August 18, 2022 14 min to read

Night Court

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Night Court is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from January 4, 1984 to May 31, 1992. The setting was the night shift of a Manhattan municipal court presided over by a young, unorthodox judge, Harold “Harry” T. Stone (portrayed by Harry Anderson). The series was created by comedy writer Reinhold Weege, who had previously worked on Barney Miller in the 1970s and early 1980s.

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Links

IMDB website.

Wiki.

Theme music

Every episode of Night Court opens and closes with a jazz-influenced, bass-heavy theme tune composed by Jack Elliott, featuring Ernie Watts on saxophone while featuring video footage of prominent New York City landmarks such as the Brooklyn Bridge and the New York County Courthouse.

Night Court’s theme was used in the season-5 Family Guy episode “Bill & Peter’s Bogus Journey”, featuring animations of former US President Bill Clinton playing saxophone along with Secret Service musicians playing backup.

Night Court’s theme was sampled for the remix to Cam’Ron’s 1998 single “Horse & Carriage”. It was produced by Darrell “Digga” Branch and featured Big Pun, Charli Baltimore, Wyclef Jean, and Silkk the Shocker.

Following the end credits theme music, a distinctive laugh can be heard dubbed over the vanity logo displaying producer Reinhold Weege’s “Starry Night Productions”. This same laugh can be heard coming from the studio audience throughout numerous seasons of Night Court. At first it was thought to be the canned laugh of voice actor Mel Blanc or even star Harry Anderson; but in fact, it was the laugh of Chuck Weege, Reinhold’s father, who attended nearly all of the tapings in person.

Main

The judge: Harry Anderson, as Judge Harold “Harry” T. Stone, is a young, good-humored jurist and amateur magician whose parents were former patients of a mental health institution. He was the youngest judge on the bench at the time, being only 34 when he took the bench. He got his assignment because the outgoing mayor made a huge number of appointments on his last day, and Harry was the only person on the judges’ list who answered the call (as it was a Sunday) and accepted the nomination. He loved old movies, was vocal in his disdain for modern music (especially Barry Manilow), and idolized actress Jean Harlow and crooner Mel Tormé, both of whose photographs adorned Stone’s chambers.

The public defenders: Gail Strickland as public defender Sheila Gardner (pilot episode only). Paula Kelly as Liz Williams (season 1). Ellen Foley as Billie Young (season 2) is a public defender and potential romantic interest for Stone during season 2. Markie Post as Christine Sullivan (seasons 3–9): Her first appearance on the show was an early second-season episode (“Daddy for the Defense”, originally aired October 4, 1984); she did not become a regular until the third season. (Post was starring on The Fall Guy at the time.) The character was honest to a fault and somewhat naïve. She was the primary romantic interest for Stone and a regular target for Dan Fielding’s lechery throughout the series’ run. A huge fan of the British Royal family, she had various Princess Diana memorabilia collections such as a set of porcelain thimbles.

The prosecutor: John Larroquette, as Reinhold Daniel Fielding Elmore, using the name Daniel R. “Dan” Fielding, (although in the season-2 episode “Harry on Trial”, he is referred to as Daniel K. Fielding), is a sex-obsessed narcissistic prosecutor, who would do almost anything to get a woman to sleep with him. It was hinted that he frequented dominatrices. He was the source of many witty and sometimes cruel remarks regarding almost every other character, although he occasionally showed compassion. When his homeless lackey Phil died, the ever-greedy Dan was excited to discover that Phil was in fact wealthy and expected to be the beneficiary of his millions, only to learn that Phil’s will put Dan in charge of the Phil Foundation, tasked to give away Phil’s entire fortune to worthy causes. Dan revealed near the end of the third-season episode number 22 “Hurricane (Part 2)” that his real first name was Reinhold (an obvious joke about the show’s writer and producer of the same name), and that he began using the name Dan out of embarrassment when he started school. The other characters did not discover Dan’s true name until the fifth-season episode “Dan, The Walking Time Bomb”. It was earlier discovered, in the second-season episode “Dan’s Parents”, from Dan’s parents Daddy-Bob (John McIntire) and Mucette (Jeanette Nolan), that he began using his middle name Fielding as a last name when he went to college because he thought it sounded better for a lawyer and because he was embarrassed of his impoverished childhood. During the eighth season, he was revealed to have a successful younger sister named Donna, whose morals and life goals were similar to his own.

