By Valerie Milano
Pasadena, CA (The Hollywood Times) 3/25/18 – “The investigator stands in the shoes of the victim.”–Marcia Clark
A+E is leading the “reality revolution” with remarkable shows like MARCIA CLARK INVESTIGATES THE FIRST 48. The quest for truth always resonates with American audiences! Though these aren’t always the easiest stories to tell, they remain some of the most intriguing.
(Jan. 13, 2018 – Source: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images North America)
For 13 years, A+E’s series THE FIRST 48 has followed homicide detectives in realtime during the first 48 hours of an investigation. If detectives do not get a solid lead within that timeframe, their chances of solving the crime are cut in half.
Now, with the help of expert prosecutor and former defense attorney Marcia Clark, A+E and ITV Entertainment will be delving into the first 48 hours of some of America’s most shocking, unresolved, and controversial cases. Clark joined a panel along with executive producers David Eilenberg and Russell Muth on Sunday, January 14th at the 2018 Winter Press Tour panel held at the Langham Hotel in Pasadena to discuss her contribution to THE FIRST 48 series.
Audience members wondered whether Clark had been influenced by excellent AMERICAN CRIME STORY series produced by FX that featured football legend O.J.Simpson, whom Clark prosecuted, during its celebrated first season. Clark replied, “It happened when it happened, but I would have done it 20 years ago!”
“I’ve been a true crime addict since I was four years old. I was a weird kid,” admitted Clark. “Who did it, why did they do it, how do you get the bad guy, how do you make sure the wrongfully convicted are acquitted, I was always looking for justice.”
Marcia Clark was full of praise for actress Sarah Paulson’s performance on the FX series, saying that Paulson “was somehow, without ever meeting me, able to deliver to you how it felt to be me. Amazing!”
In addition to interrogations in the courtroom, Clark has also had quite a bit of experience with interviews for the TV cameras. She claims to prefer ignoring the TV cameras and just focusing upon the task at hand.
Russell Muth said that as a real-life attorney, Marcia Clark was always extremely well prepared, making her one of the most amazing talents he had ever worked with. In addition to being a great listener, she was able to hold her own against bullies and stay alive on set. Clark’s ability to empathize also shines through the whole series according to David Eilenberg.
This is the first time that A+E has applied the notion of “the first 48” to an active reinvestigation of old cases. Sometimes the tiniest technical details can open up enormous insights!
But burnout can happen even after an attorney has won. “You get that one case where you just can’t take it. You just don’t want to do this anymore,” said Clark.
Clark’s active sense of humor might allow her to be a sitcom star should her day job cease to interest her. She claims to love silly shows like John Lithgow’s TRIAL & ERROR that spoof her high-octane line of work. But “I never get sick of crime!” she said.
Marcia Clark’s real-world legal credentials should make her very attractive to audiences that are always clamoring for more quality crime shows. She enjoyed working on less notorious cases for THE FIRST 48 series since she felt they would be a good learning experience for its audiences.
So let us salute Marcia Clark’s much-lauded concern for the truth as the launch date for THE FIRST 48 approaches on Thursday, March 29th. The two-hour episodes will unroll for seven weeks on a nonstop roller coaster ride of crime solving!
Clark will re-examine cases that include the death of Casey Anthony’s daughter Caylee; the murder of actor Robert Blake’s wife Bonny Lee Bakley; the disappearance of Drew Peterson’s wife Stacy; the death of Federal Bureau of Prisons intern Chandra Levy; the fatal shooting of Run D.M.C member Jam Master Jay; the Billionaire Boys Club’s obsession with money and power that may have turned to homicide; and the suspicious death of Rebecca Zahau at the Spreckels Mansion. So put on your thinking cap and prime your VCR!
