Is There A Doctor on TV? Part 1 Quiz

Answer: Ben Casey

"Ben Casey" (1961-1966) ran in direct competition with another new medical show, "Dr. Kildare" (1961-1966). Dr. Ben Casey, played by Vince Edwards, was a young neurosurgeon. Set in a major urban hospital, the medical staff was in a constant race against time to save lives.

Dr. David Zorba, played by Sam Jaffe, was supposed to keep Ben in line, which was a tall order. Jaffe left the series in 1965 to be replaced by Franchot Tone as Dr. Daniel Freeland. Bettye Ackerman played Dr. Maggie Graham.

One of the more interesting aspects of the show was its opening credits which included line drawings that represented man, woman, birth, death and infinity.

Answer: Medical Center

"Medical Center" ran from 1969 until 1976. The show centered around a hospital connected to a large university in Los Angeles. It told of the everyday medical emergencies, as well as the personal trials and tribulations of its stars.

Chad Everett was Dr. Joe Gannon. James Daly was Dr. Paul Lochner who mentored Dr. Gannon. Audrey Totter played Nurse Wilcox.

"Medical Center" tied for popularity with "Marcus Welby, MD" (1969-1976). When canceled, it was the longest running medical show up to that point.

Answer: Quincy, ME

"Quincy, ME" (1976-1983) was the pre-cursor of all the 'CSI' franchises. ME stands for Medical Examiner (also called a forensic coroner). Dr. R. Quincy was played by Jack Klugman. The doctor's first name was never revealed in the show. As coroner, Dr. Quincy would often investigate people who had died of seemingly natural causes only to discover that they had, in fact, been murdered. The second half of the show was devoted to finding the murderer(s).

Robert Ito played Sam Fujiyama, Dr. Quincy's assistant. John S. Ragin played Dr. Robert Asten, Quincy's boss.

Answer: Trapper John, MD

Spun off from the popular series "M*A*S*H" (1979-1986), Pernell Roberts starred as Dr. John McIntyre. Dr. McIntyre worked at the medical army surgical hospital during the Korea War. In the show he is Chief Surgeon at San Francisco Memorial Hospital. Instead of fighting the established medical system as he did in Korea, he is now a part of the medical bureaucracy.

To add to his load, Dr. McIntyre has to mentor young Dr. George Alonzo "Gates" (Gregory Harrison). Dr. Alonzo does have some things in common with Dr. McIntyre, especially his service in a MASH unit during the Vietnam War. But he still wants to work outside the system and even lives in a mobile home in the hospital's parking lot. Also on staff is Dr. Justin "Jackpot" Jackson (Brian Stokes Mitchell).

Answer: St. Elsewhere

"St. Elsewhere" (1982-1988) told the story of an overburdened city hospital, St. Eligius located in the south end of Boston. St. Eligius is a poor, rundown place which as Dr. Mark Craig (William Daniels) so concisely puts it, "...you wouldn't dump your mother-in-law here."

Dr. Mark Craig, as the hospital's shining heart surgeon, was brilliant and obnoxious. Dr. Wayne Fiscus (Howie Mandel) as a beginning doctor, was quite the clown. As the show went on, Dr. Fiscus became a good and caring doctor. Dr. Phillip Chandler (Denzel Washington) was a rather aloof but excellent doctor. Because he puts people off with his seemingly superior attitude, he has been described as "too white for the black folks but too black for the white folks".

"St. Elsewhere" won thirteen Emmys during its run. Although critically acclaimed, only a small portion of the television viewing audience tuned in each week.

Answer: Private Practice

"Private Practice" began life in 2007 as a spin off from "Grey's Anatomy". As a result, there have been some "cross over" episodes between the two. The series is centered around the life of Dr. Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh) and her work at a private practice clinic in Los Angeles. Dr. Peter Wilder (Tim Daly) is the alternative medicine specialist. Dr. Sam Bennett (Taye Diggs) is the internal medicine specialist. Rounding out the practice are Amy Brennerman as Dr. Violet Turner (psychiatrist), Andra McDonald as Dr. Naomi Bennett (endocrinologist and fertility specialist) and Paul Adelstein as Dr. Cooper Freedman (pediatrician).

Answer: Heartbeat

One of my favorite medical shows, "Heartbeat" only aired from 1987 until 1989. This show should not be confused with the British police drama of the same name.

"Heartbeat" is the story of doctors working together in a private women's clinic in Los Angeles. Kate Mulgrew starred as Dr. JoAnn Halloran, Laura Johnson appeared as Dr. Eve Autrey and Lynn Whitfield played Dr. Cory Banks. They all worked hard every week to ensure the best care for their female patients.

Answer: ER

"ER" ran from 1994 to 2009. The show was set in a fictional emergency room in Chicago, Illinois. The setting was based on the emergency room at the real Cook County Hospital.

George Clooney (be still my heart) was Dr. Doug Ross (pediatrician). Anthony Edwards as Dr. Mark Greene was one of the more tragic figures in the series. Gloria Reuben played physician's assistant Jeanie Boulet.

"E/R" was a comedy that ran from 1984-1985. George Clooney played the character named Ace on this show.

Answer: Trauma

"Trauma" deals with the public as well as the private lives of a group of paramedics in San Francisco, California. Being a paramedic has been labeled as the most dangerous of all medical professions. The paramedic is first on the scene of an accident, having to deal with unknown factors while every effort is made to save lives.

Aimee Garcia plays Marisa Benez, Cliff Curtis appears as Reuben "Patrick" Palchuck and Derek Luke plays Cameron Boone. All three provide us with an adrenaline rush as seen through the eyes of first responders.

Answer: Marcus Welby, MD

"Marcus Welby, MD" (1969-1976) was a ground breaking series for its day. Robert Young starred as Dr. Welby. The show told the story of an older doctor, Dr. Marcus Welby, who was your old-fashioned type of doctor who even made house calls. Dr. Welby suffered a mild heart attack and was forced to take on an assistant, Dr. Steven Kiley, who was played by the then-young James Brolin.

The scene that best exemplifies the age difference between Dr. Welby and Dr. Kiley was shown during the opening credits when Dr. Welby would drive up in his large sedan and Dr. Kiley would arrive for work on his motorcycle. Consuelo Lopez was the office manager of the medical practice. She was played by Elena Verdugo.