Night Court: Season 04 (1986)

After several turnovers during the past three seasons, the main cast of the NBC sitcom Night Court finally achieves a degree of stability during season four. The lineup, which would remain intact until the series' final episode six years later, includes Harry Anderson as cheerfully irreverent night-court judge Harry T. Stone, Markie Post as Harry's frequent adversary and occasional girlfriend Christine Sullivan, Richard Moll as towering, egg-bald bailiff Bull (who undergoes a serious operation this season); John Larroquette as sex-obsessed Assistant DA Dan Fielding, and Charles Robinson as quietly efficient court clerk Mac. New to the series is Marsha Warfield as court matron Roz Russell, replacing the late Florence Halop (who played Florence Kleiner) -- who had previously replaced the late Selma Diamond (who played Selma Hacker). Warfield would break the "jinx" on her character and remain with the series until it ran its course. Season four yields one additional recurring character: Mike Finnerman as Art Finsterman, the courtroom's off-kilter maintenance man. In addition, Judge Harry T. Stone's idol Mel Tormé makes a guest appearance in the episode "Christine's Friend," while none other than NBC programming chief Brandon Tartikoff shows up in "A Day in the Life." The season ends with "Her Honor," a two-part episode that was supposed to have been the pilot for a spin-off series starring Brent Spiner and Annie O'Donnell as the Wheelers, a rube couple from the hills of West Virginia. While the series didn't sell, Brent Spiner went on to a somewhat more fulfilling assignment on Star Trek: The Next Generation. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi