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Northern Exposure

Plot

An offbeat comedy drama series, which gained a loyal cult following and enthusiastic press during its five-season run, Northern Exposure concerned Dr. Joel Fleishman (Rob Morrow), a recent medical school graduate who attended Columbia University on a scholarship that stipulated that after graduation, he had to spend four years working as a general practitioner in the small town of Cicely, AK, where he is to be paid the princely sum of 465 dollars a month. As Fleishman bides his time in Cicely, he gets to know many of the local residents, including Maurice Minnifield (Barry Corbin), a multi-millionaire former astronaut who is the city's largest property owner; Maggie O'Connell (Janine Turner), a bush pilot (and the town's mayor) who has an on-again, off-again romance with Fleishman; Chris Stevens (John Corbett), the philosophical DJ at the local radio station; Holling Vincoeur (John Cullum), the owner of a local watering hole who has married Shelly Marie (Cynthia Geary), a young woman who was once in love with Maurice; Ed Chigliak (Darren E. Burrows), a genius-IQ teenager who wants to become a filmmaker; and Marilyn Whirlwind (Elaine Miles), a soft-spoken Native American who serves as Fleishman's receptionist. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Credit

Joshua Brand - Executive Producer, John Falsey - Executive Producer, Steve Turner - Producer, Joshua Brand - Show Creator, Sandy Veith - Show Creator, John Falsey - Show Creator

Episodes

Northern Exposure: Season 01 (1990)
Northern Exposure made its first appearance as an eight-week Thursday-night "tryout" on CBS in the late summer of 1990. With swift, sure strokes, the series' producers quickly established that 27-year-old Dr. Joel Fleischman (Rob Morrow), freshly graduated from Columbia University Medical School, was required to spend four years working in Anchorage, AK, to pay off 125,000 dollars in student loans. Though Joel had seldom strayed off his native Manhattan Island, he took a deep breath and prepared for his journey northward (the alternative was a 10,000-dollar fine and/or 18 years in jail). Upon arrival in Anchorage, Joel discovered that his services were no longer required -- but there was an opening in the tiny (population 815) Alaskan village of Cicely, whose only doctor had just died. Throughout the eight episodes of Northern Exposure's first season, Joel bemoans his "exile," desperately tries to pull strings to get out of his contract...and slowly, almost imperceptably becomes adjusted to his new life in Cicely.

Just as the series wasted no time in establishing its locale and premise, so too did the writers vividly bring the other characters to life with efficiency and economy. During season one, the viewer was introduced to Joel's attractive landlady Maggie O'Connell (Janine Turner), the local air-taxi pilot, whose love life was complicated by an inexplicable "curse" whereby all of her boyfriends were doomed to die under bizarre but undeniably amusing circumstances (her latest beau, fellow pilot Rick Pederson (Grant Goodeve), knew he was living on borrowed time, but managed to survive the series' first season). Also seen for the first time were worldly ex-astronaut Maurice J. Minnifield (Barry Corbin), who owned Cicely lock, stock, and barrel, and entertained dreams of transforming the remote community into the "Alaskan Riviera"; Maurice's best friend, the aggressively masculine tavern owner Holling Vicoeur (John Cullum); Holling's 18-year-old fiancée, Shelly Tambo (Cynthia Geary), former "Miss Northwest Passage"; Maurice's Native American assistant, Ed Chigliak (Darren E. Burrows), an orphan with a murky past and an overwhelming desire to gain fame as a big-bucks moviemaker; and Chris Danforth (John Corbett), the quirky, poetic morning DJ on Cicely's radio station KBHR, who functioned as the series' combination narrator and Greek chorus. Also seen in these formative episodes were Ruth-Anne Miller (Peg Phillips), no-nonsense proprietor of the local general store, and Marilyn Whirlwind (Elaine Miles), a poker-faced Eskimo who worked as a nurse in Joel's medical office.

