Avis DeVoto

Julia - Bûche De Noël

Bebe Neuwirth as Avis DeVoto in episode 2x07 of Julia, "Shrimp and Grits"

– bebe neuwirth as avis devoto in julia s2 (episodes 2.01 + 2.03)

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Julia (TV 2022) Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Avis DeVoto/Blanche Knopf Characters: Avis DeVoto, Blanche Knopf Additional Tags: One Night Stands, Blind Character, Older Characters, Vaginal Fingering, Pining, Aging, Strangers to Lovers, Body Worship Summary:

Avis DeVoto isn't stupid. She knows Blanche Knopf has pined after Judith Jones for years, decades even. She knows Judith is slim and petite and pale just like her. She knows Blanche would rather feel Judith's smooth, taut, bare skin beneath her. She just doesn't expect it to hurt as much as it does when she finally acknowledges the elephant in the room.

Fic Preview:

It’s surprisingly easy to lie to Evan. A missed flight is a plausible enough thing, after all; he knows how exhausted she’s been these past few months. Running herself ragged while Julia has been off gallivanting around France and barely writing a recipe a week, if that, and Sartre has been moping around Paris feeling half-dead inside with nothing to show for it, and Blanche has been walling herself into her darkened office and driving away the only person who cares enough to turn on the lights for her.

Judith calls down to the front desk to book herself another night and pointedly does not ask about any telegrams that might have arrived for her.

A day…that’s all she needs. A day to herself to find the inspiration and relief and rekindling that JP and Julia and Simca and everyone else had absolutely failed to give her.

A luxuriously long, hot shower leaves her feeling significantly more human, and by the time the midday sun is warming her shoulders in front of Paul, she feels like she can breathe again.

The hot chocolate and pasty are decadent enough on their own, but time is the real indulgence. She meant it when she told the waiter she wouldn’t be leaving for a good long while. Sure, she’s working even now, but the air around her feels lighter than it ever could deep in the halls of Knopf where everything is dark carpets and gleaming mahogany. The sun is brighter here than it seemed to be back in New York and Boston, too. Hell, even the food seems remarkable—if only for its arrival with no fuss, no quibbling over seasoning and American customers and French authenticity, no endless bickering from two women far too old and behind on their deadline for Judith to tolerate it with good humor.

As midday stretches into early afternoon, Judith allows herself a second hot chocolate. Who knows the next time she’ll be in Paris, after all.

It isn’t long after it’s been delivered that she spots a familiar face weaving through the throngs of people that have gathered on the patio.

Avis sits down two tables over before glancing up and spotting Judith. She cocks her head to the side, brows drawing together even as a smile pulls at the corners of her mouth. “I thought you’d gone back to New York,” she says, ambling her way over to Judith’s table and gesturing at the empty seat across from her.

Judith motions for her to take it. “I decided to miss my flight.”

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Bebe in "Julia"

Julia episode 7

What was the razor budget for Julia? Because they surely had to shear DHP like a sheep.

Also, Paul’s being a sassy little bitch and I love him. Overly dramatic and a king. When he gets upset over Avis staying to help him and tries to force her to leave... giving me Niles and Lilith all over again.

Avis DeVoto

Julia - Season One

Julia, Ep. 7 – Foie Gras (Spoilers)

Second to last episode of the season.  I’m not sure if this is supposed to be a limited series or if a second season is on the table.  I do hope so. I think what I’ve liked about this show is just watching an episode and then going to the internet to see kind of how certain things played out in real life.  

For instance, in this episode…well, there’s a lot of criticism thrown at Julia from all sides. We have the chef at the restaurant basically telling Julia that women could never be true Chefs.  That only man had the discipline for this kind of work. This shows this strange idea in society that if a housewife cooks, then that’s not a big deal and it’s not work. However, if a man cooks, he is considered a professional and cooking then becomes something beyond just wifely duties (ahh, the pretzel shaped way we bend in order to keep the Patriarchy at float).

Then, we have Judith’s boss, Blanch.  Blanch still believes cookbooks are a waste of time and truly is a snob toward Julia. Furthermore, Blanch is angry at Judith for having the audacity to still think editing Julia’s book is anything more than a waste of time for someone of Judith’s talents.  

