Mrs. Dolores Landingham, played by
Kathryn Joosten
Kathryn Joosten (born Kathryn Rausch; December 20, 1939 – June 2, 2012) was an American actress. Her best known roles include Dolores Landingham on NBC's ''The West Wing'' from 1999 to 2002 and Karen McCluskey on ABC's '' Desperate Housewives'' ...
and
Kirsten Nelson
Kirsten Nelson (born October 3, 1970) is an American actress and director best known for her role as police chief Karen Vick on the TV series '' Psych''.
Early life and education
Kirsten Nelson was born in Enid, Oklahoma and raised in Chica ...
, is the fictional
personal secretary for the President of the United States in the first two seasons of American serial political drama ''
The West Wing
''The West Wing'' is an American serial (radio and television), serial political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the ...
''. She was killed off in the second-season episode "
18th and Potomac
The second season of the American political drama television series ''The West Wing'' aired in the United States on NBC from October 4, 2000 to May 16, 2001 and consisted of 22 episodes.
Production
The second season made frequent use of flashba ...
", but reappeared for multiple flashbacks afterwards. Mrs. Landingham is considered a beloved character whose influence on politicians has continued through to 2021.
Character role
On ''
The West Wing
''The West Wing'' is an American serial (radio and television), serial political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the ...
'', Mrs. Dolores Landingham
is the secretary of
Josiah Bartlet
Josiah Edward "Jed" Bartlet is a fictional character from the American television serial drama ''The West Wing'' created by Aaron Sorkin and portrayed by actor Martin Sheen. The role earned Sheen a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Telev ...
, the fictional
president of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
played by
Martin Sheen
Ramón Antonio Gerardo Estévez (born August 3, 1940), known professionally as Martin Sheen, is an American actor. He first became known for his roles in the films ''The Subject Was Roses'' (1968) and ''Badlands'' (1973), and later achieved wid ...
.
Having worked for his father,
she has known Bartlet since he was in high school, worked for him as secretary while he was the
governor of New Hampshire
The governor of New Hampshire is the head of government of New Hampshire.
The governor is elected during the biennial state general election in November of even-numbered years. New Hampshire is one of only two states, along with bordering Verm ...
, and has a rare familiarity with Bartlet that few other characters can match. In the
second-season episode "
18th and Potomac
The second season of the American political drama television series ''The West Wing'' aired in the United States on NBC from October 4, 2000 to May 16, 2001 and consisted of 22 episodes.
Production
The second season made frequent use of flashba ...
", she dies from a
traffic collision with a
drunk driver
Drunk driving (or drink-driving in British English) is the act of driving under the influence of alcohol. A small increase in the blood alcohol content increases the relative risk of a motor vehicle crash.
In the United States, alcohol is invo ...
on her way to the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...
.
In the next episode and season finale, "
Two Cathedrals
"Two Cathedrals" is the 44th episode and second season finale of ''The West Wing''. It was first broadcast on May 16, 2001 on NBC.
President Bartlet is beset by memories of Mrs. Landingham as her funeral approaches. Meanwhile, the staff deals w ...
", Mrs. Landingham is shown in
flashbacks meeting Jed Bartlet while he was in high school, and appears in the
Oval Office
The Oval Office is the formal working space of the President of the United States. Part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, it is located in the West Wing of the White House, in Washington, D.C.
The oval-shaped room ...
to talk to him a final time. The character appears in 30 of the series' 154 episodes,
with her last appearance occurring in a season-four flashback in "
Debate Camp
A debate camp or debate institute is a training workshop for high school and collegiate debaters. Usually these camps are held over the summer and last between two and eight weeks. While once attended by only highly competitive policy debaters, ...
".
A key moment for Mrs. Landingham's character comes in the
first-season episode "
In Excelsis Deo".
In the episode, set around the holiday of
Christmas
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...
,
Charlie Young notices that Mrs. Landingham feels down despite the festive atmosphere of the day. Mrs. Landingham explains that she always felt sad around the holiday season, revealing that her two sons, Andrew and Simon, were drafted into the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
. Mrs. Landingham and the boys' father tried to convince them not to go, and instead take a deferment to finish medical school, but the boys insisted. The two boys were killed by enemy fire on December 24, 1970, which is
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas Day, the festival commemorating the birth of Jesus. Christmas Day is observed around the world, and Christmas Eve is widely observed as a full or partial holiday in anticipation ...
. "It's hard when that happens so far away, you know," says Mrs. Landingham, "because with the noises and the shooting, they had to be so scared. It's hard not to think that right then, they needed their mother." Later in the episode, Mrs. Landingham accompanies
Toby Ziegler
Tobias "Toby" Zachary Ziegler is a fictional character in the television serial drama ''The West Wing'', played by Richard Schiff. The role of Toby Ziegler earned actor Richard Schiff the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor i ...
to a military funeral arranged for a homeless man. Martin Sheen later said that he was supposed to have been present in the scene as well, but the scene was changed to not overshadow Ziegler and Mrs. Landingham, commenting that the two "were deeply affected by the incident: a woman who has lost two sons and a man who gave this guy clothes to keep warm".
