Often earning comparatively low ratings, the show was kept on the air because it delivered highly desirable audiences consisting of young, affluent viewers whom advertisers were anxious to reach.
ST ELSEWHERE SERIAL
Elsewhere was one of the most acclaimed of the upscale serial dramas to appear in the 1980s.
Elsewhere appeared to have been a figment of the imagination of Westphall’s uncommunicative, autistic young son. Auschlander saved the hospital from closing, then died of a stroke Westphall returned Craig moved to Cleveland and in a final, surrealistic scene, the entire six-year saga of St. That final episode (in May 1988) was bizarre. Later, in the series’ final episode, a scene from the last instalment of The Mary Tyler Moore Show is restaged, and the cat that had appeared on the production logo at the end of every MTM show for eighteen years dies as the final credits roll. In one episode, for example, an amnesia patient comes to believe that he is Mary Richards from The Mary Tyler Moore Show, MTM Enterprises’ first production. Throughout the episode, the patient makes oblique references to MTM’s entire programme history.
The show was especially noted for its abundance of “in-jokes” that made reference to the show’s own ancestry. Elsewhere dealt with serious issues of life and death, but every episode also included a substantial amount of comedy.
ST ELSEWHERE SERIES
The series was often aptly compared to Hill Street Blues, which had debuted a season and a half earlier. Both shows were made by the independent production company MTM Enterprises, and both presented a large ensemble cast, a “realistic” visual style, a profusion of interlocking stories, and an aggressive tendency to break traditional generic rules.Īs a medical drama, St. It was not uncommon for principal characters to die unexpectedly – which happened on no fewer than five occasions during the run of the series. While earlier medical dramas like Dr Kildare, Ben Casey, and Marcus Welby MDfeatured god-like doctors healing grateful patients, the staff here exhibited a variety of personal problems and their patients often failed to recover. Dr Craig, meanwhile, pursued an artificial heart project (the “Craig 9000”), but found his marriage to Ellen Craig (Bonnie Bartlett) collapsing. The new Chief of Services, Dr Gideon (Ronny Cox), orchestrated a showdown with Westphall, who responded by mooning him and quitting. Eligius was taken over by the huge, profit-oriented Ecumena Hospitals Corporation, subjecting the staff more than ever to the pressures of the “business” of medicine. Peter White (Terence Knox) was a particularly troubled young doctor who, after experiencing marriage difficulties, turned rapist and was eventually shot dead by Nurse Daniels (Ellen Bry).
ST ELSEWHERE FREE
While overcrowding and understaffing caused Boston public hospital St Eligus to be viewed as a place of last resort and a dumping ground for patients not wanted by the higher-class and more expensive medical facilities in Boston, “St Elsewhere” (as the hospital was known) hung together by virtue of its strong, dedicated staff of professionals.ĭr Westphall (Ed Flanders) was the chief of staff, a seasoned doctor and father figure to the young interns and residents completing their training there Dr Craig (William Daniels), an egotistical heart surgeon who was a brilliant doctor, but totally oblivious to his patients’ feelings and Dr Auschlander (Norman Lloyd), a veteran physician who found he must fight his own battle with cancer.Īmong the younger doctors, Dr Samuels (David Birney) was a free spirit who had slept with practically every nurse in the hospital Dr Fiscus (Howie Mandel) was having an affair with pathologist Cathy Martin (Barbara Whinnery), who insisted on making love on a slab in the morgue among the sheet-draped corpses Dr Morrison (David Morse) was so dedicated to his work that he neglected his young wife, who died tragically in 1983 Cavanero (Cynthia Sikes) tended to become too involved with her patients Dr Axelrod (Stephen Furst) was constantly fighting obesity, and Dr Chandler (Stephen Furst) was always afraid he did not quite measure up to the high standards of medicine.Ĭontinuing stories included Auschlander’s coming to terms with his own illness, Nurse Rosenthal (Christina Pickles) and her breast surgery, and Ehrlich’s (Ed Begley Jr) gradual progression from a bright but inexperienced young graduate to a confident doctor and new husband.
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