USABLE PERFORMANCE FEMINISM FOR OUR TIME/349 actual making of theatre,somcthing with which she had morc than passing familiarity, as her husband,Carl,finished his army tour of duty following V-E day as technical director of the Mickey Rooney Soldiers Show Company in Paris,and he founded and ran a summer theatre for two summers immediately following his and Betty's marriage in 1947.Carl later worked for the publisher of Theatre Arts Monthly and published an annual guide,the Summer Theatre Handbook.3 Whether or not Betty supported Carl's artistic interests,she wanted him to earn more money,which led to his leaving theatre to pursue a career in advertising.Betty Friedan reveals an ambivalent and sometimes dismissive relation to theatre workers in her memoir:on the one hand,she derides Carl's"theatre friends,with their'dahling'this and that,[who]ignored me when they found out I wasn't in the theater"3,on the other,she talks about choosing hotels about which she knows because theatre people stay in them.3 An attempt to look bohemian? A way to announce her frugality? Whatever her feelings toward people in "the business,"and whatever her issues with(and behavior toward)individuals who might challenge her on anything from mimeographing to homophobia,she loved engaging with live audiences and did not hesitate to use the word "actress"to define herself."I enjoyed the feedback... that suppressed actress who was not pretty enough,the ham in me,out in full voice now."35 Numerous accounts of Friedan's lectures tell of standing ovations,hostile men won over,rapt attention,and listeners in tears.If she lacked the skills to please her suburban neighbors on a quotidian basis or play well with others,she could hold an audience in the palm of her hand,and feminists made the most of this.Judith Hen- nessee,one of Friedan's biographers,outlines how two other committed feminists in the then-nascent women's movement wooed Friedan to head the new activist entity that Friedan herself suggested calling the National Organization for Women and the high points of whose initial mission statement she drafted.Catherine East,executive director of the Citizens'Advisory Council and a twenty-three-year veteran of civil service teamed up with Mary Eastwood,a Justice Department lawyer,to provide Friedan with statistics they had been collecting for years on discrimination in wages, social security,pensions,education,and fringe benefits.Neither East nor Eastwood could (or would)risk her job,but they sensed that Friedan's visibility,fearlessness, fame,and outspokenness(not to mention her freelance status and relentless drive for the next paying gig)could lead to action.Friedan did not disappoint. Friedan's own public career as a speaker and organizer-distinct from her work as a writer-suggests a high-voltage triangulation among her person,her personality,and her persona.Philip Auslander defines persona as"a presence that is neither an overtly fictional character nor simply equivalent to the performer's'real'identity."Drawing on Erving Goffman's frame analysis,Auslander asserts that social context produces behavior,and that celebrities have a public self whose behavior cannot be taken as an unmediated manifestation of "personality."Using celebrity actors as a starting point, he writes,with Jack Nicholson as an example:"The 'Nicholson'personage is not Hennessee.Betty Friedan.46-51:ibid.,70. Life So Far,70. 4lbid.,165,226 5bid,143. *Hennessee,Betty Friedan,99-108. 5 Philip Auslander,"Musical Personae,"TDR:The Drama Review 50,no.1(2006):102. This content downloaded from 183.195.251.166 on Sat,16 Jan 2016 12:04:58 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and ConditionsUSABLE PERFORMANCE FEMINISM FOR OUR TIME / 349 actual making of theatre, something with which she had more than passing familiarity, as her husband, Carl, finished his army tour of duty following V-E day as technical director of the Mickey Rooney Soldiers Show Company in Paris, and he founded and ran a summer theatre for two summers immediately following his and Betty's marriage in 1947. Carl later worked for the publisher of Theatre Arts Monthly and published an annual guide, the Summer Theatre Handbook.32 Whether or not Betty supported Carl's artistic interests, she wanted him to earn more money, which led to his leaving theatre to pursue a career in advertising. Betty Friedan reveals an ambivalent and sometimes dismissive relation to theatre workers in her memoir: on the one hand, she derides Carl's "theatre friends, with their 'dahling' this and that, [who] ignored me when they found out I wasn't in the theater"33; on the other, she talks about choosing hotels about which she knows because theatre people stay in them.34 An attempt to look bohemian? A way to announce her frugality? Whatever her feelings toward people in "the business," and whatever her issues with (and behavior toward) individuals who might challenge her on anything from mimeographing to homophobia, she loved engaging with live audiences and did not hesitate to use the word "actress" to define herself. "I enjoyed the feedback . . . that suppressed actress who was not pretty enough, the ham in me, out in full voice now."35 Numerous accounts of Friedan's lectures tell of standing ovations, hostile men won over, rapt attention, and listeners in tears. If she lacked the skills to please her suburban neighbors on a quotidian basis or play well with others, she could hold an audience in the palm of her hand, and feminists made the most of this. Judith Hen￾nessee, one of Friedan's biographers, outlines how two other committed feminists in the then-nascent women's movement wooed Friedan to head the new activist entity that Friedan herself suggested calling the National Organization for Women and the high points of whose initial mission statement she drafted. Catherine East, executive director of the Citizens' Advisory Council and a twenty-three-year veteran of civil service teamed up with Mary Eastwood, a Justice Department lawyer, to provide Friedan with statistics they had been collecting for years on discrimination in wages, social security, pensions, education, and fringe benefits. Neither East nor Eastwood could (or would) risk her job, but they sensed that Friedan's visibility, fearlessness, fame, and outspokenness (not to mention her freelance status and relentless drive for the next paying gig) could lead to action. Friedan did not disappoint.36 Friedan's own public career as a speaker and organizer - distinct from her work as a writer - suggests a high-voltage triangulation among her person, her personality, and her persona. Philip Auslander defines persona as "a presence that is neither an overtly fictional character nor simply equivalent to the performer's 'real' identity."37 Drawing on Erving Goffman's frame analysis, Auslander asserts that social context produces behavior, and that celebrities have a public self whose behavior cannot be taken as an unmediated manifestation of "personality." Using celebrity actors as a starting point, he writes, with Jack Nicholson as an example: "The 'Nicholson' personage is not 32Hennessee, Betty Friedan, 46-51; ibid., 70. 33 Life So Far, 70. "Ibid., 165, 226. 35 Ibid., 143. ^Hennessee, Betty Friedan, 99-108. 37 Philip Auslander, "Musical Personae," TDR: The Drama Review 50, no. 1 (2006): 102. This content downloaded from 183.195.251.166 on Sat, 16 Jan 2016 12:04:58 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions