It's not often that the Bull City gets coverage on network tee-vee -- at least, not since Nancy Grace and her ilk found the latest spouse-murder or child disappearance to take their attention from Durham's downtown courthouse.
That changed Thursday night on, of all places, the NBC drama 'E.R.' Upon hearing of the segment, my first thought was probably, like yours, "That's still on the air?"
My second thought was, so what'd they say?
The answer: not too shabby a name-drop. It comes from the character of Dr. Corday -- a long-time E.R. mainstay, returned to the show's plot this episode as the head of trauma at Duke -- whose clip-on name-badge actually looks almost exactly like a real Duke Health ID badge.
Kind of an odd Bull City reference, all things considered, though just perfectly-enough formulated to make one wonder: did the DCVB's own Reyn Bowman sneak on to the set to write those lines?
I'm so glad you spotted this Kevin. It's so awesome. I love that she says Durham is a great place to raise a child. Take that, Durham critics!
Posted by: GinnySkal | January 16, 2009 at 10:20 PM
I'm so glad you spotted this Kevin. It's so awesome. I love that she says Durham is a great place to raise a child. Take that, Durham critics!
Posted by: GinnySkal | January 16, 2009 at 10:20 PM
My third thought is... "who gives a crap what some made up character says on tv about a City with real challenges and struggles".
Can we please discuss something that is important and vital to the people of Durham? Because I don't think Hollywood's image of Durham is of any relevance, particularly in these most difficult times.
Posted by: John A | January 16, 2009 at 11:10 PM
@ John A:
Get your own dang blog or strike up an important and vital topic! Why do you want to come piss on BCR?
Thanks, Kevin. It is awesome and perhaps the whole surviving ER crew will follow Corday to Duke at series end.
Posted by: Mark Greene | January 17, 2009 at 06:52 AM
love it!
Posted by: shane | January 17, 2009 at 08:25 AM
thank you, john a., for that sobering note. everyone, there's fat free crackers and diet coke by the door for refreshments. and don't forget to sign up for the "how to feel bad about the world" seminar next tuesday.
sheesh.
Posted by: gonzo | January 17, 2009 at 10:06 AM
If the episode was called "Dream Runner," then its writer was Lisa Zwerling. She's a mainstay of the show's writing team and a physician, too.
She has a wikipedia page, but it doesn't indicate a Durham connection. Still, it's not a stretch to imagine that at some point in her medical career, she got some exposure to Durham through Duke Hospital.
Back to the regularly scheduled serious blog programming...
Posted by: David | January 17, 2009 at 10:52 AM
oh shut up naysayers....he can post whatever he feels like on here...including ye olde feelgood piece
Posted by: tsq75 | January 17, 2009 at 03:13 PM
@ John A:
Yes, and one of those real struggles and challenges is the blindingly negative perception of the town outside its borders. Yes, some of that reputation is deserved, but the reputation overstates the problem, and indeed worsens it. This is good social proof for Durham.
Posted by: crc32 | January 17, 2009 at 07:05 PM
GinnySkal, trust me, any little thing that promotes a positive image of Durham to the general public is a good thing. It's not just Hollywood's image of Durham but the news media's as well that promote an image of the city to people who are not from around here. Ask the economic development professionals whose job it is to convince companies to move here. Positive exposure on "ER" is better than negative exposure about the Duke lacrosse case and subsequent fallout or the Peters murder case.
Posted by: PRGuy | January 19, 2009 at 10:23 AM
I noticed that Dr Corday was wearing a pretty real looking DUMC badge in that episode. I was wondering if Duke actually paid for that exposure. We see it all the time now with other products. If they did, yay for pushing Durham in addition to Duke!
Posted by: Lee | January 19, 2009 at 10:45 AM
Agreed PRGuy,...any good news helps at this point.
Given the recent job opportunities lost to Iowa and Kansas(?--BioLab), the Triangle is starting to lose its competitive edge. Being overly negative about growth and crime, beyond the linear correlation, isn't going to win us more jobs and rising home values.
Posted by: GreenLantern | January 19, 2009 at 03:39 PM
We didn't pay for it, but we sure do appreciate it. Duke is fortunate to get a lot of exposure in films and TV programs (check out this article from the Chronicle http://media.www.dukechronicle.com/media/storage/paper884/news/2009/01/09/News/The-Reel.Duke-3582909.shtml) and the shout out to Durham made this one extra-special.
Posted by: DukePR Guy | January 19, 2009 at 07:00 PM