'West Wing' Calls It Quits

POSTED: 12:36 pm CST January 22, 2006
UPDATED: 12:51 pm CST January 22, 2006




"The West Wing" cast members in 2002 included, from left, Martin Sheen, Rob Lowe, the late John Spencer, Stockard Channing, Richard Schiff and Bradley Whitford.

LOS ANGELES -- NBC is closing the doors on "The West Wing," according to Access Hollywood.

The multi-Emmy award winning political drama will air for the last time on Sunday, May 14 in a special two-hour broadcast.

An hour-long retrospective will be followed by a special series finale, accordiong to Kevin Reilly, NBC Entertainment President.

"We are proud to have had the opportunity to bring television viewers one of the most acclaimed series in television history," Reilly said in a statement. "From the venerable, moving performances by the first-rate cast to the sterling creative team behind the camera, this series has left an indelible imprint on the landscape of television drama."

"The West Wing" holds the record for most Emmys won by a series in a single season (its first) and has earned 90 total nominations to date. Other awards include a Peabody Award for Excellence in Television, five Golden Globe nominations and one Golden Globe Award for Best Drama Series, and three Television Critics Association Awards.

At the core of the current 2005-06 season is the campaign between Democratic nominee Santos (Jimmy Smits) and Republican challenger Vinick (Alan Alda) for the Presidency. President Bartlet (Martin Sheen) and his team find themselves leading the country with the administration's days coming to a close.

As the critically acclaimed winner of four consecutive Emmy Awards as Outstanding Drama Series, "The West Wing" -- under the direction of executive producer John Wells (NBC's "ER") - has always offered viewers a realistic, behind-the-scenes peek into the Oval Office and the campaign trail that leads there.

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[Grego]

I never get to watch it consistently, especially now that its been on Sundays, but I love the show. I guess I can't complain about it ending since John Spencer's death. It isn't the same without him.

[Mageeman]

Well with Spencer's passing, the show lost who was going to be the next VP and it would be really difficult to get around that and I'm glad they are just calling it quits. It was a good show though I did enjoy it over the years.

[boo_radley]

Whenever I got a chance to watch this show, I really liked it, but I never followed it consistently....more TV should be like this show.