Paris Barclay Music video career When did Barclay start his music video career? Following his graduation from Harvard, he worked as a copywriter and creative supervisor How well did his music video career do initially? Most notably, he created eight videos for LL Cool J, Who else did he create videos for? House Party (1990), White Men Can't Jump (1992), Mo' Money (1992), Posse (1993), and Cool Runnings (1993), among others. Where all of his music videos related to movies? In 2012, Barclay directed his first music video in 16 years, working once again with LL Cool J and R&B star Joe on the video for "Take It". Why did he take such a long break? I don't know. Are there any other interesting aspects about this article? Also drawing on his music video experience was Barclay's episode ("The Coup") of the Steven Spielberg-produced NBC series Smash,
Any other episodes that payed respect to Barclay?
Any other episodes that payed respect to Barclay besides "The Coup"?
Following his graduation from Harvard, he worked as a copywriter and creative supervisor at Grey, BBDO, Cunningham & Walsh, and Marsteller. Barclay then moved into music video directing and production through his own company, Black & White Television. He directed music videos for Bob Dylan ("It's Unbelievable"), the New Kids On The Block ("Games" ), Janet Jackson and Luther Vandross ("The Best Things in Life Are Free" ). Most notably, he created eight videos for LL Cool J, including "Mama Said Knock You Out", which won awards from both MTV and Billboard--and went on to be listed by The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of the 500 songs that shaped rock and roll. In 2013, Complex Magazine ranked "Mama Said Knock You Out" as one of the top 50 rap videos of the 1990s, crediting it with creating "one of the most crucial links in establishing the cultural bridge between boxing and rap." Barclay was often hired to direct videos for films, introducing audiences to House Party (1990), White Men Can't Jump (1992), Mo' Money (1992), Posse (1993), and Cool Runnings (1993), among others.  In 2012, Barclay directed his first music video in 16 years, working once again with LL Cool J and R&B star Joe on the video for "Take It".  Also drawing on his music video experience was Barclay's episode ("The Coup") of the Steven Spielberg-produced NBC series Smash, in which TV Fanatic said that the Barclay-directed number for the original song "Touch Me" (written by OneRepublic's Ryan Tedder) "pushed the boundaries from traditional Broadway show to music video level." CANNOTANSWER
TV Fanatic said that the Barclay-directed number for the original song "Touch Me" (written by OneRepublic's Ryan Tedder) "pushed the boundaries from traditional Broadway show to music video level."
Paris K. C. Barclay (born June 30, 1956) is an American television director, producer, and writer. He is a two-time Emmy Award winner and is among the busiest single-camera television directors, having directed over 160 episodes of television to date, for series such as NYPD Blue, ER, The West Wing, CSI, Lost, The Shield, House, Law & Order, Monk, Numb3rs, City of Angels, Cold Case, and more recently Sons of Anarchy, The Bastard Executioner, The Mentalist, Weeds, NCIS: Los Angeles, In Treatment, Glee, Smash, The Good Wife, Extant, Manhattan, Empire, and Scandal. In 2016, Barclay worked as an executive producer and principal director for the Fox series Pitch. In 2018, Barclay directed the pilot and served as an executive producer on the Shondaland show, Station 19, which follows a group of Seattle firefighters that exist in the Grey's Anatomy universe and stars Jaina Lee Ortiz, Jason George, Grey Damon, Miguel Sandoval, Jay Hayden, Danielle Savre, Barrett Doss, Okieriete Onaodowan, and Boris Kodjoe. The show is also executive produced by Shonda Rhimes, Betsy Beers, Ellen Pompeo, and Krista Vernoff. It premiered on ABC in March 2018 and is currently filming its fifth season.

From 2013 to 2017, Barclay served two terms as the President of the Directors Guild of America. For the past three years, he has been listed by Variety as “one of 500 most influential business leaders in Hollywood.”

Early life
Barclay was born in Chicago Heights, Illinois. He attended La Lumiere School, a private college preparatory boarding school in La Porte, Indiana. On scholarship, he was one of the first African-Americans to attend the school, Barclay went on to Harvard College, where he was extremely active in student musical theatre productions and the a cappella singing group The Harvard Krokodiloes. During his four years there, he wrote 16 musicals, including the music for two of the annual Hasty Pudding shows. Barclay attended both the La Lumiere School and Harvard with John Roberts, now the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. His Harvard roommate was novelist Arthur Golden, author of Memoirs of a Geisha.