By the end of season one, the series had introduced at least two of the peripheral characters who would add to the funkiness and eccentricities of Cicely from time to time. The first was Adam (Adam Arkin), a shaggy, sociopathic brute who happened to be a "damn good" gourmet cook; and the second was Bernard (Richard Cummings Jr.), a peripatetic African-American who turned out to be the rootless Chris Danforth's half brother. Although Northern Exposure set no fires in the ratings, the word-of-mouth buzz about the series was sufficiently encouraging for CBS to give it another limited-run tryout in the spring of 1991. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Northern Exposure: Season 02 (1991)
The overwhelmingly positive response (including a handful of Emmy nominations) to the first limited season of Northern Exposure in the summer of 1990 prompted CBS to commission seven more episodes, which were seen in the spring of 1991. In the eight months between the first batch of episodes and this new manifest, New York-born doctor Joel Fleischman (Rob Morrow) had become accustomed to his enforced four-year stay in the miniscule Alaskan village of Cicely, though he still yearned to chuck it all and return to the Big Apple. In the course of season two, local air-transport pilot Maggie O'Connell endured the loss of another boyfriend to "Maggie's curse," whereby all of her past sweethearts had met with bizarre but mildly chucklesome deaths. In this instance, poor Rick Pederson (Grant Goodeve) was killed by a falling satellite. Tavern owner Holling Vicoeur (John Cullum) continued to postpone his promised wedding to his teenaged sweetie Shelly Tambo (Cynthia Geary), though he did reluctantly acquiesce to Shelly's insistence that he be circumcised. Maurice Minnifield (Barry Corbin), the ex-astronaut who owned Cicely, felt that his manhood was threatened when a gay couple, Ron Bantz (Doug Ballard) and Erick Hillman (Don R. McManus), purchased one of his choice real-estate lots; eventually, however, Maurice warmed up to his new tenants, especially when he discovered that he had much in common with them (except their sexual preferences, of course). And as quirky KBHR DJ Chris Danforth (John Corbett) persisted in trying to unravel the mysteries of his own past, Maurice's Native American assistant Ed Chigliak (Darren E. Burrows) contemplated what the future held for him. In addition to the aforementioned Doug Ballard and Don R. McManus, another semi-regular was added to the series: William J. White as Sam, the largely non-speaking cook at Holling's establishment. Still another, more prominent recurring character was introduced during season two: Diane Delano as brusque, officious state trooper Barbara Semanski, to whom Maurice was irresistibly attracted. Gathering an even bigger audience for its second complement of seven episodes than during its eight-week tryout in 1990, Northern Exposure was finally picked up by CBS for a full-season run that kicked off in the fall of 1991. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Northern Exposure: Season 03 (1991)
After what amounted to a brace of "trial runs," the quirky seriocomic series Northern Exposure entered its third year on CBS with a full season's worth of episodes -- more than enough to thoroughly explore the mystical eccentricities of the citizens of Cicely, AK, and the constant bafflement of the town's premier "outsider," New York-bred doctor Joel Fleischman (Rob Morrow). As season three begins, local mail pilot Maggie O'Connell (Janine Turner) is struggling to overcome the demise of her boyfriend Rick Pederson, the most recent victim of "Maggie's curse," whereby all of Ms. O'Connell's beaux meet bizarre and perversely amusing deaths. Elsewhere, Joel is kidnapped by mercurial hermit Adam (Adam Arkin) and his hypochondriac live-in girlfriend, Eve (Valerie Mahaffey) -- a crime that the rest of Cicely seems willing to overlook, inasmuch as Adam is a brilliant gourmet chef (later in the season, Adam and Eve are wed, and their nonplussed former "victim" Joel is among the guests). Also, Joel's taciturn Eskimo receptionist, Marilyn (Elaine Miles), falls in love with a traveling carnival mime (Bill Erwin), in an episode built around the talents of the amazing Cirque du Soleil troupe; Joel's now-widowed former fiancée (Jessica Lundy) pays a memorable visit; Maggie's slightly addled mom (Bibi Besch) drops in on her daughter -- and promptly burns down her house; and Bernard Stevens (Richard Cummings Jr.), enigmatic "doppelganger" of local radio DJ Chris Danforth (John Corbett), unexpectedly returns. Among the season's best episodes are "Jules et Joel," with Rob Morrow in a dual role; the multiple Emmy winner "Cicely," with virtually everyone in the cast playing their 1909 counterparts (who'd a thunk that Joel Fleischman might have been Frank Kafka in a previous life?); and the unforgettable "The Body in Question," in which the town gets all worked up over the discovery of an 18th century Frenchman whose corpse has been encased in ice for two centuries (yes, this is the "Frozen Pierre" story...remember?). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The Bumpy Road to Love
Seoul Mates
Only You
Cicely
Oy, Wilderness
Animals 'R Us
Jules et Joel
The Body in Question
Roots
A-Hunting We Will Go
Get Real
Dateline: Cicely
Our Tribe
Things Become Extinct
Burning Down the House
Democracy in America
Three Amigos
Lost and Found
My Mother, My Sister
Wake Up Call
The Final Frontier
It Happened in Juneau
Our Wedding

