Two years later, Judge Wapner was elected presiding judge of the city’s vast Superior Court system, in which he supervised some 200 fellow judges. PhotoAt his audition for “The People’s Court,” Judge Wapner was asked to hear an argument between a petite woman and her boyfriend, a professional football player. “The People’s Court” ceased production in 1993, but Judge Wapner returned to television in 1998 as the magistrate of “Judge Wapner’s Animal Court,” a pet-themed series on the Animal Planet cable channel. “All America at one point or another watched Judge Wapner.” (Judge Wapner was not as kind to Ms. Sheindlin, criticizing her in interviews for her brusque, often angry courtroom demeanor.) In addition to being a television star, Judge Wapner was a vocal advocate for the California judiciary.

Source: New York Times February 26, 2017 20:05 UTC