Raye Birk

A fictionalized account of one of America's most groundbreaking sexual harassment lawsuits comes to the screen in this hard-hitting drama. In the late '80s, Josey Aimes (Charlize Theron) fled her abusive husband, and needed to find a way to support her two children. Aimes returned to her hometown in Minnesota and followed the lead of her old friend Glory (Frances McDormand), who had bucked tradition and found a job in the iron mines that had long provided employment for much of the community. Aimes found honest labor and a living wage working the mines, but she also discovered she was working with men who were uncomfortable working with women (whose right to work in the mines had been mandated by law almost 15 years prior), and didn't care to show them much respect. However, as Aimes found herself the growing target of sexist jokes and abhorrent behavior, she found that many of her female co-workers were reluctant to stand beside her, afraid of losing a good-paying job at a time when they were increasingly hard to find. But as a personal crisis became a public war of words, Aimes became the center of a nationwide controversy when she attempted to file a class action sexual harassment suit against the mine owners, which put her and her family in a position of scrutiny beyond her worst expectations. North Country also stars Sean Bean, Sissy Spacek, and Woody Harrelson. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In order to convince a skeptical cabbie that a tragedy will occur if she doesn't reach the Queensborough Bridge by 10 PM, Monica recalls the chain of disastrous events that led up to this crticial and anxious moment. It all started when a total stranger (Howard Hesseman) made a rude gesture to Monica because of her inept parallel-parking skills. Outraged by this breach of etiquette, Monica transmitted her anger and bitterness to several other people in the course of the day. One of the second-hand recipients of Monica's wrath is a woman named Wendy (Kathie Lee Gifford)--who becomes so disheartened that she intends to commit suicide! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

As the staffers at County General anxiously await news as to which hospital in their county is going to be closed down, a number of personal dramas play themselves out. Both Greene (Anthony Edwards) and Lewis (Sherry Stringfield) strike out with their respective blind dates; Jeanie (Gloria Reuben) begins to understand the negative effect that being HIV-positive will have on her life; and Carter (Noah Wyle) plots revenge against Benton (Eriq La Salle) for making his first day as an ER intern so miserable. John Aylward makes his debut appearance as Dr. Donald Anspaugh, the ER's new chief of staff. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This episode reveals the hitherto unknown fact that Nantucket has a sister city called Khrinan, located in a faraway kingdom. In hopes of keeping her job with the tourism board, Casey (Amy Yasbeck) personally supervises the visit of Khirinan's Prince Restivon (Raye Birk) and Princess Fala (Jocelyn Seagrave). What Casey doesn't know is that her boyfriend Brian (Steven Weber) has had a romantic fling with the princess -- on the night before her highness' visit to Nantucket! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Insisting upon taking a traffic ticket to court, Murphy (Candice Bergen) intends to fight for her rights all by herself--and without invoking any special celebrity privileges. But when a news story leaks out suggesting that the judge will be lenient for no other reason than Murphy is a TV star, the circumstances alter drastically. As a result ,the network provides our heroine with a "dream team" of expensive lawyers...and before long, the dream turns into a nightmare. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The further misadventures of bumbling Los Angeles police Lieutenant Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) are chronicled in this third installment in the popular Naked Gun comedy series. This by-the-numbers entry begins with Drebin as a happily retired house-husband called back into action when an evil terrorist organization threatens Los Angeles. As in the other Naked Gun films, this plot is merely an excuse for an unhinged, rapid-fire succession of gags, ranging from satirical lampoons of cop movies to broad slapstick, all played with a perfectly straight face. Nielsen provides his familiar combination of complete witlessness and oblivious dignity as Drebin, and the film attempts to match the earlier Naked Gun films -- and the Police Squad! television series that inspired them -- in the number of jokes. However, the film proved less successful than its predecessors, as some viewers found that the freewheeling comic style of the earlier films had solidified into its own formula, now mildly entertaining but disappointingly predictable. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide

In this made-for-cable thriller an unemployed actor makes a little cash running acting classes. His troubles begin when the student he has been sleeping with calls him one day and says that she has been kidnapped. The next thing he knows, he is being framed for embezzlement and murder. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Harry Connick Jr. guest stars as Russell Boyd, cousin of Cheers bartender Woody (Woody Harrelson). Smitten by Rebecca (Kirstie Alley), Russell begins composing special songs for her; but his ardor doesn't stop there. Meanwhile, Cliff (John Ratzenberger) angrily protests the new postal uniforms, little realizing he's being set up for an elaborate practical joke. This is the episode in which Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer) first appears with his trademark beard. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The ninth and final season of Night Court begins with the first episode of a two-part story, in which Judge Harry T. Stone (Harry Anderson) and his staff awaiting word about prosecutor Dan Fielding (John Larroquette), who has been on the lam from the law since the collapse of the Phil Foundation. As the courtroom adjusts to Dan's wacky temp replacement Oscar Brown (Gilbert Gottfried), Harry tries to work up the courage to tell public defender Christine (Markie Post) that he loves her. But Harry's efforts are interrupted by the sudden appearance of a masked phantom, who swoops down to kidnap Christine! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A big city doctor is stranded in a small rural town, where he finds love, professional challenges, and a pet pig, in this comedy. Fresh out of residence at a Washington D.C. hospital, hot-shot plastic surgeon Ben Stone (Michael J. Fox) hops in his Porsche and is headed for California, where a lucrative practice in Beverly Hills awaits. However, Ben accidentally plows into a fence in Grady, South Carolina; the wreck puts Ben's car out of commission, and the town's mayor, Nick Nicholson (David Ogden Stiers), sees to it that Ben is sentenced to perform community service while he's waiting to get his car back on the road. For a week, Ben will serve as the community's general practitioner, filling in for the aging Dr. Hogue (Barnard Hughes). Many of the locals go out of their way to make Ben feel welcome, since they need a new full-time doctor and hope he'd be interested in staying on a permanent basis. Ben isn't especially interested until he meets Lou (Julie Warner), a beautiful, intelligent, and feisty local woman he first meets as she's enjoying a morning skinny-dip. Ben now finds himself wondering what the odds are of winning her away from her less-than-brilliant boyfriend Hank (Woody Harrelson). Bridget Fonda has a memorable supporting role as Nancy Lee, who doesn't make much of a secret of her attraction to Ben. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

For most of the United States, February is the month of Presidents' birthdays and Valentine's Day; at the headquarters of "FYI", February means "Sweeps Month." Hoping to score a huge ratings coup, Murphy (Candice Bergen) and Corky (Faith Ford) team up to write a shocking expose of a crooked oil company. Unfortunately, their investigation requires the ladies to pose as members of the World's Oldest Profession--fish-net stockings and all! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Made for television, The Challenger is at once a tribute and a eulogy to the seven courageous souls who perished when the Challenger space shuttle exploded 73 seconds after liftoff on January 28, 1986. Though all of the crew members are given three-dimensional, balanced treatment, the one we all remember is schoolteacher Christa McAuliffe. As played by Karen Allen, McAuliffe is neither superwoman nor saint: just an average human being with an insatiable thirst to learn more about the universe around her. The other members of the ill-fated crew are Cmdr. Francis R. Scobee (Barry Bostwick), Captain Michael J. Smith (Brian Kerwin), Dr. Judith A. Resnik (Julie Fulton), Lt. Col. Ellison Onizuka (Keone Young), Dr. Ronald E. McNair (Joe Morton) and Gregory B. Jarvis (Richard Jenkins). Wisely, the film concentrates on the crew's training, ending before the tragic real-life denoument. Filmed on location at the Johnson Space Center, the 3-hour The Challenger was originally telecast February 25, 1990. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this entry in the long-running mystery series, Perry Mason has a conflict with an old friend after he begins representing the law student who is the prime suspect in the murder of his friend's son. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide