Comediennes: Fran Lebowitz

Fran Lebowitz (1950-present) is an American author, humorist, and public speaker. She rose to fame in the 1970s for her distinctive voice and unapologetic humor, often exploring topics such as politics, gender, and the urban experience. She has become a cultural icon for her sharp observations and sardonic style in her writing and speaking.

For Further Reading:

• Fran Lebowitz is Never Leaving New York
• Fran Lebowitz on life without the internet: ‘If I’m cancelled, don’t tell me!’
• Fran Lebowitz Doesn’t Dance Anymore

This month, we’re talking about comediennes — women throughout history who have made us laugh. They transgressed societal norms through comedy and often spoke out against injustice using their sharp wit.

History classes can get a bad rap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Womanica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should.

Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more.  Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures. 

Womanica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, Brittany Martinez, Edie Allard, Lindsey Kratochwill, Adesuwa Agbonile, Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, Sara Schleede, Paloma Moreno Jimenez, and Abbey Delk. Special thanks to Shira Atkins. 

Original theme music composed by Miles Moran.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Hi from Wonder Media Network. I'm Jenny Kaplan and this
is Wamanica. This month, we're talking about comedians women throughout
history who've made us laugh. They transgressed societal norms through
comedy and often spoke out against injustice using their sharp wit.
Today we're talking about a New York City icon. She's
a self proclaimed homebody, but spend enough time in the

(00:23):
city and you're likely to catch a glimpse of her
dress in her signature cowboy boots and Anderson and Shepherd
coat over top a white shirt and cuffed Levi jeans.
Let's talk about fran Lebowitz. Fran Leebowitz was born on
October twenty seventh, nineteen fifty in Morristown, New Jersey. From

(00:47):
a young age, Fran had strong opinions and wasn't afraid
to share them. The only issue was that the adults
in her life didn't really want to hear them. Frann
would frequently get sent out of class for talking back
would send her to bed at seven thirty because she
couldn't stand to listen to her anymore. In addition to
being outspoken, Fran was undeniably funny. But once again she

(01:08):
was told this was not a quality people cared for.
Her mother in particular, told her that boys didn't like
funny girls. As it turned out, that didn't really matter
to Fran. When Fran graduated junior high, she won the
award for being the class wit, but she was too
afraid to bring it home because of her mother's words.
School was not Fran's forte. She struggled to keep her

(01:31):
grades up and to follow the rules in hopes of
improving her GPA. Fran's parents enrolled her in an all
girls high school, but that didn't work either. Once Fran
was suspended for coming to school on Halloween dressed as
Fidel Castro. She thought it was funny, but not everyone agreed.
In her expulsion letter, the headmaster wrote, She's a bad

(01:51):
influence on the other girls and is usurping my power.
In New Jersey, Fran was an outsider. She was too opinionated,
too funny, and too gay to stay in the suburbs,
where at the time none of those things were appreciated
or accepted. But there was a place not too far
from her hometown that called to her. Growing up, Fran

(02:13):
regularly visited New York City. To her, it was the
most exciting place in the world. So in nineteen seventy,
Fran left Morristown and moved to Manhattan. She arrived with
two hundred dollars in her pocket and no place to stay,
but she immediately knew she was home. After bopping between
friends apartments, she rented her own apartment in the West Village.

(02:35):
The apartment didn't have a kitchen or a bathroom ceiling,
but it was hers. To support herself, Fran had a
series of odd jobs. She cleaned apartments, sold belts, and
drove taxis. The one job she refused to do was waitress.
She said, you know what, I'm not going to smile
at men for money, because that's what that job is.

(02:56):
As a young New Yorker, Fran loved the night life.
She enjoyed the exclusivity and covertness of the clubs, and
all the cute people didn't hurt either. For her, a
night out was about sex and dancing. It was also
about staying out of her Rundown apartment. In an interview,
she later said, I'm quite sure that for at least
ten years of my life, I went out every single night,

(03:18):
all night long. I very rarely came home before it
was light. When she wasn't going out, Fran was selling
advertising space and writing film and book reviews for a
magazine called Changes. She wanted to be a writer, so
she asked a friend who was writing for Andy Warhol's
magazine Interview, to set up a meeting with the editor.
By nineteen seventy two, Fran was a columnist. She first

(03:40):
had a column reviewing bad movies and then developed a
column called I Cover the Waterfront. Her work was a
collage of cultural satire, advice, hilariously biting commentary on dilettants
and social climbers, and rants on a variety of topics
that bothered Fran and most things bother Fran.

Speaker 2 (04:00):
I must say I didn't even like teenagers when I
was a teenager, including myself. I have a theory by
teenagers was that teenager's main intent life seems to be
to annoy those around them. So I feel that one
of the less populous states like Wyoming should be cleared
of all adults and all teenagers should move into the state.

Speaker 1 (04:21):
She doesn't like adults who rollerskate or people who are
on naturally tan. She can't stand tourists, and after shape lotion,
she thinks the news never tells you anything, and she
hates digital watches, calculators, and technology in general. Despite being
a writer, Fran has never owned a typewriter or a computer.
She doesn't even have a cell phone. If you want

(04:41):
to get in contact with Fran, you have to call
her landline. Eventually, Fran's column earned her a book deal.
In nineteen seventy eight, she published Metropolitan Life, a collection
of comedic essays on fashion trends, fads, morals, and American customs,
all seen through france sharp witted, scrutinizing lens. The book

(05:02):
was a sensation overnight, France solidified herself as a humorist.
The book's success resulted in a second collection of essays
in nineteen eighty one, called Social Studies. She divided her
book into sections people, Places, things, and ideas. In People,
you'd find how not to marry a millionaire, A guide
for the misfortune hunter. In ideas, When smoke gets in

(05:26):
your eyes, shut them. After those two books, writing came
to a halt for Fran. She developed what she calls
writers Blockade. Aside from a children's book in nineteen ninety four,
Fran hasn't published a book since instead, she's established herself
as a popular public speaker. Brand attributes this to two things.
She said, I am a psychotic perfectionist when it comes

(05:48):
to writing, which makes it very hard. It's a combination
of that and the fact that if I'm not the
laziest person that ever lived, then I'm certainly among them.
Writing is really hard, and I'm really lazy, and talking
it is easy for me. Today. Fran tours around the
world doing live appearances that feature a questions from the
audience segment. This is her favorite recreational activity. She says

(06:11):
she derives joy from the fact that growing up, not
many people asked her questions or cared for her opinions,
and now that's exactly what she makes a living doing.
Fran's success has put her in the same room as
many famous, influential people. One of those people was writer
and novelist Tony Morrison. After doing a reading together, the
two became fast friends. Throughout their forty year friendship, they

(06:34):
talked on the phone almost every day up until Donald
Trump was elected president. Fran thought she was always right
and the only person who could change her mind about
something was Tony. One thing Fran will probably never change
her mind about is New York. She has said that
New York City is pretty much unrecognizable from when she
first arrived. Still, she loves it and doesn't believe she

(06:57):
would be allowed to live anywhere else. She enjoyed spending
her days leafing through books at the bookstore, visiting museums,
and reading one of the twelve thousand books from her collection.
If you can't attend one of Fran's live appearances, you
can learn more about her in the HBO documentary Public Speaking,
and a Netflix limited documentary series Pretend It's a City.

(07:18):
All Month, We're talking about comedians. For more information, find
us on Facebook and Instagram at Willmanica Podcast special thanks
to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co creator. Talk
to you tomorrow