Last night, ER, the longest-running American primetime medical drama of all time, aired its final episode which saw Gates (John Stamos) dealing with a young teen who is admitted for alcohol poisoning after playing a deadly drinking game with friends while Dr. Carter (guest star Noah Wyle) opens a new medical facility for the underprivileged in Chicago.

According to executive producer John Wells, the special two-hour episode of the long-running medical drama was inspired by the tragic real-life story of his ex-niece, 17-year-old Shelby Lyn Allen, who died of alcohol poisoning in December.

ER says goodbye to its fans tonight, marking an end of an era for NBC as it tries to adapt to a time where unscripted shows have rapidly taken over the TV circuit.  For 15 years, the show has redefined the concept of medical drama while putting the spotlight on the fictional County General Hospital.

Jurassic Park and The Lost World author Michael Crichton, who died of cancer last year, wrote the screenplay for ER in 1974 based on his own experiences as a medical resident in a busy hospital emergency room.  The show premiered on September 19, 1994 and has been aired on Thursday nights for its entire run.  ER is now considered NBC's second longest-running drama after Law & Order, and at 15 seasons, the longest-running American primetime medical drama of all time.

Today the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation released its nominees for the 20th Annual GLAAD Media Awards. Aside from the usual television nominees like The L Word and Ugly Betty, there was one atypical nominee: Supernatural.

The GLAAD Media Awards have a special category for an individual episode of a show that doesn't feature a regular gay character. Supernatural was nominated for “Ghostfacers,” the faux reality TV series episode that featured intern Corbett (current 90210 jock Dustin Milligan) who had a gay infatuation with Ed, resulting in the classic line, “Ed, you have to go be gay for that poor dead intern.”

Just when we thought there was no hope for a Doug Ross and Carol Hathaway return, George Clooney and Julianna Marguiles have stepped in to save the day! Despite previous statements from both parties saying they weren't interested in reprising their star-making roles at County General; Clooney and Marguiles have agreed to come back for one last glorious ER episode. Though NBC has yet to officially confirm Clooney and Marguiles return, TVGuide has had sources confirm the pair is filming scenes this week on a closed set.

Clooney became a star thanks to his role as ER pediatrician Doug Ross, who was a cornerstone of the series from 1994-1999. At the beginning of the shows epic run Ross was the resident trouble-maker of County General. Ross was an on and off again drunk, a serial womanizer, and a chronic disobeyer of hospital policy. Marguiles also became a star, though not of Clooney's size, thanks to her portrayal of troubled Nurse Carol Hathaway. Despite being the highest ranked nurse in the County General ER, Hathaway struggled with personal demons which largely stemmed from her on and off again romance with none other than Dr. Doug Ross. In fact, during the pilot episode of the series Nurse Hathaway is treated in her own ER after attempting suicide over another failed attempt at romance with Dr. Ross.

From NBC's official press release:

Love is complicated on ER, Thursday, January 22, 10pm.

Courtney B. Vance (Law and Order, Criminal Intent) guest stars.

From NBC's official press release:

Neela has a crazy recurring dream about the day she was trying to save a girl with sickle cell anemia.  Meanwhile, she goes to an attending interview and sees an old colleague.  Gates tries to save a patient who jumped out of a window during his sleep.