Josiah Edward "Jed" Bartlet is a fictional character on the television serial drama The West Wing played by Martin Sheen. He is President of the United States for the entire series until the last episode, when his successor is inaugurated. Sheen is one of the main characters of The West Wing, who appeared in all but thirteen of the episodes in the series, sporadically and during the final season, for a total of 142 of the 155 episodes.
Bartlet re...
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Josiah Edward "Jed" Bartlet is a fictional character on the television serial drama The West Wing played by Martin Sheen. He is President of the United States for the entire series until the last episode, when his successor is inaugurated. Sheen is one of the main characters of The West Wing, who appeared in all but thirteen of the episodes in the series, sporadically and during the final season, for a total of 142 of the 155 episodes.
Bartlet represents, in many ways, an idealized president, endowed with a fierce intellect, great (though not infallible) personal integrity, toughness tempered with essential compassion for the less fortunate, and a sense of humor.
Show creator Aaron Sorkin had not initially intended to feature the president, having envisioned the series as being focused on the White House senior staff who do his bidding. "Then I felt that would become hokey," he says. "We'll constantly be just missing the president. As he walks around the corner, we'll see the back of...
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