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The Trials of Rosie O'Neill

The Trials of Rosie O'Neill

The Trials of Rosie O'Neill is an American television drama series, which aired on CBS from 1990 to 1992. The show stars Sharon Gless as Fiona Rose "Rosie" O'Neill, a lawyer working in the public defender's office for the City of Los Angeles. The show marked the return of Gless to series television after her Emmy-winning run on Cagney & Lacey.

"Rosie" was produced by Cagney & Lacey producer Barney Rosenzweig, whom Gless married in 1991. Despite the show's brilliant writing and production, it did not sustain a sizable audience, and was canceled by CBS in 1992.

Each episode opens with Rosie talking with her therapist, whose face was never seen on camera. Rosie had been at the receiving end of an unwanted divorce, after her attorney husband had an affair. The advertisement for the series which appeared in TV Guide the night the series debuted told the story as follows: "I'm 43 and divorced. He got our law practice, the Mercedes, and the dog. It's only fair that I should be angry. I really liked that dog."

The show's cast also included Dorian Harewood, Ron Rifkin, Georgann Johnson, Lisa Rieffel, and Robert Wagner. Season 2 saw two new cast additions: Ed Asner joined the cast as the cantankerous Kovac, a retired cop hired by Rosie's law firm as one of their investigators. David Rasche was cast in a recurring dramatic role as Patrick Ginty, Rosie's ex-husband who was often referred to but never seen in the first season. Adding Asner to the regular cast squeezed out Dorian Harewood, who was billed as "Special Guest Star" in all season 2 episodes.

Created ByBarney RosenzweigJoe CacaciBeth Sullivan
StatusEnded
Original NameThe Trials of Rosie O'Neill
First Air DateSeptember 17, 1990
Last Air DateMay 30, 1992
Seasons2
Episodes34
Episode Runtime1h 0min
LanguageEnglish
Original LanguageEnglish
Production Countries
Production CompaniesThe Rosenzweig CompanyMTM Enterprises
NetworksCBS
S02E16

Role Reversal

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