Northern Exposure: Season 04 (1992)
Season four of Northern Exposure dawns on the tiny Alaskan village of Cicely and the eccentric residents living therein -- not to mention New York-born doctor Joel Fleischman (Rob Morrow), still reluctantly working off his student loans as Cicely's general practitioner. The season opener, "Northwest Passages," finds local mail pilot Maggie O'Connell (Janine Turner) commiserating with the ghosts of her six deceased boyfriends, all of whom have met with bizarre but grimly amusing deaths. This episode is but a prologue for the season's main plot development: the introduction of Maggie's newest beau, former lawyer Mike Monroe (Anthony Edwards), who suffers from so many toxic allergies that he must live in a plastic biosphere, and can emerge from his cocoon only when wearing a secondhand astronaut suit. Viewers are, of course, prepared for Mike to become the latest victim of "Maggie's curse" -- but surprise of surprises, he is cured of his immunodeficiencies by Joel late in the season. Alas, it is at this point that Mike must leave Maggie for even greener pastures -- but not before delivering a curtain speech that gives us an indication of what The Grapes of Wrath might have sounded like had it been written by Al Gore! In other developments, Adam Ant essentially plays himself in the episode "Heroes"; Bob the Flying Man (Bill Irwin) takes another crack at winning the heart of Joel's taciturn Eskimo receptionist, Marilyn (Elaine Miles), in "On Your Own"; twentysomething Shelly Tambo (Cynthia Geary) finally marries sixtysomething tavern owner Holling Vincoeur (John Cullum), but not before a nasty run-in with Holling's obnoxious daughter, Jackie (Valerie Perrine), in "The Bad Seed"; "Crime and Punishment" finds local radio DJ Chris Danforth (John Corbett) being extradited to West Virginia for violating parole; in "Revelations," the friendship between town entrepreneur Maurice Minnifield (Barry Corbin) and shopkeeper Ruth-Anne Miller (Peg Phillips) nearly comes to an end after she finally pays off the mortgage on her store; "Grosse Point, 48230" finds Joel being bribed into posing as Maggie's boyfriend during her visit to her family in Michigan; and in "Ill Wind," Joel and Maggie end all the suspense by "getting it together" under some very unusual circumstances. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Northwest Passage
Crime and Punishment
Midnight Sun
Nothing's Perfect
Heroes
Blowing Bubbles
On Your Own
The Bad Seed
Thanksgiving
Do the Right Thing
Survival of the Species
Revelations
Duets
Grosse Point, 48230
Learning Curve
Ill Wind
Love's Labour Mislaid
Northern Lights
Family Feud
Homesick
The Big Feast
Kaddish, for Uncle Manny
Mud and Blood
Sleeping With the Enemy
Old Tree

