At a time when network television executives were insisting that a hit show needed to have a big name star, Paul Simms resolutely refused to give up his idea of an ensemble cast. A lack of a big name star may have been a primary reason why NBC executives never seemed to really believe that the show could be a ratings hit⁴. An ensemble cast may not have been the safest choice in terms of ratings, but it was the most adventurous artistic choice.

We do not realize how precious a successful ensemble cast is until we realize how rare it is. There have been numerous films and television series with ensemble casts, but they have always been far outnumbered by films and shows that depended mainly on one or two leading characters. Furthermore, many cinematic works that are mistakenly regarded as using ensemble casts are actually narratives with multiple, separate story lines (à la Grand Hotel, California Suite or such like). It is not enough to have a lot of characters, but all the characters must interact with each other, functioning as a whole rather than merely separate parts. Thus, the only truly great films or series I count as having successful ensemble casts are Donovan’s Reef, Hatari!, My Man Godfrey, Rio Bravo, The Philadelphia Story, and now NewsRadio. It appears to be very difficult to have more than one or two characters in a comedy being funny while still being multidimensional. A great ensemble cast requires several characters that are multidimensional and interesting with strongly expressed relationships between the characters so that we maintain interest in all the characters. In addition, the requirement for acting talent is even higher than normal because screen time is spread out among more characters, and actors have to be more efficient about being expressive.

My contention that NewsRadio had the greatest ensemble cast in history is based on an analysis of the dynamics of the cast. It can be said that each character on NewsRadio had a specific primary role in the comedic framework. It was Bill McNeal’s role to light the fires, Lisa Miller’s role to provide the sexual fuel for them, Dave Nelson’s role to react to them, and Jimmy James’ role to either propel the crew on their zany trajectories or to bring them back home. These four characters were the ‘pillars’ of the NewsRadio cast. Interacting with them were the four ‘walls’ of the cast — with Catherine Duke providing the punctuation marks for the comedy, Beth providing the compassion and heart, Joe Garelli providing the balancing force, and Matthew Brock providing the vital change-ups. The interactive, dynamic nature of the ensemble cast reveals the exact reason why the loss of Bill McNeal through Phil Hartman’s death was so devastating. In fact, losing any of the four pillars of the cast would have been devastating. (The show would also have been even better had Khandi Alexander stayed on in the role of Catherine Duke for the show’s duration. Nevertheless, because she did not function as a ‘pillar’ of the comedic framework it was easier to compensate for her loss.)

⁴ In an interview Paul Simms recalled his confrontation with NBC executives over what he felt was unfair treatment of the show: "They told me in very blunt terms that it’s not enough for a show to be well-written and well-acted anymore. It’s about stars."