dotes of eccentric ancestors. The material high-
lighted the show’s Southern charm and showcased
the talents of the cast, particularly their impeccable
comic timing. The women’s banter would also often
be punctuated by the voice of Anthony Bouvier
(played by Meshach Taylor), the Sugarbakers’ handy-
man and later partner. He would contribute—often
very unwillingly—the male perspective on subjects
decidedly feminine. While consistently funny,De-
signing Womenalso ventured to explore some of the
1980’s most controversial issues. With episodes de-
voted to denouncing sexism, racism, the exploita-
tion of the poor, and domestic violence, the show
was edgier and more sophisticated than many other
sitcoms of the decade.
Impact Even though its ratings were respectable,
after its first seasonDesigning Womenwas put on hia-
tus. Fans of the show, though, mounted a successful
letter-writing campaign to persuade network execu-
tives to give the show another chance. After return-
ing to the air, the show ran for six more years. A large
part of the show’s success can be attributed to the
impassioned speeches delivered dramatically and
convincingly in nearly every episode by Julia Sugar-
baker, who was occasionally referred to by the other
characters as “the Terminator.” Thanks to the show’s
long second run in syndication, primarily on the
Lifetime Cable Network, fans of the show learned to
recite many of these speeches word for word.
Further Reading
Burke, Delta.Delta Style: Eve Wasn’t a Size 6 and Neither
Am I. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1998.
Carter, Dixie.Tr ying to Get to Heaven: Opinions of a
Tennessee Talker.New York: Simon & Schuster,
1996.
McPherson, Tara.Reconstructing Dixie: Race, Gender,
and Nostalgia in the Imagined South. Durham, N.C.:
Duke University Press, 2003.
Owen, A. Susan, Sarah R. Stein, and Leah R. Vande
Berg.Bad Girls: Cultural Politics and Media Repre-
sentations of Transgressive Women. New York: Peter
Lang, 2007.
Traci S. Thompson
See also Feminism; Sitcoms; Television; Women
in the workforce; Women’s rights.
Devo
Definition New Wave band
After playing clubs and remaining in obscurity in the
1970’s, Devo briefly entered the musical mainstream in the
1980’s.
Devo first performed at Kent State University in the
1970’s and became a part of the New Wave music ex-
plosion in Akron, Ohio, in the middle of that de-
cade. Recognition from David Bowie and Iggy Pop
earned the group a recording contract and televi-
sion appearances. Their stage performances were
fast-paced in the punk tradition, but they relied on a
sophisticated manipulation of pop culture themes
that was beyond the conceptual grasp of most punk
bands. Devo wore identical costumes on stage that
projected a futuristic image very different from the
stylistic chaos of punk bands. Punk relied on shock
and rage as its underlying message; Devo relied on
heavy doses of irony.
Mark Mothersbaugh, the group’s lead singer, had
received extensive visual-arts training and employed
those skills to great advantage with the band. Devo
also benefited greatly from the exposure it received
on twenty-four-hour music television. Bands in the
1970’s had relied on weekly music shows or late-
night cable programs for exposure. For Devo, these
outlets limited their impact, since their visual refer-
ences had more substance than did their minimalistThe Eighties in America Devo 287
Devo, around 1980.(Hulton Archive/Getty Images)