From Nanny to Negotiator: Fran Drescher Breaks Every Mold

Who are three women that inspire you?

Elenor Roosevelt 

My mother, Sylvia Drescher

Pema Chödrön

What is one defining moment in your career or life that empowered you to create change, and how has it shaped the path you’re on today?

Surviving cancer put me on a path of advocacy and lobbying for better health, specifically targeting women who have been underserved by a male-dominated medical and judicial system. I successfully passed a bill by unanimous consent pertaining to gynecological cancer education and awareness. From there I became a public diplomacy envoy for the US State Department. I traveled to our allied nations and military bases talking about taking control of your body, understanding causation, and empowering people to recognize early warning whispers and take action. 

I organized a Non profit, Cancer Schmancer Movement, which focuses on causation and how environmental toxins impact our health, Alternative options and cutting edge medical discoveries. I host and curate a masterclass health summit annually, that live streams around the world for free, introducing this new way of looking at our health and our bodies. 

Being an activist, a public speaker, and an organizer, prepared me to be president of the largest entertainment union in the world. I lead the longest strike in our industry’s history. For the first time in any business,  AI was a major negotiating point to protect our members by ultimately getting them consent and compensation. Although I am famous for my comedic roles as well as executive producing & authoring two NY Times bestsellers, I believe,  the work that I have done in the role of leadership and as an outspoken protector of those who are marginalized, has equaled my creative contributions. 

As we look into the future, what is one key change or innovation you believe is essential for advancing equality and empowerment in your field?

I think that all fields suffer from the same problem, that is, at the core of all of the woes of the world is greed fueled by a lack of empathy. I believe that we, as a species, must first recognize this deficit within our consciousness and, with great intention, practice behavior modification in order to elevate humanity to the next plateau of evolution. Leadership up and down the ladder needs to mature emotionally and psychologically so we can reprioritize why we exist and what we are meant to do as a species on this earth.

Who is a woman who has inspired or mentored you, and what lessons from her influence have stayed with you?

My manager and dear friend for 38 years, Elaine Rich. She was raised by holocaust survivors in Brooklyn, New York. She had great compassion for the hardships and pain of her own ancestry, as well as an empathy for others. But in spite of the dark cloud that blanketed her childhood, she became a woman of the world, sophisticated and cultured, an art collector, a traveler. She had great wisdom, emotional maturity, and an incredible eye for talent. She had great style and was a wonderful host, opening her home to incredibly interesting people doing interesting things. She knew I would be a huge star and called me her blue chip stock. When I met her I was an aspiring actress fresh out of Queens, NY in California, having just finished a movie. From there she opened me up to a level of culture that I was craving, but needed someone like her to take me there.  I think of her every day and feel like now I am that older woman who nurtures younger people into a place of self-awareness, art, intelligence, and the world at large.