Do you remember watching Night Court? If so, you’ll remember it as one of the great sitcoms of our time – and one that managed to make a place as stressful as a courtroom into a place for laughter. Today, Night court is considered a classic sitcom with a remake series expected in the near future.
Join FactsVerse to look back at some of the hidden details in Night Court you probably didn’t notice…
FROM THE POLICE STATION TO THE COURTROOM
You might not have thought about it but for many fans, Night Court is thought of as a successor the show Barney Miller. While both shows have different casts and differing storylines, both are sitcoms revolving around those involved in the legal profession.
What’s the reasoning behind this? This comes from the creator of both shows Reinhold Weege. Not too much is known about Weege outside of his professional life but it’s clear that he had a fascination for the legal professions.
Barney Miller was one of the most successful sitcoms of its time and still remains a classic. But we can safely say that Weege outdid himself when he created Night Court which would, alas, become his last sitcom before his death.
He was a talented creator and a joy to work with. When he died on December 1, 2012, at the age of 62, actor John Laroquette – who was one of the cast members paid tribute to Weege and expressed how Weege impacted his life.
We are truly grateful for Reinhold Weege for creating such a great show and perhaps his experience with Barney Miller gave him an understanding of the legal procedure that he needed for developing Night Court.
Before we tell you more hidden details you probably didn’t notice in Night Court, please give this video a ‘like’ and subscribe to FactsVerse for more pop culture videos and interesting stories. Now, back to the video…
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HOW MOLL BECAME BULL
One of the most memorable characters in the show is Bull Shannon, one of the bailiffs. He was a gentle giant – a towering and intimidating figure who was actually kind and lovable. The character was played by actor Richard Moll.
Richard Moll was 6 foot 8 inches and as a result he developed a reputation for playing rather intimidating characters. One of his early successes was in the 1977 film Brigham where he played Joseph Smith – the founder of Mormonism. He also became famous for playing an abominable snowman in the film Caveman.
But without a doubt, the role that made him a huge star was when he was cast as Bull in Night Court. While he was naturally imposing, in this show he played a kinder character who was as far from being a villain as you could think of. When Moll become Bull he became a star.
But there was one condition he had to follow if he wanted to land and keep the role. He had to keep his head shaved!
While we’ve gotten used to his bald look, this wasn’t his natural look. But because he agreed to do this he landed the role and he appeared in the show for all 9 seasons.
This wasn’t such a big deal for him, and it wasn’t the first time he had been bald for a role. He had appeared in a relatively unknown B-grade film called Metalstorm. In the film, his character was bold and this clearly made an impression on the team behind Night Court. He looked more formidable without hair and that’s why he was asked to remain bald as Bull.
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TONY AND CHRISTINE
If you’ve seen the 7th series of the show you’ll remember the romance between Detective Tony and Christine Sullivan, the public defender.
But why was this romance written? How did the writers get the idea to create a romance between theset two characters?
That’s because Markie Post – who played Christine Sullivan was in fact pregnant around this time. To ensure that she didn’t have to take leave from the show the romance was written in. As was her character’s pregnancy and subplots and jokes about pregnancy written into the show.
This is actually one of the most heartwarming aspects of the show. Many actresses have literally been fired from their role because they got pregnant. But luckily, such was not the case for Markie Post in Night Court.
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HOW EVER DID THEY COME UP WITH THE SCRIPTS?
It’s fun to watch all 193 episodes of Night Court. But imagine the stress of having to write and come up with a concept for all these 193 episodes!
So how did the show’s creators come up with the stories behind the episodes?
It just so happens that that real-life judges based in New York were part of the inspiration of the show. Reinhold Weege met several night court judges in New York and asked them about their experiences.
They were part of the inspiration of the show, its characters, and several of the storylines.
The show’s writers would also study actual court cases as well read about the different judges and their personal lives. The richness of the show comes from the richness of the actual people who inspired them.
JOHN LAROQUETTE SHAPED DAN FIELDING
Often, characters are conceptualized before an actor is thought of. But once an actor is hired, then their personality and their interests end up influencing the character.
Such was the case when John Laroquette was cast as Dan Fielding. The character was originally going to be straight laced and rather ordinary.
John had a dark sense of humor and an upbeat personality and this is what caused Dan Fielding to be a vivacious character who was smug, chased women, and added a bit of spice to the show.
John Laroquette won 4 Emmy awards for his acting as Dan Fielding. Eventually he asked to not be nominated anymore as he was worried that this might have typecast him.
NOT A LOT OF MICHAEL RICHARDS BUT A LOT OF MICHAEL RICHARDS!
Michael Richards’ best known character is Kramer from Seinfeld. His character, Eugene Sleighbough is not his best known character. Yet, it’s one of his roles that we absolutely can’t forget – even though he only appeared in one episode of the show!
This character was rather unique as he believed that he was invisible. Yet, we certainly can’t “un-see” Michael Richards in Night Court as his character appeared fully nude in one scene of the episode!
While we don’t see everything – thankfully! – this is one of the most memorable and perhaps controversial aspects of the show. The 80s was a sweeter time in comedy history and humor was risqué without trying to be too crass.
If you’re curious, the episode is in the second season and is called “Take My Wife.”
In fact, to this day he’s often asked about his appearance on Night Court – solely because of the oddity of the character and the fact that he was nude on the show.
THE SHOW ACTUALLY ENDED IN 2008
The final episode of Night Court premiered on May 31, 1992. In this episode, Dan felt that he was in love Christine, but Christine and Harry realized simultaneously that they were in love with each other.
So, what is the conclusion of this love triangle?
The show ended on a bit of a cliffhanger and the writers were getting really tired by this ninth season and were having difficulty writing the scripts. 16 years later, an episode entitled “The One With The Cast of Night Court” appeared on the popular sitcom 30 Rock.
This episode brought back some of the characters from Night Court played by their original actors to create a proper ending for the show. John Laroquette wasn’t called because it was believed that he wouldn’t be interested in the show.
This was perhaps a fitting ending to the show. So, one could say that the 194th episode of Night Court appeared on 30 Rock! There’s also likely to be a re-boot of Night Court so lets see how the stories hold up today and lets see how well or how badly the new cast will be received.
Regardless, we’re glad that Night Court was made. It was one of the greatest sitcoms of its time and is still a classic today!
Now, let’s hear from you:
Are you a fan of Night Court? Do you have a favorite episode of the show?
In fact, here’s what we’d like to know:
Do you think that the show is still as popular today as it was when it was released?
Or do you think it doesn’t and the remake might not be a success?
Let’s hear your thoughts in the comments.
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We’ll see you in the next video!
