'Anchorwoman' is shallow -- film at 11!

But the dumb blond who maybe ain't so dumb was cliché when Judy Holliday did it back in the 1940s, and Jones ain't no Judy Holliday. Jones is not part of the joke, she is the joke, because she is blond, busty and wears short skirts. Which is somehow supposed to be funny. If Gadinsky had any courage at all, he would have simply made her a drag queen -- that at least would have been interesting -- because that is what she is: a female drag queen, her femininity exaggerated, her intelligence diminished. Who, when thrust into a high-pressure occupation with no training, would not look stupid?

For the women surrounding her, Petraglia and the other reporters, there is no winning -- either they must smile and surrender to watching an unqualified hire waste valuable time and resources being "trained" or risk being seen as somehow jealous, or worse, unsisterly. Presumably, we are all supposed to be rooting for simple-minded Jones to emerge, à la Marilyn Monroe, as the brains behind her scattered character. I just wanted everyone, including Jones, to rise up as one and throw the cameras and the whole "Anchorwoman" concept out of the newsroom and back to whatever airport strip bar provided its genesis.

That's what Judy Holliday would have done.

mary.mcnamara@latimes.com

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'Anchorwoman'

Where: Fox

When: 8 to 9 p.m. Wednesday

Rating: TV-PG-L (may be unsuitable for young children, with an advisory for coarse language)