Early Edition (1996-2000)
Plot
The show chronicled the life of Gary Hobson (played by Kyle Chandler), a resident of Chicago, Illinois who mysteriously received the Chicago Sun-Times newspaper a day in advance, effectively giving him knowledge of the potential future. His newspaper was delivered by a ginger tabby cat at least once every morning at 6:30am, no matter what his physical location was. Armed with knowledge of the future, he would then try to prevent tragedies described in "tomorrow's" Sun-Times from occurring, whereby story text and headlines in the newspaper changed to reflect the outcome of his actions. Often, Gary didn't wish to be saddled with the responsibility of performing these deeds. The paper effectively presented him with many Sophie's choices: where he had to choose between helping different people in need for assistance.
The first season begins by showing Hobson coming home from his job as a stockbroker, only to be thrown out of the house (and later divorced) for no apparent reason by his wife Marsha. Upon taking up residence in the Blackstone Hotel, Hobson begins receiving a copy of the Chicago Sun-Times, accompanied by "The Cat" every morning. Slowly, Hobson realizes the paper's contents reflect events that are to happen during that day, and confers this with his co-workers and friends Chuck Fishman and Marissa Clark. After deciding to use his knowledge of the future only for good (and not primarily for profit), Hobson is soon consumed by trying to prevent tragedies and help people, leading him to quit his job. During the season, Chuck consistently tries to use "The Paper" to make money, while Gary develops a precarious relationship with police Detective Ezekiel Crumb. By the season's end, Gary had begun to uncover some of the mystery surrounding the paper, including confirmation that a man named Lucius Snow received the paper from the cat before him.
Season two continues Hobson's adventures with the paper and his friends. Detective Crumb sometimes joined Gary, Chuck and Marissa after retiring from the police force and works at McGinty's as a part-time bartender. Despite being closer to the paper he often did not want to know how Gary got his so-called "hunches" and never learned of the paper. At the end of season two Chuck (Fisher Stevens) leaves the show as a regular character, leading to some major changes in season three. Within the course of the series, Gary discovers that a few other people share his gift of receiving a newspaper early. The only people, besides Gary, who know about his gift are his parents; his friends Chuck Fishman (a former fellow stock broker) and Marissa Clark (the blind former receptionist at the brokerage); and Erica and Henry Paget, a single mother and her son (Gary gives Erica a job at McGinty's) though he tried to tell a few people such as his attorney and various police officers (Episode 407/408, "Fatal Edition"). On some occasions, he is given the ability to wake up in another time (such as in the early 20th century) to change the past. People who encounter Gary often strongly suspect (or know) that he has a secret, but do not know what it is e.g. Crumb.
During the course of the series, it is never clearly stated where the paper comes from. In one episode, Gary meets the group of people apparently responsible for giving him (as well as others) the Paper. Nothing much is revealed about them except that they have some sort of supernatural abilities, such as being able to mysteriously appear at any location.
In season four, episode 420, "Time" (the series finale that aired a few episodes early), it is briefly explained why Gary started receiving the paper. Apparently, he was given the responsibility by Lucius Snow (the man who received the Chicago Sun-Times before Gary), after Snow saved Gary's life when Gary was a child. The responsibility is represented by a pocket knife imprinted with the initials of the person next to receive the paper (Lucius gave Gary the red Swiss Army Knife). The initials mysteriously change every time the current person decides on a new person to receive the responsibility. At the end of the same episode, Gary passes on the same pen knife to a young girl named Lindsey Romick who had just lost her grandfather; and it is implied that Lindsey will begin receiving the paper when Gary is no longer able to carry on the responsibilities.
Cast and Characters
Main cast
Gary Hobson — Kyle Chandler
Marissa Clark — Shanésia Davis-Williams
Chuck Fishman — Fisher Stevens (Narrator) (season 1–2)
The Cat — Panther, Pella, and Carl[12]
Erica Paget — Kristy Swanson (season 3)
Henry Paget — Myles Jeffrey (season 3)
Patrick Quinn — Billie Worley (season 3–4)
[edit]Recurring cast
Detective Marion Zeke Crumb — Ron Dean
Bernie Hobson — William Devane
Lois Hobson — Tess Harper
Detective Toni Brigatti — Constance Marie
Miguel Diaz — Luis Antonio Ramos
Detective Paul Armstrong — Michael Whaley
Phil Kazakian - Fyvush Finkel
Supporting Characters
The show's two key co-stars were Fisher Stevens as Chuck Fishman and Shanésia Davis-Williams as Marissa Clark.
