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Early Edition

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Early Edition
Title Screen
Created byIan Abrams
Developed byBob Brush
StarringKyle Chandler
Shanesia Davis-Williams
Fisher Stevens
Kristy Swanson
Billie Worley
Myles Jeffrey
Panther the Cat
Narrated byKyle Chandler
Fisher Stevens
Theme music composerW.G. Snuffy Walden
Country of origin United States
No. of episodes90
Production
Executive producerBob Brush
Running time42 minutes (approx.)
Original release
NetworkCBS
ReleaseSeptember 28, 1996 –
May 27, 2000

Early Edition is a television series on CBS that ran from September 28, 1996 to May 27, 2000. It followed the adventures of a man who attempts to prevent terrible events each day, which he learns about by receiving the next day's newspaper the day before it was officially published.

Synopsis

The show dealt with the life of Gary Hobson (Kyle Chandler), a Chicago man (initially a stock broker, later the owner of McGinty's bar) who mysteriously received newspapers (specifically, the Chicago Sun-Times) a day ahead of time, effectively giving him knowledge of the potential future. His newspaper apparently gets delivered by an orange tabby cat, no matter where he goes every morning, except on some special occasions. He would then try to prevent tragedies described in "tomorrow's" Sun-Times from occurring, whereby story text and headlines in the newspaper change to reflect the outcome of his actions.

Within the course of the series, Gary discovers that a few people share his gift of receiving the newspaper "early". The only people, besides Gary, who know about his gift are his parents; his friends Chuck Fishman (a former fellow stock broker) and Marissa Clark (the blind former receptionist at the brokerage); and, Erica and Henry Paget, a single mother and her son (Gary gives Erica a job at McGinty's) though he certainly tried to tell a few people such as his attorney and various police officers (Episode 407/408 - Fatal Edition). On some occasions, he is given the ability to wake up in another time (such as in the early 1900s) to change the past. People who encounter Gary often strongly suspect (or know) that he has a secret, but do not know what specifically it is.

During the course of the series, it is never clearly stated where the paper comes from. In one episode, Gary meets the group of people apparently responsible for giving him (as well as others) the Paper. Nothing much is revealed about them except that they have some sort of supernatural abilities, such as being able to mysteriously appear at any location.

In season four, episode 420 - "Time" (series finale that aired a few episodes early) it is briefly explained why Gary started receiving the paper. Apparently, he was given the responsibility by Lucius Snow (the man who received the Chicago Sun Times before Gary), after Snow saved Gary's life when Gary was a child. The responsibility is represented by an object imprinted with the name of the person receiving the paper (Lucius gave Gary a red pen knife). The name mysteriously changes every time the current person decides on a new person to receive the responsibility. At the end of the same episode, Gary passes on the same pen knife to a young girl named Lindsey Romick who had just lost her grandfather; though it's not shown if she ever begins receiving the paper.

Themes

The show began with Gary being divorced by his wife, and stuck in a rut in his job. Once he begins to receive the "early edition" of the Chicago Sun-Times, he slowly gains a sense of purpose as a sort of superhero by seeking to prevent as many disasters as possible each day. The drawback to his situation was that, in his nearly-obsessional devotion to saving people, he rarely had time for his own personal life. Gary's fortuitous assumption of ownership of McGinty's Bar/Grill in downtown Chicago gave him a stable platform from which to carry out his newfound purpose. The other issue he would occasionally grapple with was whether to use the information contained in the paper (such as lottery numbers, or sports scores) to profit from the paper.

The show rarely dealt with a common theme of time-travel dramas--the theory that changing the past (or the present in this case) produced potentially adverse consequences in the future. More often, the show would subtly display the butterfly effect.

Supporting characters

The cast of Early Edition: "Gary Hobson" (Kyle Chandler), "Marissa Clark" (Shanesia Davis-Williams), and "Chuck Fishman" (Fisher Stevens).

The show's two key co-stars were Fisher Stevens as Chuck Fishman and Shanesia Davis-Williams as Marissa Clark.

Chuck was an 'anti-type' to Gary, being a somewhat cynical, wisecracking realist in contrast to Gary's growing idealism. In early episodes, Chuck seeks to parlay the advance knowledge provided by the newspaper into windfall profits (e.g., sports betting and stock-market 'insider trading'). Over time, however, he begins to take a role in helping and backing up Gary as a problem-solver.

Davis-Williams may have performed an overlooked artistic service, in portraying a blind person able to cause one to totally overlook her blindness. Marissa often was the voice of reasonable conscience, balancing Gary's earnest idealism against Chuck's skeptical realism.

Stevens' departure from the show after two seasons, however, fundamentally changed the dynamic of the show. The device of his voice-over narration was done away with, the theme music was changed, and there began a revolving door of foils for Gary, including Billie Worley and Kristy Swanson. The latter had a romantic subplot with Gary. Fisher Stevens made several guest appearances on the show after leaving, and several of the characters stayed (such as a hard-boiled detective named Crumb, and Gary's bartender).

