Favorite Law & Order Guest Stars Before They Were Famous

The TV Stars

Allison Janney
I have no recollection of this episode and can’t find pictures of it anywhere. However, according to the indefatigable IMDB, C.J. Craig (aka Allison Janney) made her debut on L&O way back in 1992, right about the time the country was introduced to President Bartlet’s predecessor.

Star Struck
Air Date: Tuesday January 7, 1992
Summary: An obsessive fan pleads temporary insanity when he is charged with attempting to murder the soap opera actress who is the center of his life.

Jennifer Garner
Jennifer Garner was one actually one of those actors whose overnight success actually did take ten years and was comprised of roles like this one.

Aftershock
Air Date: Wednesday May 22, 1996
Summary: After Briscoe, Curtis, McCoy, and Kincaid witness the execution of a criminal they brought to justice, their unique reactions to the event culminate in personal tragedies for each of them.

Julianna Margulies
The sad part about the early L&O episodes is that they were so much better and grittier than the recycled ones that took over on or about the time Claire Kincaid got killed by a drunk driver, but they are nearly impossible to find on YouTube. Julianna Margulies had a guest spot way back then, just before ER knocked everything else off the airwaves.

Conduct Unbecoming
Air Date: Wednesday March 10, 1993
Summary: Stone and the police battle the closed ranks of the Navy to investigate the death of a female Naval officer during a party in a Manhattan hotel.

Bonus:

Amanda Peet
This is the episode where she plays an updated version of Patty Hearst. Weirdly, I remember her more clearly in this than in many of the movies she’s done since.

Hot Pursuit
Air Date: Wednesday November 8, 1995
Summary: When the detectives solve a series of murders committed by a holdup team in ski masks, McCoy must determine whether a young woman found with them is an unwilling hostage, or an active participant in the crimes.

Ed note: Summaries courtesy of TV.com.