Michael Crichton’s ER aired on NBC for 15 seasons and 331 episodes, from September 19, 1994, to April 2, 2009. It follows the emergency room of Cook County General Hospital — a fictional version of the real Cook County Hospital in Chicago — and the physicians, nurses and staff who work there. The show won 128 industry awards from 442 nominations, including the Peabody Award, the TCA Award for Program of the Year and the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series. As of 2014, it had grossed over $3 billion in television revenue.
Trailer, via SoulMediaDenmark.
Anthony Edwards and the Original Cast
The first starring cast was Anthony Edwards as Dr. Mark Greene, George Clooney as Dr. Doug Ross, Sherry Stringfield as Dr. Susan Lewis, Noah Wyle as medical student John Carter and Eriq La Salle as Dr. Peter Benton.
Julianna Margulies came aboard as Nurse Carol Hathaway, a character who attempts suicide in the original pilot script and was made a regular. Ming-Na Wen debuted mid-season as medical student Jing-Mei “Deb” Chen, left after season one, and returned in season 6, episode 10.
Gloria Reuben and Laura Innes joined by the second season as physician assistant Jeanie Boulet and Dr. Kerry Weaver.
The third season began a run of additions and departures that saw the original cast leave.
- Stringfield exited first, later returning from 2001 to 2005
- Clooney departed in 1999 to pursue a film career
- Margulies exited the following year
- La Salle and Edwards left in season eight, when Benton departed County General and Greene died of a brain tumor
- Wyle left after season 11, returning for two multi-episode appearances in seasons 12 and the final season
Later additions included Maura Tierney as Nurse Abby Lockhart, Alex Kingston as Dr. Elizabeth Corday, Paul McCrane as Dr. Robert Romano, Kellie Martin as medical student Lucy Knight, Goran Višnjić as Dr. Luka Kovač, Michael Michele as Dr. Cleo Finch, Erik Palladino as Dr. Dave Malucci and Maria Bello as Dr. Anna Del Amico.
Two Medical Dramas, Two Records
| ER | Grey’s Anatomy | |
|---|---|---|
| Primetime medical drama rank | Second-longest-running | Longest-running |
ER is the second-longest-running primetime medical drama in American television history, behind Grey’s Anatomy. It is also the highest-awarded medical drama, with 128 wins from 442 nominations.
What the Turnover Actually Cost
The revolving door is the show’s defining structural fact, and it is also its biggest liability. A series that loses its lead in season eight and its other anchor after season 11 is asking a lot of whoever stays.
Wyle’s Carter is the thread. He starts as a medical student and, in this paper’s view, becomes the spine of the show — which is why his two returns in seasons 12 and the final season land harder than any single departure.
Stringfield’s exit is the most revealing. Producers reportedly believed she wanted to negotiate for more money. The source also reports that she disliked the fame resulting from her appearance in the series — a claim about her motivation, not an established fact. Either way, a star walking away from a hit is rare, and it says something about what the job cost.
The Case for 7.8
ER is considered one of the best medical dramas of all time. It pioneered the field of medical fiction and set a model other contemporary medical dramas followed. That is not a small claim, and the award tally backs it.
But the model it set is now the norm, and the back half of 15 seasons is uneven by any honest count. The early run with Edwards, Clooney and Margulies is the run people mean when they call it great. The later seasons keep the machine running without matching it.
The $3 billion in television revenue as of 2014 shows the commercial reach. It does not settle the artistic question, and it should not.
What holds up is the premise: an overburdened urban teaching hospital, and the professional, ethical and personal issues its staff face. Crichton built a format durable enough to survive its own cast. That durability is the achievement and the limitation. ER is a great show that ran long enough to become a format.
The published critical score is 7.8/10, the TMDB audience score from 958 votes.
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