Music video career
Following his graduation from Harvard, Barclay worked as a copywriter and creative supervisor at Grey, BBDO, Cunningham & Walsh, and Marsteller. Barclay then moved into music video directing and production through his own company, Black & White Television. He directed music videos for Bob Dylan ("It's Unbelievable"), the New Kids On The Block ("Games"), Janet Jackson and Luther Vandross ("The Best Things in Life Are Free"). Most notably, he created eight videos for LL Cool J, including "Mama Said Knock You Out", which won awards from both MTV and Billboard—and went on to be listed by The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of the 500 songs that shaped rock and roll. In 2013, Complex Magazine ranked "Mama Said Knock You Out" as one of the top 50 rap videos of the 1990s, crediting it with creating "one of the most crucial links in establishing the cultural bridge between boxing and rap." Barclay was often hired to direct videos for films, introducing audiences to House Party (1990), White Men Can't Jump (1992), Mo' Money (1992), Posse (1993), and Cool Runnings (1993), among others.

In 2012, Barclay directed his first music video in 16 years, working once again with LL Cool J and R&B star Joe on the video for "Take It".

Also drawing on his music video experience was Barclay's episode ("The Coup") of the Steven Spielberg-produced NBC series Smash, in which TV Fanatic said that the Barclay-directed number for the original song "Touch Me" (written by OneRepublic's Ryan Tedder) "pushed the boundaries from traditional Broadway show to music video level."

Film and television career

1990s
Barclay began his successful career in television with an episode of Angel Street. He was hired by John Wells, who was making his debut as an executive producer.

Barclay directed Shawn and Marlon Wayans' first feature film, Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (1996) – also featuring Keenen Ivory Wayans, Vivica Fox, and Bernie Mac. Although it received mixed reviews, it was a box office success and has built a cult following since its release. Barclay also directed the HBO movie, The Cherokee Kid (1996), a Western dramedy starring Sinbad, James Coburn, Burt Reynolds, Gregory Hines, and A Martinez.

After directing episodes of ER, Barclay directed and eventually became a producer of NYPD Blue. In three years there, Barclay would receive two Emmy Awards for best directing—the second of which was for the episode titled "Hearts and Souls"— featuring the death of Jimmy Smits' character Bobby Simone. The episode has been ranked one of TV Guides 100 Best Episodes of All Time. Barclay has since reteamed with Smits again in his role as "Nero Padilla" on Sons of Anarchy.

2000s
In 2000, Barclay joined forces with fellow NYPD Blue producers Steven Bochco and Nicholas Wootton to create City of Angels, a medical drama with a predominantly African-American cast including Blair Underwood, Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, Maya Rudolph, and Vivica Fox. The show aired on CBS for two seasons while winning two NAACP awards.

In 2002 he returned to the John Wells fold to produce and direct the pilot, The Big Time, featuring Christina Hendricks, Dylan Baker, Molly Ringwald and Christopher Lloyd—which eventually aired as a two-hour movie. In the years that followed, Barclay worked on a wide variety of television dramas and comedies. He served as co-executive producer and producing director of the series Cold Case, for which he has also directed nine episodes. Other shows he directed in the decade include The West Wing, Huff, Law & Order, Numb3rs, Lost, House, The Shield, Weeds, Monk,The Good Wife, NCIS: Los Angeles, Sons of Anarchy, CSI, The Mentalist and 9 episodes of Glee.

2008 marked Barclay's return to HBO, where he executive produced three seasons of In Treatment, as well as directed 36 episodes.

Also in 2008, Barclay collaborated with screenwriter Dustin Lance Black to write the MTV film Pedro, the story of Pedro Zamora from The Real World: San Francisco. The film, directed by Nick Oceano, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and earned the writers WGA, the Humanitas Prize, and GLAAD Media Awards nominations.

2010–present
In 2011, Barclay became the executive producer and primary director for the fourth season of FX's Sons of Anarchy, a role he continued through the seventh and final season.

Also in 2013, Barclay directed two episodes of Glee, "Diva" and "Lights Out". For his work on "Diva", Barclay was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Direction in a Comedy Series, his second Emmy nomination for Glee. In the same season, Barclay directed an episode of The New Normal and the penultimate episode of the ABC series Last Resort.

