80s TV Ladies Susan Lambert: Celebrating Iconic Women of 80s TV

by Susan Lambert

"Look back in order to leap forward." - Susan Lambert

Introduce yourself.

80s TV Ladies is an award-winning podcast dedicated to the beloved female-driven shows of the 1980s! Love pop culture, television and fabulous women? We’re the podcast for you. You’ll hear a breakdown of how these shows got made, how they were influenced by the times and how they influenced pop-culture trends to follow. We love discussing the “two-steps forward, one-step-back” lens of media-driven feminism. Sharon and Susan have been friends since the 80s. Susan is an indie writer, producer, and director for theatre, film, and audio. Her award-winning plays include Confidence (and The Speech), The Flirt Bar and My Dinner with Andrea. Sharon is a television and podcast enthusiast who lives in Glendale, CA. She’s worked as a television network underling since the 90s, and watched television for as long and as much as anyone will let her.

Share an experience that has shaped who you are today.

I took my first show to NYC twelve years ago – A thriller play called Poison Apple which we premiered at the New York Fringe Festival. We were a big success and I realized then if I could produce good work in New York, that I could produce anything, anywhere. It opened up a world of possibilities to me.

Tell us about your podcast audience.

Our listeners are enthusiastic about the 70s, 80s and 90s, pop culture and television. They love the guests we interview and to hear the stories of the women and men who broke ground in television.

What makes your podcast unique?

Sharon and I have a unique view, and we bring on specials guests to hear their point of view. We have on current and past TV creators and stars to talk about the shows which influenced them and the shows they were on. We have on a special group we call the 90s TV Babies, who were all born in the 90s and we show them these shows to hear what they think. We really are looking back at these shows with love, but also through a modern lens. And often with the question: How did we get here from there? And we’re talking about gender, about race, about progress and about the television industry as it reflects (or doesn’t) our culture and society.