Discuss Liz Lemon, played by Tina Fey who is supposed to be the basis for the character.

Liz's shoes may be bi-curious but she's so adorable in that Mary Tyler Moore kind of way. I love her trademark glasses and am curious why she doesn't wear them in the later episodes. But either way I love Tina Fey and she's cute with or without them.

As you were posting that, I posted in the Forum Questions about said issue, so hopefully we hear something soon.

Things are looking up for Liz Lemon, indeed. I loved Tina on SNL, but here? She's my girl crush.

If I recall correctly, Tina Fey doesn't regularly wear glasses in real life, but only wore them as part of her Weekend Update persona. Maybe that has something to do with her jettisoning of the glasses in recent 30 Rock episodes.

Jenna did call Liz out as only wearing the glasses to look smarter (though we do see Liz appear to use them as reading glasses in a few scenes). There was a serious change in the way Liz was styled, not just the glasses but the clothes and hair, starting around the time she decides to have a "personal life", and getting much more pronounced when she started dating Floyd. She went from wearing pants, layered shirts and sneakers to flouncy low-cut dresses with foufy hair (and no glasses). However, if you look at what she has on in Hiatus, after she has broken up with Floyd, she's back to an outfit she wore in one of the early season eps -- the navy sweater over a purple shirt, jeans, sneakers. So I wouldn't be surprised if the glasses come back; they're like her Clark Kent disguise to cover up Pretty Liz.

The glasses discussion reminds me of the exact moment when I became a Tina Fey fan - she was on Weekend Update talking about that reporter who dyed her hair brown and started wearing glasses to fly under the radar when she was reporting from the Middle East (yeah, I don't know either). Tina Fey says "If [reporter] thinks that having brown hair and glasses will make men not notice her, she is... right." The delivery just killed me.

I think this needs to be moved to the character thread.

Odyssea I think that's when I became a fan of Fey. The reporter was Ashley Banfield of MSNBC.

I also wanted to start a character thread for her over in Rocketeers but couldn't, I like the title. I would have probably thought of something lame like Liz Lemon: Talk about her weird secret stuff or something.

Liz Lemon: If She Were Any Other Woman On Earth, We Would Be Turned On Right Now.

Odyssea and Gracelessly, I'm with you on the "you are...right" moment. I've been repeating that to people for years and getting blank stares. It is all in the delivery, and I ain't got it.

As for the glasses issue, I always assumed that she quit wearing glasses when she was with Floyd because she was wearing contacts to look cuter. She always had them, but when she didn't have a boyfriend, she was too lazy to put them in in the morning.

I have to say that my "win over" moment of the show was a Liz one. Her wearing a vest over top of her gown at Gerhardt's party. I literally laughed for ages and it was at that moment that the show became "must watch."

And as a fellow brunette with glasses, I can attest to the "She is...right" fact.

Hey, I love brunettes with glasses.

I finally got watch Tina Fey in the Just for Laughs comedy festival from 2003. Oh, the Weekend Update days. The singing! The dancing! The bootyliciousness! It also helped explain a picture of her I found online a few years ago, but never quite got. You'll understand when you watch.

Tina Fey rocks, I mean she is so multi-faceted. With the talents to act, write and be funny all at the same time, she is probably one of my favorite people on TV right now. I love how she's not full of herself and is not all fluffy and a superfan of her show (a la Shonda Rhimes, even though I have a lot of respect for the Shonda but that's a different story).

Thank you, captain sam! That was hilarious. Tina really puts herself out there for her comedy. ;-)

Couldn't agree more, American Snob. If Tina's talk show persona is a put-on, then she's a much better actress than people give her credit for, and if it's real, she's just sublime.

Of course Mary Richards never said "Poop! Monkeybutt!" to Rhoda. (I so want to use those words with people who aren't really listening to me; it comes up surprisingly often. But I don't do it, of course.)

Well, she might have, but since it was the 70's, we didn't get to see it on tv.

With Liz Lemon, we get to hear a lot of the good stuff. Plus crack up laughing when we see her "come hither" dance in her pajamas.

Oh, and I just realized the character/actor threads are combined, so I wanted to another other comment:

I'm a relatively new Tina Fey fan, and I've only recently seen Tina appear out of character, on talk shows, etc. I was surprised by her accent. It was very cute, mind you, but I never heard it come through at all when she's acting as Liz Lemon. Is the talk show accent (NY/NJ-ish) a put on? Or is she just very good at keeping it in check while she's in character ? (in which case my already high admiration for her acting has gone up a notch or two).

I seriously doubt it. Mary Richards had to work herself up to get the word "damn" out of her mouth. She just wasn't a foulmouthed sort of gal.

I believe Tina is from suburban Philadelphia (so more NJ than NY in the accent). In an amazing coincidence, it appears that Liz Lemon is also from suburban Philadelphia, so any accent slippage won't be harmful -- since Liz has a theater background, we can assume she deliberately worked to get rid of her accent, or it could be she's lived in other places so long the accent has softened. Tina herself may fall more in the category of deliberately trying to be more accent-free when performing, but finding that too much of an effort when she's simply being herself on a talk show.