In 2014, Barclay directed the season premiere and penultimate episodes of Sons of Anarchy for the fourth year running. In addition to his Sons of Anarchy duties, Barclay also directed the milestone episode "100" for Glee, for which he received another Emmy nomination, in addition to episodes of The Good Wife, Extant, executive produced by Steven Spielberg and starring Halle Berry, and Manhattan, a Tommy Schlamme/Sam Shaw period drama for WGN America; and Glee's emotional flashback episode "2009" – the first half of the series finale, "a perfect tribute to the origins of Glee, the original cast, and Cory Monteith."

In 2015, Barclay continued his role as Executive Producer/Director on FX's The Bastard Executioner. The show starred Katey Sagal, Stephen Moyer, and Matthew Rhys. At the end of the year, he was enlisted by FOX to direct an episode of Empire, the Television Critics Association program of the year.

In 2016, Barclay joined the Shondaland family by directing an episode of ABC's critically acclaimed show, Scandal, created/produced by Shonda Rhimes, starring Kerry Washington.

In fall 2016, he completed the first season of FOX's Pitch, from writer/creators Dan Fogelman and Rick Singer, starring Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Ali Larter, Mark Consuelos, Dan Lauria and up and comer Kylie Bunbury in the title role.

In spring 2017, Barclay was tapped to direct and executive produce the CBS pilot, Perfect Citizen, a legal drama written and executive produced by former The Good Wife executive producer Craig Turk. Perfect Citizen stars Noah Wyle, Kristin Chenoweth, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Stéphanie Szostak, Adrienne Warren, and Shanley Caswell.

Barclay is currently working as the executive producing director on the Shondaland project, Station 19, which follows a group of Seattle firefighters in a spinoff of the highly successful Grey's Anatomy. The show is currently airing its third season in Spring 2020 on ABC.

In early 2019, Barclay teamed up with the Human Rights Campaign and fellow award winner Dustin Lance Black to produce and direct a star-studded Americans for the Equality Act public awareness and advertising campaign. The series, which launched on March 25, 2019 with a debut video featuring Academy Award-winning actress Sally Field and her son Sam Greisman, features prominent figures in entertainment, sports and beyond speaking about the need for the Equality Act — a crucial civil rights bill that would extend clear, comprehensive non-discrimination protections to millions of LGBTQ people nationwide. The powerhouse lineup of supportive film and television actors, influencers, musicians and professional athletes, includes Adam Rippon, Shea Diamond, Alexandra Billings, Blossom Brown, Justina Machado, Gloria Calderon Kellett, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jane Lynch, Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Justin Mikita, Charlie and Max Carver, Karamo Brown, Marcia Gay Harden, and Nyle DiMarco. The Americans for the Equality Act series is modeled after HRC's successful Americans for Marriage Equality campaign and was awarded at the 4th Annual Shorty Social Good awards, and helped lead to the passage of the act in the House of Representatives.

In May 2021, Barclay directed a virtual reading of Larry Kramer's The Normal Heart, with Sterling K. Brown, Laverne Cox, Jeremy Pope and Guillermo Diaz.

Also in 2021, after executive producing and directing 14 episodes of Station 19, Barclay has gone on to direct two episodes of Ryan Murphy's upcoming Netflix series Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, starring Evan Peters, Richard Jenkins, and Niecy Nash.

Directors Guild of America 
In June 2013, Barclay was elected President of the Directors Guild of America, the first African-American and first openly gay President in the history of the Guild. After the vote, Barclay expressed gratitude for the honor and admiration for the Union's history, saying "I am profoundly honored to be elected President of the DGA.... The DGA has worked for more than three-quarters of a century to advance the creative and economic rights of directors and their teams and I look forward to continuing this strong tradition of service. As the son of a glass blower and a tile maker from Chicago, I am extremely humbled to have the honor to serve in the footsteps of the legendary leaders of the DGA like Frank Capra, Robert Wise and Gil Cates." Barclay was nominated for the Presidency by past-President Michael Apted, who said of him, "Paris' qualifications for DGA president are exceptional.... His understanding of the issues facing directors and their teams is outstanding and his ability to resolve problems and create solutions is beyond compare." His nomination was seconded by Steven Soderbergh, who said of Barclay, "This is a great moment for our Guild; Paris will be a phenomenal leader as we move into the future." Barclay was enthusiastically re-elected in June 2015 to continue his notable presidency.

