'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel': Is the Amazon Prime series based on a true story?
The legendary Amy Sherman-Palladino, the creator of 'Gilmore Girls, struck cinematic gold with her Amazon Prime series, 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel', in 2017. Is the hit series based on a true story?
Although the series does take its inspiration from real life and certain elements from Palladino's childhood, the show in its entirety is mostly fictional. The series' protagonist character Midge (Rachel Brosnahan) has a longstanding connection with a fictionalized version of the real-life stand-up comedian Lenny Bruce. Therefore, it could be a possibility that Midge may be inspired by another comic from the1960s as well.
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'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' is proof that the funny woman has arrived!
The star leads in the series are stand-up comedian Midge (Rachel Brosnahan), and her manager Susie (Alex Borstein) which is set in New York during the 1950s. The series chronicles a Jewish housewife's attempts at a comedy career, right after her husband leaves her abruptly.
At a glance, Midge reminds viewers of the late Joan Rivers, the American comedian who rose to stardom in the 60s for her bold comedy deliveries. While Rivers did somewhat influence the origin of Midge's character story, the initial idea stemmed from Sherman-Palladino's own father comedian Don Sherman.
Palladino grew up listening to her father and his friends entertaining one another with jokes, and while accepting the 2018 Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series, she said she "had to turn a six-foot-two Bronx Jew into Rachel Brosnahan".
Palladino is the 2018 Outstanding Comedy Emmy Award winner, also having been nominated for 54 Emmys throughout the series' three seasons and winning about 16 of them. With several awards just pouring in, new viewers are constantly curious and tuning in to see what the big deal is. This is your cue to jump on the binge-watch wagon.
Although the countless Emmy Awards have officially put the franchise on the map, the lead actors are a big part of what makes the show a must-watch. In 2018, Rachel Brosnahan won her own Emmy Award for her role as the famous stand-up comedian Midge. Her co-star Alex Borstein won the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy for her role as Midge's manager Susie for two years straight!
In addition, Sherman-Palladino spoke about honoring the famous Joan Rivers' legacy on the show and told Vanity Fair, "She had that wonderful mix, that battle of wanting to be accepted on a feminine level — [but] you can’t have that many balls and be accepted on a feminine level... Going forward, that’s how we’re looking at Midge’s humor."
Brosnahan too was inspired by Rivers and her own family members when in the process of shaping her understanding of Midge.
It's safe to say that the actual time period of this remarkable show didn't have its own Miriam "Midge" Maisels, but when talking about the Midge in this context, she's a vivacious concoction of the creator's imagination; one that we fell in love with by just watching her onscreen.
Stay tuned for Season 4 of 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel', scheduled to premiere on February 18, 2022, on Amazon Prime.