Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman is a CBS network western\drama series created by Beth Sullivan, starring Jane Seymour in the lead role.
The show aired from January 1, 1993 to May 16, 1998, lasting for 6 seasons and 149 episodes; two television movies were made after the series was cancelled.
Plot[]
The series centers on the adventures of Dr. Michaela "Mike" Quinn, a female physician who leaves Boston and ends up settling in the frontier town of Colorado Springs, Colorado where she sets up her own medical practice and becomes the guardian of three orphaned children.
Cast[]
Main Cast
- Jane Seymour as Dr. Michaela "Mike" Quinn-Sully
- Joe Lando as Byron Sully
- Chad Allen as Matthew Cooper
- Erika Flores as Colleen Cooper Quinn Sully #1 (seasons 1-3)
- Jessica Bowman as Colleen Cooper Quinn Sully Cook #2 (mid-season 3-6)
- Shawn Toovey as Brian Cooper Quinn Sully
Supporting Cast
- Orson Bean as Loren Bray
- Frank Collison as Horace Bing
- Jim Knobeloch as Jake Slicker
- Larry Sellers as Black Hawk (pilot)\Cloud Dancing
- William Shockley as Hank Lawson
- Geoffrey Lower as Reverend Timothy Johnson
- Henry G. Sanders as Robert E.
- Jonelle Allen as Grace
- Nick Ramus as Chief Black Kettle (seasons 1-3)
- Heidi Kozak as Emily Donovan (season 1)
- Gail Strickland as Olive Davis (season 1)
- Jennifer Youngs as Ingrid (seasons 1–4)
- Helene Udy as Myra Bing (seasons 1–4; guest: season 5)
- Haylie Johnson as Becky Bonner (seasons 1–6)
- Barbara Babcock as Dorothy Jennings (seasons 2–6)
- Georgann Johnson as Elizabeth Quinn (seasons 2–6)
- Alley Mills as Marjorie Quinn (seasons 2–6)
- Elinor Donahue as Rebecka Quinn Dickinson (seasons 2–6)
- Charlotte Chatton as Emma (seasons 4 & 5)
- Michelle Bonilla as Teresa Morales (season 5)
- Alex Meneses as Teresa Morales Slicker (season 6)
- Brandon Douglas as Randolph Cummings (episode 4.16)\Dr. Andrew Cook (seasons 4–6)
- Jason Leland Adams as George Armstrong Custer (seasons 2 & 3)\Preston A. Lodge III (seasons 4–6)
- John Schneider as Red McCall (episode 1.09), Daniel Simon (seasons 5 & 6)
- Brenden Jefferson as Anthony #1 (season 4)
- Brandon Hammond as Anthony #2 (seasons 5 & 6)
- Ben Murphy as Ethan Cooper (seasons 1-3)
Production[]
The pilot episode of "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" was shot in early 1992 and aired in a two-hour television special on New Year's Day 1993.
CBS aired a second, hour-long episode the next night in order to attract and maintain the audience's attention.
The pilot served more as a made-for-television movie (or mini-series suggestion) which could either be developed later into a full series or remain as a stand-alone two-hour movie. CBS ordered the show picked up immediately for the full season. However, the show made some imperative casting changes.
Several pilot leads and a few of the supporting cast were replaced.
Henry Sanders was recast as Robert E. in place of Ivory Ocean as a less folksy hard-nosed working man; Orson Bean replaced Guy Boyd as a more fatherly, cynically-comical Loren Bray; and Colm Meaney was replaced by Jim Knobeloch, a much younger, attractive, and contemptuously stoic Jake Slicker.
Likewise, Larry Sellers's character, a Cheyenne brave called Black Hawk (listed under the closing credits as such) who had played an auxiliary role as one of Chief Black Kettle's aides and spoke only their language, was quietly retooled into Cloud Dancing, Sully's blood brother and a major recurring character, who (in addition to aiding Black Kettle) plays a large role in quelling the tribulations of the Cheyenne and other neighboring tribes.
He also acquired the ability to speak English, allowing him to act as a liaison alongside Sully. His character's name was never spoken on-screen during his first appearance, which can cause viewers to inadvertently re-interpret this look-alike as Cloud Dancing's first appearance before his formal debut.
"Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" was one of the few dramatic shows that allowed fans full access to their filming sets at the Paramount Ranch in Agoura Hills, California.
Fans were permitted and often invited to watch episodes being shot each week. The cast members were known to speak with their fans and sign autographs during shooting breaks.
