''Boston Legal'' is an American legal drama and

comedy drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

television series created by former lawyer and Boston native David E. Kelley, produced in association with 20th Century Fox Television for ABC. The series aired from October 3, 2004, to December 8, 2008. The series stars

James Spader James Todd Spader (born February 7, 1960) is an American actor. He has portrayed eccentric characters in films such as the drama ''Sex, Lies, and Videotape'' (1989) for which he won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor, the action scienc ...

William Shatner William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1965 debut as the captain of the starship ''Enterpris ...

and Candice Bergen. It is a direct

spin-off Spin-off may refer to: *Spin-off (media), a media work derived from an existing work *Corporate spin-off, a type of corporate action that forms a new company or entity * Government spin-off, civilian goods which are the result of military or gov ...

and continuation of the TV series ''

The Practice ''The Practice'' is an American legal drama television series created by David E. Kelley centering on partners and associates at a Boston law firm. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, from March 4, 1997, to May 16, 2004. It won an Emmy ...

'', with several characters from the eighth season of that series moving to ''Boston Legal''. While never a

Nielsen ratings Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...

smash hit, the show was critically acclaimed, receiving 26 Primetime Emmy Awards nominations, including for Outstanding Drama Series in 2007 and 2008.

Plot

''Boston Legal'' follows the exploits of former ''Practice'' character Alan Shore, and his passionate co-workers, at the fictional offices of Crane, Poole & Schmidt. The high-end litigation firm, based in Boston, handles both civil and criminal law cases. The series plays on the chemistry between smarmy Shore and loose cannon Denny Crane. Middle-aged Shore is wry and wily, while mid-70s Crane (suffering from early

dementia Dementia is a disorder which manifests as a set of related symptoms, which usually surfaces when the brain is damaged by injury or disease. The symptoms involve progressive impairments in memory, thinking, and behavior, which negatively affe ...

) is flamboyant and eccentric. Shore often uses questionable methods to win cases. Crane is obsessed with the reputation of his name, which he frequently repeats. Though political opposites, Shore and Crane are best friends. Episodes more often than not end with the two relaxing and musing together on the firm's balcony (while they smoke cigars and sip

scotch whisky Scotch whisky (; sco, Scots whisky/whiskie, whusk(e)y; often simply called whisky or Scotch) is malt whisky or grain whisky (or a blend of the two), made in Scotland. All Scotch whisky was originally made from malted barley. Commercial disti ...

Cast

''The Practice'' characters

Alan Shore ''Boston Legal'' is an American legal-comedy-drama created by David E. Kelley. The series, starring James Spader, with Candice Bergen, and William Shatner, was produced in association with 20th Century Fox Television for the ABC. ''Boston Legal ...

(''

'' season 8; seasons 1–5) *

Denny Crane ''Boston Legal'' is an American legal-comedy-drama created by David E. Kelley. The series, starring James Spader, with Candice Bergen, and William Shatner, was produced in association with 20th Century Fox Television for the ABC. ''Boston Legal' ...

(''

'' season 8; seasons 1–5) * Rhona Mitra as Tara Wilson (''

'' season 8; season 1; recurring season 2) * Lake Bell as Sally Heep (''

'' season 8; season 1; guest season 3)

Main characters

* Candice Bergen as Shirley Schmidt (seasons 1–5, starting with episode 11) * René Auberjonois as Paul Lewiston (seasons 1–3; recurring season 4–5) *

Mark Valley Mark Thomas Valley (born December 24, 1964) is an American film and television actor, best known for his roles as Brad Chase in the TV drama '' Boston Legal'', Oliver Richard in the NBC drama '' Harry's Law'', FBI Special Agent John Scott in t ...

as Brad Chase (seasons 1–3; recurring season 4) * Monica Potter as Lori Colson (season 1; recurring season 2) *

Julie Bowen Julie Bowen Luetkemeyer (born March 3, 1970) is an American actress. She is best known for starring as Claire Dunphy in the ABC sitcom '' Modern Family'' (2009–2020), for which she received critical acclaim and six nominations for the Primet ...

as Denise Bauer (seasons 2–3; guest season 5) *

Ryan Michelle Bathe Ryan Michelle Bathé (born July 27, 1976) is an American actress. Early life Bathe's mother is Clare Bathé, an actress and singer who was a member of the late 1970s funk/disco/rock group Machine. She grew up in Stamford, Connecticut. She gradu ...

as Sara Holt (season 2) * Justin Mentell as Garrett Wells (season 2) * Constance Zimmer as Claire Simms (season 3) *

Craig Bierko Craig Philip Bierko (born August 18, 1964) is an American actor and singer. Early life Bierko was born in Rye Brook, New York where his mother Pat ran The Harrison Players, a local community theatre. After graduating Blind Brook High School, ...

