| Bull Shannon | |
|---|---|
 Bull Shannon, played by Richard Moll | |
| Vital statistics | |
| Gender: | Male |
| Occupation/ Career: |
Bailff, Manhattan Municipal Court, NYC |
| Character description: |
Seemingly dim-witted, but good-natured, tough, but somewhat childlike; develops unlikely friendships with all of his female co-bailiffs |
| Spouse(s): | Wanda Flinn by Season 9 |
| Appearances/Series information | |
| Appeared on: | Night Court |
| Episode(s) appeared in: |
193, All in series, Seasons 1-9 |
| Played by: | Richard Moll |
Nostradumus "Bull" Shannon is one of the bailiffs at the Manhattan Municipal Criminal Court on the Night Court TV series. The part of Bull is played by veteran character/voice actor Richard Moll.
About Bull
A (seemingly) dim-witted hulk of a figure, Bull, at heart is actually gentle and often childlike, with a certain honest naivete about him. He was fiercely protective of Harry. Bull would also choose a series of words every month from the dictionary and try to put them in a sentence. Bull was known for his catchphrase, "Ohh-kay," and clapping a hand loudly to his forehead when he realized he had made a mistake. His other trademark trait was when he would become upset he would moan a low pitch whine that became a loud wail as he stormed off in anger or sadness.
Bull was especially close to fellow bailiff Selma Hacker, as she was sort of a mother figure to the outwardly tough-looking, but honestly childlike Shannon. In the Season 2 opening episode "Hello, Goodbye", Bull, after hearing of Selma's death, takes it especially hard, as he goes on an all-night bender with a group of circus performers and shows up the next day drunk-and-disorderly, as it takes some talking to by Harry to get him to come to grips with Selma's passing.
Bull had a similar relationship with Selma's successor, the equally gruff, diminuititve elderly Florence Kleiner; the two seemed two share more common interests as they both liked motorcycles and loud rock music.
By the time Roz Russell, Selma's successor, arrived in Season 4, the two also struck an unusual friendship, as the equally tough, no-nonsense Roz had even more of a calming effect on Bull, as they developed a true friendship as well, if not deeper than, the two previous female bailiffs did with Bull.
Bull married Wanda Flinn on the Season 9 episode "Get Me to the Roof on Time."