The TV Zone

As you know, "ER" - NBC's great long-running series - will become its late great long-running series after next season. It's fifteen and done, and yet the 15th looks to be as tough as the first. Everyone seems to be leaving - and everyone who left doesn't seem to want to come back. No George Clooney. No Juliana Margulies. And soon, no Maura Tierney (Abby) after a few episodes next year, and no Goran Visnjic (Luka) either. Yeah, Noah Wyle will return for a handful next year - creater "ER" boss John Wells told reporters a little while ago - but I'm pretty certain he was contractually obligated to do so.

After that? The doors are wide open for anyone who wants to return. Said Wells, "we're beginning planning for the final season and as part of that, we'll be contacting pretty much everyone who wants to come back and do a little spin. We haven't set anybody at this point [but] I'll be asking people that want to come back and be part of the last season."

Good Lord, where to begin? Here's just a partial list from the first season: Clooney (forget Mr. Bigshot),Sherry Stringfield,Eriq La Salle,William H. Macy, Yvette Freeman, Deezer D, Anthony Edwards..and later, Gloria Reuben, Jorja Fox...and later, Paul McCrane. No, come to think of it, dear ol' Paul WON"T be coming back, will he? (What a shame, but malfunctioning helicopters will do that to you.) Howabout Ming-Na, or Michael Michele, and Erik Palladino, and...

Said Wells of Edwards, "I haven't talked to Tony in a while - he and his family went around the world with a tutor and I haven't talked to him since he got back...haven't thought about it. Around Memorial Day, the writing staff goes to Hawaii and sits around and figures out what we want to do for the next year and over the summer we'll start contacting people. Some may not come back under any circumstances, but they're gonna want to know what they're coming back for..."

(Above, George may not be good to go, but what about Tony or Eriq?)