Finally, we have the meeting between Julia and Betty Friedan, author of The Feminine Mystique. In this scene, Friedan says that Child is not a good role model for woman.  Friedan says that The French Chief makes it look like a recipe that takes two or three hours can be done in thirty minutes.  That now wives are expected to prepare these harder meals along with doing the other housework and how does that liberate them?  How does that give them the opportunity to do things like find work outside the home?  Now, here’s the thing; there’s no record of Child and Friedan ever meeting like this (but I would argue that having Fred Rogers show up at the end makes it clear this is more fiction than fact).  I’m not even sure that Friedan ever really made any public statement about Julia in her life.  

I’m guessing that the writers chose to do this in order to broach the subject of “what is feminism exactly”?  And while I’m not particularly comfortable with using Friedan as an antagonist (especially if this conversation really is fiction); there are some interesting points being made here by both Friedan and Julia.  Of course, the biggest question is why can’t woman have both?  Or why is it a bad thing if a woman chooses to be a housewife?  Or choose not to have a family?  Look, the whole discussion is complex and the surface is only scratched here.  For a show that deals solely with these questions, I’d suggest watching Miss America on Hulu.

Before I wrap this up, I just want to mention a few other things that happen in this episode. Paul, who travels to New York with Julia for the banquet, comes down with the flu and is babysat (believe me, there is no better term) by Avis.   I really enjoyed the scenes because David Hyde-Pierce and Bebe Neuwirth work so well together.  But it also gives the two characters a moment to connect and maybe realize they’re closer to friends then they’d like to admit.  

Alice goes on a date. I’ll be honest, the whole storyline of mother pushing Alice to date and find a man, is probably my least favorite storyline in the show.  That being said, I do think that the lawyer Alice is set up with might be an interesting addition.  If the show has a second season.          

the ghosts of the sapphic smithsonian

— [digital, 2023]

There’s a questionable breeze gliding through the room, even though the atmosphere hints at boisterous with wine glasses being clinked and the energy burning at high. In the distance radiates the smell of shrimp and lemon curd - a sweet and salty mix that had her turning her nose up at entrees if taste were possible in corporeal form. Glancing over at Dorothy, she catches a glimpse of ascertained sadness, her hand moving over to pat her waist in comfort.

“You’ll get used to being ignored, with time.” Avis murmurs, watching the smoke rise. They had all the time in the world now to play pranks on the living. A strong enough puff of smoke would feel like a light wind even with the windows closed, a lit cigarette emerging as a flickering hallucinaton of a candle of something other. 

“If anyone ever wants to stand where you are? Spill some wine on them–they’ll be wondering where it came from.” 

Entering my Avis DeVoto era (plaiting my 3+ feet of hair into a crown braid around my head and crawling around on the kitchen floor).

Spoilers Below

INTRODUCTION

In Julia‘s eighth episode, “Chocolate Souffle,” directed by Scott Ellis, Julia Child (Sarah Lancashire) almost decides to cancel The French Chef because of her disagreeable encounter with Betty Friedan (Tracee Chimo Pallero). WGBH President Hunter Fox (Robert Joy) starts the episode feeling invigorated by the cooking program’s fame. He hands the reign of WGBH’S flagship program to Alice Naman (Brittany Bradford). WGBH’s President promises to hire another female producer to help her with The French Chef. Hunter tells Russ Morash (Fran Kranz) that The French Chef earned the public television channel enough money to finance him producing and directing social justice documentaries. Julia decides to drop out of The French Chef’s second season because she is worried that the program traps women in the kitchen. Julia also hates that she deceived her husband, Paul Cushing Child (David Hyde Pierce), about how she launched the cooking program.

Julia’s decision to cancel The French Chef creates problems for her “chosen” family. Russ and Alice are forced to go back to producing P. Albert Duhamel’s (Jefferson Mays) I’ve Been Reading. Alice feels betrayed by Julia quitting because she thought they were one big family. She leans on her new long-distance boyfriend for support. Alice decides to visit him in New York because of her unhappiness at work. Avis DeVoto (Bebe Neuwirth) plans to wring Betty’s neck because The French Chef gives her purpose. The television program helps keep Avis active rather than spending all day depressed sitting on her couch sipping wine.

