Janney donates to Planned Parenthood

NEW YORK The star of the hit CBS sitcom Mom and one of its creators paid a visit Tuesday to the president of Planned Parenthood, and they didn’t come empty-handed.

Actress Allison Janney and Mom co-creator and co-executive producer Gemma Baker dropped in on Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards to deliver a cheque for $250,000.

They pointed out the show addresses issues that include teen pregnancy.

Janney and Baker said the money otherwise would have been spent on a promotional campaign for Mom to woo Emmy judges before the nominations are announced on July 13.

“We don’t NOT want to be considered for Emmys,” Janney said. “But we decided to use the money instead to support Planned Parenthood.”

Gathered in Richards’ office in Lower Manhattan, the three women found they had a lot to talk about, such as why a TV comedy might have shared interests with a health-care organization.

“We have an all-female cast, and it’s what our show does,” Baker said. “We deal with serious issues. Our characters have dealt with teen pregnancy and breast cancer and sexual assault. This just seemed like a way of standing with an organization that is providing health care to millions of women.”

“It’s not just about our donation,” Janney said, “but also to raise awareness of what’s happening, and encourage other people to donate as well.”

Richards said, “There’s a lot of anxiety among women right now, particularly in the heartland of America where they are desperately concerned about losing access to affordable health care. I think it’s really great when they see an iconic star like Allison on a program like this dealing with the same issues that we deal with in our clinics every day.”

Janney said her great-grandmother worked with Margaret Sanger, the pioneering birthcontrol activist who established what became Planned Parenthood. Janney’s mother and grandmother also worked with the organization.