There’s something very annoying about CBS’ new show, The Talk, and it isn’t Leah Remini’s incessant yelling. It’s Sara Gilbert, who never openly discusses her relationship on the show. Gilbert is an executive producer and co-host, and you might remember her as Darlene Conner on Roseanne. She came out of the closet in 2010, and she has has been with her partner, Allison Adler, since 2002. So what’s my problem? Gilbert has not mentioned her partner once since the show began, despite every other panelist discussing their significant other. In fact, the premise of the show (besides being a blatant rip-off of The View), is that it provides a support system for mothers, because the ladies often discuss their personal struggles on the show. So wouldn’t it be appropriate for Gilbert to mention Adler? I understand that everyone finds their own way to talk about things, but if you join a talk show, and you’re not completely open about your personal life, I have a problem. If she isn’t ready to discuss it, then she shouldn’t have signed on to the show. Besides, this is a perfect forum for her to educate people on her personal life, and it could potentially help other same-sex couples with their own struggles.
Howard Stern is the only man who could get to the bottom of why Leah Remini and Holly Robinson Peete were fired from The Talk. Sara Gilbert, Julie Chen, and Sharon Osbourne appeared on Howard Stern’s radio show to promote The Talk, and Stern grilled them for an explanation. Though Stern implied that Chen was to blame because of her marriage to CBS honcho Les Moonves, Gilbert quickly came to her defense and explained that the studio and the network made the final decision, and Chen didn’t have a say. Stern then pressed Osbourne, who is always honest. She quickly said that the chemistry was clearly off with the prior panel, and she therefore had a feeling they’d get the boot. Stern also asked Chen to confirm whether she insisted on being present when hot-button subjects were discussed, and she admitted that because of her journalist background, she was the only one who knew how to avoid a lawsuit. So what have we learned from all of this? We learned that the television industry is very similar to high-school, so you better make nice with the popular girls, especially when one such popular girl is dating the captain of the football team.