The bailiffs: Richard Moll, as Nostradamus “Bull” Shannon, is a seemingly dim-witted hulk of a figure, who was actually patient, gentle, and childlike. Although he was portrayed as dull and unintelligent, it is later revealed that he is a highly intelligent person who had an IQ of 181. He was fiercely protective of Harry. Bull was known for his catchphrase, “Ooo-kay”, and clapping a hand loudly to his forehead when he realized he had made a mistake. Moll had been filming a sci-fi movie (Metalstorm) and had shaved his head for the role. The producers loved the look and Moll kept his head shaven for the entire run of the series. Selma Diamond, as Selma Hacker (seasons 1–2), is a chain-smoking (like the actress who played her) older bailiff. In one episode, she admitted to having had as many as six husbands, one of whom was a contortionist. Diamond died of cancer shortly after season 2, and the character’s death was acknowledged on a subsequent episode. Florence Halop, as Florence “Flo” Kleiner (née Nightingale) (season 3), is Selma’s replacement. She was similar in age and personality to Selma, but loved motorcycles and heavy metal music. Halop died shortly after season 3, also of cancer like Diamond. In the opening episode of season 4, Harry Stone acknowledged that Florence Kleiner had also died. Marsha Warfield, as Rosalind “Roz” Russell (seasons 4–9), the third bailiff, is a tall, tough, taciturn, no-nonsense African-American woman. She usually projected a fearsome, standoffish image. Sharp-tongued, in time she became close to her coworkers. Warfield stayed on the show for the rest of its run.

The court clerks: Karen Austin, as Lana Wagner (season 1), was the original romantic interest for Harry Stone, although she was engaged. Although Austin was asked to leave the show after 10 episodes,[1] she was seen in the opening credits of all 13 first-season episodes. Charles Robinson, as Macintosh “Mac” Robinson (seasons 2–9), is a Vietnam War veteran. Easy-going and pragmatic, he was probably the most “sober” character. He had a good sense of humor, frequently having the last laugh at Dan, and was a loyal friend to his coworkers. He always wore a cardigan, plaid shirt, and knit tie. By the end of the series, he left his job to pursue his dream of going to film school and becoming a director. In episode 13 of season 7, it was revealed that Mac was once a member of The Starlights doo wop group. Harry tried to reunite the group, when Mac refuses and states that he recalls taking a break to finish his studies and the group acted as if they didn’t know him and continued singing. Mac was upset with the quartet as they later became famous with their career starting at the theatre that Harry was preventing the demolition of and where he tried to reunite them.

