NBC's "ER" capped its farewell season on Sunday with a win in the drama directing category for helmer Rod Holcomb.

Holcomb (pictured) deftly handled the series' two-hour closer, "And in the End," just as he sent the show off on its storied run back in 1994 by helming the pilot, "24 Hours." He was Emmy nommed for the pilot (he won the DGA Award that year) and one other "ER" seg, but the statuette eluded him until Sunday night.

But Holcomb wasn't at the Nokia Theater to pick up his award. Ever the consummate pro, the helmer was on the other side of the country in Gotham, getting ready for the start of shooting today on an episode of CBS' frosh Julianna Margulies drama "The Good Wife."

So here's one last hearty congrats to Holcomb and to "ER." The show holds the Emmy record as the most-nommed series with 124 bids, and a total of 22 -- let's make that 23 -- wins.

 

Hugs, back slaps and "this was the best show I ever worked on" testimonials were flowing Saturday night during the "ER" finale party at Social Hollywood.

You couldn't escape the emotion in the room for all of the cast and production staffers who have collectively labored so long and so lovingly on the Warner Bros. TV series. You also couldn't escape the feeling that the party, and next week's two-hour finale ("And In the End"), marks the curtain-drop on an era for primetime network television that will never be replicated, not in today's bazillion-channel, multiplatform universe.

Steven Spielberg, whose Amblin Television banner helped birth "ER" lo those many years ago was among those feeling it on Saturday. He was incredibly humble about his involvement with the show ("I wandered in every now and then") but evinced obvious pride his association with such a landmark of the smallscreen. (And BTW, if you don't think the 1994-95 television season was a long time ago check out those baby faces in pic posted below from March 1995.)

"There will never be a show as dominate as 'ER' was," said Spielberg, who greatly impressed the "ER" troops and partygoers by showing up unannounced and with no fanfare. "When 'ER' came on there was very little in the way of cable (competition.) Now I do all of my (TV) work for cable."

I already knew that -- Spielberg shepherded Showtime's "United States of Tara" (it was kick to spend 30 seconds gushing over the fantastic-ness of Toni Collette with him) and HBO's upcoming mini "The Pacific" -- but it was still eye-openingto hear it so matter-of-factly from the man himself.

The party drew a slew of current and former cast members (too many to count) and bunch of the writers and directors who've worked on the show over its 15 seasons -- Neal Baer, Carol Flint, Paris Barclay and Charles Haid, to name but a few. It brought out execs who were there at the beginning, including former NBC Entertainment chief Warren Littlefield and former Amblin TV head Tony Thomopoulos. The speechifying included a gracious thanks from current NBC boss Ben Silverman to the earlier regime of Littlefield and Don Ohlmeyer and even to Leslie Moonves and Nina Tassler for nurturing the show in their pre-CBS days at Warner Bros. TV. 

There was of course, no shortage of praise and standing ovations directed to "ER's" major domo, John Wells, who in turn was effusive in his thank-yous to cast and crew members for their dedication and long hours on their feet ("It's worked out well for me," he grinned). (Pictured right, Wells and "ER" vet Noah Wyle. More party pics after the jump.)

Wells also invoked the memory of Michael Crichton, who wrote the original script that would become "ER" many years later. Wells noted that in preparation for writing the finale seg ("And in the End"), he read "ER's" first seg and was struck at how even 15 years and 331 episodes later, the spirit of the show was encapsulated in the pilot that Crichton helped Wells write.

"The worldview was Michael's worldview," Wells said of the prolific scribe who died in November. "I wish he was here tonight."

The timing of "ER's" final bow is fortuitous, with the health care policy now much in the news again as it was when the show bowed in 1994. Warner Bros. chairman Barry Meyer praised the show's laser-like focus on "constantly reinforcing the point that quality medical care for all is a right, not a privilege."

After the speeches were done and the class picture was snapped and the giant cake was sliced up, Meyer, sounding like the studio mogul that he is, made a point of making the point to me that as much as Wells and the team deserved every tribute for delivering a world-class show week in and week out, there was something to be said too for the studio that made a home for "ER" at at time when other majors were backing away from the big-budget drama biz.

"There's something very Warner Bros. about all of this," Meyer said, wistfully. He's right.

-30-

Great television drama is all about emotion and storytelling, but in this case numbers tell quite a tale. As recounted by John Wells, "ER" in its 15 seasons has racked up:

331 episodes

2,664 shooting days

34,000 hours of shooting

180 shooting days in Chicago

34 writers

49 directors

5,453 actors

Aired in 196 countries

Translated into 22 languages

First-run NBC airings have amassed 27 billion views -- and that's not counting Thursday's two-hour finale.

