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Girls kissing girls


Gia locks lips with Adrianna on the CW's '90210'

Mar 9, 2010
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Remember when same-sex kisses actually stirred up controversy? These days they're little more than a plot sideline, especially on the CW, which already staged a threesome this season on "Gossip Girl."

Compared to the furor over that episode, tonight's lesbian kiss on "90210," which returns at 8 p.m. after a months-long hiatus, is little more than a distraction.

One of the smoochers is Rumer Willis, daughter of Bruce Willis and Demi Moore, who has been guest-starring on "90210" as she tries to build up a resume that goes beyond her Hollywood parentage.

Willis' character, Gia, lip-locks with Adrianna, whom Gia befriended at Alcoholics Anonymous. The development probably won't bring an appreciable increase in viewers for "90210," beyond the 2.6 million who watch the show live or via their DVRs.

That's because the CW audience has grown up with girl-on-girl and even boy-on-boy kisses, and they're much less shocked about them than their parents.

Back in the 1990s, Roseanne Barr caused a stir when she kissed Mariel Hemingway, marking the first lesbian kiss in broadcast history. A few years later Ellen DeGeneres' character came out on "Ellen," where she smooched Laura Dern and set off a national outcry.

But the outcry calmed down in the 2000s as same-sex relationships became de rigueur in primetime.

On the WB, Kerr Smith's gay character shared a chaste peck with another man in 2001, but later had steamier kisses with subsequent love interests. By that point, female characters on the WB and UPN were kissing with relative regularity.

This year two main characters on ABC's "Modern Family" are gay, and "As the World Turns" featured gay teenage lovers Luke and Noah until its cancellation last September.


A look at this week’s top TV draws

TUESDAY, MARCH 9

Time

Network

Program

Description

7 a.m.

NBC

“Today” (N)

Chelsea Handler and Mario Batali both guest.

8 p.m.

CBS

“NCIS” (D)

A Marine’s secrets start to come out after he’s murdered.

8 p.m.

Fox

“American Idol” (R)

Tonight it’s the top eight females who perform, barring illness.

8 p.m.

NBC

“The Biggest Loser” (R)

Among other things, the contestants learn to fit workouts into their schedules.

9 p.m.

ABC

“Lost” (D)

Ben deals with the fallout from a lie he told. He's told many lies, so it may be hard to narrow that down ...

10 p.m.

NBC

“Parenthood” (D)

Crosby tries to get to know his son a little better.

10 p.m.

USA

“White Collar” (D)

Season finale. Neal and Alex try to track down a music box at an Italian consulate.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 10

Time

Network

Program

Description

8 p.m.

CW

“America’s Next Top Model” (R)

Season premiere. Thirty-two models are cut to 20, then 12, and then they move to New York.

8 p.m.

Fox

“American Idol” (R)

The top eight male semifinalists take their turn on the stage.

9 p.m.

ABC

“Modern Family” (C)

Phil finds an old girlfriend on Facebook and then invites her over, always a good idea.

9 p.m.

CBS

“Criminal Minds” (D)

A truck driver who abducts women is on the loose.

9 p.m.

Syfy

“Ghost Hunters” (R)

The guys examine Fort Ticonderoga in New York.

10 p.m.

NBC

“Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” (D)

Murder cases that took place 20 years apart have many similarities.

10 p.m.

E!

“Chelsea’s Big Interview Special” (A)

Chelsea Handler chats with Demi Moore, Robin Wright and Bradley Cooper.

THURSDAY, MARCH 11

Time

Network

Program

Description

8 p.m.

Fox

“American Idol” (R)

The 12 finalists are revealed when two more guys and two more gals are cut.

9 p.m.

NBC

“The Office” (C)

How will ratings hold up after last week’s baby episode?

9 p.m.

ABC

“Grey’s Anatomy” (D)

Derek ponders whether Richard or Owen should perform an operation.

9 p.m.

CBS

“CSI” (D)

The murder of a young boy might be connected to another case.

10 p.m.

NBC

“The Marriage Ref” (R)

Larry David, Madonna and Ricky Gervais all appear.

10 p.m.

FX

“Archer” (C)

Malory tries to get Archer back after he takes a higher-paying job at another agency.

FRIDAY, MARCH 12

Time

Network

Program

Description

8 p.m.

CBS

“Ghost Whisperer” (D)

Melinda tries to save a child’s ghost who's been trapped in a house.

8 p.m.

NBC

“Who Do You Think You Are?” (R)

Former football star Emmitt Smith looks up his family history.

9 p.m.

Disney Channel

“Phineas and Ferb” (K)

The boys battle a superhero when they’re mistaken for superheroes themselves.

9 p.m.

CBS

“Medium” (D)

A flashback episode looking at Allison and Joe’s wedding day.

10 p.m.

Discovery Channel

“American Loggers” (R)

To make up for lost time the crew tries to cut down 3,000 trees in one week.

10 p.m.

CBS

“Numb3rs” (D)

Season, and likely series, finale. Charlie and Amita help Don find a missing gun.

SATURDAY, MARCH 13

Time

Network

Program

Description

2 p.m.

NBC

“PGA Golf” (S)

Third round coverage of the WGC-CA Championship from Doral Golf Resort in Miami.

6 p.m.

CBS

“College Basketball” (S)

The Pac 10 championship game from Los Angeles.

8 p.m.

Fox

“Cops” (R)

Cops in Florida set up an undercover sting to catch a drug suspect.

9 p.m.

ESPN

“College Basketball” (S)

The Big East title game from Madison Square Garden in New York.

9 p.m.

Lifetime

“Who Is Clark Rockefeller?” (M)

New movie starring Eric McCormack should draw plenty of female viewers.

11:30 p.m.

NBC

“Saturday Night Live” (S)

Jude Law is the guest host and Pearl Jam performs.

SUNDAY, MARCH 14

Time

Network

Program

Description

1 p.m.

CBS

“College Basketball” (S)

The ACC championship game from Greensboro, N.C.

3 p.m.

NBC

“PGA Golf” (S)

Final round of the WGC-CA Championship, won by Phil Mickelson last year.

6 p.m.

CBS

“NCAA Basketball Championship Selection Show” (S)

The 65-team field is laid out so we can finally get our office pools going.

8 p.m.

Fox

“The Simpsons” (C)

Bart gets into trouble for skipping out on his homework.

9 p.m.

HBO

“The Pacific” (D)

Series premiere. First of a 10-part miniseries about the U.S. fighting Japan in World War II.

9 p.m.

NBC

“Celebrity Apprentice” (R)

Season premiere. Sinbad, Sharon Osbourne and Rod Blagojevich are among this season’s contestants.

A = awards show or special, C = comedy, D = drama, DD = daytime drama, G = game show, K = kids, M = movie, N = news/documentary, R = reality, S = sports, T = talk/variety show.


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Louisa Ada Seltzer is a staff writer for Media Life.




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