Judge Hopner – Judge Joseph Albert Wapner
https://wiki.wizard101central.com/wiki/NPC:Judge_Hopner
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_People%27s_Court
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Wapner
Judge Hopner is one of the first citizens your Wizard meets in Hope Springs. He recognizes you and informs you that the Judges are the law in Wallaru and you’re not. He expressly forbids you to leave Hope Springs without the express permission of the Prime Minister.
Judge Hopner is the one who deputizes your Wizard to help defend Hope Springs against the Emu Riders. He helps your Wizard destroy the Emu Cannons that allow the Emu Riders to breach the walls of Hope Springs. The Judge is kidnapped by Ned Collie shortly after the Emu Cannons are destroyed. Judge Hopner eventually arrests Ned Collie and escorts him back to Hope Springs.
The People’s Court was an American arbitration-based reality court show, featuring an arbitrator handling small claims disputes in a simulated courtroom set. Within the court show genre, it is the first of all arbitration-based reality-style programs, which has overwhelmingly become the convention of the genre. The original series ran from 1981 to 1993, and the revival ran from 1997 to 2023. Both versions ran in first-run syndication. The show ranks as the longest-running traditional court show and second-longest-running court show in general, having a total of 38 overall seasons as of the 2022–23 television year.
The first version of The People’s Court was presided over solely by former Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Joseph Wapner. The final incarnation of the show had different presiding judges: former New York City Mayor Ed Koch (1997–1999), former New York Supreme Court Judge Jerry Sheindlin (1999–2001), and former Florida State Circuit Court Judge Marilyn Milian (2001–2023). Milian is the show’s longest-reigning arbiter, presiding over the series for 22 years.
Joseph Albert Wapner (November 15, 1919 – February 26, 2017) was an American judge and television personality. He is best known as the first presiding judge of the reality court show The People’s Court. The show’s first run in syndication, with Judge Wapner presiding as judge, continued from 1981 to 1993, for 12 seasons and 2,484 episodes. Although the show’s second run was presided over by multiple judges, Wapner was the sole judge to preside during the show’s first incarnation. His tenure on the program made him the first jurist of arbitration-based reality court shows, which evolved into the most popular trend in the judicial genre and continues to be to the present.
The current list of all the (known) Wallaru references are located here.
Although I am well versed in Pop Culture references but I do not claim to have caught them all. Let me know your favorites in the comments and if I’ve missed one you caught, let me know so I can add it to the list.
Text for this article is excerpted from the linked wiki pages
Judge Hopner image is from Wizard101, and is copyright of KingsIsle Entertainment.
The People’s Court and Judge Wapner images are copyright Ralph Edwards-Stu Billett Productions and Warner Bros. Television
Image usage qualifies as fair use under US copyright law.
Vulcan Stev's Database 