Tommy Westphall
Tommy Westphall, portrayed by Chad Allen (actor), Chad Allen, is a minor character from the drama television series ''St. Elsewhere'', which ran on NBC from 1982 to 1988. Westphall, who is autism, autistic, played an increased role in ''St. Elsewhere''s final episode, "The Last One (St. Elsewhere episode), The Last One", one interpretation of which is that the entire ''St. Elsewhere'' storyline exists only within Westphall's imagination. As characters from ''St. Elsewhere'' Fictional crossover, have appeared on other television shows and those shows' characters appeared on more shows, and so on, a "Tommy Westphall Universe" hypothesis (postulated by Dwayne McDuffie) argues that a significant amount of fictional episodic television exists within a fictional universe imagined by Tommy Westphall. "The Last One" In the last episode's final two scenes, Donald Westphallhaving just returned to St. Eligiusis shown in Dr. Auschlander's office pondering the recent death from stroke of his c ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chad Allen (actor)
Chad Allen (born Chad Allen Lazzari; June 5, 1974) is an American psychologist and retired actor. Beginning his career at the age of seven, Allen is a three time Young Artist Award winner and GLAAD Media Award honoree. He was a teen idol during the late 1980s as David Witherspoon on the NBC family drama '' Our House'' and as Zach Nichols on the NBC sitcom '' My Two Dads'' before transitioning to an adult career as Matthew Cooper on the CBS western drama '' Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman''. He announced his retirement from acting in April 2015. Early life Allen was born Chad Allen Lazzari on June 5, 1974, in Cerritos, California, and grew up in Artesia. He has a twin sister named Charity and a brother named Steve Lazzari who works for Union Pacific Railroad. Allen is of predominantly Italian origin, with a "dose" of German origin. He was raised in a "strict" Roman Catholic household and regards himself as being a "deeply spiritual person" because of his upbringing. Allen attended St. J ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Anchor
An anchor is a device, normally made of metal, used to secure a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the craft from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latin ', which itself comes from the Greek (). Anchors can either be temporary or permanent. Permanent anchors are used in the creation of a mooring, and are rarely moved; a specialist service is normally needed to move or maintain them. Vessels carry one or more temporary anchors, which may be of different designs and weights. A sea anchor is a drag device, not in contact with the seabed, used to minimize drift of a vessel relative to the water. A drogue is a drag device used to slow or help steer a vessel running before a storm in a following or overtaking sea, or when crossing a bar in a breaking sea. Anchoring Anchors achieve holding power either by "hooking" into the seabed, or weight, or a combination of the two. The weight of the anchor chain can be more than that of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Brian Weatherson
Brian Weatherson is the Marshall Weinberg Professor of Philosophy at the University of Michigan. He specializes in epistemology and philosophy of language. Education and career Born in Australia, Weatherson received his PhD from Monash University in 1998, with a dissertation on formal models for reasoning under uncertainty, titled "On Uncertainty." Prior to joining the Michigan department in 2012, he was an associate professor at Cornell University (2008–2011) and Rutgers University (2011–2012), and also taught at Brown University (2004–2007) and Syracuse University (1999–2001). He runs a philosophy-themed blog, "Thoughts, Arguments, and Rants" and is a contributing member of the political blog Crooked Timber. See also * American philosophy * List of American philosophers American philosophy is the activity, corpus, and tradition of philosophers affiliated with the United States. The ''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' notes that while it lacks a "core of de ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dick Wolf
Richard Anthony Wolf (born December 20, 1946) is an American billionaire and television producer, best known for his ''Law & Order'' franchise. Since 1990, the franchise has included six police/courtroom dramas and four international spinoffs. He is also co-creator and executive producer of the ''Chicago'' franchise, which since 2012, has included four Chicago-based dramas and the co-creator and executive producer of the ''FBI'' franchise, which since 2018, has also become a franchise after spinning off two additional series. Wolf has also written four books. The first, the non-fiction volume ''Law & Order: Crime Scenes'', is a companion to the ''Law & Order'' television series. ''The Intercept,'' ''The Execution,'' and ''The Ultimatum'' are works of fiction in a thriller series featuring an NYPD detective named Jeremy Fisk. Wolf has won numerous awards, including an Emmy Award, being inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame and receiving a star on the Hollywood W ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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John Munch
John Munch is a fictional character played by actor Richard Belzer. Munch first appeared on the American police procedural, crime drama television series ''Homicide: Life on the Street'' on NBC. A regular through the entire run of the series from 1993 to 1999, Munch is a cynical detective in the Baltimore Police Department's Homicide unit, and a firm believer in conspiracy theory, conspiracy theories. He is originally partnered with Detective Stanley Bolander (Ned Beatty). Munch is based on Jay Landsman, a central figure in David Simon (writer), David Simon's 1991 true crime book ''Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets.'' Upon the cancellation of ''Homicide'' in 1999, Belzer was offered a regular role as Munch on the ''Law & Order'' Spin-off (media), spin-off titled ''Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Special Victims Unit''. He appeared in the first 15 seasons of that series from 1999 to 2014, and occasionally as a guest thereafter. On ''SVU'', Munch becomes a senior detective ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Law & Order (franchise)
