HeartBeat (1988 TV series)

HeartBeat
HeartBeat title card
GenreMedical drama
Created bySara Davidson
Starring
Theme music composerBill Conti
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes18
Production
Executive producers
ProducerGeorge Eckstein
Running time48 mins.
Production companyAaron Spelling Productions
Original release
NetworkABC
ReleaseMarch 23, 1988 (1988-03-23) –
March 30, 1989 (1989-03-30)

HeartBeat is an American medical drama television series that premiered on ABC on March 23, 1988, and ran for two seasons.

Plot

HeartBeat follows the staff of Women's Medical Arts, a medical center founded by three women who are frustrated with how women's health concerns are addressed in the male-dominated medical field.

Cast and characters

Main

  • Kate Mulgrew as Dr. Joanne Springsteen/Halloran, co-founder of the clinic (the character's name was changed from Springsteen to Halloran in season 2)
  • Laura Johnson as Dr. Eve Autrey/Calvert, co-founder of the clinic (the character's name was changed from Autrey to Calvert in season 2)
  • Gail Strickland as Nurse Marilyn McGrath, a nurse practitioner and co-founder of the clinic
  • Lynn Whitfield as Dr. Cory Banks
  • Ben Masters as Dr. Leo Rosetti
  • Darrell Larson as Dr. Paul Jared
  • Julie Ronnie as Nurse Alice Swanson

Recurring

Development and production

The fictional Women's Medical Arts clinic was based on the Santa Monica Women's Clinic in Santa Monica, California. Dr. Karen Blanchard (OBGYN), the clinic's founder, served as a model for the character played by Kate Mulgrew.

Groundbreaking lesbian content

HeartBeat was the first prime time television series in the United States to feature a recurring lesbian couple on prime-time, and a lesbian as a main character, Marilyn McGrath; she had a partner Patty, in a long-term lesbian relationship. The show won GLAAD’s first Media Award for Outstanding Drama Series in 1990, which it shared with L.A. Law. However, in his autobiography, Aaron Spelling stated that ABC demanded a scene in which Marilyn dances with Patty be cut.

Release

Broadcast

HeartBeat debuted on Wednesday, March 23, 1988, at 9 p.m. (Eastern) as a special two-hour pilot; moving to its regular broadcast time of 10 p.m. the following week. For the second season, the schedule was changed to Thursday at 10:00 p.m. This programming made it compete with L.A. Law, one of the most popular series at the time. HeartBeat did not perform well in the ratings and was canceled at the end of its second season. The series finale aired on April 6, 1989.

Episodes

Series overview

SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
17March 23, 1988 (1988-03-23)April 21, 1988 (1988-04-21)
212January 3, 1989 (1989-01-03)March 30, 1989 (1989-03-30)

Season 1 (1988)

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateRating/share
(households)
11"Pilot"Harry WinerSara DavidsonMarch 23, 1988 (1988-03-23)14.7/25
22
33"Where's Solomon When You Need Him?"Gene ReynoldsWilliam A. SchwartzMarch 30, 1988 (1988-03-30)14.0/23
44"Two Out of Six"Gene ReynoldsWilliam A. SchwartzApril 6, 1988 (1988-04-06)12.3/22
55"Cory's Loss"Gene ReynoldsSara Davidson & William A. SchwartzApril 13, 1988 (1988-04-13)12.3/21
66"To Heal a Doctor"Dale WhiteWilliam A. Schwartz & Sara DavidsonApril 20, 1988 (1988-04-20)12.4/22
77"The Wedding"Gene ReynoldsDan WakefieldApril 21, 1988 (1988-04-21)8.8/15

Season 2 (1989)

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateU.S. viewers
(millions)
Rating/share
(households)
71"Paradise Lost"Bill DukeSara Davidson & Frederick RappaportJanuary 3, 1989 (1989-01-03)17.312.7/21
82"Bivouac Babies"Michael FrescoSara Davidson, Frederick Rappaport, William A. Schwartz, Doug Steinberg, Joe ViolaJanuary 5, 1989 (1989-01-05)8.36.7/11
93"Critical Overload"Reza BadiyiSara Davidson & Carol MendelsohnJanuary 12, 1989 (1989-01-12)9.47.0/11
104"Stress"Nancy MaloneSara Davidson & Robert HardersJanuary 19, 1989 (1989-01-19)10.17.1/11
115"Baby, Maybe"Robert BeckerSara Davidson, Frederick Rappaport, Doug SteinbergJanuary 26, 1989 (1989-01-26)9.47.2/12
126"Prison"Al WaxmanSara Davidson & Robert HardersFebruary 2, 1989 (1989-02-02)9.97.5/12
137"South and a Little to the Right of Eden"Kim FriedmanSara Davidson, William A. Schwartz, Doug SteinbergFebruary 16, 1989 (1989-02-16)6.95.6/9
148"Last Tango"Helaine HeadSara Davidson & Doris SilvertonFebruary 23, 1989 (1989-02-23)6.75.4/9
159"From Russia With Love"Al WaxmanSara Davidson, Frederick Rappaport, Doug SteinbergMarch 9, 1989 (1989-03-09)7.96.3/11
1610"Gestalt and Battery"Gwen ArnerSara Davidson & Julie SayresMarch 16, 1989 (1989-03-16)8.26.3/11
1711"Confidentially Yours"Greg RoseSara Davidson, Frederick Rappaport, Doug SteinbergMarch 23, 1989 (1989-03-23)10.88.1/14
1812"What the Inspector Saw"Robert BeckerSara Davidson, Jennie Blackton, Joanne Greenberg, Robert HardersMarch 30, 1989 (1989-03-30)7.35.2/9

Reception

HeartBeat is praised by LGBT television historians for its inclusion of Marilyn and Patty as a couple, and for their sexual orientation being treated as a non-issue. However, ABC received criticism because unlike the heterosexual characters, Marilyn and Patty were not permitted to be sexual or physically affectionate with each other. The feminist content and context of HeartBeat have been studied by feminist cultural critics.

Awards and nominations

HeartBeat was nominated for the 1989 People's Choice Award for Favorite New TV Drama.[citation needed]

It received the first-ever GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Drama Series in 1990 (shared with L.A. Law).


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