''Doctors' Hospital'' is an American medical drama that ran on
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
during the 1975–1976 season.
Synopsis
The series follows the neurosurgery team at the fictional Lowell Memorial Hospital in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, led by Dr. Jake Goodwin (
George Peppard
George Peppard (October 1, 1928 – May 8, 1994) was an American actor. He secured a major role as struggling writer Paul Varjak when he starred alongside Audrey Hepburn in '' Breakfast at Tiffany's'' (1961), and later portrayed a character ...
) and his staff, including residents Norah Purcell (
Zohra Lampert
Zohra Lampert (born May 13, 1931) is an American retired actress, who has had roles on stage, film and television. She performed under her then-married name of Zohra Alton early in her career. Lampert achieved critical acclaim for her work on Br ...
), and Felipe Ortega (
Victor Campos), and nurse Hestor Stanton (
Adrian Ricard). Other cast members included
John Larroquette
John Bernard Larroquette (; born November 25, 1947) is an American actor. He is known for his starring roles in the NBC military drama series '' Baa Baa Black Sheep'' (1976–1978), the NBC sitcom ''Night Court'' (1984–1992; 2023–2025) for ...
and
John Pleshette. Toward the end of the season, Peppard announced that he did not wish to continue in his role on the series. Producers reportedly wanted to retool the series and make Lampert's character the central figure, but NBC did not feel the actress had the name recognition to carry the show (despite the fact that she had just won an
Emmy
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award catego ...
for a guest appearance on an episode of ''
Kojak
''Kojak'' is an American Action film, action Crime film, crime Drama (film and television), drama television series starring Telly Savalas as the title character, New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theophilus "Theo" Kojak. Tak ...
''), and decided to cancel the series.
Though it lasted only one season, the series was noted for injecting a sense of realism not otherwise seen in medical shows of the day (e.g. ''
Marcus Welby, M.D.'', ''
Ben Casey
''Ben Casey'' is an American medical drama television series that aired on ABC from 1961 to 1966. The show was known for its opening titles, which consisted of a hand drawing the symbols "♂, ♀, ✳, †, ∞" on a chalkboard, as cast member ...
''). It has often been cited as setting a tone that later shows like ''
St. Elsewhere
''St. Elsewhere'' is an American medical drama television series created by Joshua Brand and John Falsey that originally ran on NBC from October 26, 1982, to May 25, 1988. The series stars Ed Flanders, Norman Lloyd, and William Daniels as ...
'', ''
ER'', and ''
Chicago Hope
''Chicago Hope'' is an American medical drama television series created by David E. Kelley, that originally aired for six seasons on CBS from September 18, 1994, to May 4, 2000, with a total of 141 episodes. The series is set in a fictional pr ...
'' would expand on.
Episodes
References
External links
* {{IMDb title, 0072493, Doctors' Hospital
Hospital'' at CVTA
1970s American medical drama television series
Television series by Universal Television
1975 American television series debuts
1976 American television series endings
Television shows set in Los Angeles
American English-language television shows
NBC television dramas