Overview

Cast

Regular cast

• Dave Nelson (Dave Foley) is a fish-out-of-water character in many ways. The character is described as a "Midwesterner out of place in New York and pointedly young for such a responsible job." He also has a very polite, controlled and rational personality, which contrasts with the more colourful personalities of the other characters and the absurd situations that occur on the show. A recurring joke in the show involves his mother, his frequent phone conversations with her and a picture of her he keeps in his desk.
• Lisa Miller (Maura Tierney), with whom Dave has an intermittent relationship, is promoted and demoted within the show's run, serving as reporter, on-air personality, producer and news director. An obsessive overachiever, Lisa is able to instantly perform complex mathematical calculations mentally, keeps a detailed life-plan, and not only frequently brags about her SAT exam scores but went so far as to retake the exam well out of college. During the first two seasons of the show, she's in regular contact with her ex-boyfriend Stuart, who is extremely popular with the staff of WNYX (excluding Dave) and who is obviously still in love with her
• Bill McNeal (Phil Hartman) is a co-news anchor for WNYX. Bombastic, egocentric, and insubordinate, Bill is frequently a thorn in the news director's side. As news director, Dave and Lisa both struggle to deal with Bill. His relationships are often unorthodox or contentious. A running joke in the show has Bill describing seemingly painful or scarring childhood memories with an air of nostalgia, often wistfully saying, "good times, good times." As a result of Hartman's death between the fourth and fifth seasons, Bill's death is addressed in the first episode of the fifth season, where Bill is revealed to have died of a sudden heart attack. Ironically, dozens of references are made to Bill's hypothetical death prior to Hartman's death. The character claims to have numerous enemies and stalkers, survives an assassination attempt in Xmas Story, and in both fantasy episodes every character dies except for Bill and Matthew.
• Catherine Duke (Khandi Alexander) is the second of WNYX's news anchors. She is often bitter rivals with co-anchor Bill McNeal, partly due to an office affair they'd earlier. Catherine leaves the station for a job in London during the fourth season. She makes a brief appearance in the fifth season premiere for Bill's funeral. The role of Catherine was played by a different actress, Ella Joyce, in the pilot episode. Alexander took over the role in episode 2.
• Jimmy James (Stephen Root), the station's eccentric, extroverted, playful billionaire owner. Despite owning a large corporate empire, he seems to enjoy micromanaging WNYX. He is seen as a loving father figure by everyone in the office, and often helps his employees learn life lessons. A recurring theme in the show is James' desperate search for a wife, a quest in which he often involves WNYX. He frequently shows signs of being infatuated with Dave's mother. Jimmy claimed to be both famed hijacker D.B. Cooper and Watergate whistleblower Deep Throat. The name "Jimmy James" came from the Beastie Boys song "Jimmy James".
• Beth (Vicki Lewis) is Dave's quirky secretary, whose main responsibility seems to be getting coffee for Dave. She wears ridiculous outfits, and perpetually chews gum. Her salary is the subject of several jokes, with both herself and other characters frequently pointing out that she "earns next to nothing". Beth's last name is never revealed; in "Freaky Friday", she claims she doesn't even have one. The name "Beth" itself came from the Kiss song "Beth".

Cast appearances

Recurring characters

Guest appearances

Ratings