Posted on 05/14/2010 6:56:11 PM PDT by Braak
NEW YORK (AP) -- The venerable police-courtroom drama "Law & Order" has been axed.
NBC announced Friday that the show would end its historic 20-season run on May 24, with a season finale that was never meant to bring the saga to a close.
The show starred an ensemble cast currently consisting of Jeremy Sisto, Anthony Anderson, Linus Roache, Alana De La Garza, Sam Waterston and S. Epatha Merkerson, who, unrelated to the show's abrupt cancellation, had already announced she was moving on.
Even as it issued a death sentence to the original "Law & Order," NBC announced a new drama in the "Law & Order" franchise called "LOLA" ("Law & Order: Los Angeles"). Premiering this fall, "LOLA" is described as a procedural crime drama "that will follow the theme and storylines similar to the 'Law & Order'-brand series on the streets of Los Angeles." Casting for the show is under way, the network said.
NBC will also renew "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" for a 12th season.
NBC's full 2010-11 schedule will be officially released Sunday.
The sudden end of "Law & Order" could be explained by sagging ratings, production expense and creative fatigue, but its renewal had been widely expected nonetheless. Then, on Thursday, a flurry of reports declared the series to be doomed. NBC refused to confirm the reports. Negotiations were said to be continuing late Thursday.
Jeff Gaspin, chairman of NBC Universal Television, praised "Law & Order" creator-producer Dick Wolf and said it "will continue to make an impact like no other series before."
But the cancellation denies Wolf his long-held dream of surpassing "Gunsmoke" from a generation ago as TV's longest-running drama. The two series are tied at 20 seasons each.
"Never complain, never explain," Wolf said in a statement.
"Law & Order" won a Peabody Award and the 1997 Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series.
It also became a familiar presence on the streets of New York as it went about its on-location filming.
"Over the last 20 years, 'Law & Order' became a New York City institution," said New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg in a statement. Noting that "it began filming in the city at a time when few series did," he expressed gratitude to Wolf for "helping showcase the city's depth and versatility as a setting and all of the advantages of filming here."
Aw, so Dickie Wolf didn’t break Gunsmoke’s record...well, better luck next time you lib schill!
Does this mean we won’t have to watch conservative, christian, businessmen, pro-lifers etc etc get the blame for every crime in NYC??
People get tired of leftist crap being rammed down their throats.
Well, I confess I’ve never watched it, even once. But I thought it was fairly good twenty years ago, and then went downhill like everything else.
Oh, come on... it was twenty years on the air!
I stopped watching Law and Order and SVU several years ago when it got so liberal I wanted to go outside and puke after watching a show.
Used to be one of my favs but the writer’s descent into liberal propaganda killed my interest in the show many years ago.
And I have survived nicely by watching FOX News instead.
If anyone starts to miss all that, all they have to do is listen to speeches by Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
“. But I thought it was fairly good twenty years ago, and then went downhill like everything else. “
Actually, it lasted longer than most quality crime-dramas - it made it at least 4 seasons before ‘jumping the shark’ of ‘social/political relevance’.. (AKA Leftist propaganda..)
You can chalk that up to my ignoring what Hollywood is producing in general over anything particular about this show.
uh, got it. Wow, that's unique. I guess I'll wait for the next great show so I can get my mind right.
20 seasons? I’ve never watched a single episode.
Well, there's at least two of us on the forum.
finally!!!
I have watched every episode of L&O ever televised. In the early days it was a great program devoted to cops investigating a crime and the courts prosecuting the bad guys.
Over the years, however, it has become so politicized that I can understand its demise.
Nice to know I'm not alone. And I was serious, I wasn't intending to bash anyone who enjoyed the show. I'm sure I've watched and appreciated shows that others might not. But I got through, apparently, 2 decades never having seen a particular TV show. I suppose that can be accredited to my lack of awareness of contemporary culture, or perhaps to Hollywood ability to so disenfranchise viewers such that some could be unfamiliar with their product, even after 2 decades. I'd say it's probably a bit of both, although the first is created by the latter in my case.
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