Aside from Scrubs’ Dr. Cox, there may have been no better complex, multi-faceted, and fully realized sitcom character than Night Court’s Assistant District Attorney, Dan Fielding. Smarmy, selfish, sex-crazed, and sarcastic, there was no low Dan wouldn’t stoop to satisfy any of his desires, whether fiscal or physical.
There was another side to Dan, however. On rare occasions, Dan would exude altruistic qualities such as compassion, self-sacrifice, sensitivity, and a deep concern for his friends and his fellow man. Deftly portrayed by the gifted and talented John Larroquette, Dan Fielding was equal parts humanitarian and degenerate.
WORST: Publicly Berated His Parents
Dan Fielding was originally presented as a somewhat repressed and dour conservative until John Larroquette began to infuse him with new characteristics. Dan became a worldly and sophisticated man about town, dapper on the outside, but sexually depraved on the inside.
Dan seemed born, bred, and raised in the Big Apple, but he was actually from the Deep South, a fact that was revealed when his extremely rural parents came to visit him in Season 2. Out of shame, Dan went through great lengths to conceal his roots and berated his parents loudly and publicly when they embarrassed him with their folksy ways. This was an extremely ungrateful act, as they supported his career enthusiastically.
SWEETEST: Saved Christine’s From Being Used
Dan Fielding was depicted as a sex-starved, walking personification of the male libido. Although Dan courted his fair share of attractive women, there was no one he wouldn’t sleep with, including the occasional octogenarian.
A frequent target of his lust was his colleague, Christine Sullivan, who would daily endure a constant stream of sleazy leers and double entendres. That is, until she became the target of another lawyer’s duplicitous intentions. Intending to bed Christine to win a contest, the game was up when Dan told Christine the truth, even though it cost him a dream job at the duplicitous lawyer’s firm.
WORST: Exploited Phil
Dan was never above using people for his own gain, and one person he constantly and consistently took advantage of was Phil, the loveable homeless man who used to frequent the courtroom. Eventually, he became Dan’s personal servant, performing menial tasks such as getting Dan’s dry cleaning, updating his Rolodex, and reminding him of which woman he’d be dating after the session.
As the series progressed, Dan’s requests became more demeaning and outlandish, such as asking Phil to lie down in the street to save a parking spot. One of the cruelest things Dan had Phil do was continuously donate blood; Dan would them pocket the cash, as he was temporarily short on funds.
SWEETEST: Was A Volunteer Dad
Considering the number of sexual partners Dan has had in his life, it’s a wonder he hasn’t fathered any children. In a Season 4 episode aptly entitled, “Paternity,” Dan was hit with a paternity suit and actually met the child he believed may have been his son.
Bonding with the boy, Dan was fully prepared to accept responsibility for him, until his mother revealed she was looking for Stan Fielding, not Dan. Despite this revelation, Dan still took care of him, writing him a cheque for one thousand dollars and spending time with him at ballgames, as a father would.
WORST: Was Prejudiced
Despite his intellect and refined tastes, Dan was often not very progressive in his social views. This was the case when he met his new boss, Vincent Daniels, who beat Dan out for the position of District Attorney.
Daniels was a highly qualified and competent lawyer, but Dan’s jealousy couldn’t see past the fact that Daniels was a little person. Taking every opportunity to denigrate him for his height was one of the most abhorrent things Dan ever did, though he eventually came to see the error of his ways.
SWEETEST: Delivered A Stranger’s Baby
Harry’s penchant for practical jokes aside, the court he presided over seemed to be a magnet for odd occurrences and even odder people.
When a Lamaze group was arraigned on erroneous charges in the middle of a hurricane, naturally, all the women went into labor at the same time. As the storm shut down all emergency services, it was left to the courtroom employees to deliver the babies. To his credit, Dan showed uncharacteristic warmth, concern, and sensitivity to Renee, a single woman he helped to deliver her son. She was so grateful, she named her son after him, using his real name of Reinhold.
WORST: Not Accepting Of His Best Friend’s Identity
Dan is such a low-down scoundrel that it’s hard to imagine him having any real friends. However, one actually existed and was coming to visit Dan shortly before his wedding. Dan admiringly remembered his college friend Chip as being the consummate ladies’ man, which is why when he showed up as Charlene, Dan was floored.
What follows is another example of Dan’s close-mindedness and intolerance, as he spends the episode berating his old friend about her new identity and selfishly bemoaning how her choices made him feel. Although he eventually comes to accept Charlene’s choice, it’s not without Dan’s trademark insensitivity preceding it.
SWEETEST: Convinced Harry To Take His Job Back
The pressures of being a judge are immense if one takes their job seriously and to heart, as Harry realized when a teenager and his mother found themselves on the wrong side of the law. Victims of circumstance, Harry was boxed into a legal corner and was forced to rule against them, which eventually led to the teenager being shot.
Disillusioned and despondent, Harry quit his job, retiring to a nearby pool hall to pass his time. Of all people, it was Dan who spoke to him and convinced him to take back his hob, showing Harry how much he cared about him with a mix of harsh words, tough love, and honest admiration.
SWEETEST: Saved Lives
For a curmudgeon with a selfish streak, Dan spent a lot of time saving people’s lives. When he was marooned in the Arctic after having been deployed by the National Guard, Dan had to perform an emergency appendectomy on Kista, a local Inuit woman. The operation was successful, and Dan saved the woman’s life.
He also saved Roz from death when she went into insulin shock. Hallucinating on the roof and coming close to falling, Roz was saved by Dan, who managed to give her an insulin shot by pretending to be her father. Although he received a few bruises for his trouble, it was one of the most selfless and altruistic things he’d ever done.
WORST: Tried To Manipulate Christine
Not all the instances Dan saved a life ended up altruistic. When Dan saved Christine from choking with a Heimlich Maneuver, Christine felt extremely grateful and asked Dan what she could do to repay him. Dan lecherously proposed she sleep with him as repayment.
Feeling extreme obligation and guilt (helped by Dan's commentary), Christine relented, but Dan's good nature would not allow him to go ahead with the deed. Although Dan's altruistic side eventually won out, the mere suggestion Christine repay him with sex was a disgusting and dastardly idea.