Synopsis: An Emmy Award winner as Outstanding Drama Series (1996), "ER" is one of the rare television programs that enjoys both critical acclaim and blockbuster ratings success (as the top-rated drama for each of its seven seasons, an unprecedented achievement). Best-selling author Michael Crichton created this hour-long drama, which centers on young medical professionals in the emergency room of a Chicago hospital. Crichton is also an executive producer, along with John Wells ("China Beach") and Jack Orman.

Now entering its eighth season, "ER" stars Anthony Edwards, Eriq La Salle, Noah Wyle, Laura Innes, Alex Kingston, Goran Visnjic, Maura Tierney, Paul McCrane, Michael Michele, Erik Palladino, Ming-Na and Sherry Stringfield, an original cast member who returns to the series after a five-year absence.

A winner of the prestigious George Foster Peabody Award, the series has also earned 17 Emmy Awards and 100 nominations. Additionally, the cast has won four Screen Actors Guild Awards for Outstanding Ensemble Performance in a Drama Series and the People’s Choice Award as Favorite Television Dramatic Series every year it has been on the air.

In the series, the overworked and underpaid residents are the heroes of County General Hospital as they make life-and-death decisions every day. The staff includes Dr. Mark Greene (Edwards), a senior attending physician who has survived both personal and professional crises; Dr. Peter Benton (La Salle), a self-assured surgeon and single father of a deaf son; the gifted Dr. John Carter (Wyle), in recovery from substance abuse and about to complete his residency; Dr. Kerry Weaver (Innes), a tough and determined chief of emergency medicine who recently came out as a lesbian and Dr. Elizabeth Corday (Kingston), a dedicated surgeon juggling a new marriage (to Greene) and a new baby.

Also on staff are Dr. Luka Kovac (Visnjic), an ER attending physician from Croatia with a painful past; Abby Lockhart (Tierney), a former medical student who’s resuming her nursing career in the ER; Dr. Robert Romano (McCrane), the arrogant chief of staff who enjoys wielding his considerable power; Dr. Cleo Finch (Michele), an assertive fourth-year resident in emergency medicine and pediatrics; Dr. Dave Malucci (Palladino), an irreverent fourth-year resident; Dr. Jing-Mei Chen (Ming-Na), a newly named resident who’s sacrificed everything for her career; and Dr. Susan Lewis (Stringfield), an ER veteran who’s returning home. (courtesy, NBC Entertainment, 2001)

The Episodes: