Judge Heck films court TV pilot

SIKESTON -- Southeast Missouri residents can get a sneak peek of a court TV show pilot featuring former Sikeston lawyer and circuit judge Tony Heckemeyer.

A video clip of "Judge Heck" is available online at the Web site of the show's distributor, Trifecta Entertainment. Trifecta is pitching the show to stations for the fall season and promoting Heckemeyer as an experienced, charming Southern judge with equal parts justice and compassion.

While the verdict is still out on whether the court show will be picked up for the fall season, Heckemeyer said he's having a blast.

"There's so much fun involved, and it's a grand toot," Heckemeyer said.

When asked how he became a court TV judge, Heckemeyer said he doesn't quite know how to explain it.

It was about four or five years ago, and Heckemeyer had just spoken at a national conference for judges, he said. At the time, Heckemeyer, who has served on the faculties of a few colleges, had been speaking at various events across the United States. He was also doing a weekly radio show at the time.

"When I was done, a young man walked up to me and said: 'I want to put you on television,'" Heckemeyer said.

The man was from Fox, and the two talked and exchanged contact information.

Soon after, Heckemeyer received a contract in the mail, and he and his wife, Betty, were on a plane to Los Angeles, he said.

"I had never seen one of these shows before," Heckemeyer said.

He recalled walking into the courtroom before filming his first pilot.

"A man tells me: 'You can't wear those glasses. They'll reflect light on the TV screen.' I told him 'I have to wear them. I can't see without them.' He said, 'Read that and we'll talk to you.' I told him: 'I can't read without my glasses," Heckemeyer said, laughing.

The courtroom experience was also different from any other Heckemeyer had known.

"As a circuit judge, you don't talk in my courtroom. That didn't go over well here. (The plaintiff and defendant) were talking to each other ... I didn't understand what they wanted. It just didn't work that time," Heckemeyer said.

It was hard after working as a general jurisdiction judge for so many years to just forget about traditional court proceedings, he said.

"You couldn't even get to me when I was a circuit judge unless you were looking at time in the penitentiary," Heckemeyer said.

Since that first pilot, Heckemeyer has learned court TV is really an entertainment program.

"It doesn't have to be 100 percent on ... It becomes more of a mediation court, a small claims court and entertainment," Heckemeyer said, adding one of the cases he's heard was about a rental deal argument.

Heckemeyer said he always tried to keep the courtroom atmosphere not jovial, but lighter, and he brings that to his TV show courtrooms.

"I've got to approach it not from a judge standpoint, but as I did in the speeches I gave -- that's when they really saw me," Heckemeyer said.

Heckemeyer described shooting court TV pilots like going to a carnival.

"It is a comedy to watch a show come together. These people are like bees. When it's finished, I can't believe it looks like this. The 15 or 18 people who were around you -- they're gone. It is magic," Heckemeyer said about the finished product.

Heckemeyer said he's not afraid to be on camera but doesn't care for the makeup he has to wear during filming.

"They slapped makeup on me. It was the most awful experience. It itched. It hurt. It burned. It was hot and miserable. Then there are people who poke you and strap things to you," Heckemeyer said.

Aside from the makeup, the experience has been a wonderful one, Heckemeyer said.

"I think I fascinate them as much as I'm fascinated by them. They've never seen anybody like me, and I've never seen anybody like them," Heckemeyer said.

Since the first pilot, Heckemeyer has been contacted about every six months from companies to make more pilots, he said. And for whatever reason, none of the other pilots worked out, he said.

But that could all change with "Judge Heck."

"Court TV shows are dependable and cheap to make, and people like them," Heckemeyer said.

Recent cancellations of court TV shows by media giants have left a hole in the court genre that many syndicators want to fill.

Trifecta CEO Hank Cohen discussed the company's leap into offering first-run programming in the Nov. 2 issue of Broadcasting & Cable. "Judge Heck" is among three shows the company is offering to stations for their fall lineup.

"When you have a unique personality, people will watch," Cohen told Broadcasting & Cable. "Judge Heck isn't on the attack. He's very funny and congenial. It's a different look for daytime court."

If "Judge Heck" is picked up to run this fall, Heckemeyer said he'd be required to work about three months out of the year.

"If this show goes, they'll call one day, and I'd likely be gone the next. If it doesn't, then maybe it will (be picked up) this time next year," Heckemeyer said.

And if it doesn't, as Heckemeyer put it: "There are lots of things on the griddle."

Heckemeyer anticipates he will learn the fate of "Judge Heck" within the next 30 days or so.

"Judge Heck" is produced by Peter Brennan, creator and executive producer of "Judge Judy" and "Judge Joe Brown."

"I never looked for this, and I never sought it," Heckemeyer said. "I don't understand a great thing about it. If it happens, I'll enjoy it."

To view the demo for "Judge Heck," visit www.trifectaentertainment.com/heck.html.