50THE GOOD WIFE - TIE

Aired: CBS, 2009-Present

Leading roles for women on TV don't grow on trees, much less leading roles as layered as Alicia Florrick, played by Juliana Margulies. Alicia's story, as it opened, seemed a direct reference to the still-fresh sex scandal that drove former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer from office. Alicia, like Silda Spitzer, was a "good wife" carrying on in the teeth of public disgrace. Since then, the show has earned wide praise as a topical legal and political drama, and for Alicia's post-scandal journey as a character. ''What is interesting is that everyone feels entitled to an opinion about what these women should do,'' Michelle King told The New York Times in 2009, after three episodes had aired. ''I think it's just an incredibly uncomfortable place to be in. How do you go on with your life and try to make a change, and yet still constantly be confronted with that?''

Robert & Michelle King reflect on the reasons behind The Good Wife's award-winning run