Toby Ziegler

Infobox character
name = Tobias Zachary Ziegler


caption = Richard Schiff as Toby Ziegler
portrayer = Richard Schiff
creator = Aaron Sorkin
first = Pilot
last = Institutional Memory
cause =
nickname = Toby, Pokey (Andrea Wyatt)
gender = Male
born = December 23, 1954
occupation = White House Communications Director (Seasons 1-7)
title =
family = Jules "Julie" Ziegler (father), Dr. David Ziegler (brother, deceased), At least two older sisters
spouse = Andrea Wyatt (divorced before series started)
children = Molly and Huckleberry
relatives =
religion = Jewish
nationality = American
footnotes =

Tobias Zachary 'Toby' Ziegler, is a fictional character played by Richard Schiff on the television serial drama "The West Wing". For most of the series' duration he is White House Communications Director.

Creation and development

According to series creator Aaron Sorkin, Schiff was cast in the role of Toby Ziegler over many other actors auditioning, including Eugene Levy. [Sorkin, Aaron (2002). "The West Wing Script Book". New York: Newmarket Press. ISBN 1-55704-499-6] Schiff created his own backstory for the character by wearing his own wedding ring, something Sorkin and fellow executive producer Thomas Schlamme did not notice until the show's eighth episode, while planning to give Toby an ex-wife. "I had always imagined that his first wife had died, which accounts for his sadness, and why someone would devote himself to public service and be so singular about it," says Schiff. "But then, Aaron and Tommy threw that right out the window." [Rohan, Virginia (October 4, 2000). "'West Wing' player keeps a cool head." "Bergen Record".]

During the show's final season, Schiff says he felt let down by the writers as some of his episodes were cut "purely on a financial decision." He hated the military shuttle leak storyline, which saw his character indicted for leaking classified information. "Toby would never in 10 million years have betrayed the president in that fashion," says Schiff. "Even if he had, there would have been seven episodes' worth of fights before he did it." He justified the story to himself by reasoning that Toby was covering for somebody else. [Caesar, Ed (February 8, 2007). [http://news.independent.co.uk/people/profiles/article2249198.ece Richard Schiff: Life after 'The West Wing'] . "The Independent". Retrieved on 2007-12-14.]

Character biography

Toby was born December 23, 1954. His childhood and family details are not fully known; he was from a working class background, and grew up in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, New York City. His father, Jules "Julie" Ziegler was an immigrant who, according to one episode, "needed the G.I. Bill," implying that he fought in either World War II or the Korean War. ["The West Wing", Episode 3.12: The Two Bartlets. Original airdate: January 30, 2002.] He made women's raincoats for a living; however, prior to this he worked for Murder Incorporated and served time in prison, complicating his relationship with Toby."The West Wing", Episode 4.11: Holy Night. Original airdate: December 11, 2002.]

Toby's other relatives are less visible on the show. His mother had been dead for twelve years as of season three. ["The West Wing", Episode 3.10: H. Con-172. Original airdate: January 9, 2002.] Both he and his father have mentioned sisters, whom Toby says took him to protest rallies in the mid-1960, as well as nieces and nephews."The West Wing", Episode 2.16: Somebody's Going to Emergency, Somebody's Going to Jail. Original airdate: February 28, 2001.] His younger brother, Dr. David Ziegler, is a mission specialist at NASA who commits suicide after learning that he has terminal cancer. He has also made reference to a grandfather who lived to be 96 years old, but for the last twenty years of his life "thought the Habsburgs still lived in a big palace in Vienna." ['"The West Wing", Episode 5.07: Separation of Powers. Original airdate: November 12, 2003.]

Toby was once married to Andrea Wyatt, who served as a Congresswoman from a district centered on Baltimore, Maryland. They divorced in the first year of the Bartlet Administration after unsuccessful attempts to have children. Toward the end of the Bartlet re-election campaign, however, Andi becomes pregnant with his twins. ["The West Wing", Episode 4.05: Debate Camp. Original airdate: October 16, 2002.] Following this, Toby begins to actively pursue a renewed relationship with Andi. After his initial proposals of marriage are rejected, and imagining that she is making him chase her, he sets about attempting to eradicate the behaviors that Andi has found irritating in the past. He forces himself to eat salads, ["The West Wing", Episode 4.21: Life On Mars. Original airdate: April 30, 2003.] and sells his bachelor pad, buying Andi the property she has always considered her "dream house". ["The West Wing", Episode 4.22: Commencement. Original airdate: May 7, 2003.] Andi is mortified by the gesture, refusing his proposal once more and telling him that he is "too sad" for her. Moments later, her water breaks, and the twins - named Huck and Molly - are born shortly thereafter. Huck is named for Andi's grandfather, and Molly for Molly O'Connor, the Secret Service agent who is killed in the line of duty on the day of their birth. ["The West Wing", Episode 4.23: Twenty Five. Original airdate: May 14, 2003.]

Toby is rather morose, a characteristic that is reflected in his typical wardrobe, usually dull shades of grey and brown. He is something of an idealist, often less willing than his colleagues and the president to compromise on his political values.

A devout Jew, Toby regularly attends synagogue on Saturdays. ["The West Wing", Episode 1.14: Take This Sabbath Day. Original airdate: February 9, 2000.] At one point he suggests to Josh Lyman that, because Josh is from the well-off town of Westport, Connecticut, rather than the current and former Jewish neighborhoods of New York City, he is therefore more Jewish than Josh.

