Tuesday, July 16, 2013
How will 'Glee' handle death?
The death of actor Cory Monteith at the age of 31, means his hit show "Glee" will have to figure out how best to deal with his character on the show. But that series is not the only one to face such a challenge... 
The very handsome Jon-Erik Hexum was just 26 in 1984 when he shot himself with a prop gun on the set of his new show, "Cover Up." The blank from the gun drove a piece of his skull into his brain and he was taken off of life support a week later. His character was killed off the show. 
Nicholas Colasanto (on the left) is seen here with his "Cheers" co-stars Rhea Perlman, Ted Danson and Shelley Long. His character of Coach Ernie Pantusso was written out of the show as having also died when the actor succumbed to a heart attack in 1985. 
When "Dallas" actor Jim Davis died of cancer in 1981, his character Jock Ewing also died on the show. Here he is seen with his co-star, Barbara Bel Geddes, who played Eleanor Southworth "Miss Ellie" Ewing. 
Jack Soo was one of the original cast members of the hit show "Barney Miller." The series commemorated him in a special episode featuring flashbacks of his character after Soo died of cancer in 1979. 
Diana Hyland only appeared in four episodes as the mother on "Eight is Enough" before her death from cancer in 1977. Dick Van Patten played her TV husband, and his character became a widower who fell in love and remarried when a new actress was cast. 
John Ritter, center -- shown here with "8 Simple Rules" cast mates (from left) Katey Sagal, Amy Davidson, Kaley Cuoco, Billy Aaron Brown and Martin Spanjers -- died of an aortic dissection at the height of the show. His character also died on the show and two additional cast members, David Spade and James Garner, were cast after a hiatus. 
During his 12 years on "Law & Order," Jerry Orbach (left) starred as Detective Lennie Briscoe, and was partnered with a few actors, including Chris Noth as Detective Mike Logan. His character had retired from the force when he joined the spin-off "Law & Order: Trial By Jury," where Briscoe was written out of the show after Orbach's death in 2004 from prostate cancer. 
The "NewsRadio" cast, (from left), Khandi Alexander, Andy Dick, Stephen Root, Phil Hartman, Dave Foley, Maura Tierney, Joe Rogan and Vicki Lewis were pretty tight prior to Hartman's death. Hartman, who was shot to death by his wife in 1998, was revealed to have died of a heart attack at the beginning of the fifth season, and Hartman was replaced by actor Jon Lovitz. 
John Spencer was beloved as Leo McGarry on NBC's "The West Wing." His death by heart attack in 2005 was written into the show. 
When actor Michael Conrad died of cancer in 1983, his "Hill Street Blues" character, Sgt. Phil Esterhaus, also died. 
It was during rehearsals for the series "The Royal Family" that Redd Foxx died of a heart attack in 1991. The show had been intended as a comeback vehicle for Foxx and did not survive long after his death. 
The producers of the rebooted "Dallas" revisited the "Who shot J.R." mystery of the original show following Larry Hagman's death, of complications from cancer, in 2012. 
Nancy Marchand won over critics and fans alike as Tony's cantankerous mother Livia Soprano. When the actress, shown here with "Sopranos" co-star Dominic Chianese, died from emphysema and lung cancer, her character's death also was written into the script. 
- "Glee" producers must now decide how to handle death of beloved actor
- Other shows have also had to address the loss of stars
- Fans are speculating as to what the show will do
(CNN) -- As his family, friends and co-stars mourn the loss of "Glee" star Cory Monteith, there looms a very real issue for the popular series.
How will the show handle the death of the man who portrayed one of its most beloved characters?
Monteith, 31, was found dead Saturday in a Vancouver hotel room. An autopsy is pending.
"Glee" star Cory Monteith was found dead at a hotel in Vancouver, Canada, on Saturday, July 13. While the cause of death was not immediately apparent, police have ruled out the possibility of foul play. Monteith had been public about his struggle with addiction and checked into a rehab facility in late March. He previously told Parade magazine that he started using drugs at 13 and had entered rehab by 19. Click through the gallery for a look at other celebrities who have had drug and alcohol problems over the years. 
Matthew Perry has previously struggled with an addiction to prescription drugs and alcohol and recently landed on the cover of People magazine to discuss his road to sobriety. While he was on "Friends," he said, "it would seem like I had it all. It was actually a very lonely time for me because I was suffering from alcoholism." 