Before being elected DGA President, Barclay served four terms as First Vice President of the DGA, where he was the first African-American Officer in the history of the guild. While serving as First Vice President, Barclay was also chair of the DGA's Political Action Committee, whose mission it is to promote the interests of DGA members to state and federal lawmakers. Their top issues include battling online copyright threats and promoting production tax incentives. He also served on the Western Directors Council and co-chaired the Diversity Task Force, whose mission is to encourage the hiring of women and minority directors to networks and studios. In addition, Barclay served as a board member of the DGA-affiliated Franco-American Cultural Fund, which promotes cultural exchange between French and American directors.

Barclay completed his second term as DGA president in June 2017. He was succeeded by Thomas Schlamme, whom he worked with on The West Wing and Manhattan, as well as on the DGA board.

Barclay's work for the DGA continues even after his presidency: he helped create and teaches the Guild's First Time Director Orientation., and in the successful 2020 contract negotiations Barclay co-chaired the Television Creative Rights Committee.

In 2021, he was named an Honorary Life Member of the DGA, one of the guild's highest honors, recognizing his career achievements and leadership in the industry. His acceptance speech earned praise for its focus on his hopes for his two sons.

Reputation in the entertainment industry 
During his three decades as a director, Barclay has developed a strong reputation as a go-to director capable of working adeptly in multiple genres - described in a June 2011 article in Variety as a "highly adaptive force with the ability to control both TV detectives and scene-stealing gleesters". The same article ranked Barclay among the "Ten TV Directors Who Leave Their Mark." and another called him “one of the most reputable TV directors in Hollywood.”

Sons of Anarchy creator Kurt Sutter stated in an interview with The Star-Ledger that it wasn't until Barclay came on board to direct that the show found its "groove", observing: "We had all those glitches in those first two or three episodes [...] We had (Paris) come in [...] and we all just started trusting what we were doing here." Later in an interview for Variety, Kurt stated "The great thing about (exec producer Paris Barclay) is that he's a writer and he's also a director [...] so he can get the scripts and understand the production realities of it but also understand creatively what the need for everything is."

In an interview with TV Fanatic, Glee actor Blake Jenner credited Barclay for guiding him through a difficult scene in the episode "Lights Out", saying "He was just so nurturing."

In a piece for Vulture, television critic Matt Zoller Seitz cites Barclay as one of the few producer/directors who can "manage and drive the medium [of television]" as well as a writer-showrunner can. Seitz explains, "Directors tend to think in terms of images and moments; those skill sets aren't often compatible with the left-brain requirements of managing a sitcom or drama (though there are always exceptions; see veteran TV director Paris Barclay's executive-producer credit on FX's stylishly nasty biker drama, Sons of Anarchy)."

Ryan Murphy, creator of the Fox hit Glee, called Barclay's episode "Wheels" a "turning point for the show".

Over time, many of Barclay's former assistants have gone on to great Hollywood success in their own right. One of his first assistants was Kevin Williamson, writer of Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer, and the creator and Executive Producer of the hit television shows Dawson’s Creek, The Vampire Diaries, and The Following. Josh Barry, another former Barclay assistant, was the head of the television department at Prospect Park after working as an executive in Drama Development at ABC. He was recently tapped to be the President of Shawn Levy's 21 Laps Television as part of a major deal with Netflix. Sam Martin, the former HBO executive (Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, Lackwanna Blues) and film producer (Pariah) and Jason Clodfelter, former VP of Drama Development, and now Co-President at Sony Television, both previously served as Barclay assistants.

Awards
Along with winning two Emmy Awards for NYPD Blue (Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series - "Lost Israel Part II" and "Hearts and Souls"), Barclay has garnered another six Emmy nominations: two for producing NYPD Blue (Outstanding Drama Series), one for directing The West Wing (Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series - "Indians In The Lobby"), and three for directing Glee (Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series - "Wheels", "Diva" and "100").

He has also received a Directors Guild of America Award for NYPD Blue and 10 other DGA Award nominations for The West Wing (3), In Treatment (2), NYPD Blue (2), ER, House, and Glee. In 2007, he and Taylor Hackford were recipients of the DGA Robert B. Aldrich Award, for Distinguished Service to the Directors Guild. In spring 2021, he was named an Honorary Life Member of the DGA, one of the guild's highest honors, recognizing his career achievements and leadership in the industry.

Barclay received an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Drama Series as co-creator, writer, and director of the groundbreaking medical drama City of Angels, another Image Award for directing Cold Case, and a third Image Award for directing Smash. He has been nominated for the Image Award for Directing every year it has been offered, from 2006 to 2013. On February 22, 2014 the NAACP honored Barclay by inducting him into the NAACP Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame Award is bestowed on an individual who is a pioneer in his or her respective field and whose influence will shape the profession for generations to come. Other recipients have included Lena Horne, Paul Robeson, Sidney Poitier, Bill Cosby and Oprah Winfrey.

Also a writer, Barclay received his first WGA Award nomination for co-writing Pedro with screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, marking the Oscar-winner's first WGA credit. The moving story of The Real World's Pedro Zamora garnered the team nominations for a GLAAD Media Award and Humanitas Prize.

Episodes directed by Barclay for Glee and In Treatment have become the recipients of the prestigious Peabody Award for excellence in broadcasting. The Glee episode "Wheels" was also acknowledged at the 2010 Shane's Inspiration Gala, receiving the Visionary Leadership Award for shining a light on the abilities of those with disabilities.

The Glee episode, "Wheels" and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation episode, "Coup de Grace" were both chosen for the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' Television Academy Honor, saluting "Television with a Conscience," in which the Academy recognizes achievements in programming that present issues of concern to society in "a compelling, emotional, and insightful way." Barclay also accepted the Voice Award from the US Department of Health and Human Services on behalf of In Treatment, for "incorporating dignified, respectful, and accurate portrayals of people with mental illnesses."

In June 2011, Advertising Age featured Barclay on the cover as one of 2011's 50 Most Creative People, saying "Mr. Barclay brings an innate cultural awareness to shows." TV Guide also recognized his House episode, "Three Stories", as one of the 100 Best Episodes of All Time.

In April 2017, Barclay was awarded the Order of the Golden Sphinx by the acclaimed Hasty Pudding Institute of Harvard University – it is the highest honor bestowed by the Institute and recognizes individuals in the entertainment industry for their extraordinary contributions to the performing arts. The recipient represents the Institute's mission to support and foster performing arts within its membership, at Harvard, and around the world.

In addition to his honors in television, Barclay has been awarded the Founder's Award from Project Angel Food in 1998, the GLAAD Stephen F. Kolzak Award in 2001, to honor his outstanding representation of the LGBT community, and in 2004 the Pan-African Film Festival Pioneer Award. In 2009 Barclay was named by POWER UP as one of the Top Ten Gay Men in Entertainment; 2010 he received the Bridge Award from the Cornerstone Theater in Los Angeles for over 20 years of contributing to the theater. Barclay received the 2012 Upton Sinclair Award from the non-profit Liberty Hill for "unwavering idealism and vision.". Also in 2012, he and husband Christopher Barclay were awarded with the Family Values Award from In the Life Media, given to "individuals whose representation of LGBT families serve as an inspiration for all Americans. More recently, he's been awarded the Artistic Excellence Award from the Aviva Family & Children Services Program, the Visibility Award from the Human Rights Campaign, as well as the Legacy Award from the African-American Film Critics Association.

Work in musical theater
In the theater, Barclay presented his original musical On Hold With Music at Manhattan Theater Club in 1984, with a cast including Jason Alexander, Terry Burrell, John Dossett, Ray Gill, and Maureen Brennan. Based on his life in advertising, Barclay wrote and composed the sung through musical in its entirety.

In 1985, he wrote the book, music and lyrics for another musical drama entitled Almos' a Man, based on a short story by Richard Wright – which had been developed in the second year of the ASCAP Musical Theater Workshop in New York, under the tutelage of Charles Strouse and Stephen Sondheim. It was produced that year at Soho Rep, receiving a mixed review from the New York Times’ Mel Gussow.

After years of directing, Barclay returned to composing in September 2001 with the premiere of a musical based on the collection of letters Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam. Called Letters from ‘Nam, the play featured Grammy winner Maureen McGovern, future Tony winner Levi Kreis, and David Burnham. Praised by most reviewers and opening days before the September 11 attacks in 2001, the Vietnam musical hit home emotionally with those who performed in it, produced it, or experienced it.

