Quote of the day: Do you know this man? Have you SEEN this man recently? (Do you suppose that something terrible could have happened to him?)

In case you don't recognize him, this is former Manhattan District Attorney Arthur Branch, and unless we missed something in Wednesday's belated 18th-season premiere of Law & Order, we were given no clue as to what happened to Arthur, just that Jack McCoy had been appointed to replace him two weeks before the events of this episode.

Poor Arthur appears to have dropped off the face of the earth. You don't suppose there could have been foul play involved, do you?

Whatever Arthur is doing now, there was a suggestion in the season-premiere episode that perhaps it's not a whole lot less than he was doing during his time as New York County district attorney. We're still pondering this exchange from a scene in the DA's office, newly occupied by Jack McCoy, as new-to-viewers Assistant District Attorney Mike Cutter made an observation to the new boss about the room decor:

ADA MIKE CUTTER: "Branch used to fill these shelves with knickknacks and awards."

DA JACK McCOY: "This is a working office now, not a showroom."

We get it that Jack is going to be a much more hands-on DA than old Arthur was. But do you suppose we're meant to read anything more into this crack?

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Isn't it time for a famous DWT quiz? Too bad D.A. Adam Schiff isn't running for president, but maybe Arthur Branch is. Can you identify his No. 1 fan?

My mother used to point out that Steven Hill, who played Adam Schiff, the almost-original New York County (i.e., Manhattan) district attorney on Law & Order (as all true L&O aficionados know, the drab D.A. in the pilot, filmed ages before the show was bought and went into production, was played by Roy Thinnes), had the cushiest job in show business. He hardly seemed to go outdoors; heck, he hardly ever even stood up. Plus, at least half of his screen time he seemed to be eating!

Quite a change from his Misssion: Impossible days! (What? You didn't remember that before Peter Graves became Jim Phelps, Adam, er Steve was IM-squad mastermind Dan Briggs? My goodness gracious, what are they teaching in the schools these days?)

Now, Adam Schiff I would vote for--for any office he chose to run for. Do you remember the episode where we find out that his wife died? Wow! Now that's acting.

I'm not so sure about Nora What-Was-Her-Name--you know, the in-between D.A. played by Dianne Wiest. Yeah, I kind of got used to her, but it wasn't the same. For that matter, I'd have to think twice about voting for A.D.A. Jack McCoy. Too narrow a prosecutorial focus for any other kind of public office.

(However, I'd vote for Sam Waterston as Forrest Bedford, the small-town Southern D.A. he played on I'll Fly Away. I've been watching the reruns on the AmericanLife cable network, and finding myself just as blown away by them as when the shows aired originally. And to underscore how long ago that was, consider that Sam W's entire L&O career lay ahead of him, and it's been now, what, 30 or 40 years?)

But this Arthur Branch fellow? I know he was supposedly appointed to replace Nora What-Was-Her-Name by a mean-spirited right-wing Republican governor, and sure enough, we had one of those at the time, so I guess that really could've happened, and I know Arthur has lived in NYC for ages and has lots of good-old-boy political contacts. Still, I can't quite buy him as the Manhattan D.A. That said, I've had a lot less trouble with him than I imagined I would when it was announced that Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson was not going to run for reelection but was going to join the cast of L&O. He's added an interesting philosophical perspective to the show, and he's an utterly adequate actor.

I like him fine, actually, and don't think he's the reason why the show has at long last been running out of steam. I even feel sorry for Fred, being subjected to the kind of wacko bullshit that comes with being talked about as a possible candidate for the 2008 GOP presidential nomination. I mean, how icky is it to have field vermin like the Rev. James Dobson passing judgment on your Christianity?

(Personally, if I were a Christian, I would wear this as a badge of honor. What better Christian credential could you ask for than being pronounced not one by a Christ-hating megalomaniacal scumbucket like the Reverend Jimbo? It appears, after all, that his idea of a good Christian is the unspeakable Newt Gingrich. Isn't being pronounced the "anti-Newt" veritably to be singing with the angels already?)

I don't know about you, but I haven't seen an awful lot of "inside" political support for a Thompson candidacy, and yet the poll numbers are impressive for someone who hasn't mounted any kind of campaign whatsoever. Of course, the punditocracy seems unaccountably shy about pointing out that Senator Fred is now a TV star.

I do know, though, of one prominent Republican who has been pushing Fred's candidacy, and pushing it hard. I happen to be on an e-list of his, and just got this breathless update:

Momentum continues to build behind those of us who are encouraging Fred Thompson to run for the White House.

I’ve talked to Fred on a regular basis over the last two weeks and can tell you that he is strongly considering running for president.

Likely caucus voters ranked Fred among the top three Republicans in a recent Iowa poll, and those results reflect a growing trend.

A national USA TODAY-Gallup poll released just last week shows that Fred is one of the three strongest Republican contenders in the field.

Fred’s true conservative values and his ability to clearly communicate Republican principles (not just rhetoric) have allowed him to gain this incredible support without spending any money and without any campaigning--a remarkable statement.

Keep posting your statements of support and other ideas you’d like to share with Fred on my blog so that I can pass them along.  To leave a comment on my blog, please click here.

For today's DWT quiz:

Can you guess who wrote this?

Is it:

(a) Sen. Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut, saying, "Fred is a close personal friend, and just one of a number of fine Republican candidates I would be proud to support"

(b) the Rev. Pat Robertson, explaining, "I'll teach that fat ass Dobson who gets to decide who's a Christian and who isn't"

(c) House Minority Leader John Boehner of Ohio ("I've been trying to persuade Fred to use some of my secret tanning creams--oops, did I say that out loud? I don't have any secret tanning creams")

(d) California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who nevertheless insists that he's "a better actor than Fred, as long as I don't have to say, you know, the name of the state I own, I mean run"

(e) former Vice President Dan Quayle, saying, "I knew all along that foxy blonde lawyer Fred fired was a lesbo--those types of dyke bitches always used to laugh at me when I asked them out"

(f) former Senate Majority Leader Doctorbill Frist, who said, "I've viewed videotape of him, and it's my considered medical opinion that he should absolutely be kept on life support"

(g) Sen. Jim "How Do I Know, the Bible Tells Me So" Inhofe of Oklahoma [for extra credit: is there any way of measuring once and for all who's nuttier, Inhofe or fellow Oklahoma wingnut Sen. Doctortom Coburn?]


THE ANSWER

All is revealed here.