HeartBeat (U.S. TV series)
Encyclopedia
HeartBeat is an American television series in the medical drama
genre. The series followed 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. The fictional WMA was based on the Santa Monica Women's Clinic and that clinic's founder, Dr. Karen Blanchard, served as a model for the character played by Kate Mulgrew
. HeartBeat was the first American television series to include a lesbian as a lead character, nurse practitioner
and founding partner Marilyn McGrath (Gail Strickland
).
HeartBeat first aired on Wednesdays at 10:00 Eastern
, then was moved to Thursdays at 10:00 for its second season. This put it up against L.A. Law
, at the time one of the most popular series on the air. HeartBeat did not perform well in the Nielsen ratings
and was canceled at the end of its second season.
HeartBeat is lauded by LGBT television historians for its inclusion of Marilyn and her partner Patty (Gina Hecht
) with their lesbianism being 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, or even touch.
Medical drama
A medical drama is a television program, in which events center upon a hospital, an ambulance staff, or any medical environment.In the United States, most medical episodes are one hour long and, more often than not, are set in a hospital. Most current medical Dramatic programming go beyond the...
genre. The series followed 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. The fictional WMA was based on the Santa Monica Women's Clinic and that clinic's founder, Dr. Karen Blanchard, served as a model for the character played by Kate Mulgrew
Kate Mulgrew
Katherine Kiernan Maria "Kate" Mulgrew is an American actress, most noted for her roles on Star Trek: Voyager as Captain Kathryn Janeway and Ryan's Hope as Mary Ryan...
. HeartBeat was the first American television series to include a lesbian as a lead character, nurse practitioner
Nurse practitioner
A Nurse Practitioner is an Advanced practice registered nurse who has completed graduate-level education . Additional APRN roles include the Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist s, CNMs, and CNSs...
and founding partner Marilyn McGrath (Gail Strickland
Gail Strickland
Gail Strickland is an American character actress.Strickland was born in Birmingham, Alabama, the daughter of Theodosia and Lynn Strickland, who owned a tire shop...
).
HeartBeat first aired on Wednesdays at 10:00 Eastern
Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
, then was moved to Thursdays at 10:00 for its second season. This put it up against L.A. Law
L.A. Law
L.A. Law is a US television legal drama that ran on NBC from September 15, 1986 to May 19, 1994. L.A. Law reflected the social and cultural ideologies of the 1980s and early 1990s and many of the cases featured on the show dealt with hot topic issues such as abortion, racism, gay rights,...
, at the time one of the most popular series on the air. HeartBeat did not perform well in the Nielsen ratings
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
and was canceled at the end of its second season.
Cast
- Kate MulgrewKate MulgrewKatherine Kiernan Maria "Kate" Mulgrew is an American actress, most noted for her roles on Star Trek: Voyager as Captain Kathryn Janeway and Ryan's Hope as Mary Ryan...
— Dr. Joanne Springsteen/Halloran (the character's name was changed from Springsteen to Halloran in season 2 with no explanation) - Laura JohnsonLaura JohnsonLaura Johnson is an American actress who played Terry Hartford in the soap opera Falcon Crest from 1983 to 1986.Johnson was married to actor Harry Hamlin from 1985 to 1989, she was previously married to producer David Solomon....
— Dr. Eve Autrey/Calvert (the character's name was changed from Autrey to Calvert in season 2 with no explanation) - Gail StricklandGail StricklandGail Strickland is an American character actress.Strickland was born in Birmingham, Alabama, the daughter of Theodosia and Lynn Strickland, who owned a tire shop...
— Marilyn McGrath - Lynn WhitfieldLynn WhitfieldLynn Whitfield is an American actress.Whitfield began her acting career in television and theatre, before progressing to supporting roles in film. She won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Special and a NAACP Image Award for her performance as Josephine Baker in the...
— Dr. Cory Banks - Ben MastersBen MastersBen Masters is an American actor who is best known for his portrayal of Julian Crane on daytime drama Passions from July 8, 1999 to the show's final episode on August 7, 2008.-Acting career:...
— Dr. Leo Rosetti - Darrell Larson — Dr. Paul Jared
Cultural criticism
The feminist content and context of HeartBeat have been studied by feminist cultural critics.HeartBeat is lauded by LGBT television historians for its inclusion of Marilyn and her partner Patty (Gina Hecht
Gina Hecht
-Television:* 1979–1981: Mork & Mindy .... Jean DaVinci* 1979: Hizzonner .... Melanie* 1987: Everything's Relative .... Emily Cabot* 1988: HeartBeat .... Patty* 1989: Baywatch: "Panic at Malibu Pier" .... Gina Pomeroy...
) with their lesbianism being 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, or even touch.
External links
- HeartBeat at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...