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Show
Guide: First Monday
(left to right)
Joe Flanigan, James Garner, Hedy Burress, Randy Vasquez, Joe Montegna,
and Christopher Wiehl (Photo: Cliff Lipson/CBS ©2002 CBS Worldwide
Inc.)
Synopsis:
Joe
Mantegna, Emmy Award winner James Garner and Charles Durning star
in FIRST MONDAY, a new drama about the Supreme Court and the nine
justices who sit on this highest court in the land.
Associate
Justice Joe Novelli (Mantegna) is the new addition to the Supreme
Court who was appointed over others because, according to him,
he's never ruled on an issue big enough to offend either side
of the aisle.
That's about
to change.
The court
Novelli is joining is evenly split between conservatives and liberals,
and the eight sitting justices are eager to see who will benefit
from Novelli's appointment.
Leading the
charge is Chief Justice Thomas Brankin (Garner), a staunch conservative
with an infamous bone-crushing handshake. Exploring touchstone
issues as the ultimate arbiters of constitutional law, the justices
traverse the political minefield that is the Supreme Court and
contend with the flood of lawyers and the petitions that pass
before their bench looking for "equal justice under law."
Helping the
justices are young law clerks whose heady job is to review the
6,000 yearly appeals they receive and make their recommendations
to the justices as to which have constitutional merit to be heard
before the Supreme Court. (Courtesy CBS Entertainment, 2002)
The Cast:
Joe Mantegna as Justice Joseph Novelli
James Garner as Chief Justice Thomas Brankin
Charles Durning as Justice Henry Hoskins
Camille Saviola as Justice Esther Weisenberg
James McEachin as Justice Jerome Morris
James Karen as Justice Michael Bancroft
Gail Strickland as Justice Deborah Szwark
Stephen Markle as Justice Theodore Snow
Lyman Ward as Justice Brian Chandler
Hedy Burress as Ellie Pearson
Randy Vasquez as Miguel Mora
Christopher Wiehl as Jerry Klein
Joe Flanigan as Julian Lodge
Bennett Guillory as Henry Johnson
Linda Purl as Sarah Novelli
Brandon Davis aa Andrew Novelli
Rachel Grate as Beth Novelli
Mark Costello as Court Crier
Liz Torres as Janet Crowley
Production
Credits:
Produced by: Paramount Network Television
Executive producer: Donald P. Bellisario
Co-Executive producers: Chas. Floyd Johnson, Larry Moskowitz,
Paul Levine
Producer/UPM: Jim Weatherill
Supervising producer: Randy Anderson, Lawrence O’Donnell, Jr.
Producers: Richard Levine, Lyn Greene, Julie Watson, David Bellisario,
Avery Drewe
Co-Producer: Geoff Hemwall
Created by: Donald P. Bellisario and Paul Levine
Airdates:
Airs Friday nights at 9:00pm on CBS
Episodes:
1-1 First Monday--01/15/2002
Justice Novelli begins his service as a United States Supreme
Court Justice and must decide whether or not to grant a stay of
execution to Moses Brown, a juvenile death row inmate convicted
of killing a young girl. Brankin and Hoskins (Durning) lobby Novelli
to deny the stay, as does his conservative clerk, Miguel (Vasquez).
At the same time, however, Novelli's two other clerks, Ellie (Burress)
and Jerry (Wiehl), desperately search for existing case law as
well as new evidence that will allow Novelli to issue the stay
in time.
Written by: Donald P. Bellisario and Paul Levine
Directed by: Donald P. Bellisario
Guest stars: Barry Scheck, Charles Bierbauer and Dennis
Praeger as themselves; Russell Friedenberg as Officer Barnes;
Dayo Ade as Dwayne Young; Scott Lawrence as Officer Tom Bishop;
Chuck Walcazk as Officer Davis and Stefan Umstead as Jesse Jonston.
1-2 Age
Of Consent--01/18/2002
Justice Novelli finds himself confronted by passionate arguments
on both personal and professional fronts when the Supreme Court
must decide if a 16-year-old has the legal right to an abortion
against her parent's wishes. Chief Justice Brankin and Justice
Hoskins sense Novelli may be an ally not only in this parental
rights case but also on abortion in general, and lobby him hard
for his support. In addition, Novelli's clerks, Ellie and Miguel,
become very competitive in presenting their opposing briefs to
sway Novelli to their side. Meanwhile, Novelli's own role as a
parent becomes an issue when his teenage son wants to assert his
independence by spending a summer in Europe.
Written by: Larry Moskowitz
Directed by: Don Bellisario
Guest stars:
1-3 The
Price Of Liberty--01/25/2002
The Supreme Court must decide whether or not to allow a witness
to testify anonymously against a drug lord who may be responsible
for the deaths of several other witnesses. Attorneys Johnnie Cochran
and Vincent Bugliosi make cameo appearances as themselves, arguing
each side of the case. The frightened witness will testify against
the drug lord only is if she's allowed to wear a hood, and the
drug lord won't be convicted without her testimony. Responding
to political pressure for a conviction, Chief Brankin attempts
some deal-making with a fellow Justice in order to allow the witness'
request. However, some of the Justices interpret the Constitution
as saying that it is a defendant's right to "confront his accuser"
or not allow the testimony, whether or not the defendant is a
possible murderer. Meanwhile, Ellie finds herself at odds with
a "little person" who's defending himself in a reverse discrimination
case.
Written by: Alfredo Barrios Jr.
Directed by: Alan J. Levi
Guest stars:
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