| 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(s) | David Langley Hamilton |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 8 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | John Sacret Young |
| Producer(s) | Colleen McCormick |
| Running time | 60 minutes (with commercials) |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | CBS |
| Original run | January 7 – April 10, 1997 |
Orleans is a short lived American drama series that aired on CBS from January 7, 1997 through April 10, 1997. It ran for only 8 episodes. The series was said to be inspired by the experiences of creater producer Toni Graphia, who was the daughter of a Louisiana judge.[1]
Contents |
The show was centered around 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 pretty heavily before it had aired, and even originally had the old timeslot that Dallas did during its run. However, the ratings were not great, and it got moved around in the schedule, presumably contributing to its quick downfall.
To date, it has not been repeated anywhere outside its original run nor released on home video in any form.
| Episode # | Production Code | Episode Title | Airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 001 | Pilot (Part 1) | January 7, 1997 |
| 2 | 002 | Pilot (Part 2) | January 7, 1997 |
| 3 | 005 | "Why Did the Crawfish Cross the Road?" | January 14, 1997 |
| 4 | 003 | "Luther's Temptation" | January 21, 1997 |
| 5 | 006 | "Hijack" | January 28, 1997 |
| 6 | 004 | "Baby-Sitting" | March 27, 1997 |
| 7 | 007 | "When the Saints Go Marching In" | April 3, 1997 |
| 8 | 008 | "Missing" | April 10, 1997 |
| 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 |