Head Cases
Encyclopedia
Head Cases is an American
primetime comedy-drama
television program
, best known as the first show cancelled for the 2005–2006 season
. It was broadcast by FOX
and premiered on September 14, 2005. It was cancelled after two episodes on September 22 after disastrous ratings and critical drubbing.
The program starred Chris O'Donnell
as Jason Payne, who was a superstar attorney
at a prestigious law firm until his career put a strain on his marriage
. Eventually, Payne had a nervous breakdown
and was sent to a "wellness center" where he recovered. Upon leaving the center, Payne's therapist "buddied him up" with another patient and lawyer, Russell Shultz (played by Adam Goldberg
), who suffered from explosive disorder. As Payne's world continued to crumble around him, he found that his only friend seems to be Shultz. Ultimately, Payne and Shultz decided to open a law firm of their own.
O'Donnell, known more for his film work, was quoted in a TV Guide
article about his reasons for trying a television series:
The program was created by Bill Chais, who along with Barry Josephson
and Jeff Rake served as executive producer
s.
Rachael Leigh Cook
was also a cast member, but her role was eliminated after the pilot.
competition. Its second week was even worse against season premieres on the other networks, including Lost
and America's Next Top Model
. It only outrated a rerun of the pilot episode for the since-cancelled Just Legal
on The WB.
Tom Shales
of the Washington Post began his review of the pilot as follows:
The USA Today
review was less kind:
Payne returns to his employer, only to find that he has been let go. To help Payne out, Shultz gives him a stack of cases that might need an attorney. Eventually, Payne is able to represent a lady who is getting a divorce from her husband. Coincidentally, his previous employer is representing the husband. Shultz also is involved in a case. His deals with a lady who has been fired from her employer due to her history of sleeping with various coworkers.
During the entire episode, Payne is irritated by Shultz and his actions. However, the episode ends with Payne and Shultz finally going into practice together.
Also in this episode, Lou Albertini is introduced. He is a former successful attorney that Shultz knows. He is hired in as a paralegal, but takes on private investigator responsibilities as well. Payne also talks with his former secretary, Nicole Walker, about coming to work for him at his new practice. At first she refuses, but later agrees to join.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
primetime comedy-drama
Comedy-drama
Comedy-drama is a genre of theatre, film and television programs which combines humorous and serious content.-Theatre:Traditional western theatre, beginning with the ancient Greeks, was divided into comedy and tragedy...
television program
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
, best known as the first show cancelled for the 2005–2006 season
2005-06 United States network television schedule
This was the United States broadcast television schedule on all six commercial television networks for the fall season beginning in September 2005. All times are Eastern and Pacific.This would be the final season of broadcasting for both UPN and The WB...
. It was broadcast by FOX
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
and premiered on September 14, 2005. It was cancelled after two episodes on September 22 after disastrous ratings and critical drubbing.
The program starred Chris O'Donnell
Chris O'Donnell
Christopher Eugene "Chris" O'Donnell is an American actor. He has played Robin in two Batman films, Batman Forever and Batman & Robin, Charlie Simms in Scent of a Woman, Finn Dandridge in Grey's Anatomy, Peter Garrett in Vertical Limit, and more recently, Jack McAuliffe in The Company. O'Donnell...
as Jason Payne, who was a superstar attorney
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
at a prestigious law firm until his career put a strain on his marriage
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
. Eventually, Payne had a nervous breakdown
Nervous breakdown
Mental breakdown is a non-medical term used to describe an acute, time-limited phase of a specific disorder that presents primarily with features of depression or anxiety.-Definition:...
and was sent to a "wellness center" where he recovered. Upon leaving the center, Payne's therapist "buddied him up" with another patient and lawyer, Russell Shultz (played by Adam Goldberg
Adam Goldberg
Adam Charles Goldberg is an American actor, director, producer, and musician.-Early life:Goldberg was born in Santa Monica, California, the son of Donna and Earl Goldberg, a former lifeguard. His father is Jewish and his mother is a "lapsed" Roman Catholic of Irish, French, and German descent...
), who suffered from explosive disorder. As Payne's world continued to crumble around him, he found that his only friend seems to be Shultz. Ultimately, Payne and Shultz decided to open a law firm of their own.
O'Donnell, known more for his film work, was quoted in a TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
article about his reasons for trying a television series:
- I'd been taking a break [from movies] when this script kind of fell in my lap. I read it and loved it. It's a terrific character, plus I couldn't be more excited to work with the cast that's been put together.
- I've got three kids, and my oldest is starting kindergarten, so the idea of being in one place was very appealing to me.
The program was created by Bill Chais, who along with Barry Josephson
Barry Josephson
Barry Josephson is an American film producer and former music manager.Josephson graduated from American University, Washington DC in 1978 and is an active member of the SOC Alumni program. In 1991, Josephson was the Vice President of Production for Columbia Pictures and remained at the studio...
and Jeff Rake served as executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
s.
Cast
- Chris O’Donnell - Jason Payne
- Adam GoldbergAdam GoldbergAdam Charles Goldberg is an American actor, director, producer, and musician.-Early life:Goldberg was born in Santa Monica, California, the son of Donna and Earl Goldberg, a former lifeguard. His father is Jewish and his mother is a "lapsed" Roman Catholic of Irish, French, and German descent...
- Russell Shultz - Krista AllenKrista AllenKrista Allen is an American actress. She is best known for her work in the television series Days of Our Lives, Baywatch Hawaii, and What About Brian; and in the Hollywood films Liar Liar, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, Anger Management, and The Final Destination...
