This year people marveled that the 3rd
year season premier of “Scandal” attracted over 12 million
viewers and that the show has generated twitter and viewing parties
all over the country. The show is about a public relations guru and
her on-going affair with the President of the United States. Stories
about women who find love and sacrifice it for the greater good are
nothing new – but this story seems to have captured the attention
of everyone, especially women of color. If you call one while the
show is on, you might get hung up on! You might still find a lot of
people who have never seen it, but I doubt you can find many people
who have never heard of it.
The publicity has been incredible and
you've seen Kerry Washington, the actress who plays the lead
character Olivia Pope go from being considered a journey woman actress
to a star in her own right. The outfits she wears on the show have
caused American seamstresses to turn their hands into pincushions in
their haste to produce knockoff outfits overnight. The Prada calfskin
tote in white and tan are the most sought after items on earth right
now – there isn't a SINGLE Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus or Saks that
has it in stock in the country. You can find a needle in a haystack
before you'll find a white trench coat.
Well, this is only my theory, but I haven't heard anyone dispute me on it. Let me take you back in time.
It was the summer of 2011 when the
world was inundated with stories about Muammar Gaddafi's “obsession”
with Condelezza Rice. Some reported that he had a room peppered with
pictures of her, clippings of her triumphs, a movie about her
background and travels that was longer than “The Godfather”, and
that he showered her with diamonds and asked her to be his queen. It
turned out that much of that was overblown, the room was actually a
binder, the diamonds were actually one ring, and the film was a 60
minute video tape. It doesn't matter – I said it at the time and I
will repeat it – every woman should know such adulation! He called
her his beautiful African princess, he said that he admired her, that
he enjoyed watching her tell others what to do, and that he liked the
fact that she had so much power and was so intelligent. Count the
number of times somebody has told you that! If you still have
fingers left, that is the answer to the question about why women are
drawn to the television show “Scandal” with such cult-like
devotion. The show began a few months after that revelation.
In every episode you see a woman who
owns her own successful business that spends each week saving the
world from public relations nightmares, all the while meeting the
President in the Oval office, or a tech closet, or a secret home in
Vermont for their rendez-vous! You wonder how she has the time –
her clothes are impeccable, the weave is never out of place, and that
handbag never even has a smudge on it. She's a woman of African
descent who tells everyone what to do, they all listen to her, and
when the show is over, order is restored. You can't find that level
of fantasy everywhere.
So, if you're planning on asking a
sister out on Thursday night, be prepared for an early evening –
she may have a standing reservation at a Chicago viewing party –
cause “Scandal” is one show we don't intend to miss!!!
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