A Hostage no more, "L.A. Law"'s Larry Drake will end his stint in the Brendan Behan satire Oct. 31 at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego. Drake replaced John Goodman in The Hostage, which officially opened Sept. 25 on the theatre's main stage.

With Goodman out because of scheduling conflicts, Drake took the role of Pat, the owner of a bawdy Irish boarding house that bristles with political intrigue and incorrigible characters in the time of the "Troubles" circa 1958.

Drake is best remembered for his two Emmy Award-winning turn as the mentally challenged man, Benny, on TV's "L.A. Law." His credits at the Old Globe include the Drama-Logue-winning Bertha Bumiller in Greater Tuna, a Gangster in Kiss Me Kate, Earl of Northampton in Richard II and Lenny in Of Mice and Men. He has appeared in multiple films, with leads in "Darkman," "Bean," 'The Karate Kid" and "Dr. Giggles."

Also in the cast are Ellen Crawford (Nurse Lydia Wright on "ER") as Meg, Tom Lacy as Mr. Mulleady, alongside Mary Lou Rosato, Peter Smith, Steve Rankin, Michael Potts, Cornelia Hayes O'Herlihy, Leslie Kalarchian, Aaron Krohn, Lizabeth Annie Hinton, Richard Easton and Michael Cruz.

Designing the show are David F. Segal (lighting), Jeff Ladman (sound), Ralph Funicello (set) and Ann Hould-Ward (costumes). For more information on The Hostage, directed by Globe artistic director Jack O'Brien, call (619) 239-2255.

-- By Christine Ehren & David Lefkowitz