Here are some behind-the-scenes stills from the 15-minute tv show "Feminine Fancy" that aired on WGTV, Georgia's educational television station housed in UGA's Georgia Center for Continuing Education. Rita Torlan was the host of this show aimed at women that aired first on Thursday nights from 7:45pm to 8:00pm, then in the same slot on Fridays, between May 25 and November 29, 1968. Subjects she covered on such a brief show with a brief run were quite varied and the topics are very much of their time--

Body Painting, or How to Be a Success at Your Next Party

From Flirtatious Bikinis to Chic Chiffons

The Short and Long of Easy Summer Hairstyles

Grammar Your Tot's Tresses [not sure what that means...]

Learn to Make Paper Flowers

Zany Ideas for Children's Picnics

Picnic Ideas for Adults

Perky Patio Ideas

Thirst Quenchers I Have Known

Low-Cal Menus

Methods for Arranging Wild Flowers

Easy Makeup Application

Family Pet Care

From Trash to Treasures: Junk and Trunks and Curiosities

Kitchen Crafts: Brighten Up with Unique Decorative Touches

Découpage: The French Art of Paper Overlay

Sand Casting: Make Unique Wall Hangings and Sculptures at Home

Happy Birthday: Fancy Cakes to Gingerbread Houses

Fabric Design 1: Appliqué and Stitchery the Uncomplicated Way

Fabric Design 2: Block Printing and Fabric Collage

Football for Females: Pointers for the Lady Spectator

Coiffure Conscious

Physical Frescoes: Body Painting Fun

Creative Use of Dough and Breads, from decorated cookies to bread constructions

The episode documented in the photos above appears to be the one on découpage techniques, or may be the one on junk and trunks, since there's a trunk on the set. It's also likely she taped several shows at a time and her sets contained a mix of episode materials.

I would love to know how Ms. Torlan managed to get what would clearly be a lot of information on these topics into just a 15-minute show. Obviously, she managed it for nearly a year, and she had a prime-time slot on WGTV. This was not a morning show and didn't assume that women would only be watching at home in the daytime. Working women wanted some of these tips once they were off work and had time to watch.

If anyone knows what became of Rita Torlan, please let us know. I can find no further information on her or this short-lived program. As you know, women's places in television history are under documented, so I am putting the word out about this show. Sadly, no film or videotapes of this show appear to have survived in our archives. Hundreds of tv stations dumped their film or 2" videotapes into landfills in the 1970s as smaller videotape formats became ubiquitous and the stations wanted the shelf space. Lots of shows were either erased or dumped and so are not out in the world beyond stills or newspaper listings, often are the only way to document that some television shows existed.

“Drucilla didn’t just fall off a cliff — she was pushed off the edge of representation. And I’m still mad about it.”

Let’s be clear: Drucilla Winters wasn’t just some soap character. She was the moment. A Black woman who clawed her way from troubled teen to matriarch, model, and executive — all while serving face, fashion, and fire in Genoa City. She earned her place in daytime history. And then they threw her off a cliff like she was an extra in a telenovela.

No body. No closure. Just vibes and disrespect.

Meanwhile, Neil Winters got a multi‑episode tribute when Kristoff St. John passed — and he deserved it. But it’s telling, isn’t it? Black men in daytime get legacy arcs. Black women get sudden exits and silence. Drucilla’s disappearance wasn’t just bad writing — it was a metaphor.

Lily Winters’ whole storyline — from paternity drama to prison to cancer — is a masterclass in how Black women are written to suffer, not to thrive. And Devon Hamilton’s glow‑up from foster kid to mogul? That’s what happens when you give a character space to evolve.

Drucilla’s fall is why I stopped watching. It was messy. It was loud. It was symbolic. And it reminded me that Black women’s progress in media is always conditional.

So yes, my Black History posts include Drucilla Winters. Because she earned her place. Because she was iconic. And because her fall was not just literal — it was a warning.

Tony Dimera & Anna Dimera.  #Days #Tanna