In 2003, Barclay wrote songs for and co-directed Order My Steps for the Cornerstone Theater Company. The musical play, with book by Tracey Scott Wilson, dealt with the African-American church's response to the AIDS epidemic. The Los Angeles Times call a "moving tale about the human toll of AIDS."

Barclay returned to Vietnam with One Red Flower: Letters from ‘Nam, a reworked version of the musical was produced at the Village Theater in Issaquah to further acclaim, with Levi Kreis and David Burnham reprising their roles. Other productions followed, with the most significant being Eric Schaeffer's "gritty and emotional" staging at the Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia in 2004.

In 2008, Barclay presented a reading of One Red Flower in Los Angeles to benefit New Directions, an organization that supports veterans of all wars. Maureen McGovern, Levi Kreis and David Burnham returned in featured roles, with television stars Hunter Parrish and Josh Henderson. Although it was not a full production, again it received glowing reviews, described by Beverly Cohn in the Santa Monica Mirror as an "evening that had the audience smiling with a lump in its throat."

Personal life 
Openly gay since late in his college days, he was a regular contributor to The Advocate for several years. Barclay married food-industry executive Christopher Barclay (né Mason), his partner of 10 years, in 2008. They have 2 children.

Filmography 
Directed episodes of (arranged in order from most episodes directed to least):

 In Treatment (36 episodes; also executive producer; Golden Globe nomination, 2 DGA nominations, and NAACP Image Award nomination)
 Sons of Anarchy (15 episodes, one NAACP Image Award nomination, also executive producer)
 Station 19 (14 episodes; also executive producer)
 NYPD Blue (12 episodes; 2 Emmy Awards; also supervising producer)
 Cold Case (9 episodes; also co-executive producer; NAACP Image Award)
 Glee (9 episodes, 3 Emmy nominations, 2 DGA nominations)
 The Bastard Executioner (4 episodes; also executive producer)
 City of Angels (4 episodes; NAACP Image Award for best drama series; also co-executive producer and co-creator)
 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (4 episodes; 2 NAACP Image Award nominations)
 Pitch (4 episodes, NAACP Image Award nomination, also executive producer)
 The Shield (3 episodes; NAACP Image Award nomination)
 The West Wing (3 episodes; Emmy nomination, 3 DGA nominations)
 ER (3 episodes; DGA nomination)
 Sliders (3 episodes)
 Monster (2 episodes)
 The Good Wife (2 episodes)
 Angel Street (2 episodes)
 Second Noah (2 episodes)
 Clueless (2 episodes)
 Monk (2 episodes)
 NCIS: Los Angeles (2 episodes)
 Dirt (2 episodes)
 Fastlane (2 episodes)
 Empire
 Scandal
 How to Get Away with Murder
 Diagnosis: Murder
 Brooklyn South
 American Dreams
 Huff
 Lost
 NUMB3RS
 House MD (DGA nomination)
 Weeds (DGA nomination)
 The Mentalist
 Miami Medical
 The New Normal
 Last Resort
 The Chicago Code
 Law & Order
 Silk Stalkings
 Moon Over Miami
 Rebel (ABC)

Television pilots:
 Station 19, for ABC
 Perfect Citizen, starring Noah Wyle, for CBS
 Pitch, for FOX
 The Bastard Executioner, for FX
 The Street Lawyer, based on the novel by John Grisham for ABC
 Dead Lawyers starring F. Murray Abraham for SyFy
 City of Angels with Blair Underwood and Viola Davis for CBS
 Hate starring Marcia Gay Harden for Showtime
 The Chang Family Saves the World written by John Ridley for ABC
 Big Mike starring Greg Grunberg for A&E
Television movies:
 The Cherokee Kid (HBO)
 The Big Time (TNT)

Feature Film:
 Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (Miramax)

References

External links 

1956 births
African-American film directors
African-American television directors
American music video directors
American television directors
Comedy film directors
American gay writers
Television producers from Illinois
American television writers
American male television writers
Film directors from Indiana
Harvard College alumni
La Lumiere School alumni
LGBT African Americans
LGBT people from Illinois
LGBT television directors
Living people
Businesspeople from Chicago
Presidents of the Directors Guild of America
Primetime Emmy Award winners
Directors Guild of America Award winners
Hasty Pudding alumni
Screenwriters from Illinois
People from Chicago Heights, Illinois
21st-century African-American people
20th-century African-American people
"Hollow Pursuits" is the 21st episode of the third season of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation, and the 69th episode of the series overall. The episode introduces the recurring character Lieutenant Reginald "Reg" Barclay, who would go on to appear frequently in The Next Generation and Star Trek: Voyager, as well as in the film Star Trek: First Contact.

