The Judge

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.

You had family court cases that were unbelieveable. There was one case in which an elderly man is caught in a undercover vice sting with an explaination he was there for a legitimate massage while another defendant a district attorney has an lame excuse. The attorney was played by the actor who played Elizabeth Shue's father in the Karate Kid. Well the parlor was bugged and you hear the elderly man complaing about his condition while the attorney brags why he's there. Another case had a pizza delivery person accuse an African Amercan youth of robbing him. It turns out he was playing pool and was hustled. He remarks to the Judge: "Well I won the first game I thought I had a chance to win my money back."

Of course the cherry on the top was a child custody case where the father filed suit for custody of his daughter because his ex-spouse and her husband is taking her to Elvis conventions claiming she has the ability to "channel" the "King". If you looked up the definiton of "Trailor Park People" you'd see their picture. As for the "channeler" it was sooo fake. My father really enjoyed it though.

I used to watch this show as a kid and I really enjoyed it. The judge, Robert J Franklin isn't your typical powertripping judge. He is a man that tries to enforce justice with mercy. This show didn't have the sleeze that other shows would have, it was just good stories handled in a very diligent manner. It showed what society should be like; descent, truthful, honest, and courageous. True, they are all fake, but it provided plenty of enjoyment while I was growing up. I truly miss this show and hope that reruns will come back.

My sister and I used to see this show on late at night. I guess it was late-night time filler but even though it was not meant to be a "comedy", the acting alone made this show one of the funniest things I ever saw! One show even had a story line about a fat boy who ate too much and his mom was taking him to court to force him to have surgery! Bob Shield was "the judge" in a courtroom that very much replicated the ever popular "divorce court", all the way down to the acting. The judge would give practical advice before and after his ruling. It was actually good advice, better than I've heard in most REAL courtrooms. The judge himself was not a bad actor but the "guests" on each show were obviously reading Q cards as they spoke and the acting was so bad my sides hurt from laughter.

I watched this show as a young kid and I want to know where I can get epsiodes. I would love it to be released on DVD. Every day at 4 PM, I was watching Superior Court and then The Judge at 5. I remember one episode of superior court that upset me as a kid and it was a 16 year old girl convicted of murder getting sent to the gas chamber and her mother pleaded with them not to kill her daughter but they did anyway. I remember one episiode of the judge where a young boy who I think had been beaten severely by his father or stepfather testified from his hospital bed via satellite. Those shows were part of my childhood and if anyone knows where I can get my hands on them, let me know.