Happy 30th birthday, St. Elsewhere!

Dr. Bobby Caldwell (portrayed by Mark Harmon), left, and Dr. Wayne Fiscus (Howie Mandel) take part in a lighthearted moment in an episode of "St. Elsewhere." I was an avid "St. Elsewhere" fan when I was younger and now my daughter, Sarah, is a fan of these two former "St. Elsewhere" actors. Harmon is the star of the long-running hit "NCIS" and Mandel is one of the current judges on "America's Got Talent". (Image scanned from the July 1996 issue of Television Chronicles)

Thirty years ago today — on October 26, 1982 — the first episode of "St. Elsewhere," my favorite TV show of all time, aired on NBC.

I wrote my big post on "St. Elsewhere" last year on its 29th anniversary, because I didn't feel like waiting another year. So I don't have another lengthy post this time around.

But I wanted to share the above photo and some great links to commemorate the drama's 30th anniversary:

• A reunion photo from Entertainment Weekly of Mark Harmon, Ed Begley Jr., Howie Mandel and David Morse¹
• An awesome five-minute video reunion of 12 former cast members appearing on "Good Morning America"²
• If you don't want to watch the video, this ABC News story features some of the highlights of the conversation
• A blog called The St. Elsewhere Experience has been going strong since May and contains great information and links about the show
• Ken Levine's blog shares the story (from John Masius) of how "St. Elsewhere" and "Cheers" shared a universe for one episode
• Watch episodes of "St. Elsewhere" on Hulu

Footnotes
1. I like the Mark Harmon quote that's under the photograph: "The [St. Elsewhere] writers loved messing with the characters, and I was never anything but excited by how they messed with the characters. I gained a huge appreciation for the ­written word, and I've carried that forward [into everything] since."
2. Included in the reunion is actor Norman Lloyd, who turns 98 early next month. Lloyd says: "'St. Elsewhere' was a show that brought a sense of truth, if you will forgive that suspicious word, to television, that had not been seen before on television. The star of the show was the writing."