Possible Clues:

• Termagant
• Shakespeare's Kate, for one
• Woman who's assertive but less than canny
• Seems mousy, but a terrible wife
• Aggressive type with that woman rings Russian leader for whiskey
• Shakespeare's "The Taming of the ___"
• 'The Taming of the ___'
• Problem for Petruchio
• Shakespeare's Kate
• Mouse-like animal