Cancellation and legacy

After May 27, 2000 (the end of its fourth season), CBS decided to end the series' run. The series has been syndicated, most recently to ION Television, where it last aired in January 2007. In New Zealand, Early Edition is currently being aired on Prime Television New Zealand. In Spain, the show has been aired for first time on Sony Entertainment Television (SET en VEO); it has been aired from Monday to Thursday from August until end of November 2007. In Poland, Early Edition aired several times on TVP channels under the title "It happenned tomorrow". In Estonia, Early Edition is being aired by TV 3, with the new title transliterated to "Tomorrow's News".

Fans of the show have stayed devoted to it in true "cult TV" fashion, sometimes referring to themselves as "EELs" (Early Edition Lovers). "EELFests" have been held for fans to gather in and around the Chicago locations of the show.

According to news site TVShowsOnDVD.com, the complete first season will be released in June of 2008. This announcement was made on December 25, 2007.

Cast

Main

Recurring

Episode list

Season One

  • Pilot (9/28/1996)
  • The Choice (10/5/1996)
  • Baby (10/12/1996)
  • The Paper (10/19/1996)
  • Thief Swipes Mayor's Dog (10/26/1996)
  • Hoops (11/2/1996)
  • After Midnight (11/9/1996)
  • Gun (11/16/1996)
  • His Girl Thursday (11/23/1996)
  • The Wrong Man (12/7/1996)
  • Christmas (12/21/1996)
  • Frostbit (1/11/1997)
  • Mob Wife (1/25/1997)
  • The Wall - Part 1 (2/1/1997)
  • The Wall - Part 2 (2/8/1997)
  • Bat Masterson (2/22/1997)
  • The Jury (3/8/1997)
  • Psychic (4/12/1997)
  • The Cat (4/13/1997)
  • Phantom Of The Opera (4/19/1997)
  • Faith (4/26/1997)
  • Dad (5/3/1997)
  • Love Is Blind (5/17/1997)

Season Two

  • Home (9/27/1997)
  • The Medal (10/4/1997)
  • The Wedding (10/11/1997)
  • Jenny Sloan (10/18/1997)
  • Downsized (10/25/1997)
  • Angels And Devils (11/1/1997)
  • Redfellas (11/8/1997)
  • March In Time (11/15/1997)
  • A Regular Joe (11/22/1997)
  • A Bris Is Just A Bris (12/20/1997)
  • A Minor Miracle (1/10/1998)
  • Romancing The Throne (1/17/1998)
  • Walk, Don't Run (1/24/1998)
  • The Return Of Crumb (1/31/1998)
  • Mum's The Word (4/4/1998)
  • Where Or When (4/11/1998)
  • The Fourth Carpathian (4/18/1998)
  • The Quality Of Mercy (4/25/1998)
  • Show Me The Monet (5/2/1998)
  • Don't Walk Away, Renee (5/9/1998)
  • Hot Time In The Old Town (5/16/1998)
  • Second Sight (5/23/1998)

Season Three

  • Blackout (9/26/1998)
  • Collision (10/3/1998)
  • A Horse Is A Horse (10/10/1998)
  • Lt. Hobson, USN (10/17/1998)
  • Saint Nick (10/24/1998)
  • Halloween (10/31/1998)
  • Up Chuck (11/7/1998)
  • Deadline (11/14/1998)
  • In Gary We Trust (11/21/1998)
  • Nest Egg (12/5/1998)
  • Teen Angels (12/19/1998)
  • Slippity-Doo-Dah (1/9/1999)
  • The Last Untouchable (1/16/1999)
  • Just One Of Those Things (2/6/1999)
  • Funny Valentine (2/13/1999)
  • Number One With A Bullet (2/20/1999)
  • Two To Tangle (2/27/1999)
  • Fate (3/20/1999)
  • Crumb Again (4/3/1999)
  • Pinch Hitters (4/17/1999)
  • Up Chuck (4/24/1999)
  • Home Groan (5/1/1999)
  • Play It Again Sammo (5/8/1999)
  • Blowing Up Is Hard To Do (5/15/1999)

Season Four

  • The Out-Of-Towner (9/25/1999)
  • Duck Day Afternoon (10/2/1999)
  • Take Me Out To The Ball Game (10/9/1999)
  • The Iceman Taketh (10/16/1999)
  • Camera Shy (10/23/1999)
  • Wild Card (10/30/1999)
  • Fatal Edition - Part 1 (11/6/1999)
  • Fatal Edition - Part 2 (11/13/1999)
  • Weathergirl (11/20/1999)
  • Run, Gary, Run (12/18/1999)
  • Rose (2/19/2000)
  • Snow Angels (2/26/2000)
  • Gifted (3/4/2000)
  • Performance Anxiety (3/11/2000)
  • False Witness (3/25/2000)
  • The Play's The Thing (4/8/2000)
  • Blind Faith (4/22/2000)
  • Occasionally Amber (4/29/2000)
  • Mel Schwartz, Bounty Hunter (5/6/2000)
  • Time (5/13/2000)
  • Everybody Goes To Rick's (5/20/2000)
  • Luck O' The Irish (5/27/2000)

See Also

References

  1. ^ http://earlydues.usanethosting.com/ee/faq/eefaq4.htm#4dot10
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