Shows
The BitchionaryThe Matilda Effect (BONUS)Here's our short-mini episode about the Matilda Effect. We're interested in exploring and learning more about women who have been "Matilda Effected" (yes, that's a phrase, we're sure of it). So let us know if there are women out there whose stories you'd like us to explore. We'd love to hear from you!SourcesJodi Picoult’s novel By Any Other Name (2024)https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2019/06/who-is-shakespeare-emilia-bassano/588076/https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2019/06/was-shakespeare-woman-responses/590851/https://shakespeareoxfordfellowship.org/first-folio/https://thefederalist.com/2019/05/13/no-shakespeare-not-jewish-woman-just-genius/https://www.theg...2025-04-3024 minThe BitchionaryWas Shakespeare a Woman?Is there a stigma against women publishing or getting credit for a discovery? Is there any credibility to the theory that the works of Shakespeare were written, in part, by a woman? Join us in this episode for a discussion about Shakespeare, publishing as women, pen names, and the Matilda Effect. And look out for a short-mini episode to follow this one where we talk a little more deeply about the Matilda Effect. And lastly, let us know if there are women out there whose stories you'd like us to explore. We'd love to hear from you!2025-04-221h 01The BitchionaryWas Shakespeare a Woman?Is there a stigma against women publishing or getting credit for a discovery? Is there any credibility to the theory that the works of Shakespeare were written, in part, by a woman? Join us in this episode for a discussion about Shakespeare, publishing as women, pen names, and the Matilda Effect. And look out for a short-mini episode to follow this one where we talk a little more deeply about the Matilda Effect. And lastly, let us know if there are women out there whose stories you'd like us to explore. We'd love to hear from you!2025-04-221h 01The Bitchionary9 to 5 (PART 4): The Movie, the Movement, The Women Behind the MovementThis series of episodes was inspired by the film 9 to 5, a 1980s comedy starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, and Dolly Parton. What most people don’t know is that the movie was made deliberately to raise awareness around women’s issues in the workplace and in direct relationship to a movement, an organization, and, ultimately, a labor union called 9 to 5. In Part Four, we circle back to the movie 9 to 5 and learn a little bit about its making and the ways in which it was used to directly promote and support the 9 to 5 movement and labor union. We'l...2025-04-081h 10The Bitchionary9 to 5 (PART THREE): The Movie, the Movement, the Women Behind the MovementThis series of episodes was inspired by the film 9 to 5, a 1980s comedy starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, and Dolly Parton. What most people don’t know is that the movie was made deliberately to raise awareness around women’s issues in the workplace and in direct relationship to a movement, an organization, and, ultimately, a labor union called 9 to 5. In Part Three, we do a deep dive into the tactics and tools used by co-founders Ellen Cassedy and Karen Nussbaum as they build the 9 to 5 Movement from a small group of ten women to a national orga...2025-03-111h 17The Bitchionary9 to 5 (PART TWO): The Movie, the Movement, the Women Behind the MovementNote: The audio's a little inconsistent in this one. And Lily had a wicked fever while she was editing it, so bear with us!This series of episodes was inspired by the film 9 to 5, a 1980s comedy starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, and Dolly Parton. What most people don’t know is that the movie was made deliberately to raise awareness around women’s issues in the workplace and in direct relationship to a movement, an organization, and, ultimately, a labor union called 9 to 5. In Part Two, we meet the two co-founders of t...2025-02-251h 09The Bitchionary9 to 5 (PART 1): The Movie, the Movement, The Women Behind the MovementThis series of episodes was inspired by the film 9 to 5, a 1980s comedy starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, and Dolly Parton. What most people don’t know is that the movie was made deliberately to raise awareness around women’s issues in the workplace and in direct relationship to a movement, an organization, and, ultimately, a labor union called 9 to 5. In Part One, we talk a little bit about the movie itself and then, in order to frame the issues, we go all the way back to the mid-1800s and the dawn of the women’s movement. We learn...2025-02-111h 24The BitchionaryFrances Perkins, Architect of the New DealIn the final episode of our three-part series about the women of the early labor movements in the US, we learn about Frances Perkins, architect of the New Deal and the first female cabinet member, appointed by FDR before women even had the right to vote. Perkins witnessed the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire and, in so doing, found her calling to fight for protections for workers. Without her tireless work we would not have the 40-hour work week, social security, overtime pay, and more. We also explore Frances Perkins’ life in the context of her possible queerness. Join us on...2025-01-281h 05The BitchionaryBONUS: Nightbitch!In which Becca and Lily have a free form discussion about the 2023 film, and 2021 novel, Nightbitch. The film is described as a “black comedy horror film” that was written and directed by Marielle Heller and stars Amy Adams. It is based on the 2021 magical realism novel by Rachel Yoder. In the most basic terms, it’s a tale of motherhood in which a mother transforms into a dog. In more complicated terms, it’s a weird and wonderful exploration of motherhood, identity, magic, rage, and the challenge of being a woman, mother, wife, artist, and dog. This is a bonus ep...2025-01-211h 32The BitchionaryThe Triangle Shirtwaist Factory FireThis episode continues the story we began with Clara Lemlich and the uprising of the 20,000. We focus exclusively on the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire—a defining moment in American history, one that would go on to inspire France Perkins and the New Deal. The final episode in this series will follow France Perkins from the day of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire and into FDR’s cabinet. This episode does include descriptions of the deaths of the women in the factory as well as a brief discussion of this tragedy and its relationship to the tragedy of 9/11. These are diff...2025-01-141h 15The BitchionaryClara Lemlich & The Uprising of 20,000In this episode, we do a deep dive into the story of Clara Lemlich, a Jewish immigrant and labor organizer who, in 1909, sparked an uprising of 20,000 workers that began a great wave of labor laws and protections for all workers in America. This is Part 1 of what has turned into a 3-part series. Part 2 will continue the story, detailing the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire and the role this disaster played in catalyzing some profound changes to American Labor. In that episode we meet a woman who witnessed the fire, Frances Perkins, the first female cabinet secretary and architect of...2024-12-311h 18The BitchionaryBitch: A History (sort of)In which Becca and Lily engage in a freeform discussion around the word “Bitch”--its historical roots, its personal connotations, whether derogatory words like this can ever be reclaimed fully as a term of positive empowerment, and many digressions and diversions in between!
Special thanks to our friend and colleague Spencer Nilsen for all of his help with our recording setup, helping us learn how to use the editing tools, and general moral support as we launch our new podcast. Any errors, bad edits or sound are ours, of course. Please bear with us as we learn how...2024-12-1240 min