Maude Findlay or Ann Romano: which was the more likeable '70s modern woman?

[JRDM]

I will begin by saying that I think Ann was the most likeable. Maude and Ann had a lot in common. First of all, both their shows, Maude and One Day at a Time, were created by the great Norman Lear and covered many major issues of that period. Both Ann and Maude wanted equal rights for women and didn't like domineering men. Both were opinionated and fiery. I think the similarities really stop there. In fact, I find more differences between them.

While both had tempers, Maude's to me always came across as annoying, bitcy, and downright stupid. By contrast, Ann usually had a reason to be upset, at least by 1970s standards. Ann must be judged by the times in which she lived, as Maude must be also. Women in the 1970s still faced many barriers and prejudices that have disappeared in large part today. I think a lot of times both Ann and Maude were simply alienated and frustrated by the world around them, thus provoking them to lash out. Both women in her own way spoke to the issues of that era in America, but I simply liked Ann's style better.

To me Maude was a bitch most of the time, and it was sometimes hard to be sympathetic towards her. She treated her husband like total crap, talked terrible to him, and was verbally abusive at times. I'm certainly not saying he was perfect either, but her treatment of him really bothered me. I usually enjoy the show because of the issues it addresses, but sometimes I just want to tell her to shut up. Maude expected her husband to treat her good, but then it's okay for her to treat him bad. It doesn't work like that. She was one of those type of feminists who really seemed to hate men at times. She wanted to dominate, take TOTAL control, simply reverse the roles men and women had played. That was not appealing to me, and I'm a woman.

Ann, by contrast, was never the type to hate men. Ann loved and respected men, including her ex-husband. In one episode Ann makes a tremendous effort to make sure her daughters respect their father. She never really bad-mouthed him in front of them. Anytime Ed came, even if he and Ann ended up fighting, you could see that they respected each other. Ann never treated him like Maude did Walter. She even conveyed to her daughters that her and Ed didn't get a divorce because he was bad, but because they simply didn't get along. Ann never wanted to dominate, she just didn't want to be dominated. Ann believed in relationships to where each spouse respected the other. She always came across as simply a woman who wanted to carve out a career and did not want to be penalized because she was a woman. She expected or demanded nothing more than that.

Maude was the stereotypical white liberal of the 1970s. The episode where she hires Florida as her maid is, especially by today's standards, absolutely laughable and somewhat embarrassing to white people. Maude made a fool out of herself in trying to make Florida feel like an equal. I can't picture Ann doing this. I see Ann treating Florida just like she would have any white woman who worked for her. Of course I don't see Ann having a maid anyway, especially considering that she couldn't even make ends meet in the early years. That was another reason I found Ann far more likeable. She represented blue-collar working people and understood what working was. Maude was the typical white, rich liberal who had no idea about the real world except what she read in a book or something.

Another reason why I liked Ann better was that while she was committed and determined to developing a career, she was equally committed and determined to be a good mother to her daughters. Ann never made the mistake of thinking that embracing motherhood made you inferior. Sure, there were times she became frustrated with her kids, but she took a lot of pride in being a mother. I think Ann believed that parenthood, both being a mother and being a father, was just as important as having a successful career. I'm not saying that Maude wasn't proud to be a mother, but she just didn't seem to embrace it the way Ann did.

I also like Ann's political beliefs more than Maude's. Maude was so liberal it was sickening. Ann appeared to be somewhat moderate and probably possessed liberal, moderate, and conservative views depending on the issue at hand. Ann believed in working for what you get and earning things. At times Maude seemed to favor handouts to the poor. Ann would have never accepted this. In a lot of ways, Ann was very old-fashioned, especially when it came to child-raising. She believed in spanking and did spank her daughters. By contrast, I remember an episode of Maude where she didn't want to spank her grandson because she thought it was wrong. Ann was NEVER politically correct, and I liked that very much. On the other hand, Ann tried hard at times to be a progressive mother as well. She wanted her daughters to become independent, and she made an honest effort in understanding the problems of their generation.

For all these reasons, I thought Ann was the most likeable. What are your views?

[comedyfreak]

Maude for me.

[catlover79]

Ann - she didn't scare me as much as Maude!!

[sunshinefizzy]

I think I'll go with Maude. I personally think she is funny as funny as all get out!

[snl 70s show fan]

ann

[JulieSomoski]

I liked Maude more, but Ann was definitely a lot more likeable. Both were funny though, and both shows were great!

[catlover79]

I thought Maude was kind of scary. Bea Arthur just has that intimidating prescence.

[Dean Winchester]

I liked Maude a little better

[gotsmart]

Maude seems a bit more harsh than Ann. I picked Ann

[JulieSomoski]

Originally Posted by catlover79

I thought Maude was kind of scary. Bea Arthur just has that intimidating prescence.

I thought the same thing . . . it didn't help that I was like 6 when I first saw the show. Especially the opening . . . one of the scariest opening things ever, with all the shots of Maude's face-LOL

[AB]

I'd pick Ann as most likable of the two.

[Scoobiedoo30]

Ann Romano