"Sex and the City" actress Kristin Davis told Health magazine in 2008 that unlike her cocktail loving character Charlotte York, she is a recovering alcoholic. The 48-year-old admitted that she was drinking so much, she didn't think she'd live past 30. 
Ben Affleck surprised friends when he checked into rehab for alcohol abuse in 2001, People magazine reported. 
Jamie Lee Curtis has reportedly said she was once so addicted to prescription pain medicine that she stole some from a relative to help feed the addiction. 
Jodie Sweetin, who played innocent Stephanie Tanner on "Full House," documented her drug problems in her memoir "unSweetined." A low point, she said, was using cocaine, meth and ecstasy while on tour to discuss her sobriety. 
There have been questions as to whether or not Bob Dylan was telling the truth when he reportedly told a journalist in 1966 that he had kicked a $25-a-day heroin habit, but, according to Rolling Stone, he had a period during his 1966 tour where he used "huge amounts" of amphetamines. 
In 2012, Black Eyed Peas singer Fergie told Oprah that her drug use proceeded from ecstasy to crystal meth. She became so paranoid she thought the FBI and SWAT teams were following her before she successfully sought treatment. 
She was known for her wholesome role as Laura Ingalls on the television series "Little House on the Prairie," but at her worst Melissa Gilbert was covering up feelings of sadness by drinking up to more than two bottles of wine a night, the actress told More magazine. 
"Harry Potter" star Daniel Radcliffe told GQ magazine that he had his last drink in 2010. "There were a few years there when I was just so enamored with the idea of living some sort of famous person's lifestyle that really isn't suited to me." 
A year before People magazine reported that the actress checked into a substance abuse facility in 2008, Eva Mendes told reporters she "wasn't comfortable at all" and needed a cocktail to film a sex scene in 2007's "We Own the Night." 
In 2004, a then 19-year-old Kelly Osbourne reportedly entered rehab for an addiction to pain killers. "The amount of pills that was found in her bag was astounding," her father Ozzy said. 
Samuel L. Jackson was reportedly able to portray crack addict Gator in "Jungle Fever" so authentically because of his own past struggles with drugs and alcohol. He landed the breakout role two weeks after leaving rehab. 
Kristen Johnston talked about her addiction to drugs and alcohol in her 2012 memoir "Guts" and admitted she was depressed during her time on "3rd Rock From the Sun." "And you're not supposed to be," she said. "You can't tell anybody, 'I'm so bummed you gave me an Emmy.' You can't be sad when you're being celebrated. So it was a big conflict and there's no shrink that can understand it." 
Actress Kelly Preston has said she gave up drugs and alcohol to be a better mother to her kids and better wife to John Travolta. "I don't drink anymore. I don't smoke anymore. I don't do drugs anymore. All of those come with an 'anymore.' I used to do everything and a lot of everything," she said. 
Jane Lynch wrote about her addictions to alcohol and cough syrup in her memoir "Happy Accidents." She told Access Hollywood in 2013 that she has been sober for 21 years. 
Sir Elton John told USA Today that he swore off drugs and alcohol in 1990. He said, "If I ever find myself in a situation where there are drugs, I can smell the cocaine. I can feel it in the back of my throat, that horrible feeling of taking the first hit of cocaine. And I leave." 
Country star Tim McGraw said in an interview in 2013 that he replaced drinking whiskey with working out to clean his life up. 
For those who may not remember because she has so completely turned herself around, Drew Barrymore entered rehab at the tender age of 13. Most fans were unaware that the then beloved child star partied so hard. She chronicled her early struggles in her memoir "Little Girl Lost." 
It was years after Meredith Baxter portrayed one of America's favorite moms, Elyse Keaton on "Family Ties," that she revealed that she is a recovering alcoholic. 
Backstreet Boys member A.J. McLean last checked into rehab in 2011. He had previously been treated for depression, anxiety and excessive alcohol consumption. 
Country star and "American Idol" judge Keith Urban told Oprah in 2010 that his wife Nicole Kidman and several close friends staged an intervention to help him overcome his addiction to cocaine and alcohol. 