Jeffrey Coho ''Boston Legal'' is an American legal-comedy-drama created by David E. Kelley. The series, starring James Spader, with Candice Bergen, and William Shatner, was produced in association with 20th Century Fox Television for the ABC. ''Boston Legal' ...

(season 3) * Gary Anthony Williams as Clarence Bell (seasons 3–4) * Christian Clemenson as Jerry Espenson (seasons 4–5; recurring season 2–3) *

Taraji P. Henson Taraji Penda Henson ( ; born September 11, 1970) is an American actress. She studied acting at Howard University and began her Hollywood career in guest roles on several television shows before making her breakthrough in '' Baby Boy'' (2001). Sh ...

as Whitney Rome (season 4) *

Saffron Burrows Saffron Domini Burrows (born 22 October 1972) is an English actress and model who has appeared in films such as '' Circle of Friends,'' '' Wing Commander,'' '' Deep Blue Sea,'' '' Gangster No. 1,'' ''Enigma,'' '' Troy,'' ''Reign Over Me'' and '' ...

as Lorraine Weller (season 4) *

Tara Summers Tara Summers (born 19 December 1979) is an English actress. Summers was educated at Heathfield St Mary's School, in Berkshire. She later attended Brown University, where she graduated with a B.A. in history in 2001. Her grandmother was Fritzi G ...

as Katie Lloyd (seasons 4–5) * John Larroquette as

Carl Sack ''Boston Legal'' is an American legal-comedy-drama created by David E. Kelley. The series, starring James Spader, with Candice Bergen, and William Shatner, was produced in association with 20th Century Fox Television for the ABC. ''Boston Legal' ...

(seasons 4–5)

Production

Prior to the show's premiere, it had a working title of ''Fleet Street'', an

allusion Allusion is a figure of speech, in which an object or circumstance from unrelated context is referred to covertly or indirectly. It is left to the audience to make the direct connection. Where the connection is directly and explicitly stated (as ...

to the real street in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

where the fictitious Crane, Poole & Schmidt had its offices. The working title was later modified to ''The Practice: Fleet Street'', but this title was dropped in favor of ''Boston Legal''. The real building shown as the law office is located at

500 Boylston Street 500 Boylston Street is a 1.3-million square foot postmodern building located in the Back Bay section of Boston and part of the city's High Spine, completed in 1989. It sits next to the landmark Trinity Church, Boston. It dominates the western ha ...

, 1.4 miles away from Fleet Street. The American producers of the series also hired the British writer and barrister John Mortimer (creator of the UK legal series '' Rumpole of the Bailey'') as a consultant for ''Boston Legal''. The show's pilot was originally produced with former ''The Practice'' stars

and Rhona Mitra, guest stars

and Lake Bell. It featured an expanded storyline with Larry Miller as Edwin Poole,

as Brad Chase and

John Michael Higgins John Michael Higgins (born February 12, 1963) is an American actor and comedian whose film credits include Christopher Guest's mockumentaries, the role of David Letterman in HBO's '' The Late Shift'', and a starring role in the American versio ...

as senior partner Jerry Austin. Monica Potter was later cast as junior partner Lori Colson and René Auberjonois as senior partner Paul Lewiston, replacing John Michael Higgins. The pilot premiered on ABC on October 3, 2004. On November 30, 2004, it was announced that Candice Bergen would join the cast as senior partner Shirley Schmidt, a character the producers had planned to introduce for several months. Lake Bell left the series mid-season, and René Auberjonois was promoted to main cast member. Anthony Heald and Betty White also made regular guest appearances, having both appeared as the same characters on ''The Practice''. On April 5, 2005, the series was renewed for a second season, although ABC put the show on hiatus in favor of '' Grey's Anatomy'' The success of ''Grey's Anatomy'' placed ''Boston Legal'' on hold until autumn 2005, when it returned for an extended season of 27 episodes. Both Rhona Mitra and Monica Potter left the series during the hiatus, while

was cast as Denise Bauer.

and Justin Mentell were later cast as junior associates Sara Holt and Garrett Wells. The second episode of season 3 introduced

as Jeffrey Coho and Constance Zimmer as Claire Simms. In episode 11, guest star Gary Anthony Williams joined the cast, with Craig Bierko leaving in episode 15. On June 4, 2007, ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program listings information as well as entertainment and television-related news. The company sold its print magazine division, TV Guide Magazine LLC, in 2008. Corporat ...

