Gay Best Friends, Because Women Can't Dress Themselves

Helene Shugart's article, Reinventing Privilege: The New (Gay) Man in Contemporary Popular Media, among other representations of gay men in film and television, discusses the portrayal of relationships between gay men and straight women. Shugart discusses that in the gay man/straight woman relationship the gay man usually has the role of the caretaker for their female counterpart. She writes, "The overarching dynamic driving the relationship in this

configuration is parental, manifest most often in the female characters seeking or needing guidance and direction from their male counterparts: 'the new leading men are emotional Gibraltars, forever steadying their zany dames … seems the wise gay man is fast replacing the old hysterical femme-down-the-hall stereotype'."

Thus the gay best friend is there to give relationship and career advice and most notably, help their spastic female friends look fabulous! Leading ladies of several movies and television shows rely on their gay best friends to help them dress their best. They serve as the ultimate shopping partner, surely never to steer their ladies into a fashion faux pas. Carrie Bradshaw has Stanford Blatch and Charlotte York has Anthony Marentino, In The Devil Wears Prada Andy Sachs has Nigel, and Grace Adler has Will Truman:

With their infinite fashion wisdom and affinity for style, gay best friends seem to always know what to do to help us women look our best. I guess we just can't manage to do it on our own. What ever would we do without them!?