Celebrity substance abuse confessions 
'Glee' star found dead 
Remembering Cory Monteith 
'Glee' star found dead in hotel room The actor portrayed Finn Hudson, a high school quarterback whose love affair with glee club diva Rachel Berry was a central plot in the show and also spun off a real life romance between Monteith and his co-star Lea Michele.
With Monteith's passing, Deadline noted that the show's writers "will consider what to do about the first two episodes in which the return of Monteith's character was to have played an important part."
"The first two episodes of the fifth season had been written before the traditional long summer hiatus, in order to get a jump on the new season; production had been scheduled to start next week," the site reported. "The return of Monteith's character, hunky high school football star turned glee club darling Finn Hudson, was much anticipated by fans, Monteith having been absent from the final episodes of last season to check himself into a drug treatment facility late last March."
"Glee" creator Ryan Murphy has never been one to shy away from either controversy or weaving real life drama into his shows which have included "Nip/Tuck," "American Horror Story" and the now canceled "The New Normal." In April, "Glee" was criticized after airing an episode about a school shooting in the wake of the Sandy Hook elementary school tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut.
That "Glee" will address the tragedy is not in doubt, but how it will remains to be seen.
Remembering Monteith as Finn
It won't be the first television show to have to address the loss of a major character. Most recently, TNT's "Dallas" lost Larry Hagman who had played the iconic J.R. Ewing in both the original series and TNT's reboot. That series decided to take his death in November 2012 from complications from cancer as an opportunity for a creative story line that would both address the beloved Hagman's death and thrill fans.
"Larry's death was terribly sad and sudden and we'd certainly rather make the show with him than without him," co-star Jordana Brewster told EW. "That said, I think the writers really came up with a brilliant way to cope with the loss. It could have ruined the show and derailed everyone, but instead they made the best of it and actually came up with some really great stuff."
When actor John Ritter died of an aortic dissection in 2003 while filming his popular series "8 Simple Rules," ABC incorporated his character's death into the show and brought in actors David Spade and James Garner. The show was eventually canceled in 2005.
While Monteith was not the main star of the ensemble cast of "Glee," his character was a central one and a fan favorite. Writing for Vulture, Lauren Hoffman said "The loss of Finn alters the show's landscape permanently and irrevocably."
"Whenever Glee has been at a loss for story in the past, it's circled back to three key relationships: Kurt and Blaine, Brittany and Santana, and Finn and Rachel," Hoffman said. "Monteith's death and Heather Morris' (who played cheerleader Brittany Pierce) departure further destabilize a show already on shaky ground as it struggles to take on a more mature tone following the graduation of several of its main characters from high school."
Having concluded season four, "Glee" has grappled with lower ratings and ingratiating new characters into the hearts of fans. When Monteith's character along with several others graduated, new actors Melissa Benoist, Jacob Artist, Becca Tobin, Blake Jenner and Alex Newell were introduced.
Even before Monteith's death, it was announced that the new group would be bumped up to regulars in season five, while original stars Mark Salling, Amber Riley, Heather Morris and Harry Shum, Jr. would have reduced roles. It was also recently revealed that "American Idol" runner-up Adam Lambert would be joining the show.
There is already fan speculation as to how "Glee" should handle the tragedy. Might the new group of students be pushed more to the forefront in the wake of the loss of Monteith? Selina Wilken, a writer from Hypable which bills itself as being "for fans, by fans," suggested that producers could do anything from allowing Monteith's Finn a happy ending off screen to "breaking the fourth wall" and directly addressing the audience.
"Of course you could argue that there is no 'good' or 'right' way to handle this situation. Right now, in the face of such a devastating tragedy, the future of a TV show seems like the most unimportant thing in the world," she wrote. "But at the same time, we want Cory Monteith to be remembered. We want his life celebrated. We want Glee to honour both Monteith and his character, because that's what he deserved."
No matter how the storyline is altered to accommodate Monteith's death, it is clear that the loss is a huge one for the show.
"The musical comedy faces special circumstances, appealing as it does to a youthful demographic, swaths of which idolized or even 'carried a torch' for Monteith," wrote TVLine's Matt Webb Mitovich. "Viewers also will know the pain his on-/off-screen love, Lea Michele, herself must feel, every time they see Rachel."
Source : http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/edition_entertainment/~3/wa_UpwcM13I/index.html
