Monday, April 2, 2012

Razzle Dazzle- Top Fictional Lawyers

Ahh, my endless and, I hope, soon-to-be-ended, revisions to my novel, Client Relations, have made me examine my protagonist's stakes once again. And her "character arc." How she starts off as in the story, how she changes. I confess, I'm still mired in a quagmire, trying to define her.

So, after another all-nighter (no, they didn't end in college or law school), I stumbled on this fun article in the ABA Journal about the top 25 fictional lawyers of all time (excluding the awesomely righteous Atticus Finch).

I agree with 15 of them (asterisked)....

The ABA's choices are, in this order:

*1. Frank Galvin, "The Verdict"
*2. Paul Biegler, "Anatomy of a Murder"
3. Perry Mason
*4. Professor Kingsfield, "The Paper Chase"
*5. Henry Drummond, "Inherit the Wind"
6. Lawrence Preston, "The Defenders"
7. Jack McCoy, "Law and Order"
8. Rumpole, "Rumpole of the Bailey"
*9. Judge Haywood, "Judgment at Nuremberg"
*10. Sir Wilfred, "Witness for the Prosecution"
11. Alan Shore, "Boston Legal"
*12. Vinny Gambini, "My Cousin Vinny"
13. Lt. Kaffee, "A Few Good Men"
*14. Arnie Becker, "LA Law"
*15. Arthur Kirkland, "And Justice For All"
*16. Hans Rolfe, "Judgment at Nuremberg"
17. Mitchell Stephens, "The Sweet Hereafter"
18. Ally McBeal
*19. Sandy Stern, "Presumed Innocent"
*20. Patty Hewes, "Damages" - YAY,a woman!
*21. Michael Clayton
*22. Jake Brigance, "A Time To Kill"
*23. Rusty Sabich, "Presumed Innocent"
24. Forest Bedford, "I'll Fly Away"
25. Jonathan Wilk, "Compulsion"

http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/the_25_greatest_fictional_lawyers

My changes?

Delete ten of the ABA picks: Perry Mason (too cardboard-y); Lawrence Preston (who?); Jack McCoy (too annoying); Rumpole (too bleah); Alan Shore (ridiculous); Lt. Kaffee (too wide-eyed); Mitchell Stephens, Forest Bedford and Jonathan Wilk (never heard of them); and Ally McBeal (OMG, seriously?)

I'd add ten other lawyers instead:
Tom Hagen,"The Godfather"(Robert Duvall's character)
Karen Crowder, "Michael Clayton"(Tilda Swinton's character)
Ellen Parsons, "Damages"(Rose Byrne's character
Gene Hackman as Jedediah Ward in "Class Action" and Avery Tolar in "The Firm"
Joe Miller,"Philadelphia" (Denzel Washington's character)
Reggie Love, "The Client"(Susan Sarandon's character)
Benjamin Stone, "Law and Order"(Michael Moriarty's character)
Alicia Florick,"The Good Wife" (Juliana Margulies' character)
Billy Flynn,"Chicago"

Time for more women lawyers...