Joosten said that the scene was a high point of her time on the show.
Mrs. Landingham sometimes serves as Bartlet's conscience,
highlighted in season two finale episode, "
Two Cathedrals
"Two Cathedrals" is the 44th episode and second season finale of ''The West Wing''. It was first broadcast on May 16, 2001 on NBC.
President Bartlet is beset by memories of Mrs. Landingham as her funeral approaches. Meanwhile, the staff deals w ...
", following her death in "18th and Potomac". She guides Bartlet on how to grapple with moral issues starting with a flashback of her meeting Bartlet when he was in prep school. She repeatedly asks Jed to address a
gender pay gap
The gender pay gap or gender wage gap is the average difference between the remuneration for men and women who are working. Women are generally found to be paid less than men. There are two distinct numbers regarding the pay gap: non-adjusted ...
in the school's faculty, as his father was the headmaster. When asked why she is doing this, she asserts her role as the older sister Jed needed to set him straight, telling him "look, if you think we're wrong... then I respect that. But if you think we're right, and you won't speak up because you can't be bothered, then God, Jed, I don't even want to know ya". Later, in the show's present moment, Mrs. Landingham has a conversation with Bartlet in the Oval Office while a thunderstorm rages, reminding him that there is always an action he can take regardless of the challenges he faces as he must give a press conference following an announcement that he has concealed a diagnosis of
multiple sclerosis
Multiple (cerebral) sclerosis (MS), also known as encephalomyelitis disseminata or disseminated sclerosis, is the most common demyelinating disease, in which the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are damaged. This d ...
from the public.
The President is reconsidering whether he should run for re-election, and Mrs. Landingham asks the President to list all of the problems still facing American society, and tells him that "you know, if you don't want to run for a second term, I respect that. But if you don't run because you think it's too hard, or you think you're going to lose, then God, Jed, I don't even wanna know ya."
Mrs. Landingham provided other characters on ''The West Wing'' with guidance rather than playing a central political role, and was known for her playful banter.
Her influence over the President was particularly noted, with Steve Heisler of ''
The A.V. Club
''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
'' commenting that Mrs. Landingham "held a unique kind of influence over the President Of The United States, yet had zero ego about it".
Mrs. Landingham was described by Heisler as humble, hard-working, relentlessly moral, and "important in all the ways ''The West Wing'' rarely talks about, yet in all the ways ''The West Wing'' excels".
With a show as idealized as ''The West Wing'', Mrs. Landingham sometimes reminded the characters "who they should be working for". Kathryn Joosten is quoted in the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' as saying that Mrs. Landingham "represented for a lot of people the voice of the little people".
Development
Mrs. Landingham was played by
Kathryn Joosten
Kathryn Joosten (born Kathryn Rausch; December 20, 1939 – June 2, 2012) was an American actress. Her best known roles include Dolores Landingham on NBC's ''The West Wing'' from 1999 to 2002 and Karen McCluskey on ABC's '' Desperate Housewives'' ...
, while actress
Kirsten Nelson
Kirsten Nelson (born October 3, 1970) is an American actress and director best known for her role as police chief Karen Vick on the TV series '' Psych''.
Early life and education
Kirsten Nelson was born in Enid, Oklahoma and raised in Chica ...
played a younger Mrs. Landingham in the flashback scenes of "Two Cathedrals".
Joosten said that she drew from previous experience spending time with an executive assistant at a technology company in Pasadena, commenting that "she was efficient; she was proven. But she called her boss by her first name, and I couldn't do that". Joosten also recalled a scene in which her character was to remind a few women secretaries who were gossiping that they "work for some very important men here". Joosten, who remarked that the line "pissed
eroff", persuaded the writers to change "men" to "people".
Conclusion
While at a charity dinner with the cast and crew of ''The'' ''West Wing'', Joosten told series creator
Aaron Sorkin
Aaron Benjamin Sorkin (born June 9, 1961) is an American playwright, screenwriter and film director. Born in New York City, he developed a passion for writing at an early age. Sorkin has earned an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, five Primetime E ...
that she had been approached for a regular role in a TV series that was shooting its
pilot
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...
. This inadvertently inspired Sorkin to create serious drama for the Bartlet character by suddenly killing off his lifelong family friend and secretary, in a scene Heisler described as "perfectly gut-wrenching".
The showrunner planned it as a dramatic penultimate twist for
the second season, leading the President to rail against
his god in "
Two Cathedrals
"Two Cathedrals" is the 44th episode and second season finale of ''The West Wing''. It was first broadcast on May 16, 2001 on NBC.
President Bartlet is beset by memories of Mrs. Landingham as her funeral approaches. Meanwhile, the staff deals w ...
" (2001), pacing and smoking throughout
Washington National Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in the City and Diocese of Washington, commonly known as Washington National Cathedral, is an American cathedral of the Episcopal Church. The cathedral is located in Washington, D.C., the cap ...
—a
season finale
A season finale (British English: last in the series; Australian English: season final) is the final episode of a season of a television program. This is often the final episode to be produced for a few months or longer, and, as such, will try to ...
for which Sheen was "the overwhelming favorite to win an
Emmy [Award]".
