Polygamy in Pop Culture

The HBO series Big Love was the first to tackle polygamy head on in a dramatic series. In 2006, when it first aired, the show shifted many people's interpretations of what polygamists looked like in contemporary culture. We connected with Barb, Nicki, Margene, and of course, the Henricksons's powerful patriarch, Bill.

Photo courtesy of HBO

In 2008, after a 15-year-old girl who lived on the premises reached out to state troopers, more than 220 women and children were taken from the Yearning for Zion Ranch in Eldorado, TX. The raid put a face on plural marriage and some of the more extreme, breakaway versions of Mormonism that exist today.

One year later, Oprah traveled to the Yearning for Zion Ranch in Eldorado, TX, and talked with many women and children about their day-to-day life in the community. One of the lighter moments in this segment was Oprah getting "the pouf" hairstyle just right.

Photo courtesy of Oprah.com

On a recent episode of Our America With Lisa Ling, Lisa met with several modern polygamists. There was tension between the sister wives in one of the families, but in the younger family the wives appeared to have a genuinely close connection.

When Lisa asked about the issue of jealous feelings, one wife responded, "You can't look at it from sharing your man aspect, you have to look at it like joining the family. . . her kids are my kids... if he[my husband] were gone, I wouldn't be alone. I'd have her [my sister wife.] And so it's a lot more than being jealous over your man. Cause that's nothing compared to what you have."

Photo courtesy of OWN

Reality show Sister Wives is the first of its kind. The TLC sensation follows the ups and downs of Kody Brown and his four wives as they live together as a pluralist family unit. Kody and his wives just welcomed their 17th child, Solomon Brown!

Photo courtesy of TLC