That was totally clear, right?

Blurgh! Don't remind me as to why I couldn't go see that show!

Found this funny compilation of Weekend Update clips featuring Tina's Highlights.

The Brokeback Mountain, Abstinence Pledges and Spongebob headlines were among the best, IMO.

From Hardball:

"Why do you sound so suprised? I love America. Just because I think gay dudes should be allowed to adopt kids and we should all have hybrid cars doesn't mean I don't love America."

Followed by a saucy wink at the camera. She is so rad.

Go Liz! She actually wore flip-flops in public once last summer. For her, that's like going naked. Dare to try new things, Liz.

And yes, you do look pretty in that dress. Try not to eat a ham while wearing it.

How much do I love that it took one week around TGS for Liz Lemon to unspool?

I love it so much that...well, you know.

Most of her clothes are fairly 'wearable'. If I was a little bit richer, I would buy most/all the clothes she wears on the show. It's seems a little incongruent that Liz dresses more classically and simply pretty, even though she's supposed to be a total dork. I think my favorite has been the navy empire waist t-shirt dress with the knee-high boots. I'm sure I've worn that before.

I think "One Very Special White Lady" would be a good thread title.

You know what's sad? I crave the glasses. I need a new pair now, and I've been haunting the shops to see if there's anything similar that would actually look good on my face shape. Oh, elusive narrow-framed tortoiseshell glasses of my dreams, where are you?

maudlin, I'm somewhat embarrassed to say that I've done the same thing. She really should have an endorsement contract of some kind, complete with commercials, like shoe companies do for athletes. Anyway, these were the closest match I could find at my eye doctor.

I don't understand the thread subtitle. Is Mary Richards someone who lived?

chewingkebabs- Mary Richards was the title character on the Mary Tyler Moore Show and Liz is compared to her since they both work on tv shows and have male bosses. Mary had Mr. Grant and Liz has Jack D.

Thanks, amber34!

*slinks off to optometrist*

I keep wondering if she's related to Kate Lemon, from the movie The Tall Guy.

I see a little bit more "Lemon" in myself every day.

I got Liz Lemon-ish glasses recently but didn't realize it until a week after I had been wearing them.

I've been trying to come up with my own "weird stuff" list, because I know I've got some quirks that may be considered to be dealbreakers. I just can't seem to top the Gopher-fantasy-story.

Also, I've been obsessively erasing my google search history lately, because I'm worried someone will find a weird list of searches similar to "singles yoga" and "scalp pain" when they use my computer.

I just recently started watching "30 Rock." I wasn't a big fan of Tina Fey when she was on SNL. Now, I can say that has changed. Maybe it was because I never could find anything that interesting or funny on SNL while she was there.

I don't develop TV crushes too often, but she's the new one. Liz is a lot like Mary Richards, who was really crushable on MTM. She also might fit in with someone like Bailey Quarters from WKRP--if Baily were the program director. Smart, funny, a little neurotic, and cute.

Sigh, Liz Lemon, how I love thee, let me count the ways! I knew it was meant to be when Liz's flashback for "good times" with Dennis included the scene in bed in which he rolled over to her and whispered "Do you want to....order cheesesteaks?". Classic.

I've always loved Tina Fey, from the first time I laid eyes on her on SNL years ago, but getting to see Fey STAR in a show every week? Brilliant. I have been seeing her pretty often while we're picketing for the WGA strike, but I can never quite bring myself to say anything to her. Admiring from afar will have to do!



divinemadness, one thing: BWAH! I totally do that!

Oh thank you jennisaurusrex, I'm glad to know I'm not alone :) I just tend to google random things. I'd give you an example, but I already cleared it!


Here's an article I found over at Huffington Post: Tina Fey Calls Paula Abdul on "SNL" a Disaster.


bwahahaha I love it.

I'm about to clear mine, but before I do, here's an example (and I'm almost embarrassed to admit these things):

• things prohibited from mailing
• yorkshire pudding
• world's best cake donuts

I...am going to go hang my head in shame. And then go to the gym.

I also do this weird thing, by the way, where I put a question mark at the end of weird combinations in words when I don't know how to phrase them. That's why when I was trying to figure out what you're not allowed to mail, the actual search looked something like "things prohibited from mailing?"

jennisaurusrex I am going to make an effort to not erase my searches for a week and I'll post my list. Because now that I know all of your weird stuff, you need to know mine too. But don't be ashamed, because all of the things you listed are very practical searches in my mind. Though I've found that muffins are "a nice, less fattening alternative" to cake donuts. (though I am curious to know what your search yielded. I'm sure Liz would too, since she had 5 not 3 donuts on that day.)

This is all entertaining, but more a conversation for the Meet Market than this thread.

I've been a fan of Tina on the show since it started, but thought in some ways she had the "least funny" character. Not that she couldn't be funny, and not that Tina Fey isn't funny, but her character is always playing the "straight man" and as a result the jokes have to bounce off of her to work so she doesn't get to be deliverying as many funny lines. But I thought she was hilarious in this week's episode. People have already mentioned the specifics in the epi thread, so I'll spare the repeat, but this episode truly sealed my adoration for her.

