Second Chances was a CBS network drama series created and written by producers Bernard Lechowick and Lynn Marie Latham.
The show aired from December 2, 1993 to February 19, 1994, lasting for one season & 10 episodes. It was produced by
It also spawned a short-lived spin-off series, "Hotel Malibu" which lasted for six episodes.
Plot[]
Attorney Dianne Benedict's cheating husband is found murdered in her sister Kate's place of business.
Dianne's old boyfriend Mike has just returned to Santa Rita after serving a stint behind bars. Other suspects in her husband's death include several adversaries from Dianne's past.
Cast[]
- Connie Sellecca as Dianne Benedict
- Matt Salinger as Mike Chulack
- Ronny Cox as George Cook
- Megan Porter Follows as Kate Benedict
- Justin Lazard as Kevin Cook
- Jennifer Lopez as Melinda Lopez
- Francis Lee McCain as Felicity Cook
- Michelle Phillips as Joanna Russel
- Pepe Serna as Salvador Lopez
- Ray Wise as Judge Jim Stinson
- Ramy Zada as Detective Jerry Kuntz
Production[]
On January 17, 1994, the Northridge earthquake damaged the sets of "Second Chances" and CBS decided to cancel the series instead of investing money to repair them.
In addition to the cost of rebuilding, both Connie Sellecca and Megan Follows were pregnant at the time and would have been far along by the time the sets were rebuilt.
The series' last episode ran on February 10, 1994 as part of CBS's "Crimetime After Primetime" lineup. Part of the cast and characters were moved to the summertime replacement show "Hotel Malibu" in August of 1994.
Reception[]
Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly rated the pilot episode a "C−", saying that it "relies on too many verbal cliches and pat coincidences to promise much in the way of engrossing escapism".
Tony Scott of Variety stated that the series "needs more riveting material" as the pilot episode "suffers from blatant, uninvolving characters, low-caliber plotting and subcommercial appeal".