Chuck was a foil to Gary, being a somewhat cynical, wisecracking realist in contrast to Gary's growing idealism. In early episodes, Chuck seeks to parlay the advance knowledge provided by the newspaper into windfall profits (e.g., sports betting and stock-market 'insider trading'). Over time, however, he begins to take a role in helping and backing up Gary as a problem-solver.
Davis-Williams may have performed an overlooked artistic service, in portraying a blind person able to cause one to totally overlook her blindness[citation needed]. Marissa often was the voice of reasonable conscience, balancing Gary's earnest idealism against Chuck's skeptical realism. Chuck also did the voice over narration at the opening and closing scenes of the episodes in season one, but this role would diminish during the second season, save for a few episodes. Instead a standard line was used during opening credits, and a closing narration remained in a few episodes, but as season prgressed there waere no narration for either the opening or closing scenes, and in the episodes "Walk Don't Run" and "Deadline" fictional Chicago Sun-Times columnist Molly Greene does the closing narration as part of her column.
Stevens's departure from the show after two seasons, however, fundamentally changed the dynamic of the show[citation needed]. The device of his voice-over narration was shifted to at first Gary and then Marissa in season three. This was eventually done away with, the theme music was changed, and there began a revolving door of foils for Gary, including Patrick Quinn (Billie Worley) and Erica Paget (Kristy Swanson). The latter had a romantic subplot with Gary. Fisher Stevens made several guest appearances on the show after leaving, and several of the characters stayed (such as a hard-boiled detective named Crumb, and Gary's bartender Patrick).
Guest Stars
Early Edition also featured many notable guest stars during the series' run from television, feature films, and other entertainment industries.
Notable TV regulars to appear include Felicity Huffman, Ken Jenkins, Leslie Hope, John Spencer, Fyvush Finkel, Laura Leighton, Jane Krakowski, George Takei, Cynthia Nixon, Robert Picardo and Robert Duncan McNeil, Pauley Perrette, and Peri Gilpin.
Academy Award winner Louis Gossett, Jr had a major role in a second season episode, "The Medal".
Former Chicago Sun-Times publisher David Radler also appeared several times on the show as the publisher of the Sun-Times, the newspaper that was delivered to Gary, while movie reviewer Roger Ebert made a cameo as himself. Other cameos include Tara Lipinski, Coolio, Tone Loc, Dick Butkus, Pat O'Brien and Martina McBride.
There was a second-season cross-over with Chicago Hope with Hector Elizondo, Jayne Brook and Rocky Carroll playing their characters from that show. Also during the third season, CBS used an Early Edition episode as a promotional vehicle for the network's Martial Law TV series starring martial arts expert Sammo Hung. In the fourth and final season, professional wrestlers Tommy Dreamer and New Jack guest starred in the episode Mel Schwartz, Bounty Hunter.
