Matlock (TV series)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Matlock | |
|---|---|
 Ben Matlock in Court. |
|
| Genre | Crime Drama |
| Creator(s) | Christopher Canaan Leslie Greif Paul Haggis |
| Starring | Andy Griffith Nancy Stafford Clarence Gilyard Kene Holliday Linda Purl Julie Sommars Sheree J. Wilson David Froman Richard Newton more... |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| No. of episodes | 195 (List of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Running time | 45 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | NBC (1986 – 1992) ABC (1992 – 1995) |
| Original run | 1986 – 1995 |
| Links | |
| IMDb profile | |
| TV.com summary | |
Matlock is an American television legal drama starring Andy Griffith as attorney Ben Matlock. The format of the show was very similar to that of Perry Mason, with Matlock figuring out who the murderer is and then confronting them in a dramatic courtroom scene near the end; although whereas Mason usually exculpated his clients at a pretrial hearing, Matlock usually secured an acquittal at trial, from the jury. The show ran from 1986 to 1992 on NBC, then 1992 until 1995 on ABC. The show can currently be seen in syndication and is distributed by Viacom. In the US, Superstation WGN and Hallmark play the reruns daily.
Contents |
[edit] Background
Benjamin L. "Ben" Matlock is a renowned, folksy, yet cantankerous defense attorney who is worth every penny of his $100,000 fee. Known for visiting the scene of the crime to discover clues otherwise overlooked and his down-home style of coming up with viable, alternative theories of the crime in question (usually murder) while sitting in his office playing the banjo or polishing his shoes, Matlock also has conspicuously finicky fashion sense. Ben Matlock generally appeared in court wearing a trademark light gray or light blue suit (though the necktie he always wore would be different) and, over the nine seasons, was seen behind the wheel of two generations of the Ford Crown Victoria—always an all-gray model (it is interesting to note that Andy Griffith always drove Ford products in his 1960's show, The Andy Griffith Show, as with Matlock). Matlock studied law at Harvard, based his law practice in Atlanta, Georgia, and lived in a modest farmhouse in some neighboring suburb.
Throughout the series, three different women played Matlock's daughter (with the name changing almost each time), all of whom worked on cases as his co-counsel. Lori Lethin played Charlene Matlock in the March 1986 pilot episode/TV movie "Diary of A Perfect Murder". Linda Purl starred in this role for the rest of the first season. After Matlock's hired associate counsel Michelle Thomas (Nancy Stafford) left the show at the end of season six, Brynn Thayer joined the cast as Leanne MacIntyre. In the second to last episode of season six, Matlock's daughter Leanne arrived as an attorney, successful in her own right, who returned home to work with her father for a while after breaking up with her former husband. Leanne's ex-husband Peter MacIntyre (Robert Desiderio) appeared in a season seven episode entitled "The Debt" when he needed her help to defend himself against a murder charge. Julie Sommars played assistant district attorney (A.D.A.) Julie March, Matlock's good friend.
Although never officially confirmed, a widespread rumor suggests that the character of Ben Matlock was largely based on well-known Atlanta attorney Bobby Lee Cook. Cook, whose practice also includes representation of plaintiffs for personal injuries, is frequently called the dean of Georgia criminal defense attorneys.
[edit] Notable guest stars
- Don Knotts - Griffith's old partner in comedy Don Knotts first appeared in a 1988 episode of the series. Titled "The Lemon", Knotts played Ben's new neighbor Les "Ace" Calhoun, a "King of Plastic" who is framed for the murder of the "cowboy" car salesman who talked him into buying a car that later breaks down. In the beginning of the show when he and Ben meet for the first time, he calls Ben "Benge", a reference to their old days in The Andy Griffith Show when Knotts' character Barney Fife sometimes called Andy "Ange". Knotts would continue to make appearances as "Ace" Calhoun on the series until the show's first cancellation in 1992. He even had a small role in two Matlock TV movies ("The Picture" in 1992, and "The Ambassador" in 1988)
- Randy Travis - Country music star Randy Travis appeared in a 1992 (season six) episode "The Big Payoff" as character Billy Wheeler. In "The Mark" (a season seven episode), Travis reprised the role of Matlock's old friend Billy Wheeler, an aspiring country singer who wins the lottery and shortly thereafter finds himself framed for the murder of his cheating business partner. Both Travis and Griffith originate from the same state, North Carolina.
- Dick van Dyke - Long before he would take the memorable small role as D.A. Fletcher in the 1990 movie Dick Tracy, TV legend Dick Van Dyke had a villainous guest starring role in the first regular episode of Matlock. He played a judge who murdered his lover and then presided over the murder trial where Ben was trying to clear someone's name for the crime. Van Dyke would later hire Griffith to reprise his Matlock role in 1997 on an episode of his own series Diagnosis: Murder. When he played Dr. Mark Sloane of Diagnosis: Murder, Andy Griffith played Matlock in that series for the episode Murder Two, the two universes are linked.