During the show's final season run, an official website was established, which remains active. Two fans went on to create the Dr. Quinn Times, a newsletter in which interviews with the cast, producers, directors, and technical specialists were conducted and distributed to fans, twice each year.
Casting[]
Veteran actress Jane Seymour (who was labeled a mini-series "queen") was a last-minute casting choice for Michaela Quinn after reading the script only a day before production was set to begin on the pilot.
Seymour was instructed beforehand to review the script and make a decision of whether or not she felt the role would be right for her, and, if so, that she truly wanted to commit to the strict contract that Sullivan had demanded for the title character. The next day, Seymour began the wardrobe fittings for the series.
Colleen portrayer changes
There were various cast changes of minor characters during the series. The most controversial change took place during the show's third season, when the character of Colleen Cooper was recast halfway through the year.
Unlike the other actors, who signed five-year contracts with the show, Erika Flores was hesitant and she asked to be offered a contract of less than five years.
Rumors circulated that Flores's father gave her an ultimatum to end the contract unless they offered her more money, or he would cut her off financially. However, Flores has denied such rumors, saying that she left the series for personal reasons and to pursue other opportunities.
Beth Sullivan decided that she wanted the character to continue instead of being killed off or sent away and as a result, Jessica Bowman was cast as the new Colleen.
Some fans of Erika Flores were quite vocal in their anger over the change and wrote to CBS demanding to know why the actress had been replaced. The producers of the show felt that Jessica Bowman had the ability to successfully recreate the character on her own.
Other cast changes
Numerous cast changes occurred throughout the series, although none was as significant. Most notable was the replacement of Jane Wyman as Michaela's mother, Elizabeth Quinn. Wyman signed on to play the role for the third episode of Dr. Quinn in season one.
Later, Wyman turned down an invitation to return for another guest appearance in season two, because she had retired completely from acting by this stage (her previous appearance in season one marked her final acting role of any kind).
Georgann Johnson was hired to replace Wyman in the role and continued throughout the remainder of the series, making one guest appearance each season and appearing in the final Dr. Quinn television movie.
Michelle Bonilla originated the role of Theresa Morales in season five and was replaced by Alex Meneses in season six.
Bonilla was abruptly let go for reasons that were never publicly stated. Meneses's portrayal was well received and she was featured throughout the sixth season, when her character fell in love with Jake Slicker.
The role of Anthony (Grace and Robert E.'s adopted son) was played by Brenden Jefferson for four episodes in season four. He was replaced by Brandon Hammond, who continued in the role throughout seasons five and six.
Jennifer Youngs did not begin playing Ingrid until the character's second appearance; the first time the character appeared, she was played by Ashley Jones.
Ratings[]
During its entire original run on CBS, "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" aired from 8:00–9:00 pm Eastern time on Saturday nights.
It was the last successful TV Western drama to date until the premiere of "Deadwood" on the HBO network in March 21, 2004, and the premiere AMC network Western series, "Hell on Wheels" on November 6, 2011; and also one of the last original series to find long-term success in a Saturday timeslot.
Reception[]
"Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" was a major hit in the United States for CBS and drew large ratings even though it aired on Saturday nights. Despite the high ratings, CBS claimed that the demographics changed during the show's run.
During the show's final season, the majority of the show's viewers were women 40 years of age and older, and not the male & female 18-to-49 age demographic that networks try to reach.
In response, CBS ordered the writers to give the show a slightly darker feel than in previous seasons.
As a result, the sixth season was darker than any previous season, with the death of several characters as well as some highly sensitive subject matter: the painful miscarriage of Michaela's second child, as well as an episode entitled "Point Blank" where Michaela was shot by a man and then later developed post-traumatic stress disorder.
Many fans did not like the changes to the show while other fans felt that the tensions and high drama benefited the show after having overall pleasant past seasons.
Despite these opposing opinions, the ratings still proved to be steady and consistent (finishing at #51 for the year). After its sixth season, the show was suddenly canceled in 1998.
Accolades[]
Jane Seymour, Larry Sellers, and Barbara Babcock were the only cast members to receive Emmy nominations for their work on the series.
Seymour was nominated several times during the series' run while Babcock received a single nomination in 1995 for the episode entitled "Ladies' Night" where her character, Dorothy Jennings, underwent a mastectomy. Seymour also won a Golden Globe in 1996 for her portrayal of Michaela Quinn.