Meanwhile, in New York, Judith Jones (Fiona Glascott) confronts her boss Blanche Knopf (Judith Light), over sucking the joy out of the big gala. Unfortunately, Blanche is too preoccupied to make even one jab about cookbooks. Eventually, the company president confesses to Judith that her eyes are deteriorating. Blanche will soon be blind. Judith promises to be Blanche’s eyes, meaning that she will now have double the workload.

Paul talks Julia into not giving up on The French Chef because the cooking program plants smile on the audience’s faces. Everybody in Julia’s chosen family rejoices over her signing a contract for the second season of the cooking program. She plans to spend a couple of months in France working on the second cookbook with her collaborator Simone Beck (Isabella Rossellini) but will be back in time to start shooting the new season. Sadly, Alice cuts off her relationship with her boyfriend because she plans on focusing all her attention on being the lead producer of The French Chef. Julia Season One ends with the main cast watching the “Chocolate Souffle” episode of their cooking program while dreaming about the future.

MARRIAGE BETRAYAL

The Child’s marriage is based on a true partnership that Julia fractures by not trusting her husband from the jump. Paul crawls into bed dressed in his paisley pajamas. He notices that Julia, clad in floral pajamas, is reading The Feminine Mystique. He calls her a “masochist.” Julia sighs dramatically. She admits that The French Chef was all her idea. In the pilot episode, Julia had told Paul that the cooking program was all WGBH’s idea because they loved her I’ve Been Reading interview when she cooked an omelet for Albert. Paul sits there, puzzled. Finally, Julia states clearly that she lied to her husband to get him on board. She feels relieved that the whole thing will be over tomorrow when they tape the last episode.

Julia continues to reveal everything to Paul, perhaps to convince him to support her leaving The French Chef. She tells her husband that she has been paying for significant portions of the television program through cookbook royalties and checks from her late father, John McWilliams (James Cromwell). Julia did all this behind Paul’s back because she didn’t think he would support her creating The French Chef under these conditions. Paul seems more and more heartbroken as she explains further.

Paul’s upset because he can’t understand why Julia wouldn’t be honest with him. He has been her number one cheerleader from the start of their relationship. More than that, Paul believes they are partners who take on the world together. He feels embarrassed by learning that their The French Chef partnership has been a lie. Paul sees Julia’s deception similar to how the embassy forced him to retire after the years of service he dedicated them. He is not angry that Julia came up with the idea for the cooking program or partly financed it. Instead, Paul feels betrayed because Julia lied to him. She didn’t trust him to be her true partner. Paul feels duped by the person he loves and respects the most.

JULIA’S INSPIRATION

Paul forgives Julia, then inspires her to keep creating what brings her and others joy instead of listening to the naysayers. Throughout this episode, Julia is obsessed with the fact that The French Chef upsets feminists. One conversation with Paul turns everything around. Simone calls Julia in the evening to invite her and Paul to live at the co-author’s home in France for an indefinite period of time. This way, they could cook together until they finish their cookbook. Later in the night, Julia senses that Paul doesn’t want to move to France. He tells his wife that he doesn’t want to run away from The French Chef. Julia argues that the television program has been “poisoned” by her lies. However, Paul doesn’t let her take the easy way out.

The husband tells Julia that he still says yes to The French Chef even after learning the truth. As Julia’s true partner, Paul embraces the cooking program despite the financial risks. The only problem is that Julia still believes that Betty might be right. She doesn’t want to destroy any woman’s life. Paul bluntly argues that The French Chef is not that important in the grand scheme of things. The television program means next to nothing compared to their roles in fighting the Nazis during World War Two. Julia won’t save or ruin the United States by continuing to shoot episodes of The French Chef.

More than that, Paul points out that perhaps The French Chef harms or upsets some housewives like Betty argues, but the cooking program is not for them. The series is for the creative team behind The French Chef and for audiences who find joy in being in Julia’s company for half an hour. There is no reason to destroy something that audiences enjoy because it’s not one demographics cup of tea. Finally, Paul states that the world would be dull if criticisms could silence all the artists. Thankfully he breaks through Julia’s protective shell. Once again, she signs up for The French Chef Season Two the next day.

LAST THOUGHTS

“Chocolate Souffle” reminds us that art doesn’t need to be loved by all to be vital. If even one person finds joy in a painting or cooking program, its existence means something. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.