Many girls and women wrote to us about the portrayal of women in the entertainment industry with comments about both female characters played in television sitcoms, dramas, and films, and the actresses themselves. They had many positive things to say about many well known television shows such as The X-Files and Ally McBeal as well as films like Silence of the Lambs. Along with research done within the Quest Beyond the Pink Collar, you will find what other girls had to say.

Murphy Brown is a television sitcom that aired for many years. The main character was played by Candice Bergen who portrayed Murphy Brown, a single mother with a top notch job as a respectable newscaster who was battling breast cancer , with a lot of integrity and self worth. She was a woman with a serious job. People who believe that women belong in the home or behind a secretary's desk should take a look at this show. On top of being a terrific actress, Candice Bergen has many other admirable qualities. As UC San Diego freshman Maureen Ray said, "She is a very strong woman, raising her child after her husband died, keeping her dignity through his illness. She is so different from her character; very softspoken, quietly dignified but very very intelligent."

Silence of the Lambs Is a great movie with a great message for women and girls everywhere. The main character, played by Jodie Foster, is an FBI agent who is given an assignment that they know she will fail. Against what everyone believed, she finished the task. Olivia Tsai wrote to us about this movie and said that the movie made the point "...that if you work hard then you can disprove misconceptions about what other people think about your ability.

Ally McBeal was very popular among the girls who wrote to us. They all thought that she sent a very positive message about women in tht workplace. Ally McBeal is a successful lawyer, and she doesn't let the fact that she's a woman stand in her way.

Mulan is the newest Disney movie. In this film, Mulan is the main character. She stands against all odds when her father is summoned to fight in the war and Mulan dresses up as a man to take his place in the battle. She impresses all of the soldiers with her strength and intelligence, but little do they know that she's a woman. This film gives insight into one cultures view on women, and what one girl did to stand up for what she believed in. As Janet Chen, a student at Diablo Valley College located in Concord California put it, "If you put your heart to it and focus on what you want and eventually you'll get it."

Tina Valkanoff, a student at The Head Royce School in Oakland California, said that The X-Files, The Pretender, and Profiler were three TV shows with great female characters. "The X-Files portrays the character of dana scully as a strong, intelligent, independent woman who not only surives weekly encounters with abnormal FBI cases & the occasional alien, but she also saves the life of her partner multiple times & survives cancer." The women in Pretender and Profiler also both independent and intelligent women."