Drew and Glen and Frasier and Niles
Gayest Episode Ever
“My Coffee With Niles” (May 19, 1994) And that’s a wrap. It’s been eight years and three hundred-some episodes, so we’re turning off the TV and going to play outside. In concluding, we’re springboarding off the first-season finale of Frasier, which has the Crane boys sitting down and discussing life, but we’re not really talking about that. The conversation has moved on. But like the Bundys and the Conners and Huxtables and the Winslows and either set of Tanners, we will live on in reruns. We have courtesy of . Our logo was designed by . This episode’s art was designed by ....
info_outline
Glen Writes a Golden Girls
Gayest Episode Ever
This is a rerun of an episode that originally went live March 4, 2020. “Vince Meat” (February 22, 2020) Have you seen that one Golden Girls where Blanche accidentally sexes a man to death and the girls have to hide the body? Well, your answer should be no, because that episode didn’t air back in the day. It's a script written by our own Glen Lakin and then, for the purposes of this episode, read by a host of our actor friends. It’s fucked-up and funny, and we couldn't think of a better way to celebrate our fiftieth episode. Cast: Dorothy: ; Rose: ; Blanche: ;...
info_outline
Batman vs. Sitcom Nostalgia
Gayest Episode Ever
“Baby Doll” (October 1, 1994) If you’re new here, you might be thinking that this is an odd pick for the second-to-last episode. To this I say, “So what?” It’s a great episode about the toxic allure of nostalgia, which will swallow you whole if you don’t get out in time. And Alison La Placa’s performance as the title character is one of the best ever in a cartoon. “Hey, Drew, why did you become a sitcom guy?” I guess I didn’t mean to. And is the Blabbin' 'Bout Batman episode from which Drew stole the Baby Doll/Elmyra idea. We have courtesy of . Our logo...
info_outline
The Gay Origins of Mister Ed
Gayest Episode Ever
This is a rerun of an episode that originally aired in 2024. “Sorority House” (February 8, 1961) A few times on this podcast, we’ve bent over backwards to find a gay interpretation of a sitcom that never did anything gay, but this is not one of those. Mister Ed was developed by Arthur Lubin, a closeted gay director who was married to a woman but eventually ended up cohabitating with a male companion. It’s interesting, then, that he’d be into making a TV show out of a story about Wilbur Post, who’s married to a woman and who’s outwardly a traditional guy even if his most...
info_outline
Diane Returns for the Cheers Finale — And Brings a Gay Guy With Her
Gayest Episode Ever
“One for the Road” (May 20, 1993) Because this podcast is ending, we thought we should take on at least one notable sitcom series finale. And because Cheers happens to have a gay subplot in its last episode — and because Diane Chambers is always close to our heart — we’re going with that one. It’s a really important piece of TV history, and even if you haven’t watched the whole series, we think you’ll understand why this one still looms large. Of course, we’re joined by Massachusetts correspondent Jonathan Bradley Welch for one last explanation of northeastern accents. Yes,...
info_outline
Ferdinand the Bull Is Gay (and Other Observations About Disney Shorts)
Gayest Episode Ever
Tony Rodriguez joins us one last time for a sequel episode of sorts to our one about . This time, we’re focused on old-time Disney shorts that lend themselves to a queer reading. If you want to watch this cartoons before you listen, here’s a list of where you can find them online. In order of discussion: (1938) (1935) (1953) (1934) (1941) (1932) (1952)
info_outline
The Closest Full House Got to a Gay Episode
Gayest Episode Ever
This is a rerun of an episode that originally aired in 2021. “The Play’s the Thing” (November 17, 1992) The big joke with Full House never did a gay episode despite being a show about three men cohabitating and coparenting in San Francisco. However, the fifth season introduced Derek (Blake McIver Ewing), a new friend for Michelle who’s well-mannered, soft-spoken and really good at showtunes. We’d argue that Derek, while young, still comes off as a queer-coded character, and the fact the actor himself would later come out makes the performance all the more interesting.
info_outline
The Simpsons Meets Tennessee Williams
Gayest Episode Ever
“A Streetcar Named Marge” (October 1, 1992) Although it was not on our final season schedule, circumstances conspired to make us discuss The Simpsons one last time — and we’ve picked a classic-era episode that may not scream “gay” but it definitely mutters it under its breath. In addition to Jon Lovitz playing the abusive theater director Llewelyn Sinclair, this one also features a young gay man’s guide to culture. We have courtesy of . Our logo was designed by . This episode’s art was designed by . Sound cues for this podcast were composed by .
info_outline
Duckman Investigates Homosexuality (If Only Briefly)
Gayest Episode Ever
“Forbidden Fruit” (January 16, 1996) At long last, we are proud to announce the first episode of our podcast to feature both hosts of Talking Simpsons, Henry Gilbert and Bob Mackey. It’s also the last episode to feature them both, because we are kicking this podcast into its grave. But in the process we manage to have a nice conversation about adult animation and how Duckman compares to the Simpsons episode “Homer Badman.” Listen to that goes deeper on Duckman history. Listen to Talking Simpson’s special about — and support Minnesota immigrants in the process!
info_outline
Dungeons & Dragons Has the Queeniest Knight in Saturday Morning History
Gayest Episode Ever
This is a rerun of an episode that originally aired in 2019. “Odyssey of the Twelfth Talisman” (September 28, 1985) Once upon a time, there was a Saturday morning cartoon based on Dungeons & Dragons, and in its final few episodes it had one of its male characters hit it off with a one-off NPC who was witty and matched him, insult for insult. This one-off also happened to be male, and whether by accident or whatever, the resulting episode plays out kinda like a male-on-male romcom that just happens to be situated in medieval fantasy setting. Don’t worry if you’ve never experienced a...
info_outline“Boys II Men II Women” (December 4, 1995)
Twenty-five ago, long before he’d become a media mogul and the face of an international franchise, Rupaul made 1995 his most mainstream year yet. Not only did he have his mainstream debut in The Brady Bunch movie, but he also did one-off guest roles in a number of network sitcoms. But only In the House had him playing a drag queen who was an avowed heterosexual.
Drew talked with In the House creator Winifred Hervey about her time on Golden Girls. Read his roundtable interview with her and other Golden Girls writers here.
Here is the In the House episode that has Debbie Allen playing opposite her real-life sister, Phylicia Rashad.
And here is an episode of Friday Night Videos that has Debbie and Phylicia hanging out — and Debbie referring to eldest daughter Saundra as “the older one.”
Drew appeared on last week’s Sam Pancake Presents the Monday Afternoon Movie to discuss Don’t Go to Sleep, a made-for-TV oddity that features Ruth Gordon getting killed by an iguana and Valerie Harper menaced by a child wielding a rolling pizza cutter. It’s weird!
The Easy Spirit Playoffs: Purple vs. Metallic!
Buy Gayest Episode Ever shirts, totes and more on our TeePublic page.
Buy Glen’s movie, Being Frank.
Support us on Patreon!
Follow: GEE on Twitter • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter
Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn • SoundCloud
And yes, we do have an official website! And we even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This is a TableCakes podcast.
This episode’s outro track is Black Book’s “You Must Change (Mystery Woman),” which isn’t on any of the streaming services so maybe just listen to it on YouTube?