Supporting

• Mike Finneran, as Art Fensterman, is a bumbling “fix-it man” attached to the courthouse. His attempts to fix the courthouse often disrupted Harry’s proceedings in the courtroom.
• Martin Garner, as Bernie (seasons 1–3), is the operator of the concession stand in the cafeteria, who had a crush on Selma and was often seen trying to persuade her to stop smoking. After Selma died, he tried to court Flo. (When Bernie was not at the stand, various extras could be seen running it, including Al Rosen, best known as “Al” on Cheers.)
• Terry Kiser, as Al Craven (seasons 1–2), is an obnoxious, pushy tabloid reporter who sometimes hung around the courtroom in hopes of discovering a scandalous story.
• Jason Bernard, as Judge Willard (seasons 1–2), is an arrogant, humorless judge who did not approve of Harry’s antics and tried to have him removed from the bench.
• Rita Taggart, as Carla Bouvier (seasons 1–2), is more commonly known as “Carla B”, a prostitute who frequently appeared as a defendant and who had a crush on Harry.
• Ron Ross, as Dirk, is a wimpy bailiff.
• Denice Kumagai, as Quon Le Duc Robinson (seasons 2–9), is Mac’s wife, a refugee from Vietnam, where she met Mac during his service in the Vietnam War when her family let Mac stay at their home while injured. Quon Le was naïve about America and its customs, but was loving and devoted to Mac. Mac originally married her to keep her in the country, claiming he was not in love with her, but that quickly changed. She did not understand the concept of ‘buy now, pay later’, very well, but became more financially responsible after opening a restaurant in season 3. In season 4, moments after being sworn in as an American citizen, Quon Le gave birth to daughter Renee Flicka Robinson, who was named after Quon Le’s favorite television show as a child, My Friend Flicka.
• John Astin, as Buddy Ryan (seasons 3–9), is Harry’s eccentric stepfather and a former patient in a psychiatric hospital. His catchphrase was the capper to stories involving his hospital stay or past strange behavior: “…but I’m feeling much better now,” accompanied by a huge leering grin. He was later revealed to be Harry’s biological father, admitting he had kept it a secret for fear that the truth would bring Harry’s judicial ability into question.
• Mel Tormé, as himself in the first episode, was revealed as almost fanatically admired by Judge Stone. The two crossed paths, but Tormé grew to dislike the judge because Harry almost always ended up somehow causing misfortune or problems for his idol. Tormé once played Harry’s guardian angel in an episode modeled after the film It’s A Wonderful Life, where the angel shows Harry how his colleagues could have ended up had he never become a judge.
• William Utay, as Phil Sanders, is Dan’s homeless lackey. Later in the series, Phil was killed in an accident involving a piano; “…the rope broke. The key was sharp, and Phil was flat.” (Due to his fear of musical instruments, he had a special clause in his substantial life insurance policy providing additional benefit in the event of accidental death caused by a musical instrument.) Just before his death, Phil was revealed as actually extremely wealthy, but chose to live among the poor (a former stockbroker suffering from Howard Hughes syndrome)—in fact, the show cleverly suggested the New York Harmonic Orchestra was known as the “PHILharmonic Orchestra” because Phil was one of its greatest patrons. Utay later played Phil’s evil twin brother Will, who befriended Dan to steal all of the Phil Foundation’s money. Will later returned what he had stolen along with additional cash from successful investing, and devoted the rest of his life to doing good deeds on Dan’s behalf.
• Brent Spiner and Annie O’Donnell as Bob and June Wheeler, a pair of down-on-their-luck stereotypical Appalachian yokels, who later reveal they are Yugoslavian, although they continue to speak the same way. Bob was a frequent defendant in Harry’s courtroom, usually as the result of a series of freak disasters befalling his family. At one point, they ran a concession stand in the courthouse, for which they spent the entire inheritance ($250,000), that “Granny” (oft-mentioned but never seen) had left them, forcing them to charge astronomical prices.
• Leslie Bevis, as Sheila, is an exotic nymphomaniac who often appeared to entice Dan into a sexual liaison during or after court to his detriment, causing him to suffer a coma in one episode. In her final appearance, Sheila rejected Dan for a man who talked very, very slowly. She tells Dan she needs someone who “knows how to take his time.” Sheila appeared in four episodes.
• Yakov Smirnoff, as Russian immigrant Yakov Korolenko, is another frequent visitor to the courtroom. In the first season, Harry saved a distraught Yakov from a suicide attempt, and they became friends. Yakov eventually tried to bring his brother to America, succeeded in getting his wife Sonja and kids out of the Soviet Union, and got his father to immigrate after the Cold War’s end. A running joke on the series was when Judge Stone would mention jail, which had a completely different import to the Soviet immigrant, who would respond with obvious fear: “Jay-ul? Oh, noooo! No jay-ul!” Although Yakov’s role was largely humorous, a few episodes were more serious, such as fighting the refusenik status of his wife and children, or where Yakov’s father argued with Yakov about forgetting his roots. Judge Stone sided with the father, telling Yakov the American Dream is about liberty, not materialism.
• Eugene Roche, as Jack Sullivan, is Christine’s overbearing, blue-collar father. He referred to Harry as “that nut”.
• Daniel Frishman played Dan’s boss, District Attorney Vincent Daniels, in several episodes. Though initially underestimated because he was a little person, he had an extremely tough personality and often had it in for Dan.
• Bumper Robinson, as Leon, is an orphan who becomes close to Harry. He first appears in season 2 as a shoeshine boy, who is always after Dan to pay for the shine. In season 3, he becomes Harry’s temporary foster son before getting adoptive parents, whom he sees as geeks. Unsatisfied with the parents, he runs away after a confrontation with Harry, where he says that he wished Harry was his father from the start. He returns for one episode in season 4, in which Harry scares Leon into rejoining the foster program.
• Ray Abruzzo, as Tony Giuliano, is a police detective and Christine’s fiancé, husband, and then ex-husband.
• Mary Cadorette, as Margaret Turner, is Harry’s girlfriend/fiancée during season 8.
• S. Marc Jordan, as Jack Griffin (seasons 8–9), is the blind operator of the concession stand in the cafeteria.
• Joleen Lutz, as Lisette Hocheiser (seasons 8–9), is the ditzy court stenographer.
• Gilbert Gottfried, as Oscar Brown (season 9), is an attorney who filled in for Dan when he was missing.
• Florence Stanley, as Judge Margaret Wilbur, occasionally filled in for Harry; she did not tolerate the staff’s usual eccentricities. (Wilbur was a cross-over character from the NBC situation comedy, My Two Dads, where Bull Shannon had made guest appearances in two episodes.)
• Richard Sanders, as City Auditor Clark Edwards, appeared in parts 1 and 2 of “Clip Show”, season 6.

The only actors to appear consistently throughout the show’s run were Anderson, Larroquette, and Moll.