Huffington Post's entertainment page really loves Tina.

Tina Fey's daughter is growing up fast

It is on people.com, but the picture of Alice seemingly picking her nose, wearing a bumblebee costume makes up for it.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

That baby looks just like Jeff Richmond if he was the guy Tina kissed at the Emmys when 30 Rock was announced as the Best Comedy winner ;)

Oh, yeah, StaceyRosie -- Alice looks a lot like Daddy.

It's really pathetic that prior to the last episode, I found myself wondering what happened to Liz's birthday (last season, the episode that referenced her birthday aired before Thanksgiving). And now that I know she's had her b'day, I'm wondering if Dennis called.

Over in the real world, Alice is adorable.

So true about Alice. She is absolutely beautiful.

I think there are a lot of women out there who really relate to Liz Lemon. I know I do. Everything from wanting to stay home and order in really fattening, carbo loaded food with extra bread, having trouble getting and keeping a boyfriend. Being an attractive woman, who started off life being overweight and over looked by men, who is now blossoming as a babe in her late 30's and doesn't really see it. (She'll always see herself as awkward) When Jack told Liz that the reason why he likes her is because she is weird and a social retard, I screamed..."SO AM I!". In fact, I had a friend once who said that to me, and it stuck.

Also - in the "Rosemary's Baby" episode, when they showed a young Liz Lemon watching an old "Laugh In" (when she turns around and says, "It's funny because it's true)? That was me. I was that kid. And the adult Liz? I swear I sometimes wonder if we live parallel lives. In fact, when she was with her doofus boyfriend Dennis, I swore someone peaked into my life with my ex. He was just like him, and I was just like Liz - not able to break it off because here's this guy...he's available and wants to be my boyfriend...what can you do?

I think this is very true. For quite some time now I've been convinced that Tina Fey is stealing my thoughts, because I've said and/or done a lot of the things Liz has said/done - exactly. Even the weird stuff, like making someone do The Worm as punishment (did that to my BFF in 9th grade, haven't had the opportunity to do it as an adult) and the bit about sitting in the dark in her nightgown watching The Love Boat and mixing together orange soda and cream soda - I seriously did the exact same thing as a kid, except with me it was orange juice and milk (mom wasn't big on having soda in the house). Different beverages, but basically the same flavors. I am, however, proud to say that I've never pooped my pants at a buffet, and if I did, I would not stick around for a second plate of shrimp.

And I think it's great that Liz's love life is so realistic as well, and that Tina hits all the right notes despite not really experiencing that herself (since she met her husband at a fairly young age).

I'd fashion a tin foil hat to keep her from stealing my thoughts, but she makes them so damn funny and entertaining, instead of weird and kinda depressing. Now if only I could get a Jack Donaghy in my life to mentor me and to show me how to do that thing that rich people do where they use their money to make more money...

If I had a dollar for every "SO AM I!" moment I've had while watching Liz, I'd be able to leave Porsches as tips for waiters. The "sexually frightened know-it-all" line Jack fired at Liz last night hit closer to home for me than I'd like to admit. Or last week, when hubby and I went to his employer's Christmas party and I had to wear some nice clothes; I kept promising him I'd "try not to dress like a small-town lesbian" and ended up wearing a dress I literally bought nine years ago, and had that Liz "all dressed up but feeling awkward" feeling the whole time. (I'm also one who "blossomed" late and will always see myself as awkward the rest of my life, no matter how much I try.) And let's not even go into the parents who, though sweet and well-meaning, can go just a bit overboard when they meet the people with whom you work.

I also like how they're not afraid to show some of Liz's lesser qualities. Giving Liz her foibles (and the show's willingness to make her look foolish sometimes) makes her more human and more believable than a lot of characters I've followed and identified with. As someone who's all too aware of her own shortcomings, I appreciate that.

I'm so sorely tempted to say something like "How could Tina Fey steal my mind grapes and get Lemon juice from them?" but, having been emotionally shaken by the whole "lemon party" discussion elsewhere, I've suddenly become wary of any phrase involving "Lemon" as an adjective....

Lol! I totally get what you mean! And oh boy, that Lemon party quote really really disturbed me .. I love how that got by; Tina Fey is great! :)

I was intrigued in season 1 when so many people were quick to offer their services as baby daddy to Liz. I was under the impression that the entire show's cast and crew was repulsed by Liz. I guess all the men simply were desperate to spread their seed?

I haven't noticed any real difference between when she talks on the show and when I've seen her in interviews, although I have noticed more on the show that she sounds like she has kind of a lisp sometimes. I noticed it less when she anchored Weekend Update, but that is I think because speaking like a news anchor is different than acting like someone using normal conversational speech.

I always figured the writers think Liz is pretty but since she's kind of 'one of the guys' they weren't likely to say anything. Didn't they all whistle at her in that episode when she went on the blind date with Gretchen? They thought she looked pretty hot then. Or at least as nice as a fancy prostitute.

On another superficial note, Liz has really cute clothes. I love everything she wears.