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The West Wing Original Cast Reunites for Special with Voting Mission

KCR

President Barlet and his staff are back for a reunion special, and I could not be more excited. The special, A West Wing Special to Benefit When We All Vote is the first time in 17 years, the original cast reunites with the creator and executive producer Aaron Sorkin for a theatrical stage performance of the episode “Hartsfield’s Landing” from season three of the series.

The original cast, which includes Martin Sheen (President Barlet), Allison Janney (C.J. Cregg), Rob Lowe (Sam Seaborne), Dulé Hill (Charlie Young), Richard Schiff (Toby Ziegler), Bradley Whitford (Josh Lyman), and Janel Moloney (Donna Moss), will all reprise their roles for the special, to raise awareness about voting in the upcoming general election. The special will also have guest appearances from Michelle Obama, President Bill Clinton, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Elisabeth Moss, Samuel L. Jackson, and Sterling K. Brown. The special, filmed over a couple of days at the beginning of October inside the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles, California, followed all COVID-19 safe protocols.


Screenshot of original cast photo of The West Wing from NBC.

In the trailer, we see President Barlet (played by Martin Sheen) start us off by asking, “What’d I miss?” A lot Mr.President. We also see the same scenes from the episode re-created beautifully on stage, emphasizing how important it is for us to vote. In the clip, we see Sterling K. Brown sign on for the special in replacing the late John Spencer character Leo McGarry. Spencer died of a heart attack in December 2005.


Screenshot of A West Wing Special When We All Vote title card from HBOMax.

From 1999 – 2006, on Wednesday nights at 9 PM, The West Wing took viewers inside the west wing of the white house, the oval office, and senior staff offices’ location for the fictional Democratic administration of Josiah Bartlet. You can watch The West Wing reunion titled “A West Wing Special to Benefit When We All Vote” beginning Thursday, October 15, 2020, on HBO Max’s streaming service (subscription required). You can binge all seven seasons on Netflix before watching the special for those who haven’t seen the series during its original run. For those who have seen it before, you can catch reruns of popular episodes every Friday morning on TNT until the general election.

After watching the trailer, I am so ready for the special as this reunion is overdue. Will you be watching The West Wing special? Let me know on socials @MikeStarkCA on Instagram and Twitter.

Written By: Mike Stark

First Photo Source: Screenshot of President Bartlet from A West Wing Special When We All Vote Trailer on YouTube.

Welcome to Riverdale

Tisha Mora

If you were a fan of the “Archie” comics growing up, you may be aware of the newest addition to the franchise, “Riverdale,” a television show produced by The CW Network. What you may not know, however, is that this show will not be following the same type of wholesome storyline that our beloved rag tag group of teenagers have starred in for nearly 78 years.

Photo by Archie Comics.

“Archie” was originally created in 1941 through the publisher MLJ Comics. Although the publication has been known for other successful series, such as “Sabrina The Teenage Witch” and “Josie and the Pussycats,” “Archie” proved to be the crowd-favorite, so much so that the publication was eventually renamed as Archie Comics Publication Inc.

Archie and his crew were famously involved in everyday teenage drama, going through the love triangles and other high school tropes we often see in entertainment. However, as The CW tries to add this long standing comic franchise to their arsenal of successful television shows, viewers will be seeing more than just high school romance. The official synopsis of “Riverdale” via IMDB describes the show as “A subversive take on Archie and his friends, exploring small town life, the darkness and weirdness bubbling beneath Riverdale’s wholesome facade.”

That’s right: The CW’s “Archie” is no longer the fairly wholesome “Archie” we know and love (although, technically speaking, the characters still are).

The CW gives “Archie” the good old “CW twist”, as viewers can expect steamy love scenes, twists and turns around every corner, and maybe even a dead body or two as the series progresses.

“Riverdale” will be all that and then some, with an extremely talented (and attractive) group of actors joining The CW team. Here’s a quick run down of the cast bringing these classic characters to life.

We have our beloved red head, Archie Andrews, portrayed by New Zealand native, K.J. Apa.

Photo by Frank Ockenfels 3/The CW, 2017.

The iconic best friend, Jughead Jones, is played by a prevalent childhood actor (and one of my early 2000s celebrity crushes), Cole Sprouse.

Photo by Frank Ockenfels 3/The CW, 2017

Then of course, we have the contenders for Archie’s heart.

Photo: Frank Ockenfels 3/The CW, 2017.

The beautiful Camila Mendes is portraying Veronica Lodge, and is joined by Lili Reinhart as Betty Hooper.

The list spirals on with plenty of attractive and talented actors. However, there’s one question that all Archie fans are asking each other as the show progresses: are you Team Betty or Team Veronica? Or is there someone else pining for the classic redhead heartthrob that we have yet to be introduced to?

If you’re even the slightest bit curious, I invite you to watch “Riverdale,” airing on Thursday nights via The CW at 9 p.m. The show can also be found online through The CW’s Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Featured Image by The CW, 2017.