Set in the 24th century, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet crew of the Federation starship Enterprise-D. In this episode, the Holodeck fantasy life of a highly insecure crewman aboard the Federation starship USS Enterprise-D interferes with his ability to deal with malfunctions which threaten the ship.

Plot
The Enterprise is in the process of transporting Mikulak biological tissue samples intended for use in combating an epidemic of Correllium fever on Nahmi IV. The transport of the samples is delicate, and when they find one of the sample containers is leaking, they are forced to destroy it to prevent the contamination of the other samples. La Forge tells Riker he is concerned that one of his engineers, Reginald Barclay, has been underperforming and notes that he is late to help with the sample transport. What La Forge does not recognise is that Barclay has been in the holodeck acting in a simulation of other Enterprise crew members, avoiding contact with their real counterparts. La Forge requests that Barclay be transferred from the Enterprise but Picard recommends that La Forge take Barclay on as a "pet project".

La Forge works at supporting Barclay as their team works to investigate the failure of unconnected systems around the ship. Picard invites Barclay to a bridge meeting to review the investigation, but slips up and accidentally calls him "Broccoli", a nickname given to him by Wesley Crusher, due to Barclay's tendency to 'veg out'. Barclay later returns to the holodeck to seek refuge in the simulated version of the bridge members. In talking to La Forge, Guinan suggests that Barclay is simply imaginative and that La Forge keep a more open mind towards him. On her advice, La Forge visits Barclay on the holodeck and discovers the exaggerated simulation of the bridge crew. La Forge suggests Barclay has counseling from Troi, whose counterpart on the holodeck displays clear signs of sexual attraction towards Barclay. Barclay attempts to undergo a real counseling session with Troi, but loses control when she tries to relax him with the appearance of actions his holodeck version of her would do, and ends the counseling session to flee back to the holodeck.

When Barclay cannot be located to attend a briefing with Riker, Riker storms into the holodeck with La Forge and Troi to locate him. They find comical versions of the senior staff, with bumbling versions of Picard and La Forge, a slothful idiot version of Wesley, and an extremely short, comical version of Riker. Riker attempts to stop the program angrily, but Troi stops him saying it might traumatize Barclay and exploring this world can help them understand Barclay better. However, when they come across the sexed up version of her, it's her turn to want to immediately stop the program, but Riker stops her, sarcastically throwing her own words in her face. They finally locate Barclay sleeping in the lap of a fantasy Dr. Crusher.

Suddenly, the Enterprise mysteriously accelerates to warp speeds, and Riker, La Forge and Barclay go to Engineering to discover the matter/anti-matter injectors have jammed; the ship will continue to accelerate until its structural integrity collapses unless the injectors are cleared. The team is unable to come up with any immediate solutions that will work in the limited time they have, but Barclay realizes all the failures they have seen have been connected by a human element: a member of La Forge's Engineering team has been present at each incident, so he surmises that somehow they became carriers of an undetectable contaminant. Using a process of elimination, they reduce the possible contaminants from 15,525 to 2. The contamination that has been interfering with the systems is quickly discovered to be invidium, which was used as part of the Mikulak samples. They are able to quickly repair the injectors, stop the ship, and set course for a nearby starbase to remove the rest of the invidium contamination. La Forge commends Barclay for his contribution in saving the ship.

Barclay returns one more time to the holodeck and addresses the simulated bridge crew, believing it best he leave them, and then deletes all of his holodeck programs but one, program #9.

Production
According to episode writer Sally Caves, Reginald Barclay (Dwight Schultz) is a satirical depiction of Trekkies and their excessive obsession with imaginary characters.

