Orleans (TV series)

*Orleans*
Orleans
Genre	Drama
Created by	Toni Graphia; John Sacret Young;
Written by	Linda Bergman; Toni Graphia; Jim Miller; Pam Veasey; John Sacret Young;
Directed by	Steve Dubin; Jan Egleson; Fred Gerber; Scott Paulin; Pat Quinn; John Sacret Young;
Starring	Larry Hagman; Michael Reilly Burke; Vanessa Bell Calloway;
Composer	David Langley Hamilton
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	8
Production
Executive producer	John Sacret Young
Producer	Colleen McCormick
Running time	60 minutes; (with commercials)
Production companies	Samoset Productions; Paramount Network Television;
Original release
Network	CBS
Release	January 7 –; April 11, 1997

Orleans is an American drama television series created by Toni Graphia and John Sacret Young, that aired on CBS from January 7 through April 10, 1997. It ran for 8 episodes. The series was said to be inspired by the experiences of creator/producer Toni Graphia, who was the daughter of a Louisiana judge.^[1]

Synopsis

The show was centered on the character of Judge Luther Charbonnet, portrayed by Larry Hagman. He was a judge seated in New Orleans and had a family that consisted of some wildly different characters. One of the sons was an assistant district attorney, another son was a police officer, and a daughter who ran a casino. An overall backstory to the series was that Judge Luther had another daughter who was missing or had been dead for years, and he had a search going on for information on her. Several "taboo" subjects were touched on this series, including interracial relationships (Judge Luther had a black girlfriend) and incest (the daughter had a relationship with her cousin).

The show was promoted heavily before it had aired in early 1997 However, the ratings were not great, and it was quickly moved to Friday nights in the same slot Hagman's previous series Dallas dominated for CBS. This would not be the case with Orleans and the series was cancelled at the end of its 1st season.

Cast

Larry Hagman as Judge Luther Charbonnet
Michael Reilly Burke as Jesse Charbonnet
Vanessa Bell Calloway as Rosalee Clark
Brett Cullen as Clade Charbonnet
Colleen Flynn as Paulette Charbonnet
Lynette Walden as Rene Doucette
O'Neal Compton as Curtis Manzant
Charles Durning as Frank Vitelli
Richard Fancy as Vincent Carraze
Jerry Hardin as Leon Gillenwater
Melora Hardin as Gina Vitelli
Cotter Smith as Bill Brennecke

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
1	"Pilot: Part 1"	Unknown	Unknown	January 8, 1997 (1997-01-08)
2	"Pilot: Part 2"	Unknown	Unknown	January 8, 1997 (1997-01-08)
3	"Why Did the Crawfish Cross the Road?"	Unknown	Unknown	January 15, 1997 (1997-01-15)
4	"Baby-Sitting"	Unknown	Unknown	January 22, 1997 (1997-01-22)
5	"Hijack"	Unknown	Unknown	January 29, 1997 (1997-01-29)
6	"Luther's Temptation"	John Sacret Young	Story by : John Sacret Young & Toni Graphia Teleplay by : Toni Graphia	March 28, 1997 (1997-03-28)
7	"When the Saints Go Marching In"	Unknown	Unknown	April 4, 1997 (1997-04-04)
8	"Missing"	Unknown	Unknown	April 11, 1997 (1997-04-11)

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Result	Category	Recipient
1997	Emmy Award	Nominated	Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (Dramatic Underscore)	David Langley Hamilton (For pilot episode)
1998	NAACP Image Awards	Nominated	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series	Vanessa Bell Calloway

References

^ The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946–Present. Ballantine Books. 2003. p. 892. ISBN 0-345-45542-8.

External links

[1] The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946–Present. Ballantine Books. 2003. p. 892. ISBN 0-345-45542-8.

[1]