- Brynn Thayer played Matlock's daughter, Leanne MacIntyre, in seasons 6-8. However, she also played a client of Ben's in The Suspect.
- David Ogden Stiers played a murderer in Blind Justice and a crook in The Ambassador.
- Daniel Roebuck, in addition to playing Cliff Lewis seasons 7-9, also played a resident doctor in The Doctors and a family friend in The Ambassador.
- Bryan Cranston, better known as "Hal" from Malcolm in the Middle; appeared in two episodes -- "The Marriage Counselor" and "The Gift". In "The Marriage Counselor" he plays a "Marriage Counselor" who is murdered by not one but three patients with whom he is having affairs.
- Former silent film actor Eddie Quillan made his last television appearance on Matlock in 1987.
[edit] Matlock's fellow investigators
Matlock had four investigators working for him over the course of the series' nearly nine year run. First Tyler Hudson (Kene Holliday) in seasons one through three and later Conrad McMasters (Clarence Gilyard Jr.) during seasons four through seven. In season seven (1993) Daniel Roebuck's Cliff Lewis character became the regular sleuth. For the ninth season, Carol Huston's Jerri Stone became the sleuth. Roebuck, of The Fugitive fame, and Warren Frost (Cliff's father Billy Lewis) became regular cast members until the conclusion of the ninth season and the series in 1995. Roebuck appeared on at least four previous occasions playing characters Dr. Bobby Shaw ("The Doctors", 1987), Alex Winthrop ("The Ambassador", 1988 and "The Priest" 1989), and Assistant District Attorney Sadowsky ("The Assassination", 1992).
[edit] Spinoffs
Jake and the Fatman was a spin-off based on a character that originated in The Don, a two part Matlock episode from season one. In The Don, William Conrad played prosecutor James L. McShane. Joe Penny played Paul Baron, the son of Matlock's client. Executive Producer Dean Hargrove was responsible for both Matlock and Jake and the Fatman and worked as a writer or producer on a host of other familiar TV mystery shows like Columbo, McCloud, Diagnosis Murder, Father Dowling Mysteries, and Perry Mason.
[edit] Matlock in popular culture
- Matlock is a running joke on The Simpsons, where the show has a huge cult following amongst the senior citizens of the town of Springfield, since it is commonly seen stereotypically as a program enjoyed mostly by elderly people. In one episode, the Simpsons' house is almost destroyed to make way for a "Matlock Expressway," while in another a frail Andy Griffith is mobbed and thrown to the ground by a crowd of obsessive elderly fans. In another scene, when Grampa Simpson quickly boards the Springfield Retirement Castle shuttle bus with the show set to air in five minutes, a passenger tells him to hurry, exclaiming that "each Matlock could be our last". In one episode Grandpa Simpson says "Matlock will find the culprit!" after Bart receives a death threat from sideshow Bob. In the Halloween special in which Homer Simpson sells his soul to the devil (played by Ned Flanders) in exchange for a doughnut, Lionel Hutz attorney defends Homer in the 'court of infernal affairs' on the basis that "I saw Matlock in a bar last night; the sound was off, but I think I got the gist of it." The Matlock expressway appears in the video game The Simpsons Hit & Run, although it is nowhere near the Simpsons' house.
- Matlock is a derogatory term for a legalistic know it all.
- In the Adult Swim show The Venture Bros., a character in the first season finale, Tiny Attorney, is a parody of Matlock and of Kuato of the movie Total Recall.
- On the Matt Groening cartoon show Futurama an inept, giant, blue space chicken with a genteel southern accent serves as a lawyer and Matlock parody on several occasions.
- On an episode of Arrested Development, the family finds out that they can hire Andy Griffith to play Matlock for their trial, for 20,000 dollars he would read the paper at the table, white suit costing extra.
- On Saturday Night Live Phil Hartman's "Kirok: the unfrozen cave man lawyer" is also a parody of Matlock, who often began sentences with prefixes such as "I may be a simple country-boy" etc.
- In DC Comics' miniseries Flash & Green Lantern: The Brave and the Bold, issue 3 (1999), Green Lantern made a pun about Matlock to older Flash and Green Lantern (Aren't you two ready yet? "Matlock"'s been over since five.)
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Matlock at the Internet Movie Database
- Andy Griffith as Ben Matlock An unofficial Matlock website
- Ben Matlock at TV Acres A page dedicated to Ben Matlock, including notable case synopses and list of Simpsons quotes.
- Matlock at TV.com
| Matlock | |
|---|---|
| List of Matlock episodes | |
| Matlock's family | Ben Matlock | Charlene Matlock | Leanne MacIntyre Charlie Matlock | Laura Miller |
| Matlock's friends | Les Calhoun | Billy Lewis | Julie March |
| Matlock's assistants | Michelle Thomas | Cliff Lewis |
| Private investigators | Tyler Hudson | Conrad McMasters Jerri Stone |
| Other characters | Brad Bingham |
