Gay Thursday: The Los Angeles Times and Prayers for Bobby

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LA Times
The Awards Insider
"The Envelope"
June 12, 2009

Beware: Don't underestimate 'Prayers for Bobby' at the Emmys

If I were the folks behind Grey Gardens, I'd be saying a few "Hail Marys" that I can get around Prayers for Bobby at the Emmys. Many award pundits are making the huge mistake of downplaying the chances of Lifetime's telefilm, based upon a real story, about a religiously conservative mother (Sigourney Weaver) who pays a horrible price for damning her son for being gay. Bobby committed suicide in 1983 and the tragic loss resulted in his mom having an epiphany about this civil rights issue that turned her into a gay-rights crusader.



In recent decades, the Emmys have heaped gold statuettes on many films about gay rights, including AIDS expose And the Band Played On (best TV movie, 1994). The best-actress victory by Glenn Close as a lesbian army colonel in Serving in Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story (1995) proves that Grey Gardens stars Jessica Lange and Drew Barrymore have much to fear from Sigourney Weaver.

Right now, of course, the issue of intolerance toward gays weighs heavily upon Hollywooders outraged about the passage of Proposition 8 in California. Historically, the Emmys have enthusiastically embraced many films about all civil rights topics, including abuse against Native Americans (Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, best film, 2007) and African Americans (A Lesson Before Dying, Miss Evers' Boys, best movies in 1999 and 1997, respectively).

Remember, once Emmy nominees are determined, winners are decided by a team of judges who must sign affidavits attesting that they viewed the work of all contenders. The media mega-buzz surrounding HBO's "Grey Gardens" would probably propel it to easy victories in an awards contest determined by popular ballot, but that's not how the Emmys work, at least when choosing winners. Prayers for Bobby really tugs at the heart strings and, contrary to widespread belief (justified in some cases, granted), not all Hollywooders have chests of stone.

Prayers for Bobby faces one serious drawback in the initial voting stage, which does utilize a popular ballot to determine nominees. TV academy members didn't receive campaign DVDs, which they are not obliged to watch, until a day or so before voting commenced June 5. (They got DVDs of Grey Gardens back in April.) Is it realistic to believe they're rushing to view it now when faced with so many other Emmy DVDs stacked up next to their plasma screens? Prayers for Bobby will be telecast again by Lifetime on June 23 at 9 p.m. EDT/PDT. Emmy voting continues until June 26.


[Thank you, John Wesley Schipp]

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