"Cora and Arnie"

Description: A homeless couple face separation when the woman's impending amputation means show won't be able to care for her mentally challenged husband. A vacationing middle-class couple get a crash course in medical costs after a series of routine tests for an unexplained fainting. Beale tells Rhinehardt that he is fit for trial, and will be sent to prison. Fiscus treats a parolee whose back pains turn out to be a gunshot wound. Kochar feels homesick. Katherine McAllister dies, and her husband's grief turns deadly.

"Cora and Arnie" is the 4th episode of season 1 of St. Elsewhere.
Originally aired November 23, 1982.
Teleplay by Neil Cuthbert
Story by Joshua Brand & John Falsey and Neil Cuthbert
Directed by Mark Tinker 

"Down's Syndrome"

Summary: A couple learns their baby will be born with Down's Syndrome, and the husband pushes for an abortion. Beale assesses the bomber to determine his fitness for trial. Westphall shows members of the board around the hospital. Fiscus and Martin get trapped in an elevator; Fiscus worries that their relationship is only physical. White, fending off persistent phone calls from his wife in the E.R., nearly kills a patient. Morrison learns his wife is pregnant.

"Down's Syndrome" is the 3rd episode of season 1 of St. Elsewhere.
Originally aired November 16, 1982.
Teleplay by Tom Fontana
Story by Joshua Brand & John Falsey and Tom Fontana
Directed by Mark Tinker

"Bypass"

A recap of episode 2 of season 1, in which Dr. Craig pushes a patient into agreeing to bypass surgery, injured terrorist bomber Andrew Rhinehardt angers the staff, and Mr. McAllister arrives to see his wife, the bombing victim.

Dr. Mark Craig (William Daniels): "I'm going to save you"

We were introduced to Dr. Mark Craig (William Daniels) in a brief scene in the first episode, "Pilot", but we get the full-on force of Dr. Craig in "Bypass", as does Dr. Victor Ehrlich (Ed Begley, Jr.), his much-abused protege. We pick up where the first episode left off, with two people injured in a terrorist bombing in a bank admitted to the hospital--an innocent bystander in a coma, and the bomber himself, who set off the explosion prematurely.

"Bypass" begins with an old TV device where the announcer says, "Tonight, on St. Elsewhere", and they show a selection of shots from the episode to come to whet your appetite for the action ahead. They did this through season two or so, I think. The producers want you to anticipate:

• A press conference about the bank bombing; the bomber rolls his eyes when brought before his comatose victim, Katherine McAllister, in intensive care
• Dr. Craig tells a patient that the arteries in his heart are blocked, and assures him, "I'm going to save you" (in a self-aggrandizing tone that's hilarious and awesome); Craig is incensed when Ehrlich doesn't get the consent for the surgery
• Dr. Beale asks Dr. Samuels to teach him how to swim; Beale pulls them both underwater in a panic
• Katherine McAllister's husband arrives at the hospital
• Dr. Morrison asks the bomber why he did it, the bomber says, "you wouldn't understand," Jack grabs the bomber by the throat

"Bypass" is included in the VHS collection, The Very Best of St. Elsewhere. Also in this episode: Victor chokes when Dr. Craig quizzes him during surgery; Dr. White has difficulties with a set of x-rays; Wayne and Cathy's mutual attraction continues, the terrorist bomber's parents arrive to see him. We see more of the doctors' personalities and backgrounds.

Originally aired November 9, 1982.

New York Times Article on the VHS Boxed Set

From 1998, when the videotape boxed set The Very Best of St. Elsewhere was released.

Here's one from the New York Times archives, about how "St. Elsewhere Taught Us To Be Careful Watchers". In particular, this article refers to how season four viewers, watching "Cheek to Cheek", would have to remember how Mr. McAllister (Jack Bannon) ended up in prison for murdering his wife's killer, wannabe radical terrorist Andrew Rhinehardt (Tim Robbins, in one of his first professional roles), all the way back in the series' fourth episode, "Cora and Arnie". Those storylines will eventually receive posts of their own, unless I give this up.

Mr. McAllister (Jack Bannon) spots Footsteps of
Spring, not Johnny Jump-Up, on Dr. Westphall's
native plant poster.

More mention of Robert Thompson's Television's Second Golden Age, which had been published about two years before the boxed set came out. The "careful" watching referred to in the review's title was one of the things I enjoyed about St. Elsewhere when I started watching. Because of Prime's airing schedule in the 90's, I saw the seasons backwards, starting with 6, then 5, then 4, and then 1, 2 and 3. Though many people, when watching a TV show or reading a book, would hear a character refer to an event that happened before and be confused and therefore disenchanted, I've never had that problem. I'd just assume that I was the one who didn't know what was going on, make a reasonable assumption as to what they meant, and go on enjoying the story.

What made St. Elsewhere stand out, even compared to Hill Street Blues, was this awareness of its own history. I have an apparently freakish (I've been told) memory for details, so this kind of stuff really appeals to me. Upon this latest viewing, I've noticed that they don't really start with the references to past episodes until season 4.

Four seasons later, and Drs. Chandler and Kiley are
still debating: Johnny Jump-Up or Footsteps of Spring?

The example Thompson cites in his book is how on the episode following "Cheek to Cheek", Phil is buying flowers for Roxanne, and tells Kiley, "Roxanne loves Johnny Jump-Ups," to which Kiley replies, "too bad, those are Footsteps of Spring". In Cora and Arnie, after Katherine McAllister dies, Mr. McAllister is in Dr. Westphall's office, admiring the native plant poster Lizzie gave him because his office was too stark, and McAllister points at a flower and guesses, "Viola Tri-Color?" Westphall replies, "Johnny Jump-Up," and McAllister looks closer and reads that no, it's Footsteps of Spring. If you remember that scene, you're reminded of the drastic difference between the man then and now.

I received the Very Best of St. Elsewhere boxed set as a Christmas present in 2003, as it was the only legitimate video of St. Elsewhere on the market at the time. The selection of episodes was "Bypass" and "Cora and Arnie" from season one, "Drama Center" from season two, "My Aim Is True" from season three, "Time Heals (Parts 1 & 2)" from season four, "After Life" from season five, and "The Last One" from season six. This selection gives you two key episodes from the Rhinehart/McAllister story, plus the beginning, end, and aftermath of Peter White, ski-masked rapist.