The Dave Letterman story has brought up an issue I feel is central to women's lives: how our success is interpreted in the world.
Too often when a woman succeeds in the presence of a famous man, the public assumes she "did it on her back". No one seems to think that maybe she's the one with all the brains, but getting none of the credit.
No one has speculated that Dave might be the one who has sought out talented, intelligent women, and got them infatuated with him to advance his own career. That certainly seems to be what happened with Merrill Markoe, who has publicly stated she only stuck around on the show (which btw she helped create with her own genius) because she was Letterman's girlfriend.
Markoe is a five-time Emmy award winner. She doesn't need Letterman and she didn't need him then. In fact, she's the one who came up with Stupid Pet Tricks, which helped put Letterman on the map.
So: how many women out there are still seriously underestimated and underappreciated, not to say *underpaid*, for creating male stars by letting them pick their brains?
I bet we could write a book. No: an encyclopedia.
Oh yeah - it's called Herstory. And it's still being written, or rather not written, to this very day.
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Ultimately, Ourstory would be a lot more interesting to me.
I think about men like President Obama who have sought out female advisers and valued them for their insight. They didn't achieve their positions based on being anyone's sexual conquest, and many of them had risen to positions of authority based on their own merits well before signing on. Additionally, I find it touching and fitting how President Obama he relies on Michelle for her viewpoints and how she is often the voice of reason in his life.