For many, a stray reference to The L Word conjures nostalgia. The series represents a specific moment in time for lesbian representation on television, and so many queers have stories about how and when they first watched. And it’s not just fans who are nostalgic for the much-discoursed series. The stars who brought these characters to life are, too. And in fact, Jennifer Beals has put together the ultimate walk down sapphic memory lane with the release of The L Word: A Photographic Journal, a gay tome featuring over 400 candid photographs taken by Beals on the set and behind the scenes. Many of them have never been seen outside of the close circle of the cast and crew. Paired with quotes and reflections from the stars of the show, it offers a time capsule and a glimpse behind the curtain into the making of the first and longest running TV series about lesbian life.
I was lucky enough to see Beals at her book tour stop in LA and to speak with her in an interview afterward. The good gay vibes were set with a killer playlist that included songs by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, Chappell Roan, Tracy Chapman, and more. When I told her that I really enjoyed the music that was playing, her demeanor changed. She was almost giddy. “I really wanted to make it like a party,” Beals tells me. She even made sure to share the playlist link with me because she was so proud of it. At her LA event, she was interviewed by longtime queer journalist Tracy E. Gilchrist, and for subsequent events she has been in conversation with the author Lydi Conklin and original series creator Ilene Chaiken.
“I wanted to bring people together and be in the same space and enjoy one another’s company,” Beals says of these events. “Not only to reminisce about the show, but to have it as a jumping off point to joy in a way. I just want people to leave feeling enlivened somehow.”
There certainly was no shortage of joy in the room that night. Queer folks of all ages were packed into the small theater; there was no seat left unused. People seemed to hang on her every word, shocked to be breathing the same air as the Jennifer Beals, who is as stunning in real life as she is on television. The fans were desperate for any kernel of The L Word they could get. No matter how many years it has been since the show was on the air, Jennifer Beals is a living, breathing piece of something that meant so much to so many people.
Beals has always been an avid photographer. She uses her camera as a sort of shield, she explains, a coping mechanism to help guide her through new experiences. But she also uses it as a way to mark time, to create evidence of different periods in her life. The project that eventually became this book started as a personal archiving practice. Originally, it was never intended to be seen by anyone other than the cast and crew of the show. When the series ended in 2009, Beals compiled all the photographs she had taken over the years and made it into a memory book of sorts. To add another layer to the archival nature of the project, she interviewed her cast mates, text that’s featured in the final version of the book. According to Beals, those interviews were conducted right after the show wrapped, so “the experience is very fresh in their minds.” This yields a book that feels simultaneously of-the-moment and like a piece of history.
Beals collected everything from the show: call sheets, scripts, emails. She attributes her collector tendencies to the fact that her father died when she was young. She understands the “impermanence of life,” so she keeps everything just in case. It’s the same reason she takes photos, to have a tangible memory. There are so many beautiful photos in the book; it’s clear that Beals is as skilled behind the lens as she is in front of it. There were certain photos she knew she wanted to end up in the final version of the book. For example, a photo of Leisha Hailey leaping through a clothing rack during a photoshoot for Vanity Fair and a photo of Laurel Holloman showing off her extremely pregnant belly were some of the shots she knew she had to have. She made her selections and sent them to folks for their approval so that everyone could have a final say and a hand in the book. No one said no to any of the photos she wanted most.
Before it became a traditionally published photography book, the project was more DIY. Beals realized just how much the show meant to fans after attending a fan convention in the U.K. with co-stars Kate Moennig and Leisha Hailey. She was amazed at the way fans were attached to the show. “They were so interested in the minutiae of the show; the minutiae of the show brought them joy,” she says of the fans. After seeing that enthusiasm from fans, she knew she had to share the book with them, so she had a limited batch printed. She jokes she got “lazy” about doing more with the book since that limited batch, but then fans kept asking about it. That led her to getting the book published on a larger scale.
“I like to think that it’s kind of imperfect timing,” she jokes.
Any timing for this book is perfect in my mind. I would have waited another 21 years just to get a little more insight into the world of the show. Though technically stills, the photographs have so much movement to them. Beals does an incredible job capturing the “talking, laughing, loving, breathing” of it all. In one photo, Moennig, Hailey, and Holloman are joined by Erin Daniels. Beals caught them mid-conversation and captured them in that moment, forever preserved here. It feels so intimate and alive. One of my personal favorites is of Pam Grier. She’s standing among the trailers looking off to the side, the sun washing over her face. She is powerful and vulnerable, strong and soft, all in one captured second. The book really is a gift for fans of The L Word, old and new.
The character of Bette Porter still means a lot to Beals, who speaks of her almost like an old friend. “She helped me grow to become more confident and to become more outspoken in my beliefs,” she says. “There’s an interesting thing when you play a character that is more in their power than you are. It calls upon you to expand into that power.”
“I would say that she gave me strength and I offered to her my vulnerability,” she adds, joking that she and Bette both draw boundaries in Sharpie. Thanks to playing Bette, Beals has “seen the world more clearly,” especially when it comes to being let into the LGBTQ+ community in a kind of way.
“To be an honorary part of the community has been such an incredible gift,” she says. With the book, she’s now letting fans into her life and world a bit, providing an intimate look into moments beyond the screen.
Ultimately, Beals’ goal with releasing the book now is to give everyone a sliver of something positive to hold on to. “We need to convene around this series of memories and figure out how we take that joy and that community with us to face the things that are going on right now,” she says.
Even just from the selection of photos displayed here, you can see she accomplished her goal at every stop. Both in person at her events and over Zoom, Beals’ warmth radiates off of her. Not only does she talk about her time on the show with reverence, she also has a deep respect for it, and that respect extends to the community who has uplifted her and the character she played. She passionately speaks about spending time with members of the LGBTQ+ over the years, and it’s clear she understood the assignment when she took the role. In talking to her, there are moments where that Bette Porter energy comes through, and it’s clear to see yet again how she’s allowed Bette to become part of her DNA.
At a time when the queer community is under attack, it’s important to create the time and space to be together and remember our collective power. And that’s something that Beals was trying to do by sharing this book with a larger community. “We need to convene around this series of memories and figure out how we take that joy and that community with us to face the things that are going on right now,” she tells me.
The pictures in the book are more than photographs; they’re a testament to the series’ important place in television history. It’s unsurprising that in order to really create an archive for this series, someone from the cast had to take it into her own hands. Networks release supplementary materials and retrospectives for fans all the time when it comes to mainstream series, but just as queer history has been buried or passed over, The L Word is too often left out of conversations about premium cable television history. The series’ successor Generation Q has been deplatformed altogether. With The L Word: A Photographic Journal, Beals — and the rest of the cast and crew, via their interviews — ensure the story behind the series gets to live on. Even if were to also be taken off streaming platforms, The L Word lives on through Beals’ pictures.
From the outside, The L Word may be just a television show. But for the generations of people who were able to see themselves through the characters, there will never be enough words to state it’s significance. That’s why people stood in line, patiently waiting for their turn to tell Beals how she and the show changed them. The grins on their faces as they clutched the book to their chest, the way their hands excitedly told stories for them. It’s all a part of our history.
If you’ve ever wanted to own a Jennifer Beals The L Word print, some of the photos from the book are available on Jennifer’s website. The book is out now.
