Neal Baer on ER and LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT’s Milestone Anniversaries

Credit: NBCU

A number of shows are reaching milestones this fall, but LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT (celebrating its 20th anniversary and milestone 21st season on television) and ER (25th anniversary) share a common thread: executive producer Neal Baer. (SVU star Mariska Hargitay also had a brief arc on ER when Baer was an EP.)

Baer, who is also a doctor, was brought on to ER for his medical expertise. “I believe I’m the first doctor-writer on TV,” he points out. While other shows broke the stories first and then added the medicine in later, “[creator] John Wells’ insight and foresight flipped it and started the foundation with [doctors], recounting our stories. So it was built on the medicine.” 

Both series were ahead of their times…a move that wasn’t without risk. “I’m very grateful to NBC for allowing us for 18 years—I did seven on ER and 11 on SVU—to do these hard-hitting shows that still resonate to the audience,” Baer says.

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