JUDGING AMY: THE WEE HOURS (TV)
Summary
One in this drama series about Amy Gray, a single mother who moves back home with her mother to take a job as a superior court judge in Hartford, Connecticut. In this episode, Amy sleeps badly and experiences strange dreams about her disputes with her ex-husband. In the morning, Lauren angles for a different bedtime, saying that her father lets her stay up later, while elsewhere Maxine meets with a young boy, Mark, found asleep in a parking lot. Vincent suffers from writer's block, and Donna asks him to proofread a poem she has written for Oscar. Amy tells Bruce about her strange dreams and is surprised to learn that he is studying to be a child psychologist, and Maxine returns Mark to his family, which seems rambunctious but generally loving. His parents explain that he sleepwalks, apparently unconcerned about the incident. Amy presides over a custody case between the Kings in which the father wants the two children to voice their own opinions about their living arrangement, and the opposing counsels argue bitterly, causing Bruce to snap at them. Later, Amy meets with Eloise, who tells her that they must make her ex look like an inferior parent to prevent him from getting sole custody.
Vincent tells Donna that her poem is good, wondering how she summoned the creativity for it and admitting that he and Lisa have not yet been intimate. In a different custody case, a couple battles over their teenage daughter, with the mother wanting her to pursue her challenging gymnastics lessons and the father arguing that the pressure is too great and the girl's childhood is being lost. Susie is surprised when Maxine continues investigating Mark's case, as there seems to be no abuse present. Amy calls Michael to argue about Lauren's bedtime as Bruce attempts to tell her the facts about the King case, though she states that she only needs to decide whether the children have the right to their own attorney or not. Maxine interviews Mark alone and he tells her that he likes to retreat to his "quiet place," and Amy is forced to hold both of the Kings' lawyers in contempt when they refuse to stop bickering. Still blocked, Vincent asks for a job as a "cub" at a newspaper office and is assigned to cover a boring parks commission meeting, but finds a story when one official comments that J. Edgar Hoover is just as deserving of a commemorative park as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is. The young gymnast girl, Grace, describes her strict routine, and Amy notices that she seems underdeveloped for her age and decides to interview her coach.
In the King case, the boy states that he wants to live with his father, hinting that he is not a strong disciplinarian. The daughter is too frightened to testify despite the father's strong urgings, and the mother begs for an end to the fight. Maxine watches tapes of Mark playing with his family as Amy and Lauren both stay up late, and finally makes an observation. Amy has another dream in which she has an unexpected romantic moment with Bruce, and in the morning, Vincent is pleased to discover that his story about the official's inflammatory comments has made the paper and the TV news as well. Grace's coach turns out to be a controlling bully disinterested in the girl's happiness, and Amy concludes that Grace is "stunted" and shows no real passion for gymnastics, declaring that she must be evaluated before either parent is allowed custody. Maxine talks to Mark's parents and urges them to allow him to be shy, explaining that their roughhousing and tickling games feel traumatic rather than fun to him. Amy appoints a guardian ad litem to evaluate the King children, saying that their father is using them to hurt their mother rather than looking out for their interests. She is flustered when Bruce unknowingly suggests that her dreams are "wish fulfillment," and at home, Amy breaks down as she admits to Maxine that she misses having a romantic partner in her life. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: CBS
- DATE: February 22, 2000 10:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:00:00
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:81489
- GENRE: Drama
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama; Families; Law
- SERIES RUN: CBS - TV series, 1999-2005
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Joseph Stern … Executive Producer
- Barbara Hall … Executive Producer, Developed by
- Connie Tavel … Executive Producer, Created by
- Amy Brenneman … Executive Producer, Created by
- Dawn Prestwich … Co-Executive Producer
- Nicole Yorkin … Co-Executive Producer
- James Hayman … Co-Executive Producer, Director
- John J. Sakmar … Consulting Producer
- Kerry Lenhart … Consulting Producer
- Hart Hanson … Consulting Producer, Writer
- Thomas R. Moore … Co-Producer
- John Tinker … Created by
- Bill D'Elia … Created by
- Peter Himmelman … Music by
- Amy Brenneman … Cast, Amy Gray
- Dan Futterman … Cast, Vincent Gray
- Richard T. Jones … Cast, Bruce Van Exel
- Jessica Tuck … Cast, Gillian Gray
- Marcus Giamatti … Cast, Peter Gray
- Karle Warren … Cast, Lauren Cassidy
- Tyne Daly … Cast, Maxine Gray
- Wendy Makkena … Cast, Susie Nixon
- Caroline Aaron … Cast, Eloise Darline
- Robin Bartlett … Cast, Atty. Roberta Orr
- James Sutorius … Cast, Richard Acuff
- Tommy Hinkley … Cast, Mr. Saunders
- David Marciano … Cast, Len Mildmay
- Caitlin Wachs … Cast, Grace Frame
- Taylor Nichols … Cast, Dr. Tracy Carroll
- Robert Kerbeck … Cast, Jack King
- Liann Pattison … Cast, Mrs. Saunders
- Jillian Armenante … Cast, Donna Kozlowski
- Biff Yeager … Cast, Hal Chernoff
- Allan Kolman … Cast, Gregor Travanin
- Renee Ridgeley … Cast, Tara Rowen
- Emily Wagner … Cast, Juanita Flippance
- Daniel Reichart … Cast, Andy Klein
- Andrew J. Ferchland … Cast, Danny King
- Austin Wolff … Cast, Mark Saunders
- Jill Brennan … Cast, Irene Frame
- Jeffrey Scott Jensen … Cast, Murray Frame
- Mark Chaet … Cast, Concerned Citizen
- Mark Colson … Cast, Motorcycle Cop
- Jonathan Osser … Cast, 11 Year Old Boy
- Brandon Gatson … Cast, 15 Year Old Boy
- Frank Sharp … Cast, Jack McEachern
- Taran Killam … Cast, Freddie Felleman
- Samantha Smith … Cast, Nicola King