'' announced that René Auberjonois,

and Constance Zimmer would not return for season 4. On June 13, 2007, it was announced that actor John Larroquette (former ''The Practice'' guest star) would join the cast as a senior partner transferred from the New York offices of Crane, Poole & Schmidt, with actress

joining as a young associate. Christian Clemenson (former ''The Practice'' guest star), who had guest-starred occasionally as Jerry Espenson (a brilliant but socially inept lawyer), was promoted to main cast. Production also stated that René Auberjonois, Mark Valley, Julie Bowen, and Constance Zimmer may return in guest roles. On July 2, 2007, it was reported that both René Auberjonois and Mark Valley would return in recurring roles; It was also announced that

would join the cast in season 4, with

appearing in a recurring role. Burrows later became a full-time cast member. On May 13, 2008, ABC announced that ''Boston Legal'' would return for a fifth and final season in the fall. Saffron Burrows did not return as a series regular, having joined the cast of '' My Own Worst Enemy''. The final season consisted of 13 episodes to reach the "100" episode mark, which facilitated successful syndication. There was speculation that ''Boston Legal'' might receive an additional episode order, if the show had another strong showing in the

Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

and produced solid ratings in its new fall time slot. The season began airing on September 22, 2008. On June 18 and June 20, 2008 it was reported that Gary Anthony Williams and Taraji P. Henson would not return for season 5 as Clarence Bell and Whitney Rome, respectively. On July 17, 2008, ''Boston Legal'' was nominated for a series-high seven Emmy nominations, including for Best Drama Series for the second consecutive year. Spader, Bergen and Shatner were each nominated for their respective roles. ''Boston Legals two-hour-long series finale aired on Monday, December 8, 2008 at 9:00PM Eastern/8:00PM Central. David E. Kelley stated in an interview with the ''

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Descended from the ''Pittsburgh Gazette'', established in 1786 as the first newspaper published west of the Alle ...

'' on December 7, 2008 that it was ABC's decision to end ''Boston Legal'', and that he "had to fight to bring it back for a short season of 13 episodes". The show was noted for frequently breaking the

fourth wall The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ''wall'', the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th cen ...

throughout its run.

Episodes

Reception

Ratings and audience profile

According to Nielsen Media Research, ''Boston Legal'' drew the richest viewing audience on television, based on the concentration of high-income viewers in its young adult audience (Adult 18–49 index w/$100k+ annual income). Seasonal rankings (based on average total viewers per episode) of ''Boston Legal'' on ABC. ''Note: Each U.S. network television season starts in late September and ends in late May, which coincides with the completion of May

sweeps Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rati ...

. All times mentioned in this section were in the Eastern and Pacific time zones.''

Awards

Primetime Emmy Awards: *2005 Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series (James Spader) *2005 Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series (William Shatner) *2006 Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series (Christian Clemenson) *2007 Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series (James Spader) **James Spader also won the 2004 Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for the same role on ''The Practice''. **William Shatner also won the 2004 Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for the same role on ''The Practice''. Golden Globe Awards: *2004 Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Miniseries, or TV Movie (William Shatner) Peabody Awards *2005, as David E. Kelley Productions, in association with 20th Century Fox Television65th Annual Peabody Awards
May 2006.

Home media

As a former ABC series, the show is available for streaming on Disney platform

Hulu Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television series ...

References

External links

* * * {{Portal bar, Television, United States 2000s American comedy-drama television series 2000s American workplace comedy television series 2000s American workplace drama television series 2004 American television series debuts 2008 American television series endings American Broadcasting Company original programming 2000s American legal television series American television spin-offs English-language television shows Peabody Award-winning television programs The Practice Primetime Emmy Award-winning television series Television series by 20th Century Fox Television Television series created by David E. Kelley Television shows set in Boston Television Academy Honors winners