Reception
In 2009, Io9 listed "Hollow Pursuits" as one of the worst of the holodeck themed episodes, although they noted that some people like it. They note that it features Lt. Barclay, who has become addicted to the holodeck and main bridge crew must wean him off his fantasy life.

In 2016, Syfy ranked this the 10th best holodeck episode of the Star Trek franchise.

In 2019, CBR ranked this the fourth best holodeck-themed episode of all Star Trek franchise episodes up to that time.

Releases
The episode was released with Star Trek: The Next Generation season three DVD box set, released in the United States on July 2, 2002. This had 26 episodes of Season 3 on seven discs, with a Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track. It was released in high-definition Blu-ray in the United States on April 30, 2013.

References

 Star Trek The Next Generation DVD set, volume 3, disc 6, selection 1.

External links

 

 Hollow Pursuits rewatch by Keith R.A. DeCandido
 "Hollow Pursuits" rewatch by Zack Handlen of The A.V. Club

Star Trek: The Next Generation (season 3) episodes
1990 American television episodes
Holography in television
Television episodes directed by Cliff Bole "Realm of Fear" is the 128th episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation. It is the second episode of the sixth season.

Set in the 24th century, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet crew of the Federation starship Enterprise-D. In this episode, Lieutenant Reginald Barclay (played by Dwight Schultz) has a paralyzing fear of the transporter and is convinced he is being attacked by a creature inside the beam.

The mission involves the Enterprise's encounter with the USS Yosemite, which is trapped in a plasma stream and whose crew is missing. This provides a backdrop to explore Barclay's fears, showing a new facet of a character who was previously oriented towards comic relief.

Plot
The Enterprise comes to the assistance of the USS Yosemite, a science vessel from which several crewmen disappeared in a transporter accident. The Enterprise is unable to transport crew members directly to the Yosemite due to interference. Lt. Reginald Barclay suggests linking the transporter systems of both ships, which allows them to transport one by one to the Yosemite but requires a lengthy dematerialization/materialization process. Barclay, assigned as part of the team, hesitates to transport and instead walks away.

Barclay discusses the matter with Counselor Deanna Troi, who teaches him Betazoid meditation techniques to help calm himself.  Transporter Chief Miles O'Brien provides Barclay with advice on dealing with his fears, relating his own fear of spiders. Barclay is safely transported to the Yosemite, where he helps the crew investigate. On his return trip, Barclay believes he sees wormlike creatures in the matter stream that attempt to approach him and touch his arm, but he materializes on the Enterprise without harm. He decides that he is suffering from transporter psychosis, a rare affliction. His paranoia forces Troi to declare him unfit for duty. Barclay asks O'Brien to review the transporter logs, and O'Brien agrees there was a strange surge during Barclay's transport. Barclay asks O'Brien to transport him again, recreating the surge, and Barclay again sees the creatures in the matter stream.

Barclay calls a meeting with the senior staff and explains his observations. Captain Picard orders a thorough review of the transport systems and those that have used it recently. Barclay's arm is found to be out of phase, and further examination reveals microbes that were not detected by the biofilter. To remove the microbes, Barclay is put through the transport again, holding him in the matter stream for a longer duration to allow the biofilters to work. While in the stream, Barclay sees one of the creatures approach him and at the last moment reaches out to grab it to his body. When he materializes one of the missing Yosemite crew materializes alongside him. Barclay quickly explains that the remaining worm creatures in the matter stream are the missing crew members, who are then quickly rescued. The Enterprise crew determine that an explosion near the Yosemite during the transport caused the people to become trapped. Later, Barclay and O'Brien meet at Ten-Forward to discuss the nature of fear, and O'Brien shows a visibly frightened Barclay his pet spider Christina.

Influences 
This episode focused on exploring the fictional transporter technology of Star Trek, and technological phobias similar to original series character Doctor McCoy who also tried to avoid using it when possible. Transporter accident episodes are a recurring plot device across the Star Trek universe.

Releases 
The episode was released as part of the Star Trek: The Next Generation season six DVD box set in the United States on December 3, 2002.  A remastered HD version was released on Blu-ray optical disc, on June 24, 2014. The most recent release was the first on Blu-ray disc, which took place on June 24, 2014.

References

External links

Star Trek: The Next Generation (season 6) episodes
1992 American television episodes
Television episodes written by Brannon Braga
Television episodes directed by Cliff Bole