[edit] Plot

Ross's ex-wife Carol announces her plans to marry her lesbian life partner, Susan; Ross' sister, Monica caters the wedding. Reflecting the larger controversy surrounding gay marriage, Carol's parents refuse to attend the wedding, causing Carol to second-guess her decision, but Ross finds himself in the position of being the one to encourage her to go ahead with the ceremony despite their opposition.

Joey makes his first appearance on the long-running soap opera Days of Our Lives as Dr. Drake Ramoray.

One of Phoebe's massage clients, Rose Adelman, dies on the massage table and her spirit gets stuck in Phoebe.

Meanwhile, Rachel's mother, Sandra, makes a major life decision after seeing how Rachel has learned to fend for herself: she is divorcing Rachel's father.

[edit] Reception

As a result of its portrayal of a lesbian couple marrying, the episode attracted some controversy across the United States. Two network affiliates refused to air the episode - KJAC-TV in Port Arthur, Texas and WLIO in Lima, Ohio - citing objectionable content, although the decision drew little press attention, partly due to the small size of the markets in question.[1] Gay and lesbian groups - notably GLAAD - decried the censorship of the episode.[2] While the episode was one of the first mainstream portrayals of gay marriage on US television, it was the second gay marriage on a sitcom that season; the show Roseanne had aired an episode just five weeks before in which the title character coordinated a wedding for her co-worker Leon and his lover Scott. The New York Times claimed "The biggest news about the wedding on Friends was that it was almost no news at all." However, the fact that Carol and Susan's ceremony was officiated by Candace Gingrich, a gay-rights activist and sister to conservative Congressman Newt Gingrich did draw some media attention, as the casting was perceived as a comment on the Republican Party's anti-gay rights stance and the "Contract with America" platform.[1] A writer with the Associated Press noted in an article that week that the ceremony would not include a kiss by the newlyweds, including the episode as part of an observed trend of portrayals of gay characters while skirting controversy by avoiding or minimizing physical contact.[3]

The episode was the highest rated television program for the week, with 31.6 million viewers.[4]

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b Ron Becker. Gay TV And Straight America], Rutgers University Press, 2006, pp. 161-163.
  2. ^ GLAAD:
  3. ^ Lynn Elber (Associated Press). "TV gays avoid the physical stuff," The Plain Dealer (Cleveland, Ohio), January 15, 1996, page 11D.
  4. ^ Staff writer. "Here come the brides", Entertainment Weekly, 1996-02-02. Retrieved on 2007-08-14. 
v • d • e
Friends
Characters
Actors
Significant episodes
Guest stars · Central Perk · I'll Be There for You · Quotes · Media
Languages