She’s been Hillary Clinton, Regina George’s mom and the fictional character we all wanted to be president. Her name is Amy Poehler. When we think of comedians, most likely the first thing we think of is men in the industry. This is understandable as this industry has a severe gender inbalance between men and woman. Amy Poehler has paved the way for the modern era of female comedians. She has become a feminsit comedy icon in her comedic writing and acting roles and as a major producer in film and television.
Poehler moved to Chicago in 1993 after she graduated to pursue a professional career in comedy. She joined the improv groups ImprovOlympics and Second City, and it was there that she met another comedy icon: Tina Fey. The two became close friends and were both hired on Saturday Night Life. During the middle of her first season, she was promoted from featured player to full castmember, becoming the first woman and the third person ever, to do so.
Poehler and Fey collaborated for Mean Girls (2004) and Baby Mama (2008) which were massive hits, especially among teenagers and young women. Poehler announced she was pregnant in 2008, and this proved to be her busiest year on SNL, portraying Hillary Clinton and a host of other famous faces. After having her baby, she left SNL, but returned to television with her beloved show Parks And Recreation. She also released a web show called Smart Girls At The Party featuring interviews with “girls who are changing the world by being themselves.”
During the run of Parks and Rec(2009-2015), Poehler was the top comedienne on television. She received multiple Emmy nods for her role as an actor, writer and producer. In 2011, she featured on Time magazine’s list of “100 Most Influential People.” Poehler and Fey also became a comedy duo favorite after presenting the Golden Globes three years in a row. In 2014, she released her memoir Yes Please which became a number one New York Times bestseller. She covered topics such as body image, parenthood and learning about the limitations of physical appearance.
Amy Poehler has been a trailblazer as a feminist in the media. She perfectly summarised the feminist struggle saying: “..this discussion about who is and isn’t a feminist is yet another example of media trying to bite us, to take us and split us apart and argue among each other. I think we need to continue as women to celebrate what we have in common and share and stop letting society focus on how we’re different.” She continues to produce and support strong female-led projects and her female comedy posse (including Tina Fey, Maya Rudolph and Kristen Wiig) are continuously proving they are the funniest people in the business right now.
Just like her character Leslie Knope, she is always fighting for what’s right, with a postive attitude and a sense of humour. Amy Poehler is Leslie Knope except instead of a city hall, she’s in male-dominated comedy industry – and she is on unstoppable.