Mixing police procedural and legal drama, Law & Order has often featured plots "ripped from the headlines" during its 17 seasons.
Examples include an episode broadcast a year after the death of Princess Diana, in which a woman is killed in a car accident after being pursued by a gossip reporter, and several others based on killers Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka.
The writers have once again taken a page from real life, with an upcoming episode that recalls actor-director Mel Gibson's recent drunk driving arrest and subsequent anti-Semitic tirade.
This week, the filmed-in-New York show has been shooting scenes for an episode entitled In Vino Veritas. This instalment of the hit show features comedian Chevy Chase depicting a TV actor who gets pulled over by police on suspicion of drunk driving and unleashes an anti-Semitic rant on the arresting officers.
However, the episode then veers dramatically away from reality as Chase's character is discovered to have blood on his shirt. Forensic scientists determine the blood to have come from the producer of the character's failed TV sitcom — a woman who happens to be Jewish.
The episode is set to air Nov. 3.
Later,
Kenaz
