''Boston Public'' is an American

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

television series created by David E. Kelley and broadcast on Fox. Set 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 ...

, the series centers on Winslow High School, a fictional

public high school State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools ( Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary schools that educate all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in ...

in the

Boston Public Schools Boston Public Schools (BPS) is a school district serving the city of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It is the largest public school district in the state of Massachusetts. Leadership The district is led by a Superintendent, hired by the ...

district. It features a large

ensemble cast In a dramatic production, an ensemble cast is one that is composed of multiple principal actors and performers who are typically assigned roughly equal amounts of screen time.Random House: ensemble acting Linked 2013-07-17 Structure In contrast t ...

and focuses on the work and private lives of the various teachers, students, and administrators at the school. It aired from October 2000 to January 2004. Its slogan was "Every day is a fight. For respect. For dignity. For sanity."

History

''Boston Public'' initially preceded '' Ally McBeal'' on Monday nights, became revered and received critical acclaim for its drama and ethnically diverse cast. However, Fox moved it to the

Friday night death slot The "Friday night death slot" or "Friday evening death slot" is a perceived graveyard slot in American television. It implies a television program in the United States scheduled on Friday evenings (typically, between 8:00 and 11:00 p.m. ET) ...

for its fourth season. Viewership declined as a result and it was canceled after the 13th episode aired on January 30, 2004. Production halted after the 15th episode was completed. The final two episodes aired on March 1 and 2, 2005, later in syndication on TV One. Neither episode wrapped up any character stories. The title of each episode was a numbered chapter, similar to that in a

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

textbook A textbook is a book containing a comprehensive compilation of content in a branch of study with the intention of explaining it. Textbooks are produced to meet the needs of educators, usually at educational institutions. Schoolbooks are textbook ...

, and each character appeared in a given

story arc A story arc (also narrative arc) is the chronological construction of plot in a novel or story. It can also mean an extended or continuing storyline in episodic storytelling media such as television, comic books, comic strips, board games, vid ...

, with the professional and personal lives often intersecting. ''Boston Public'' was the winner of the 2002 Peabody Award ("Chapter Thirty-Seven") from the

Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication The Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication is a constituent college of the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, United States. Established in 1915, Grady College offers undergraduate degrees in journalism, advertising, public re ...

at the University of Georgia.

Cast and characters

Episodes

''Boston Public'' ran for four seasons, consisting of 81 episodes. Each season contained 22 episodes, except the fourth season which had 15 episodes due to cancellation.

Crossover with ''The Practice''

In ''

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 ...

'' episode, "The Day After" (season 5, episode 14), Kevin Riley asks

Ellenor Frutt ''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 in 1 ...

to represent him in a school board meeting when he's fired from Winslow High School, which takes place in the ''Boston Public'' episode "Chapter Thirteen" (season 1, episode 13). After ''Boston Public'' was canceled, Chi McBride reprised the role of Steven Harper on an episode of ''The Practice'' spin-off series ''

Boston Legal ''Boston Legal'' is an American legal drama and comedy drama 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, 200 ...

'' in the episode "Let Sales Ring" (season 1, episode 16).

Awards and nominations

''Boston Public'' received a total of 31 nominations from various award ceremonies, and won 8 of them.

Awards won

Emmy Award 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 ...

s * Outstanding Art Direction for a Single Camera Series (2001) NAACP Image Awards * Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series – Loretta Devine (2001, 2003–2004)

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...

s * Peabody Award for Episode "Chapter Thirty-Seven"62nd Annual Peabody Awards
May 2003.

Young Artist Award The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young ...

s * Best Performance in a TV Series – Guest Starring Young Actor – Thomas Dekker (2004)

Nominations

s * Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series – Kathy Baker (2001) NAACP Image Awards * Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series –

Rashida Jones Rashida Leah Jones (; born February 25, 1976) is an American actress. Jones appeared as Louisa Fenn on the Fox drama series '' Boston Public'' (2000–2002), as Karen Filippelli on the NBC comedy series ''The Office'' (2006–2009; 2011), and ...

(2002) * Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series – Loretta Devine (2002) * Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series –

Vanessa Bell Calloway Vanessa Bell Calloway ( Bell; born March 20, 1957) is an American actress. Beginning her career as a dancer, Bell Calloway became known for her film roles as Princess Imani Izzi in the 1988 comedy ''Coming to America'', as well as for her roles ...

(2002) * Outstanding Drama Series (2002–2004)

Television Critics Association Awards The TCA Awards are awards presented by the Television Critics Association in recognition of excellence in television. There are eleven categories, which are presented every summer towards the end of the organization's summer press tour. Due to ...

* Individual Achievement in Drama – Chi McBride (2001)

s * Best Performance in a TV Drama Series – Guest Starring Young Actress –

Ashley Tisdale Ashley Michelle Tisdale (born July 2, 1985) is an American actress and singer. During her childhood, she was featured in over 100 advertisements and had minor roles in television and theatre. She achieved mainstream success as Maddie Fitzpatr ...

(2001) * Best Family TV Drama Series (2002) * Best Performance in a TV Series – Guest Starring Young Actor –

Miko Hughes Miko John Hughes (born February 22, 1986) is an American actor known for his film roles as a child, such as Gage Creed in ''Pet Sematary'' (1989), ''Kindergarten Cop'' (1990), ''Apollo 13'' (1995), '' Spawn'' (1997), '' Mercury Rising'' (1998), ...

(2004)

Teen Choice Awards The Teen Choice Awards is an annual awards show that airs on the Fox television network. The awards honor the year's biggest achievements in music, film, sports, television, fashion, social media, and more, voted by viewers living in the United ...

* Choice TV Breakout Star Female –

Tamyra Gray Tamyra Monica Gray (born July 26, 1979) is an American actress, singer and songwriter, who finished fourth place on the first season of the musical reality competition ''American Idol'' in 2002. Post ''American Idol'', Gray has begun acting on B ...

(2003)

References

External links

* * {{GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Individual Episode 2000 American television series debuts 2004 American television series endings 2000s American drama television series 2000s American high school television series English-language television shows Fox Broadcasting Company original programming Peabody Award-winning television programs Television shows set in Boston Television series about bullying Television series about educators Television series by 20th Century Fox Television The Practice Television series created by David E. Kelley