A locally produced cable television show for lesbians has started its second season, and the producer wants to get the word out to those living in the East Bay.

"Inappropriate women always make history," Susan Kay Gilbert shouts at the close of her show, which airs Wednesdays at 7 p.m. on Comcast channel 26 in the East Bay.

Called The Inappropriate Show, the program features history-making women from around the Bay Area. Gilbert is the show's host and executive producer.

"I wanted to produce a television show by women and for women (mostly lesbians) who have achieved much in their lives, but are deemed by some members of society to be 'inappropriate,'" states Gilbert on the show's Web site, http://www.bookwoman.org/TIS.

Gilbert explained that she wants to present images of women of size, older women, women of color, and lesbians "in all our glory in thoughtful conversation and sometimes cynical conversation but never derogatory and never unkind. That's very important to me." Historian Laurel Thatcher Ulrich penned the phrase that inspired the title of Gilbert's show: "Well-behaved women seldom make history."

The show will run until December 26. Each episode runs for approximately 28 minutes. "We focus on women who've normally been relegated to the periphery of media and that includes lesbians, women of color, and women of size," explained Gilbert. "I think it's a little bit harder to be featured on mainstream TV when we're not decorations."

Born in Milwaukee, Gilbert, 46, moved to San Rafael at the age of 3, and, after short-term stints living in Japan and Massachusetts, has lived in the Bay Area ever since. She spent three years as a teacher in Oakland schools and has been producing television shows for LGBTQ people in Boston and San Francisco for over 20 years.

Guests on The Inappropriate Show have included Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon, author JoAnn Loulan, author Linda Zeiser, and DJ Page Hodel. Previous episodes have covered issues including HIV and AIDS in the lesbian community, wellness and gender issues as well as lesbian parenting. Future guests and topics will include: comedian Lisa Geduldig, body acceptance, as well as lesbians and religion.

The name of the show is ironic, said Gilbert, who explained that when women are girls, they are always being told what behavior is appropriate and what is not. Women are expected to act a certain way and conform to a certain code of behavior that can be constrictive.

"The first thing people do normally when they hear the name of the show is laugh and I think that's because we're always being told all our lives what was appropriate to do and what was not," explained Gilbert. "A lot of what we're told that we're doing, whether it's playing with the boys or saying something that's outrageous or having an emotion that doesn't quite match a situation ... we're always being told these things are not okay, they're not appropriate. I wanted a place, where we could be inappropriate, where I could bring women on the show and we could talk about how to diagnose and treat cancer and why a transgender person or a gender queer person might not have a strong reaction about having a double mastectomy if she's more toward the masculine spectrum of the scale."

"We're definitely not marketable but we definitely are not a product to sell and I think that's what makes it unappealing to major sponsors," Gilbert said. "We're not bright and shiny, we don't have the violence of The Jerry Springer Show, we don't play politics, we're not prurient and we're not overtly sexual."

"[The show is] just a thoughtful, respectful dialogue between two women or amongst a panel of women."

Gilbert's crew is comprised of 10 lesbian volunteers. "My crew is just awesome. These are women who willingly drag themselves down for three hours a week at night, most of them after working a long, eight or 10-hour day and they are thrilled to show up. They laugh all the way through the taping and we end up with a good product that I think the lesbian community can be proud of."

The Inappropriate Show is actively seeking supporters and sponsors "who would make it possible to continue to sustain, produce, and distribute this series." Gilbert said that she is unsure if the show will continue to be taped due to lack of funds to remain sustainable. Names of sponsors are mentioned by Gilbert at the end of each episode, and appear in the closing credit roll.

Gilbert also welcomes feedback from the audience. "We don't have any way of measuring the demographics. I would really love some feedback from those women or LGBTQ people who are watching."

The show can be seen on Comcast channel 26 in Oakland, Berkeley, Richmond, El Cerrito, El Sobrante, Piedmont, and Emeryville. For more information about ordering DVD recordings or sponsoring the show, or to provide feedback, visit http://www.bookwoman.org/TIS or e-mail Gilbert at susankaygilbert@yahoo.com.