Television Q&A: What was Kelli Giddish in before joining the force on 'SVU'?
Published in Entertainment News
You have questions. I have some answers.
Q: My favorite person on “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” is Amanda Rollins, played by Kelli Giddish. Before “SVU” she was on a show that I can’t remember the name of. She was the star, but the show was canceled and it ended before it should have. I wonder if you can recall the name.
A: Before joining the Dick Wolf universe of “Law & Order” and “Chicago” shows, Giddish had roles in two short-lived network dramas. “Chase” (2010-11) had her as a U.S. marshal leading a team hunting down fugitives. In “Past Life” (2010), she was a doctor dealing with mysteries around client’s past lives.
The debate over “Best Medicine,” the Americanized version of British hit “Doc Martin,” continues among readers. Here are some letters.
Q1: For someone like you who hasn't watched “Doc Martin,” “Best Medicine” is perfectly acceptable to watch. But for someone like me who has watched every episode of “Doc Martin” from start to finish, “Best Medicine” is nothing but a mediocre ripoff, period. The American doctor is, in fact, nicer than Doc Martin, but there is little other reason to watch it IMHO.
Q2: I just wanted to say I have never seen “Doc Martin,” but “Best Medicine” is my new favorite show. It is cleverly written, which in this day and age of “dumbing down” TV, is quite refreshing!
Q3: I saw where you indicated that you had not seen “Doc Martin.” Please, please, please do yourself a favor and see if you can find some episodes of “Doc Martin” to watch. Martin Clunes is compelling as a brilliant diagnostician and heart surgeon dealing with the challenges of autism and a blood phobia affecting both his professional and personal life. Great acting, storylines, writing, visuals and pacing of stories that make you “feel something” made the program addictive for my wife and me.
A: As I have said before, I like “Best Medicine” and simply haven’t watched “Doc Martin.” Are you folks finally getting me to check out "Doc Martin"? Maybe. It is, after all, available, including on free streamers Tubi and the Roku Channel.
Elsewhere ...
Q: Wasn’t there a show in the 1960s on CBS where Jean Arthur played a lawyer?
A: There was. Movie buffs will remember Jean Arthur (1900-1991) for her work in classic films such as “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” “Mr. Deeds Goes to Town” (both directed by Frank Capra) and “Shane.” She ventured into television in the mid ‘60s and, in 1966, starred on “The Jean Arthur Show,” a sitcom where she played an attorney working in partnership with her lawyer son (played by Ron Harper). This was at a time when veteran movie actresses were finding work in TV; “The Big Valley,” with Barbara Stanwyck premiered the year before Arthur’s show, and the fall of 1966 saw both Arthur’s arrival and that of Ann Sheridan in the Western comedy “Pistols ‘n’ Petticoats.” But as admirable as these actors were (and I am a fan of all three), success was not guaranteed. “Pistols” lasted a single season and “Jean Arthur” — which aired opposite the successful “The Big Valley” — was gone after 12 episodes.
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