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Who Is Your Favorite Fictional Judge?

By Lisa F. Geherin posted 05-12-2015 09:04

  

Do you ever wish you were practicing in front of your favorite fictional judge? I just watched A Few Good Men for the zillionth time, and each time I am impressed by Judge (Colonel) Julius Alexander Randolph (J. A. Preston) as he presides over the court martial trial of two Marines. He commands his courtroom, even when challenged by Colonel Nathan R. Jessup (Jack Nicholson), who questions the way he is running his courtroom. I love it when he says, “And the witness will address this court as ‘Judge’ or ‘Your Honor.’ I'm quite certain I've earned it. Take your seat, Colonel.” Take a look: A Few Good Men

Below are a few of my favorites and the categories I think they fit into best:

Most quirky: My vote goes to Judge Francis Rayford (Jack Warden) in the movie And Justice for All. His bizarre behavior includes riding in his personal helicopter without enough gas to reach his destination, keeping a rifle in his office, and eating lunch each day on the ledge outside of his office four stories up.

Most despised: Going back to And Justice for All, Judge Henry T. Fleming (John Forsyth), who didn’t cheer when Fleming’s attorney (Al Pacino) suddenly snaps and yells that the prosecution is not going to get Fleming because he is going to get him. He then says the famous line, “My client, the honorable Henry T. Fleming, should go right to [explicative] jail.” Here is a peek: And Justice for All

Most authoritative: This is a tie between Judge Julius Alexander Randolph (as mentioned above in A Few Good Men) and Judge Larren Lyttle (Paul Winfield) in Presumed Innocent. I love the way Judge Lyttle runs his courtroom and even the way he mispronounces the prosecutor, Nico Della Guardia’s last name. The courtroom scenes are full of activity—missing evidence, side bars, meetings in chambers—and through it all Judge Lyttle commands respect.

Most hometown: There is no denying that Judge Chamberlain Haller (Fred Gwynne) in My Cousin Vinny is the kind of judge who regularly practices “home-towning”—and attorney Vincent Gambini (Joe Pesci) is his perfect victim. I was instantly sympathetic to Vinny’s out-of-town disadvantage, having myself been the victim of a judge or two who practiced home-towning with impunity. With his leather jacket and manner of speech, poor Vinny had no idea what he was in for in Beechum County, Alabama: My Cousin Vinny

Most unethical: That distinction goes to Judge Elihu Smails (Ted Knight) from Caddyshack. Judge Smails flaunts his abuse of power, snobbery, and lack of ethics like no one else. Whether he is kicking his golf ball out of the trees, taking part in a high-stakes (and illegal) golf match, or manipulating Noonan to mow his lawn, he is the epitome of a judge behaving badly, as demonstrated in this clip: Caddyshack

Our profession can be so grinding that sometimes it is fun to reflect on these fictional judicial portrayals. For a busman’s holiday, check out Stephanie Stenberg’s post Who’s Your Favorite TV Lawyer?

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05-21-2015 21:07

How could any such list omit Judge Weaver in Anatomy of a Murder, starring Joseph Welch, real life hero of the Army-McCarthy hearings?