Episode Guide
Season 1
1 1-01 100 28/Sep/96 Pilot
2 1-02 101 05/Oct/96 The Choice
3 1-03 102 12/Oct/96 Baby
4 1-04 104 19/Oct/96 The Paper
5 1-05 103 26/Oct/96 Thief Swipes Mayor's Dog
6 1-06 105 02/Nov/96 Hoops (a.k.a. Hoop Dreams)
7 1-07 106 09/Nov/96 After Midnight
8 1-08 107 16/Nov/96 Gun
9 1-09 108 23/Nov/96 His Girl Thursday
10 1-10 109 07/Dec/96 The Wrong Man
11 1-11 110 21/Dec/96 Christmas
12 1-12 111 11/Jan/97 Frostbit
13 1-13 112 25/Jan/97 Mob Wife
14 1-14 113 01/Feb/97 The Wall (1)
15 1-15 114 08/Feb/97 The Wall (2)
16 1-16 115 22/Feb/97 Bat Masterson
17 1-17 116 08/Mar/97 The Jury
18 1-18 117 12/Apr/97 Psychic
19 1-19 119 13/Apr/97 The Cat
20 1-20 118 19/Apr/97 Phantom at the Opera
21 1-21 120 26/Apr/97 Faith
22 1-22 121 03/May/97 Dad
23 1-23 122 17/May/97 Love is Blind
Season 2
24 2-01 201 27/Sep/97 Home
25 2-02 203 04/Oct/97 The Medal
26 2-03 204 11/Oct/97 The Wedding
27 2-04 202 18/Oct/97 Jenny Sloane
28 2-05 205 25/Oct/97 Downsized
29 2-06 206 01/Nov/97 Angels and Devils
30 2-07 207 08/Nov/97 Redfellas
31 2-08 208 15/Nov/97 March in Time
32 2-09 209 22/Nov/97 A Regular Joe
33 2-10 210 20/Dec/97 A Bris is Just a Bris
34 2-11 212 10/Jan/98 A Minor Miracle
35 2-12 211 17/Jan/98 Romancing the Throne
36 2-13 213 24/Jan/98 Walk, Don't Run
37 2-14 214 31/Jan/98 The Return of Crumb
38 2-15 216 04/Apr/98 Mum's the Word
39 2-16 215 11/Apr/98 Where or When
40 2-17 217 18/Apr/98 The Fourth Carpathian
41 2-18 218 25/Apr/98 The Quality of Mercy
42 2-19 219 02/May/98 Show Me the Monet
43 2-20 222 09/May/98 Don't Walk Away, Renee
44 2-21 220 16/May/98 Hot Time in the Old Town
45 2-22 221 23/May/98 Second Sight
Season 3
46 3-01 26/Sep/98 Blackout
47 3-02 03/Oct/98 Collision
48 3-03 10/Oct/98 A Horse Is a Horse
49 3-04 17/Oct/98 Lt. Hobson, USN
50 3-05 24/Oct/98 Saint Nick
51 3-06 31/Oct/98 Halloween
52 3-07 07/Nov/98 Up Chuck
53 3-08 14/Nov/98 Deadline
54 3-09 21/Nov/98 In Gary We Trust
55 3-10 05/Dec/98 Nest Egg
56 3-11 19/Dec/98 Teen Angels
57 3-12 09/Jan/99 Slippity-Doo-Dah
58 3-13 16/Jan/99 The Last Untouchable
59 3-14 06/Feb/99 Just one of Those Things
60 3-15 13/Feb/99 Funny Valentine
61 3-16 20/Feb/99 Number One with a Bullet
62 3-17 27/Feb/99 Two to Tangle
63 3-18 20/Mar/99 Fate
64 3-19 03/Apr/99 Crumb Again
65 3-20 17/Apr/99 Pinch Hitters
66 3-21 01/May/99 Home Groan
67 3-22 08/May/99 Play It Again Sammo
68 3-23 15/May/99 Blowing Up is Hard to Do
Season 4
69 4-01 25/Sep/99 The Out-of-Towner
70 4-02 02/Oct/99 Duck Day Afternoon
71 4-03 09/Oct/99 Take Me out to the Ballgame
72 4-04 16/Oct/99 The Iceman Taketh
73 4-05 23/Oct/99 Camera Shy
74 4-06 30/Oct/99 Wild Card
75 4-07 06/Nov/99 Fatal Edition (1)
76 4-08 13/Nov/99 Fatal Edition (2)
77 4-09 20/Nov/99 Weathergirl
78 4-10 18/Dec/99 Run, Gary, Run
79 4-11 19/Feb/00 Rose
80 4-12 26/Feb/00 Snow Angels
81 4-13 04/Mar/00 Gifted
82 4-14 11/Mar/00 Performance Anxiety
83 4-15 25/Mar/00 False Witness
84 4-16 08/Apr/00 The Play's the Thing
85 4-17 22/Apr/00 Blind Faith
86 4-18 29/Apr/00 Occasionally Amber
87 4-19 06/May/00 Mel Schwartz, Bounty Hunter
88 4-20 13/May/00 Time
89 4-21 20/May/00 Everybody Goes to Rick's
90 4-22 27/May/00 Luck o' the Irish
