ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, November 29, 1996 TAG: 9611290088
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 2 EDITION: METRO
TYPE: COMMENTARY
SOURCE: ERIC MINK KNIGHT-RIDDER/TRIBUNE
Because unemployed is what most actors are most of the time, any actor who gives up a steady gig, much less one with the No. 1 show in prime-time television, must be insane.
But Sherry Stringfield, who has given up her role as Dr. Susan Lewis on NBC's ``ER,'' does not seem to be insane at all and, more important to viewers, her departure is of little consequence to the show.
The truth is that Susan Lewis surely ranks as the least compelling of the six principal ``ER'' characters. Efforts by the series' writers to probe Lewis' psyche in depth - whether through her relationship with her sister and infant niece or, most recently, through a potential romance with Anthony Edwards' Dr. Mark Greene - pretty much fizzled.
Indeed, the latter story line managed to do little more than make Greene look idiotic, culminating in the character's absurd run through Chicago streets to a thoroughly nonsensical parting scene on a train platform at Union Station. Thank heaven producers passed up the chance to (a) shoot in black and white, (b) fill the frame with billowing, hissing clouds of steam and (c) shift the characters into slow motion.
Of course, clumsy handling of character development is standard operating procedure for ``ER,'' a show that really sings only when it's in the action/adventure groove that defines it. That hard truth is bound to make serious actors restless - not that Stringfield has expressed any such concerns - but it's also what makes ``ER'' essentially cast-proof.
Meanwhile, Stringfield's decision to leave ``ER'' has generated none of the nasty criticism and commentary that sometimes accompanies such developments.
David Caruso, you may recall, was treated as the show-business equivalent of a serial killer for walking away from his starring role as Detective John Kelly on ``NYPD Blue'' after one season. (Caruso's departure, coincidentally, rendered the role of Kelly's ex-wife extraneous, freeing the actress playing that part, Sherry Stringfield, to accept a role on ``ER.'')
The key difference is that Caruso's decision came across as an act of overweening pride and arrogance that demanded censure. ``I'm too big for TV now,'' he seemed to be saying. ``I'm going to be a huge movie star.'' Caruso's talent notwithstanding, the sound of his subsequent movies flopping at the box office was widely interpreted as a form of divine justice.
Stringfield, in sharp contrast, has said nothing of the kind. Boiled down to its essence, her position is simple: She no longer feels the need or the desire to be consumed by her work, which is precisely what a one-hour weekly drama demands (unless you're George Clooney, and Warner Bros. considers you a major babe magnet, in which case the company cuts you some slack on ``ER,'' which it owns, so you can make a ``Batman'' movie, which it also owns).
In return for an early release from her contract and, thus, the freedom to live a more normal life in New York - with time to visit family and pursue a real-life romance - Stringfield has agreed to terms that restrict her freedom to do other TV shows or films. Seems fair enough.
If Stringfield has managed to salt away a chunk of the estimated $70,000 per episode she was pulling down at ``ER,'' and if, as a result, she doesn't have to work like a maniac for a while - and if she can get some stage work around town and improve her acting chops in the process - more power to her. Go girl.
LENGTH: Medium: 64 linesby CNB