American Horror Story: A Further Look

1. American Horror Story: A Further Look Comm. 463 Final Project Presented by: Janelle Kluczynski Michelle Lascon Vince Viverito

2. Breakthrough in Basic Cable Programming • Changing the landscape of basic cable programming, how is gender, race, and sexual orientation represented in the emerging television series American Horror Story, while at the same time awakening nightmares beyond people’s deepest fears… and secrets? Who is profiting from this show? And how are audiences responding to it’s risky material?

3. What societal issues is the show drawing attention to? American Horror Story: Origins of Monstrosity All organized institutions & people of power that contribute to constructing and framing our knowledge, including religion and social statuses. Othering with characters of minority… (race). Power of Patriarchy within casted characters…(gender). Challenging hetero-normality in a new way in media within the representation of one of their strong leading roles… (sexual orientation)

4. Other nightmares we stumble on… • Devil & Angel of Death • Exorcisms • Nazi doctors • Flesh eating creatures or experimented, mutated people, or zombies • Aliens • Botched surgical or unethical psychological therapy procedures • Ghosts • Mad doctor with mommy issues turns serial killer • And lots more craziness and blood! This twisted show really gets you on the edge of your seat stirring up your mind!

5. Political Economy, Production, Profits… Main Star Actors & Actresses: • Sister Jude - Jessica Lange • Lana Winters – Sara Paulson • Dr. Arthur Arden- James Cromwell • Kit Walker – Evan Peters • Sister Mary Eunice – Lily Rabe • Dr. Oliver Thredson – Zachary Quinto • Guest stars included thus far include: Frances Conroy, Chloe Sevigny, Adam Levine, and Mark Consuelos According to the American Horror Story: Asylum webpage on Fxnetworks.com (2012), • FX is the channel of broadcasting • Ryan Murphy & Brad Falchuk (creators/executive producers/ writers/ directors) • Tim Minear & Dante Di Lorento (executive producers)

6. High Ratings keep growing… The ratings for American Horror Story, are showing double-digit percentage growth in every demo compared to its predecessor, American Horror Story, pacing +19% ahead of prior year in Adults 18-49. • Asylum is averaging 5.23 million Total Viewers, • 3.88 Million Adults 18-49 • 2.40 million Adults 18-34, which reflect respective gains of +19% in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 and +22% in Adults 18-34. • The program’s highest growth is among Women 18-49 and Men 18-34, each up +24% over prior year. • The median age of the audience for AHS: Asylum is 33 years old. • AHS: Asylum is one of the top-rated dramas on television in delivery of Adults 18-34 with a 3.54 national rating. **Bibel, Sara. TV by the Numbers. November 15, 2012. The Holly Wood reporters claim, “Murphy and Falchuk are a long way from Glee, their other flawed series, as they dabble in what Murphy said was a psycho-sexual horror story as opposed to, say, the Saw franchise,” he writes. But it’s hard to tell whether Murphy and Falchuk are real fans of the horror genre or just set out to create something so creepy and freaky and off-the-charts weird that it would create massive buzz, he adds. One thing they got right – from bad horror movies, at least – is that every time a character has the opportunity to make a really bad decision that will almost certainly scare them senseless or kill them, they make it” (Reporters 2011).

7. Race: Othering with characters of minority… Characters with ethnic identities and who aren’t white do not last long in this show, at least not as long as the others. Common patterns among characters of color: • No Power • Die quickly in the show, or may last a couple of episodes • Some are only referred to as their race, leaving the audience not knowing their name • committing suicide

8. Gender: power of patriarchy within female characters… “The women on American Horror Story sure are having a tough time. Besides the generic bias against them because of their gender, they’re running over little girls, having their feet chopped off, their skin peeled from their body and being possessed by the devil *phew*. There is no ‘safe’ way to be a woman at the Briarcliff manor, which is what makes the female characters more intriguing,” says Litsa Dremousis on Nerve.com. • women achieve power through their desire or relationships with men • Lana, Grace, and Shelley experience gruesome medical experiments, procedures, and therapies.

9. Sexual Orientation: challenging hetero-normality • Intense pressure to stay closeted about her sexual identity because of discrimination • Conversion/ Aversion therapy she was forced to endure in attempt to “convert” her and to make her feel shameful about being a lesbian. “gay-reparative therapy” “I do believe that in promoting empathy for Lana and her own personal hell, the show is encouraging viewers to consider, even just for a split second, the various humiliations and slights that LGBT people experienced in the show's setting of 1964, and which many still suffer today,” says Brian Juergens on Afterelton.com (2012).

10. Audience Perception • This FX show has pulled in 5.79 million viewers in it’s second season • What the reviews are saying • “FX has unleashed on us something we've never seen” • “They are really pushing the edge of cable TV” • “American Horror Story couldn't be more different. Their unique yet different styles and personalities are the reason this weird show works. In the same way they are able to connect with every character in the show, they are also able to connect with every member of the audience”

11. Audience Perception • “American Horror Story is not like any other show you've seen on television, in fact, I'm pretty surprised they are able to get away with some of the stuff they are doing” • “It's innovative and pushes the limits of what you can do on television. It's a show that is most definitely not for everyone”

12. Audience Perception • What weekly viewers of the show are saying • Q1. what do u feel is the best feature of the show? • It has so many twists in it that keeps you interested • The wide range of characters in the show • That they challenge the regular mold of the shows we see • No one is off limits, it challenges the church and other institutions

13. Audience Perception • Q2. How do you think the show illustrates race and homosexuality compared to other shows? • Race is shown in a relevant way of the time period, not being around much, deemed invisible, while most shows try to include minority characters forcibly in the story lines • There were a few times where characters were shortened to their race, Jew , Mexican, but it fits in the reality of the time frame • Because the show is based in a religious setting, it deems homosexuality as a sin and reminds people of how idiotic that idea is • The show brings back the struggle of homosexuality that many people endured. Now shows are so accepting of gay characters with no realistic struggles

14. Audience Perception • Q3. What was your reaction to the conversion therapy applied to the lesbian character in the show? • I thought it was really intense, was kind of speechless when I saw it • It was unnecessary, to think you can change someone from being gay, I cant believe that they showed it on television. • I was glad they showed that, many people have no clue what sick things they did to gay people to “cure” them • It was a relief to see a show put the reality of what actually happened to people out there.

15. Work’s Cited American Horrow Story, Asylum. 2012. http://www.fxnetworks.com/ahs/about (accessed November 24, 2012). Bibel, Sara. TV by the Numbers. November 15, 2012. http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2012/11/15/american-horror-story-renewed-for-season-3-by-fx/157859/ (accessed November 25, 2012). Dremousis, Litsa. (2011, Dec. 21). Love lessons from american horror story. Nerve.com. Retrieved on November 16, 2012 from: http://www.nerve.com/love-sex/love-lessons-of-american-horror-story. Juergens, Brian. (2012, Nov. 16). Groundbreaking “american horror story” gives queers a place at the blood feast. Afterelton.com. Retrieved on November 18, 2012 from: http://www.afterelton.com/2012/11/groundbreaking-american-horror-story-queer-storyline?page=0,1. Reporters, The HollyWood. 'American Horror Story' What the Critics are Saying. October 5, 2011. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/american-horror-story-what-critics-244654 (accessed November 25, 2012). Wikipedia. American Horror Story. November 24, 2012. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Horror_Story (accessed November 25, 2012).