''Law & Order'' is a media franchise composed of a number of related American television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment. They were originally broadcast on NBC, and all of them deal with some aspect of the criminal justice system. Together, the original series, its various spin-offs, the TV film, and crossover episodes from other shows constitute over 1,000 hours of programming. Shared characters and fictional organizations, such as Hudson University and the ''New York Ledger'' tabloid newspaper, serve as connecting links between the shows. Many supporting characters, such as district attorneys, psychologists, and medical examiners are also shared among the shows. Occasionally, crossovers of main characters or shared storylines between two of the shows will occur. A few major characters have also left the cast of one show within the franchise only to eventually join another. The music, style, and credits of the shows tend to be similar, with the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The X-Files
''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The original series aired from September 10, 1993, to May 19, 2002, on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox, spanning List of The X-Files episodes, nine seasons, with 202 episodes. A The X-Files season 10, tenth season of six episodes ran from January to February 2016. Following the ratings success of this revival, ''The X-Files'' returned for an The X-Files season 11, eleventh season of ten episodes, which ran from January to March 2018. In addition to the television series, two feature films have been released: the 1998 film ''The X-Files (film), The X-Files'' and the stand-alone film ''The X-Files: I Want to Believe'', released in 2008, six years after the original television run ended. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) special agent, Special Agents Fox Mulder (David ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Science Fiction
Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space exploration, time travel, Parallel universes in fiction, parallel universes, and extraterrestrials in fiction, extraterrestrial life. The genre often explores human responses to the consequences of projected or imagined scientific advances. Science fiction is related to fantasy (together abbreviated wikt:SF&F, SF&F), Horror fiction, horror, and superhero fiction, and it contains many #Subgenres, subgenres. The genre's precise Definitions of science fiction, definition has long been disputed among authors, critics, scholars, and readers. Major subgenres include hard science fiction, ''hard'' science fiction, which emphasizes scientific accuracy, and soft science fiction, ''soft'' science fiction, which focuses on social sciences. Other no ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Showrunner
A showrunner is the top-level executive producer of a television series. The position outranks other creative and management personnel, including episode directors, in contrast to feature films, in which the director has creative control over the production, and the executive producer's role is limited to investing. In scripted comedy and drama TV shows, the showrunner also usually serves as the head writer (or its most prolific writer). The role of a showrunner is not present on all television series, especially outside the United States; this article describes the nature of the role where it is present. United States Writer Alex Epstein, in his book and blog ''Crafty Screenwriting'', defines a showrunner as "the person responsible for all creative aspects of the show and responsible only to the network (and production company, if it's not heirproduction company). The boss. Usually a writer. Traditionally, the executive producer of a television program was the ''chief executive ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Life On The Street
Life, also known as biota, refers to matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes. It is defined descriptively by the capacity for homeostasis, organisation, metabolism, growth, adaptation, response to stimuli, and reproduction. All life over time eventually reaches a state of death, and none is immortal. Many philosophical definitions of living systems have been proposed, such as self-organizing systems. Viruses in particular make definition difficult as they replicate only in host cells. Life exists all over the Earth in air, water, and soil, with many ecosystems forming the biosphere. Some of these are harsh environments occupied only by extremophiles. Life has been studied since ancient times, with theories such as Empedocles's materialism asserting that it was composed of four eternal elements, and Aristotle's hylomorphism asserting that living things have souls and embody both form and matter. Life originated at least 3.5  ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ed Begley Jr
Edward James Begley Jr. (born September 16, 1949) is an American actor and environmental activist. He has appeared in hundreds of films, television shows, and stage performances. He played Dr. Victor Ehrlich on the television series ''St. Elsewhere'' (1982–1988). The role earned him six consecutive Primetime Emmy Award nominations and a Golden Globe Award nomination. He also co-hosted, along with wife Rachelle Carson, the green living reality show titled '' Living with Ed'' (2007–2010), and recurred as Dr. Grant Linkletter in ''Young Sheldon'' (2019–2024). Equally prolific in cinema, Begley's film appearances include '' Blue Collar'' (1978), ''An Officer and a Gentleman'' (1982), '' This Is Spinal Tap'' (1984), '' Transylvania 6-5000'' (1985), '' The Accidental Tourist'' (1988), '' Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills'' (1989), '' She-Devil'' (1989), '' Batman Forever'' (1995), and '' Pineapple Express'' (2008). He is a recurring cast member in the mocku ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Alfre Woodard
Alfre Woodard ( ; born November 8, 1952) is an American actress. Known for portraying strong-willed and dignified roles on stage and screen, she has received various accolades, including four Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and three Screen Actors Guild Awards as well as nominations for an Academy Award, BAFTA Award, and two Grammy Awards. In 2020, ''The New York Times'' ranked her as one of "The 25 Greatest Actors of the 21st Century". She is a board member of Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Woodard began her acting career in theater. After her breakthrough role in the Off-Broadway play '' For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf'' (1977). She received an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress nomination for her role in '' Cross Creek'' (1983). She earned a BAFTA Award for Best Actress nomination for her role in '' Clemency'' (2019). Woodard's notable films include ''Grand Canyon'' (1991), '' Passion Fish'' (1992), '' Heart ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |