Source Deseret Morning News
Date December 18, 2003
Back in May 2002, the stars and producers of "Without a Trace"
got good news and bad news. The good news was that their show had
been picked up by CBS. The bad news was that the network scheduled
it opposite longtime ratings kingpin "ER" on Thursday nights.
Which made it rougher going for "Trace" than for most freshman
series.
"It's very tough to launch a new show. Very few make it these days,"
said Anthony LaPaglia, who stars as Jack Malone, the head of the
special FBI team that searches for missing people in the CBS crime
drama. "And you're expected to perform out of the gate immediately
or you're off the air."
Which made going up against a ratings juggernaut like "ER" at least
a bit frightening.
"I think, at first, as an actor, you're intimidated by the time slot
and your opponent," said Enrique Murciano, who stars as Danny
Taylor. "But at the same time, you take it as an indication of how
much the network and the studio believe in the product that you're
putting out. And then . . . we just concentrated on doing the best
possible job we could do. And it seems to have paid off."
You could certainly say that. "Without a Trace" became the first
show (other than newsmagazines) since the debut of "ER" in 1994 to
return for a second season after going up against it. And "Trace"
has done more than just survive; it has prospered.
"ER" is still the clear winner on Thursdays at 9 p.m. and, for the
season to date, is the No. 4 show on the air. But "Without a Trace"
comes in at No. 9.
"You have to respect a show that's able to maintain the quality and
integrity that 'ER' has been able to maintain over nine years,"
LaPaglia said. "So you don't expect to walk in and suddenly crush
that. I didn't, certainly. We just wanted to kind of get our own
audience."
And if there's rivalry between the two shows, it's friendly. They're
both produced by Warner Bros. and work on that studio's lot in
Burbank, Calif. "The irony is that . . . 'ER' is right next to us on
the lot," LaPaglia said. "I have friends that work on 'ER.' I have a
cup of coffee with them in the morning."
"Our trailers are literally across the way from each other," said
Poppy Montgomery, who stars as Samantha Spade. "We sort of see them
parking in the morning.
"I don't think about it that much. I honestly don't. I think that
they're both good shows, and, ultimately, that's what matters."