The following June, Joosten told the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' that "the publicity resulting from Mrs. Landingham’s untimely demise has been good for me personally".
Reception
The ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' wrote that Mrs. Landingham's tendency to ground characters in an otherwise idealized show allowed the audience to identify themselves—or their mothers—with the sexagenarian presidential secretary.
In ''The Prime-Time Presidency: The West Wing and U.S. Nationalism'', Shawn Parry-Giles argues that Mrs. Landingham embodies a "republican mother", willing to sacrifice her children for the nation and guide Jed Bartlet towards his potential as a leader. In a 2020 ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'' reunion of cast and crew on ''The West Wing'', special recognition was given to Joosten; Sorkin praised the compassion Joosten played Mrs. Landingham with, while
Rob Lowe
Robert Hepler Lowe (born March 17, 1964) is an American actor, filmmaker, and podcast host. He made his acting debut at the age of 15 with ABC's short-lived sitcom ''A New Kind of Family'' (1979–1980). Following numerous television roles in ...
and
Richard Schiff
Richard Schiff (born May 27, 1955) is an American actor and director. He is best known for playing Toby Ziegler on ''The West Wing'', a role for which he received an Emmy Award. Schiff made his directorial debut with ''The West Wing'', directing ...
called her performance in "
In Excelsis Deo" the best in the show's seven-season run.
That same year, ''Showbiz Cheat Sheet'' called Mrs. Landingham "a beloved part of" ''The West Wing'',
and in 2021, the ''
Waco Tribune-Herald
The ''Waco Tribune-Herald'' is an American daily newspaper serving Waco, Texas, and vicinity.
Background
The newspaper has its roots in five predecessors, beginning with the ''Waco Evening Telephone'' in 1892. The ''Tribune-Herald'' took its curr ...
'' described her as "a sentimental favorite" character from the series.
Legacy
After the character was killed off in 2001, the
California State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento.
The A ...
observed a
moment of silence
A moment of silence (also referred to as a minute's silence or a one-minute silence) is a period of silent contemplation, prayer, reflection, or meditation. Similar to flying a flag at half-mast, a moment of silence is often a gesture of ...
in honor of Mrs. Landingham, with
Democratic Assemblyman
Kevin Shelley
Kevin Francis Shelley (born November 16, 1955) is an American politician, who was the 28th California Secretary of State from January 6, 2003, until his resignation on March 4, 2005.
Early life
Shelley was raised in San Francisco, the only son ...
adjourning that body in memory of "a great American" who contributed to the nation in ways "too numerous to count". Evelyn Nieves, writing for ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', said this action showed that the California legislature was not "completely preoccupied with
the energy crisis".
In 2014, ''
The Atlantic
''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science.
It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
'' placed Mrs. Landingham as 13th on their ranking of 114 characters from ''The West Wing'', commenting that she had few, but meaningful, interactions with
Leo McGarry
Leo Thomas McGarry is a fictional character played by American actor John Spencer on the television serial drama ''The West Wing''. This role earned Spencer the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2002. ...
,
Charlie Young, and the President.
In 2015, the United States'
General Services Administration
The General Services Administration (GSA) is an independent agency of the United States government established in 1949 to help manage and support the basic functioning of federal agencies. GSA supplies products and communications for U.S. gover ...
released a
Slack bot named "Mrs. Landingham" to ease new hires through their
onboarding
''Onboarding'' or organizational socialization is the mechanism through which new employees acquire the necessary knowledge, skills, and behaviors in order to become effective organizational members and insiders. In the United States, for example ...
; the many fans of ''The'' ''West Wing'' at
18F felt it right to "
ring
Ring may refer to:
* Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry
* To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell
:(hence) to initiate a telephone connection
Arts, entertainment and media Film and ...
back the beloved character".
In 2021, the then Lord Chancellor
Robert Buckland
Sir Robert James Buckland (born 22 September 1968) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Wales from July to October 2022. He previously served as Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor from 2019 to 2021. A me ...
, the British
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
for
South Swindon
South Swindon is a constituency in the Borough of Swindon, Wiltshire, represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by Sir Robert Buckland, a Conservative, who previously served as Justice Secretary and Welsh Secretary ...
, adopted a grey
tabby cat
A tabby is any domestic cat (''Felis catus'') with a distinctive 'M'-shaped marking on its forehead; stripes by its eyes and across its cheeks, along its back, and around its legs and tail; and (differing by tabby type), characteristic striped, d ...
from
Cats Protection
Cats Protection, formerly the Cats Protection League, is a UK charity dedicated to rescuing and rehoming stray, unwanted or homeless cats and educating people about cats and cat welfare. The organisation was founded as the Cats Protection Leag ...
and named her Mrs. Landingham.
References
Works cited
*
*
*
*
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Landingham, Mrs.
Fictional characters from Washington, D.C.
Fictional people from the 20th-century
Fictional secretaries
Fictional United States government officials
Fictional victims of crime
Television characters introduced in 1999
The West Wing characters