MORE PARTY PICS AFTER THE JUMP

Emerging from my December blog hibernation, I'm much more inclined to look forward to what the small screen has in store for '09 than reassessing '08. Fortunately, my Variety colleague Stuart Levine was motivated to muse on his highs and lows for '08 (posted after the jump).

There's not a whole lot that I've penciled into my must-see sked for the first quarter. Of course, the Big Event is the Jan. 21 return of "Lost" for its high-five season (more on that later). The final two "Friday Night Lights" segs of the season (maybe forever) on DirecTV Jan. 7-14, will be three-hanky affairs, for sure, according to sources who have already screened them. And there'll be more multicamera hijinks to enjoy from "The Big Bang Theory" ensemble, my fave comedy troupe on the tube these days, hands down.

As for new material, I was very impressed by what I saw on the four-episode screener of Showtime's "The United States of Tara." Toni Collette is amazing as a suburban mother and artist who grapples with three distinct personalities who also inhabit Tara's corporeal being. The supporting cast is also strong, with John Corbett playing Tara's husband in an understated way, and the always-engaging Rosemarie DeWitt as Tara's sister. Brie Larson impresses as the older of Tara's two teenage kids.

"Tara," which as everyone knows was conceived by Steven Spielberg and birthed by Diablo Cody, bows Jan. 18.

By Stuart Levine

NBC revisits its once glorious past tonight when Anthony Edwards returns to County General on “ER.”

The numbers for “ER” have been good this year, the show’s 15th and final season. Credit strong marketing and consistently compelling stories. Audiences who were once glued have come back for a last look.

And expect an even bigger Nielsen turnout when one of the most favored alumni comes back.

Well, Edwards returns but his character, Dr. Mark Greene, who died of cancer, can't. He's shown in flashback, interacting with the icy Dr. Cate Banfield, so adeptly played by Oscar-nominated actress Angela Bassett.

Not to give anything away, but the two characters interact at a time that forever changes Banfield’s life. I’m never been one to fall for the “very special episode” marketing ploy that NBC used with almost every show at one time or another, but this one’s worth watching, especially if you go back to the early days of “ER,” when folks such as Edwards, George Clooney and Eriq LaSalle ran up and down the hallways.

On a conference call with reporters, Edwards said he was a bit hesitant to return to Stage 11 on the Warner Bros. lot, where he’d spent eight years, but felt the timing was right to come back. Yet, he still had butterflies

“You don’t want to screw it up, you know,” he said. “I think there’s a natural respect for this show that you want to, you know, be respectful of.”

And he was confident that if he returned, his character’s hard-earned reputation wouldn’t be tarnished.

“I knew they would take care of him. You know, it’s a funny thing. You feel as an actor that you own the character, but the truth is so do the writers. The writers really feel an ownership of Greene, so they want to do right for him. So, there’s actually more people looking out for you than yourself in the end.

Edwards, who appeared in David Fincher’s brilliant murder mystery “Zodiac” last year, has been heavily involved in charity work. He donated the money he would’ve received for appearing in this “Heal Thyself” episode to Shoe 4 Africa, in which he’s raising money to build a hospital. “ER” exec producer John Wells and Steven Spielberg also contributed.

Nothing says TCA like stars in awkward situations. (See pic at left of "House" star Hugh Laurie in a bumper car at Fox's TCA party on the Santa Monica pier last summer.)

Yep, the Television Critics Assn. summer press tour is upon us, starting Tuesday at the Beverly Hilton hotel. The January TCA gathering was scuttled by the writers strike, so undoubtedly there will be pent-up excitement (agitation? irritation? ultra-obnoxious lines of questioning?) than usual among the scribes, execs and stars who make TCA go 'round.

As we did last year, On the Air will offer team coverage of this fortnight of frothing about shows to come and the strike-interrupted season that just was, and any other issues that crop up between Tuesday and July 22. Variety's Stuart Levine plans to park himself at the BevHilton for the duration, while our TV leader, Michael Schneider, reporter Daniel Frankel and myself will also be availing ourselves of the hotel's free Wi-Fi to cover the events...and drink. I'm guessing it's a safe bet that the tradition of TCA bingo (in which attendees track the over-use of buzz words by panelists) will include the phrase "writers strike" this year.

It all starts Tuesday with a heavy rotation of cable presentations, including Hallmark Channel, HD Net, BBC America and E! nets.

Wednesday's lineup includes: AMC and WE; MTV Networks; A&E Networks

Thursday: Discovery Networks; ESPN; Sundance Channel; HBO

Friday: Turner Broadcasting; Fox Reality Channel; Starz; Lifetime

Saturday-Sunday: PBS -- whose talent roster includes none other than Sir George Martin, plugging his series "On Record: The Soundtrack of Our Lives."

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE AND JON WEISMAN

Like a parent with kids on different teams squaring off against each other, Warner Bros. TV prexy Peter Roth will watch with both glee and terror as the 2008-09 TV season kicks off.

Of the four new WB dramas picked up by the broadcast nets during last week’s upfronts, three have been thrown against each other in the same 9 p.m. Tuesday timeslot: “The Mentalist” (CBS, photo on right), “Fringe” (Fox) and “Surviving the Filthy Rich” (CW).

For better or worse, this kind of fraternal battle is becoming familiar for Warners. Mondays at 8 p.m. feature a head-to-head-to-head-to-head slugfest among four WB shows, as hourlongs “Chuck” (NBC), “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” (Fox),  “Gossip Girl” (CW) face CBS sitcom “The Big Bang Theory.”

“It’s a very high-class problem to have,” Roth said. “While it wouldn’t necessarily be our preference to have programs competing against one another, we have been in this situation before.  We suggest since they are all great shows, viewers should watch one of them live, TiVo the others and, preferably, watch them within the advertiser-desired three-day window.”   

At 10 p.m. Thursday, WB rookie “Eleventh Hour” goes up against veteran “ER,” which will begin its 15th and final season. And on the comedy side, it’s no laughing matter for WB as Pushing Daisies” (ABC) and “The New Adventures of Old Christine” (CBS) both vie for the same eyeballs at 8 p.m. Wednesday.

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

After talking with him on the phone about a half-dozen times over the years to discuss everything from "The West Wing" to the trials and tribulations of being a TV writer, it was nice to finally sit down next to John Wells at last night's "ER at 300 episodes" panel at the Paley Center for Media.

It was a great group of folks from the show — Wells, showrunner David Zabel, in-house director and EP Chris Chulack, actors Linda Cardellini, Mekhi Phifer, Scott Grimes, Maura Tierney, Parminder Nagra and John Stamos — and it gave one a chance to pause and reflect on "ER's" incredible 14-season run.

Back when "ER" launched in September 1994, it broke out like gangbusters in its 10 p.m. Thursday spot on NBC (and where it still remains) up against David E. Kelley's "Chicago Hope." Wells reflected on the hysteria the show brought out in fans in those early years, including when they were shooting on location in Chicago and 4,000 people came out to get a glimpse of George Clooney.

Cardellini, who I will always cherish for her turn in the beloved teen drama "Freaks and Geeks," which was offed way too soon and I still miss to this day, kidded she wasn't a fan back then and everyone gave her a hard time. Tierney, whose character, Abby Lockhart, is mired in a serious case of angst this season, said she occasionally checked it out. She also added that she can't watch herself on the small-screen today — she was visibly squirming as the 300th episode screened — as she's way too critical of her performance.

Stamos provided plenty of laughs, recognizing his good fortunes in now having a chance to trade dialogue with these seasoned pros rather with the Olsen twins in "Full House." Nothing against the girls, of course, but they were tykes while he was trying to become a better actor, and it's tough to run lines when your colleagues are still learning how to read.

Wells, who was once the president of the Writers Guild and still sees himself as a scribe first and foremost, spoke on how it's tough to say how or when "ER" will end, with the state of the TV biz in such flux right now. But he acknowledged, certainly, the show is closer in time to its finale than to when it began. And as he and Warner Bros. know, "ER" is an expensive show to produce and with ratings nowhere where they used to be — and that's not a knock against just this show but for most longrunning series — there comes a point where the profit margins become too small for another season.

That being said, the quality of "ER" remains solid — a nice mix of medical traumas, personal stories and just the right amount of humor to make it all go down easy.

— Stuart Levine

Photos: Kevin Parry/The Paley Center for Media

Godspeed to John Wells and all of those who have been engaging in shuttle diplomacy during the past 48 hours in the effort to bring about a cease fire agreement between the WGA and the producers.

I sensed a shift in sentiment in the room Saturday night at Hollywood's Cabana Club during the ironically-timed 300th seg celebration of the Wells-produced "ER" -- a shining example of the kind of high-end scripted TV that is at risk in the WGA-Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers contract talks. (I confess to wondering if I wasn't being hopelessly Pollyanna-ish with my post-party post below, but I also felt it couldn't hurt to put some hopeful vibrations out there.)

If Wells, given his background and experience, is the one who can get the sides to build a bridge, or even some temporary scaffolding, to prevent the pickets from going up all over town on Monday, he really will be "the Eisenhower of all showrunners," as Warner Bros. TV boss Peter Roth intro'd him on Saturday night. Fingers crossed...

This just in: Gloria Reuben is set to reprise her "ER" role in an episode skedded to begin shooting next week (hopefully).

She'll be back as Jeanie Boulet, of course, though only the writers know where life has taken the one-time physical therapist in the eight years since the character exited the "ER" scene. I'm told Reuben's is a one-off return visit that has been planned for some time, a treat for the fans who have hung in with the show through thick and thin all these seasons.

(Pic of Reuben by Mark Von Holden/WireImage)

It was a celebration of a mighty impressive achievement -- "ER's" 300th seg -- but the talk of the party thrown by Warner Bros. Television Saturday night at the Cabana Club in Hollywood was all about what may transpire on Sunday and Monday.

Any gathering of TV industry insiders would have been abuzz with talk of the writers strike called for 12: 01 a.m. Monday and the Hail Mary meeting set for Sunday between the scribes and producers. But with "ER" in particular, it had to be the dominant theme given "ER" exec producer John Wells' background as a former WGA West prexy, one who skillfully helped avert a Defcon 4 scenario in 2001 when contract talks got heated (though not nearly as scalding as they are this time around).

In his brief remarks saluting the show and the people who make it, Warner Bros. TV prexy Peter Roth called Wells "the Eisenhower of all showrunners," and his use of a militaristic comparison was not lost on the crowd, unconscious as it may have been on Roth's part. NBC U Entertainment co-chairman Ben Silverman was more pointed, saying that Wells was going "fix all of it" in relation to the strike.

During his turn at the mike, Wells didn't use the S-word (except to sheepishly scoff at Ben's remark), but he did note that he'd done the math, and in the 14 seasons since "ER" dawned, skein has produced some 24,682 pages of scripts.

Neal Baer, a WGA negotiating committee member and an "ER" alum (who now shepherds NBC's "Law & Order: SVU" and does the work of angels as a licensed physician in his spare time), was on hand and inundated by "what's gonna happen?" queries. It was intriguing to see Baer and Wells and former "ER" showrunner Lydia Woodward huddled in a heavy-duty discussion toward the end of the evening.

As befitting the spirit of "ER," there was a define touch of optimism to all the strike talk among partygoers. The fact that a meeting was called for Sunday on Friday afternoon, hours after the WGA formally announced its plan to walk out on Monday, was widely dissected and discussed as a flicker of hope. There was also a feeling among the card-carrying types in the room that after Friday's strike announcement, some of the CEOs were starting to get more personally engaged and realize the serious-as-a-heart-attack-ness of the threat at hand.

Maybe, just maybe, there'll be enough of a give-and-take on Sunday for the scribes to hold their fire, even if it's 12- or 24 hour increments. Or in "ER" parlance, let's hope Sunday's meet turns out to be the final act of a two-parter, packed with guest stars and exotic location shoots, with a cliffhanger in the middle...and an uplifting ending by 11:59 p.m. Sunday.

It may have taken them a little longer to get there than most shows, but Fox's unsinkable "Family Guy" is prepping a 100th episode party for Oct. 29 at the ever-fashionable Social Hollywood. Seth MacFarlane and his crew are known to know how to celebrate their "freakin' sweet" milestones. This bash might lend itself to some TMZ moments, if Stewie gets out of hand...

There might be some TMZ action coming out of next week's Hollywood Radio and Television Society gathering of the heads of the five network families. The selection of Barry Sonnenfeld, helmer and exec producer of ABC's "Pushing Daisies," as moderator of the Oct. 16 luncheon has raised some eyebrows among rival nets. It's a head-scratcher for others, given that Sonnenfeld isn't exactly known for his emcee-ing skills. But for those of us who've complained about milquetoast HRTS moderators in the past, we've got to give Barry the benefit of the doubt. It outta be a lively sesh, anyway, with ABC's Steve McPherson, CBS' Nina Tassler, CW's Dawn Ostroff, Fox's Kevin Reilly and NBC's Ben Silverman...

The milestone-episode parties continue on Nov. 3 with Warner Bros. Television's celebration of "ER's" 300th at Hollywood's Cabana Club. Hard to believe it was 13 years ago that George Clooney did such an effective job of playing the tipsy Dr. Doug Ross in the famously good two-hour "ER" pilot. NBC skein has had its ups and downs since then but it has earned its place in the pantheon of primetime's longest-running series, and casting history. This party outta be a classy affair to remember, especially if it attracts a full (or even pretty full) complement of thesp, writer and producer alums....

And from the good-cause department, Zimmer Children's Museum will fete Fox talent relations exec Missy Halperin (pictured left) and PBS' kidvid programming exec Linda Simensky (pictured right) at its 7th annual Discovery Award dinner on Nov. 8 at Regent Beverly Wilshire hotel. Brad Garrett and Joely Fisher, the battling spouses of Fox sitcom "'Til Death" will emcee. Zimmer org is focused on teaching small fry about ethics, community involvement and cultural sensivity through interactive and roll-up-your-sleeves exhibits at its museum on the Miracle Mile.