Despite of the success of Ralph Edwards' "People's Court" with Joe Wapner, there was a brief, golden era during the mid-to-late 80s when scripted courtroom dramas like "The Judge" and a revival of the old daytime staple of the 60s/70s "Divorce Court" made a comeback.
To this day, when I see local Los Angeles news correspondent Toni Guinyard file a report, I can't help but wax nostalgic about her brief stint as host of the 80's incarnation of "Divorce Court".
The perverse charm & hilarity of these shows lies in the fact that they were so unintentionally cheesy in every respect: the lousy scripts, the amateurish acting, the cheap sets, the two-bit camera work, and the feeble attempts at pontificating some "relevant social message".
Like him or not, Wapner was nevertheless a savvy, camera-friendly judge with real experience and an astute knowledge of civil law.
"Judge Franklin", on the other hand, was obviously a community theatre bumpkin plucked from the plains of Ohio---dispensing his own special brand of folksy grandfatherly "wisdom". Hence, the whole camp appeal of the show.
There doesn't seem to be any mention in the notes about the show moving production to Canada toward the end of its run. However, it is obvious that it did, as all of the actors involved in the show (save the "Judge") possessed a distinctly Canadian dialect.
The only "crime" surrounding these courtroom dramas is that they are not available to the small, yet devoted fan base like myself who find a (granted, somewhat twisted) appeal in reliving this tiny slice of Reagan-era banality.
To this day, when I see local Los Angeles news correspondent Toni Guinyard file a report, I can't help but wax nostalgic about her brief stint as host of the 80's incarnation of "Divorce Court".
The perverse charm & hilarity of these shows lies in the fact that they were so unintentionally cheesy in every respect: the lousy scripts, the amateurish acting, the cheap sets, the two-bit camera work, and the feeble attempts at pontificating some "relevant social message".
Like him or not, Wapner was nevertheless a savvy, camera-friendly judge with real experience and an astute knowledge of civil law.
"Judge Franklin", on the other hand, was obviously a community theatre bumpkin plucked from the plains of Ohio---dispensing his own special brand of folksy grandfatherly "wisdom". Hence, the whole camp appeal of the show.
There doesn't seem to be any mention in the notes about the show moving production to Canada toward the end of its run. However, it is obvious that it did, as all of the actors involved in the show (save the "Judge") possessed a distinctly Canadian dialect.
The only "crime" surrounding these courtroom dramas is that they are not available to the small, yet devoted fan base like myself who find a (granted, somewhat twisted) appeal in reliving this tiny slice of Reagan-era banality.