Northern Exposure: Season 05 (1993)
The opening episode of Northern Exposure's fifth season is even more surrealistic than usual, which is saying quite a lot considering the quirky goings on in the Alaskan village of Cicely. Said opener is "Three Doctors," in which the town's New York-bred doctor, Joel Fleischman (Rob Morrow), aspiring Native American filmmaker Ed Chigliak (Darren E. Burrows), and newlywed Shelly Tambo-Vincoeur (Cynthia Geary) find themselves enmeshed in a cosmic game of hide and seek. Other memorable season five episodes include "Jaws of Life," in which everyone's nerves are on edge in anticipation of the annual visit by the dentist (Jay O. Sanders); "A River Doesn't Run Through It," wherein sexy 31-year-old mail pilot Maggie O'Donnell (Janine Turner) is asked to be the local high school's homecoming queen (and as a bonus, one of the students is played by Jack Black!); "Rosebud," featuring director Peter Bogdanovich in a story built around Cicely's first film festival; and "A Cup of Joe," in which Shelly's husband, Holling (John Cullum), and storekeeper Ruth-Anne (Peg Phillips) discover that one of their grandparents ate the other one during the "Blizzard of '97." And there's more! The town's resident gay couple, Ron (Doug Ballard) and Erick (Don R. McManus) decide to get married; Shelly gives birth to a daughter named Miranda, who is promptly designated Cicely's 844th citizen; the whole town conspires to cure the redoubtable Walt Kupfer (Moultrie Patten) of his galloping depression; and in the season finale, "Lovers and Madmen," eternal outsider Joel finally resigns himself to the fact that he is a true Son of Cicely. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Three Doctors
First Snow
Baby Blues
Mr. Sandman
Mite Makes Right
A Bolt From the Blue
Hello, I Love You
Northern Hospitality
Una Volta in L'Inverno
Fish Story
The Gift of the Maggie
The Mystery of the Old Curio Shop
A Wing and a Prayer
I Feel the Earth Move
Grand Prix
Blood Ties
Lovers and Madmen
Jaws of Life
Altered Egos
A River Doesn't Run Through It
Birds of a Feather
Rosebud
Heal Thyself
A Cup of Joe

Northern Exposure: Season 06 (1994)
The sixth and final season of Northern Exposure opens with the typically self-reflective "Dinner at Seven-Thirsty," in which Joel Fleischman (Rob Morrow), New York-born doctor of the Alaskan village of Cicely, envisions what life might have been like had he never left home. In a similar inward-looking vein, "The Letter" allows local mail pilot Maggie O'Donnell (Janine Turner) to contrast the dreams and desires that she'd had at age 15 with the realities of her early thirties. And just when you think that things can't get any funkier, Satan himself shows up in the guise of a whirlpool salesman (Charles Martin Smith) in the episode "The Robe," and "Zarya" finds the regular cast members assuming the roles of certain people living Russia at the time of the Bolshevik Revolution. Of special importance is the fact that, after six years of verbal sparring, Joel and Maggie have finally realized that they love each other. In fact, they briefly move in together, but when Maggie registers a protest about Joel's obsessive-compulsive traits, the temperamental doctor leaves Cicely and is assimilated into a nearby Eskimo tribe. At this point, Rob Morrow is no longer a series regular, and Cicely's premier entrepreneur, Maurice Minnifield (Barry Corbin), is compelled to send for a New town doctor, Dr. Philip Capra (Paul Provenza), who sets up camp in town in the company of his journalist wife, Michelle (Teri Polo). Joel Fleischman makes his final appearance in yet another "cosmic" episode, in which he and Maggie take a journey of the mind to the strange land of Keewaa Anni (which looks curiously familiar to both Joel and the audience!). As the series approaches its finale, Maggie is elected mayor of Cicely, and Maurice finally pops the question to his female counterpart, tough-talking Officer Barbara Semanski (Diane Delano). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Dinner at Seven Thirty
Realpolitik
The Great Mushroom
Mi Casa, Su Casa
Horns
The Mommy's Curse
The Quest
Lucky People
The Graduate
Balls
Eye of the Beholder
Buss Stop
Ursa Minor
Let's Dance
Tranquility Base
Shofar, So Good
The Letter
The Robe
Zarya
Full Upright Position
Up River
Sons of the Tundra
Little Italy