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 The most recent cast of regulars for NBC's "The West Wing" with Martin Sheen at center. Not pictured is the show's original star, Rob Lowe, who left the series when storylines veered away from his character and concentrated on others. |
Flagging ratings killed it,
but NBC's 'West Wing'
won't be forgotten
|
Chuck McFadden isn't a TV critic by profession, but he's our choice to bid farewell to this great TV series. A veteran political reporter for the Associated Press, he covered Ronald Reagan's reign as governor of California, then served in government himself as special assistant to Wilson Riles, during his reign as California's Superintendent of Public Instruction. |
By CHUCK McFADDEN
of TheColumnists.com
Of how many television series can it be truly said that if more people watched it, the country would be better off?
There are probably a few, but the only
one that leaps to mind immediately is “The West Wing.”
Say what you will about “West Wing,” it was a series
that worked hard over the greater part of a decade to give viewers
a better understanding of the American political system and its
conflicting pressures. (If you look at focus groups, or the
surveys of American political sophistication that come out every
so often, “West Wing” was laboring in the vineyards
of a lost cause.)
Some criticized “West Wing” because it was not realistic enough. Those critics tend to forget that it was a television series, not a documentary. Its creators would probably cop to the accusation that it was a show with a liberal slant. To the God-fearing hillbillies in red states, the show’s politics were probably sin, sin, sin.
And now, after seven seasons and 156 episodes that ended on May 14, “West Wing” is part of television history, consigned there by falling ratings and, probably, just plain old series fatigue.
It occupies an honored spot in that history. The show won two Golden Globes and 24 Emmys--winning four times in succession for Outstanding Drama Series. The fast, witty dialogue, frequently filmed as the characters strode rapidly down a White House corridor, was a trademark. It was just terrific television.
The cast made one or two trips to film in Washington D.C. during the course of a season, and loved it. “We were treated like rock stars,” recalls actress Allison Janney, who played presidential press secretary C. J. Cregg. But the show had faded so much by the seventh season that none of the performers were invited to the annual White House Correspondents’ dinner last April. Earlier, President Clinton did throw a jolly lunch for the cast. Janney doubts if Dubya has ever seen the show.
As most shows do, “West Wing” had some off-camera dramatics as well. Actor John Spencer, who played longtime chief of staff Leo McGarry, died suddenly of a heart attack on Dec. 5, 2005, giving the writers a conundrum they had to address quickly. And there were salary disputes. When the series started in 1999, each of the principal actors made $75,000 an episode--peanuts for a series with the commanding ratings that “West Wing” quickly earned. However, Martin Sheen, who played President Jed Bartlet, came in at $300,000 an episode. That caused actors Richard Schiff, BradleyWhitford, Janney and Spencer to demand in 2001 that their salaries be doubled. Warner Bros. threatened them with lawsuits for breach of contract. But the four actors stuck together, and won. Two years later, they demanded their salaries be doubled again.
As demonstrated by the salary solidarity, the cast bonded pretty well off-camera as well. As the fictional press secretary, Janney has “Flamingo” as her fictional Secret Service code name. On the last day of shooting, her trailer was dubbed “Club Flamingo” by the other actors who gathered there to commiserate. If they didn’t exactly drown their sorrows, they made them swim for it.
In the series finale, the scriptwriters scattered its characters across the country. Sheen’s President Jed Bartlet has gone off to retirement in New Hampshire, Janney’s C.J Cregg has returned to California and is now with her long-suffering reporter boyfriend Danny, Schiff’s Toby Ziegler is--well, where is Toby? He was headed for jail for leaking secret material, but was pardoned in the last few minutes of the series by President Bartlet just before his fictional administration ended, but who knows where Toby went from there?
The scriptwriters had some of the characters stay on at 1600 Pennsylvania. Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman, played by Whitford, is now the chief of staff to the new President Santos (Jimmy Smits), whose administration began as the series ended. Donna Moss, played by Janel Moloney, was Josh’s sidekick, and, finally, love interest. She became chief of staff to the new first lady. Rob Lowe, who played Sam Seaborn, the deputy communications director, had exited the series in a less-than-amicable manner. But he was back for a cameo in the final episode as deputy chief of staff, working for Josh.
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the crowds as new President Santos as 'West Wing' ends its long run on network television. |
C. J., Toby, Josh, Donna, Leo, and all the rest of the gang will be wrestling with matters of state for years to come on reruns, much to the satisfaction of the show’s actors and its creator, the brilliant Aaron Sorkin.
“West Wing” was wonderful television. Not perfect--there’s no such thing in the dramatic arts--but it managed to instruct, intrigue, and, yes, occasionally even inspire. Not many television series can make that claim with a straight face. “West Wing” can.
©2006 by Charles M.
McFadden. The McFadden caricature is ©2001 by Jim Hummel.
The photos are courtesy of NBC. This column first posted Monday,
May 22, 2006.
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