ER (TV series)
Following the broadcast of its two-hour pilot movie on September 19, 1994, "ER" premiered Thursday, September 22 at 10:00. It remained in the same Thursday time slot for its entire run. "ER" is NBC's third longest-running drama, after "Law & Order" and "", and, the longest-running American primetime medical drama of all time. On April 2, 2008, NBC announced that the series would return for its fifteenth season. The fifteenth season was originally scheduled to run for 19 episodes before retiring with a two-hour series finale to be broadcast on March 12, 2009, but NBC announced in January 2009 that it would extend the show by an additional three episodes to a full 22-episode order as part of a deal to launch a new series by John Wells titled "Police", later retitled "Southland". "ER"s final episode aired on April 2, 2009; the two-hour episode was preceded by a one-hour retrospective special. The series finale charged $425,000 per 30-second ad spot, more than three times the season's rate of $135,000. From season 4 to season 6 ER cost a record-breaking 13 million dollars per episode. TNT also paid a record price of $1 million an episode for four years of repeats of the series during that time. The cost of the first three seasons was 2 million per episode and seasons 7 to 9 cost 8 million dollars per episode.
Cast of ER
Notably, of the 26 main cast members that starred throughout "ER"'s 15-season run, only seven were not featured in the final season: Gloria Reuben, Maria Bello, Kellie Martin, Michael Michele, Erik Palladino, Ming-Na, and Sharif Atkins. In addition, only four main cast members never made a return appearance following their original stint: Maria Bello, Kellie Martin, Erik Palladino and Mekhi Phifer.Sherry Stringfield's first departure from the show was in 1996, when her character, Susan Lewis, moved to Phoenix, Arizona, in the Season 3 episode "Union Station." In 2001, Stringfield returned to the series, reprising her role of Dr. Lewis, in the Season 8 episode "Never Say Never." She departed again in the Season 12 premiere, "Canon City." This departure was not depicted, but rather mentioned by character Kerry Weaver four episodes later in "Wake Up," when she explains that Susan accepted a tenure-track position at a hospital in Iowa City, Iowa, after being denied tenure at County. Stringfield returned once again for the series finale.