- Laurie Payne - Jake CherryJake CherryJake Cherry is an American teen actor who appeared as Nick Daley in Night at the Museum and Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, and as Edie Britt's son Travers McLain in Desperate Housewives. His film debut was alongside Jennifer Aniston in Friends with Money...
- Ryan Payne - Richard KindRichard KindRichard John Kind is an American actor known for his roles in the sitcoms Mad About You and Spin City .- Early life :...
- Lou Albertini (a late addition to the cast) - Rockmond DunbarRockmond DunbarRockmond Dunbar is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Kenny Chadway on the Showtime television drama series Soul Food, and as Benjamin Miles "C-Note" Franklin on the FOX television drama series Prison Break...
- Dr. Robinson - Rhea Seehorn - Nicole Walker
Rachael Leigh Cook
Rachael Leigh Cook
Rachael Leigh Cook is an American actress, known for her role in the romantic comedy She's All That and her This is Your Brain on Drugs public service announcement.-Early life:...
was also a cast member, but her role was eliminated after the pilot.
Low ratings, bad reviews
The show placed fourth in the ratings in its first week against an all-rerunRerun
A rerun or repeat is a re-airing of an episode of a radio or television broadcast. The invention of the rerun is generally credited to Desi Arnaz. There are two types of reruns—those that occur during a hiatus, and those that occur when a program is syndicated. Reruns can also be, as the...
competition. Its second week was even worse against season premieres on the other networks, including Lost
Lost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...
and America's Next Top Model
America's Next Top Model
America's Next Top Model is a reality television show in which a number of women compete for the title of America's Next Top Model and a chance to start their career in the modeling industry....
. It only outrated a rerun of the pilot episode for the since-cancelled Just Legal
Just Legal
Just Legal is a television courtroom drama that stars Don Johnson and Jay Baruchel as two courtroom lawyers in Venice, California. The series premiered on The WB on September 19, 2005 and was canceled on October 3, 2005 after only three episodes had been aired. Almost a year later The WB decided...
on The WB.
Tom Shales
Tom Shales
Thomas William "Tom" Shales is an American critic of television programming and operations. He is best known as TV critic for The Washington Post; in 1988, Shales received the Pulitzer Prize...
of the Washington Post began his review of the pilot as follows:
- "Sometimes bad things just happen, and it's nobody's fault," says one of the characters in Head Cases, a new Fox courtroom drama. Unfortunately that sounds an awful lot like the producer of the show attempting to let himself off the hook.
- What's sad is that Head Cases, unlike the previous Fox series that have already made their premieres, has real promise and potential, especially in the character of young lawyer Jason Payne, as earnest Chris O'Donnell plays him.
The USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
review was less kind:
- Some shows just make you want to head in the opposite direction. With Head Cases, the driving-away force is equal parts concept and cast. You'd be unlikely to rush toward any show about two recently institutionalized lawyers, forced into partnership by therapist blackmail. But Fox doesn't help its case by hiring Adam Goldberg and Chris O'Donnell, who seem ill-equipped to head this or any series, individually or collectively.
Episodes
| No. | Title | Airdate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot | September 14, 2005 |
| 2 | "S(elf) Help" | September 21, 2005 |
| 3 | "Malpractice Makes Perfect" | Unaired |
| 4 | "In the Club" | Unaired |
| 5 | "Be Your Best You" | Unaired |
| 6 | "Deep Cover" | Unaired |
1.01 - "Pilot"
Jason Payne is introduced as a successful, young attorney working for a well-respected firm. However, after his wife, Laurie, kicks him out of the house due to him not being a good husband and father, he suffers from a nervous breakdown. Payne then enlists for help in a mental institution. His doctor, Dr. Robinson, decides after two months there that Payne is stable enough to leave the center. On his release, however, Dr. Robinson buddies Payne up with Russell Shultz, another lawyer who suffers from explosive disorder.Payne returns to his employer, only to find that he has been let go. To help Payne out, Shultz gives him a stack of cases that might need an attorney. Eventually, Payne is able to represent a lady who is getting a divorce from her husband. Coincidentally, his previous employer is representing the husband. Shultz also is involved in a case. His deals with a lady who has been fired from her employer due to her history of sleeping with various coworkers.
During the entire episode, Payne is irritated by Shultz and his actions. However, the episode ends with Payne and Shultz finally going into practice together.
1.02 - "S(elf) Help"
A former babysitter of Payne's son, Madeline Barton, comes to ask Jason for his help with her husband's case. Her husband, Ken, is a member of the Earth Liberation Front (ELF) and has been charged with the arson of her father's, Al Girard, car dealership. Ken states, however, that he has been set up. Payne does not want to take the case, but Shultz does, and the duo ends up representing him. Eventually it is revealed that Madeline's mother, Barbara Girard, actually committed the crime because she (as well as her husband) did not approve of Madeline and Ken's marriage. Another motive for the arson was to pay off a bookie that Mr. Girard owed a large amount of money to. After they collected the insurance, Mrs. Girard felt the troubles with the bookie could be taken care of.Also in this episode, Lou Albertini is introduced. He is a former successful attorney that Shultz knows. He is hired in as a paralegal, but takes on private investigator responsibilities as well. Payne also talks with his former secretary, Nicole Walker, about coming to work for him at his new practice. At first she refuses, but later agrees to join.
External links
- Donnell, Goldberg Crazy for Head Cases, a TV GuideTV GuideTV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
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