Toby's education is less well-established than that of his colleagues. He seems to have a particular fondness for grammatical correctness: he is able to name all types of punctuation from memory, and claimed to have discovered a possible typographical error in the Constitution which, he believes, could change the interpretation of the Takings Clause. He is a qualified lawyer, and has been seen to wear a City College of New York sweatshirt.'"The West Wing", Episode 1.05: The Crackpots and These Women. Original airdate: October 20, 1999.] He also recalled during Season 5 that he had met the Chief Justice of the United States while a student at City College. The diploma on the wall of his office indicates that he has a doctorate in Communications, though the issuing school is unclear.

Toby is a fan of the New York Yankees. He claimed to have attended 441 games at Yankee Stadium as of May 2002. ["The West Wing", Episode 3.21: Posse Comitatus. Original airdate: May 22, 2002.] If he began attending games at the age of 7, in 1961, this works out to an average of about 11 games a season, although it is unclear whether he could keep up this pace while working at the White House, located 235 miles from Yankee Stadium.

At the White House

Before joining the Bartlet for America presidential campaign, Toby was a professional political operative who worked for various political campaigns such as New York City Council seats, Bronx Borough President and U.S. House and Senate races. However, he had never been on a winning campaign prior to Bartlet's successful 1998 presidential bid. ['"The West Wing", Episode 2.01: In the Shadow of Two Gunmen, Part I. Original airdate: October 4, 2000.]

Once in the White House, Toby is rewarded for his work on the campaign, with Bartlet naming him his communications director and senior domestic policy adviser. Later, it is revealed that Toby was not the President's first choice for the job, although the President confides in the same episode that he is grateful that his first choice turned down the position. Of all the senior staffers, Toby is the most prone to clash with the President, being unafraid to challenge his judgment and question his actions when he feels Bartlet is not acting according to his true morality.

Toby's role in the office is often as a gruff, older brother, particularly to Josh and Sam Seaborn. In particular Toby seems to support Josh, even supporting him as Leo McGarry's replacement as Chief of Staff, despite Toby being considered a candidate for the position at the same time. When Josh leaves the White House towards the end of Bartlet's second term to run a Presidential campaign, Toby views this as a betrayal and is extremely hostile to Josh until long after. His reaction is eventually explained with the revelation that his brother David, who was recently diagnosed with terminal cancer, committed suicide rather than live what time he had left: "He could have had years. But instead he just dropped everything and walked away." Toby felt "walking away" was what Josh had done also. [The West Wing, Episode 6.16: Drought Conditions. Original airdate: [{February 23] , 2005.] Josh later (successfully) moves to keep their friendship alive, and Toby keeps advising Josh as he tries to get Santos elected president.

Toby's oldest friend in the White House is C.J. Cregg, whom he met during an earlier campaign [The West Wing, Episode 5.18: Access.] and whom he personally recruited for the position of Press Secretary. [The West Wing, Episode 2.02: In The Shadow of Two Gunmen] When Toby is fired in Bartlet's final year due to treasonous actions on Toby's part, their close relationship is hit hard and is not mended until the penultimate episode of the series and Toby's final scene.

Toby accomplishes much in his tenure as communications director, including writing both of Bartlet's inaugural addresses as well as his State of the Union addresses. His most notable accomplishment is "fixing" Social Security during the fifth season of the show, the sixth year of the Bartlet administration. He thinks of it early one morning, almost resigned after it is leaked by the Senator who was participating in it, but then, tumultuously, fixing it at the end of the show with the help of Josh Lyman. After C.J. Cregg's promotion from Press Secretary to White House Chief of Staff in early season six, he also serves as the de facto White House Press Secretary in addition to his role as Communications Director. Toby initially had trouble facing the press in the new role and makes several major gaffes, but learns to perform the duty well with the help of new Deputy Press Secretary Annabeth Schott.

Military shuttle leak

The end of Toby's tenure at the White House comes when he reveals classified information about a secret military space shuttle to Greg Brock, a reporter for "The New York Times." He takes these actions when the International Space Station develops a fatal oxygen leak while three astronauts are on board. No civilian space shuttles are available to perform a rescue mission in time and the military appears unwilling to use its secret space shuttle to rescue the astronauts. Knowing that if the military shuttle's existence becomes public knowledge, the public would demand the safe return of the astronauts, Toby leaks the story, resulting in the successful rescue of the astronauts.

Toby eventually confesses to C. J. Cregg that he had been the leak. Bartlet will not accept Toby's resignation and fires him instead. Toby attends Leo McGarry's funeral, but decides to sit in the back of the church to avoid press coverage. He is similarly unable to attend Leo's burial at Arlington National Cemetery because of the press circus his attendance may have caused. Despite strong mixed emotions, Bartlet's final official act as President of the United States is to pardon Toby and thus spare him from having to serve his prison sentence. The precise nature of Toby's possible trial and sentencing is unclear. He appears to have been ready earlier to plead guilty in federal court; later, he states that he will serve his sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution in Petersburg, Virginia. (Though the maximum length of the possible sentence is six years, C.J. Cregg later refers to Toby's own sentence as a five year term.) However, the pardon signed by President Bartlet on his final day in office contains the sentence, "His [Ziegler's] trial is pending."

It is revealed that, at the time of the dedication of Bartlet's presidential library three years later that Toby is again living in New York City, and is associated in some fashion with Columbia University.

See also

*List of characters on "The West Wing"
*List of politicians on "The West Wing"
*List of "The West Wing" episodes

References