Before I get into the TV shows starting next week, let’s take a look at some of the many movies that he's been in. This will be quite long, and I'm starting off with just a few for now and then more will come later.
Yes! The Practice. More often than not I lean towards The Practice being my number 1 favorite TV show. I just love this show to death. So many twists and turns, such great writing. I wish it had never ended! And in a series full of great guest appearances, John Larroquette has most definitely some of the best. Every few years I'll binge through all 8 seasons of The Practice and its always a huge delight when I realize it's one of John's episodes. He just owns this character. There's a reason he made three appearances, he is just that entertaining! I don't think The Practice has ever got a complete series dvd set. Which is criminal! (I have the early season 1 dvd collection or whatever it is, then I had to grab a torrent of mixed sources for all the rest. ) I believe The Practice is on Hulu currently? I'd readily recommend checking out his 3 episodes. Which you could probably watch on their own and enjoy, even if you're not full on into going through the whole series.
Walter and Henry (2001) This was a Showtime television movie that also starred James Coburn as well. In the film, Larroquette plays a street musician named Walter who is living in poverty with his 12 year old son Henry. When he has a nervous breakdown, it’s up to his son Henry to find his father’s long lost family.
And for real, John Larroquette was playing the sax in Walter and Henry along with Til Dad Do Us Part.
Til Dad Do Us Part (2001) Co-starring Markie Post and Jeffrey Jones, this movie aired on Fox Family in 2001. Description A father learns he doesn't always know best when his efforts to break up his daughter's engagement cause a new dilemma.
I had an aunt that was very fond of Larroquette. I think she especially admired how openly he talked about his alcoholism and sobriety (she was a recovering alcoholic).
Wedding Daze (2004) Also starring Karen Valentine and French Stewart, Jack (John Larroquette) and his wife, Audrey (Karen Valentine), are a middle-aged couple adjusting to life without their three daughters, who are all grown up and living on their own. But when the couple begins to make grand plans together -- including a second honeymoon -- the three daughters return home. To further complicate matters, all three announce wedding plans. And now unprepared Jack and Audrey must weather the storm of a full house and wedding bells.
Before I get into talking about the McBride movies soon, here is what it’s about: McBride is the name of a series of 10 made-for-television mystery films released by the Hallmark Channel between 2005 and 2008 and stars John Larroquette as a lawyer. It later appeared regularly on the Hallmark Movie Channel. Occasionally it now broadcasts on the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel. While on the Hallmark Channel, it was broadcast in rotation with the movie series Jane Doe, Murder 101, and Mystery Woman under the umbrella title Hallmark Channel Mystery Wheel. In the UK, these movies are aired, on a rotation basis, in afternoon drama slot on Channel 5.
Clip of John Larroquette in The Good Fight: 'Good Fight': Here's a First Look at John Larroquette as the New Boss
Wow, I am gonna have to get caught up on that show, It's been on my list of things to watch since it started but have never queued it it up (even though I loved The Good Wife). This seals it for me.
On cable there's a channel called LAFF TV and they've been airing Night Court (6 episode blocks) during the late morning/early afternoon. I hadn't seen that show since it was new and I had forgotten how much I liked it. I think they're in the last season now, so hopefully they will reset to season 1.
The only movie I really remember him being in was "Blind Date" with Kim Basinger and Bruce Willis. Outside of that, I remember him from "Night Court" and that's it. Wait, uh ... is there some sort of sequence this thread is going in? Like from the beginning of his career to present . If so, I apologize for screwing up the format, but in fairness, it was not lined out in the OP that it was to be that way. It should have said, "John Larroquette: His career year by year" or something like that. Anyway, since I've already screwed the pooch, I think Larroquette is a funny guy and good character actor, but beyond that, I don't get the broad appeal (if, indeed, there really is any).
I remember watching his show from the early-mid 90s, which was very funny and had a strong supporting cast (Lenny Clarke, Liz Torres, "Chill" Mitchell) but didn't last very long. One episode involved him almost meeting Thomas Pynchon. Another had him being seduced by a performance artist, with a very postmodern ending. I guess it was a little too high-concept for broadcast TV sitcoms?
John Larroquette kicked my dog once. If he had kicked him twice, I would have reported him to the ASPCA.
To be perfectly honest, he didn't kick her all that hard. Bloodied her nose a little bit. That's all.
One of my favorite movies (which apparently no one else has seen) is Tune In Tomorrow. Based on Mario Vargas-Llosa's Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter, Peter Falk plays the part of Pedro Carmichael, a writer of radio scripts which begin to reflect the lives of people around him. The scripts also feature nefarious Albanians. I think it's one of Falk's best performances. William Boyd (A Good Man in Africa) wrote the script and moved the action from Lima, Peru to 1950's New Orleans. John Larroquette is a character in a tremendously funny ensemble troupe which acts out Pedro's scripts. He's a troubled gynecologist, if I recall correctly. Not many YT clips from that movie, but here's one--John comes in around 7:20:
