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Monk (TV series)
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Monk is an American comedy-drama series created by Andy Breckman and starring Tony Shalhoub as the main character. The show debuted on July 12, 2002, on the USA Network; its seventh season started July 18, 2008, and it has been renewed for an eighth and final season. The last seven episodes of season 7 began airing January 9, 2009 and finished on February 20, 2009. The final season will premiere sometime in the summer of 2009.
lass="link1" onMouseover='showByLink("m1640388",this)' onMouseout='hide("m1640388")'href="http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Adrian_Monk">Adrian Monk was a brilliant detective for the San Francisco Police Department until his wife, Trudy, was killed by a car bomb in a parking garage, which Monk believed was intended for him.
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Encyclopedia
Monk is an American comedy-drama series created by Andy Breckman and starring Tony Shalhoub as the main character. The show debuted on July 12, 2002, on the USA Network; its seventh season started July 18, 2008, and it has been renewed for an eighth and final season. The last seven episodes of season 7 began airing January 9, 2009 and finished on February 20, 2009. The final season will premiere sometime in the summer of 2009.
Plot
Adrian Monk was a brilliant detective for the San Francisco Police Department until his wife, Trudy, was killed by a car bomb in a parking garage, which Monk believed was intended for him. Trudy's death led Monk to suffer a nervous breakdown and he was discharged from the force, becoming a recluse, refusing to leave his house for over three years. With the help of his nurse, Sharona Fleming (Bitty Schram), he was finally able to leave the house. The breakthrough allowed him to work as a private detective and a consultant for the homicide unit despite retaining limitations rooted in his obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), which had grown significantly worse after the tragedy.
Monk's compulsive habits are numerous, and a number of phobias compound his situation, such as his fear of germs. The OCD and plethora of phobias inevitably lead to very awkward situations and cause problems for Monk, and anyone around him, as he investigates cases. However, these same personal struggles, particularly the OCD, are what aid him in solving cases.
Captain Leland Stottlemeyer (Ted Levine) and Lieutenant Randall "Randy" Disher (Jason Gray-Stanford) call on Monk when they have trouble with an investigation. Stottlemeyer is often irritated by Monk's disorder, but respects his friend and former colleague's amazing observational abilities, as does Disher. Ever since childhood, Monk's obsessive attention to detail allowed him to spot tiny discrepancies, find patterns, and make connections that others often fail to make. Monk continues to search for information about his wife's death, the one case he has been unable to solve.
When Sharona decided to re-marry her ex-husband and move back to New Jersey, Natalie Teeger (Traylor Howard), a widow and mother of an eleven-year-old daughter, was hired as Monk's new assistant. Monk has a brother, Ambrose, and a half-brother, Jack Jr., the existence of whom Monk discovers in the fifth season.
Characters
Main characters
Character Natalie Teeger made her entrance into the show partway through the third season when actress Bitty Schram, who played Monk's nurse Sharona Fleming, left "precipitous[ly]", reportedly due to a contract dispute. The new actress, Traylor Howard, had not yet seen the show and was not enthusiastic about her manager's urgings to audition for Sharona's replacement. However, she did try out and got the part. Despite the initial "cool" reception from fans, show co-creator Andy Breckman believes Howard quickly and successfully filled the void. "I will always be grateful to Traylor because she came in when the show was in crisis and saved our baby [....] We had to make a hurried replacement, and not every show survives that. I was scared to death."
Secondary characters
- Julie Teeger (Emmy Clarke): teenage daughter of Natalie Teeger.
- Dr. Neven Bell (Héctor Elizondo): Adrian Monk's new therapist made his debut in season seven. Elizondo replaces actor Stanley Kamel who died suddenly on April 8, 2008.
- Benjamin "Benjy" Fleming (Kane Ritchotte during pilot episode and second and third seasons, Max Morrow during first season): Sharona's son. Last appearance was in season three, "Mr. Monk and the Employee of the Month."
- Dr. Charles Kroger (Stanley Kamel): Adrian Monk's psychiatrist. Actor Stanley Kamel died of a heart attack on April 8, 2008 between production of seasons six and seven. Dr. Kroger died of a heart attack in the show, as well. His last appearance was in season six, "Mr. Monk Paints His Masterpiece."
- Kevin Dorfman (Jarrad Paul): accountant and next-door neighbor of Monk. First appeared in "Mr. Monk and the Candidate." Dorfman was murdered in "Mr. Monk and the Magician."
- Harold J. Krenshaw, another patient of the Dr. Kroger with whom Mr. Monk supports constant disputes for his incompatible obsessions.
- Ambrose Monk (John Turturro): agoraphobic brother of Adrian Monk.
Episodes
While solving a murder is the plot for most episodes, there are a few episodes in which Monk helps investigate other crimes, such as a kidnapping in the season two episode "Mr. Monk and the Missing Granny."
In season seven, in the 100th episode, Mr. Monk solved his 100th case since Trudy died, a milestone in his career.
Production
According to an interview with executive producer David Hoberman, ABC first conceived the series as a police show with an Inspector Clouseau-like character suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder. Hoberman said ABC wanted Michael Richards for the show, but Richards turned it down. Hoberman brought in Andy Breckman as creator, and Breckman, inspired by Sherlock Holmes, introduced a Doctor Watson-like character as Monk's nurse and an Inspector Lestrade-like character which eventually became Captain Stottlemeyer.
Although ABC originated the show, the network handed it off to the USA Network. USA is now owned by NBC (NBC Universal). Monk was the first ABC Studios-produced show (formerly Touchstone Television) aired on USA Network instead of ABC. On January 12, 2006, USA Network announced that Monk had been picked up through at least season six as one of the "highest-rated series in cable history." Season 5 premiered Friday, July 7, 2006, at 9 p.m. Eastern time. This marked the first-time change for the program, which aired at 10 p.m. during its first four seasons. The change allowed the show to work as a lead-in to a new USA Network series, Psych, another offbeat detective program. Monk has followed a consistent format of airing half of its 16 episodes in the summer and the second half in the winter. USA Networks has recently announced that Monk's final season will run during the summer, 2009.
Previously aired episodes of Monk began airing on NBC Universal sibling network NBC April 6, 2008. NBC eyed the show because its block with Psych could be plugged into NBC's schedule intact. The shows are being used to increase the amount of scripted programming on the network as production of its own scripted programming ramp back up following the writers' strike. Ratings for the broadcast debut were well below NBC averages for the time period. The show came in third behind Big Brother 9 on CBS and Oprah's Big Give on ABC.
Location
Although set in San Francisco and its area, Monk is for the most part shot elsewhere except for occasional exteriors featuring city landmarks. The pilot episode was shot in Vancouver, British Columbia, and the subsequent Season 1 episodes were shot in the Toronto, Ontario, area. Most of the episodes in Seasons 2-6 were filmed in the Los Angeles, California, area, including on-stage at Ren-Mar Studios for seasons 2-5 and at Paramount Studios for season 6 (these include Adrian’s apartment, Stottlemeyer's precinct house, Dr. Kroger’s office and Natalie’s house).
Many scenes in Season 4 were shot in San Francisco, in downtown Union Square and Chinatown (shown in "Mr. Monk Gets Jury Duty," as the police chase Escobar up Jackson street).
Theme music
During the first season of Monk, the series used a jazzy instrumental intro to the show by songwriter Jeff Beal, performed by guitarist Grant Geissman.
The theme won the 2003 Emmy Award for Best Main Title Music.
When the second season began, the series had new theme music, a song entitled "It's a Jungle out There", by Randy Newman. Reaction to the new theme was mixed. A review of the second season of Monk in the New York Daily News included a wish that producers would revert to the original theme.
Shalhoub expressed his support for the new theme in USA Today, saying its "dark and mournful sound,...[its] tongue-in-cheek, darkly humorous side.... completely fits the tone of the show."
Newman was awarded the 2004 Emmy Award for Best Main Title Music for "It's a Jungle out There."
This debate was referenced in the episode "Mr. Monk and the TV Star," which features an actor who plays a detective in a TV show, and several characters mention an in-story controversy over the change of that show's theme music, including obsessed fan Marci Maven, played by Sarah Silverman. In the epilogue of the story, she implores Monk to promise her that he will never change the theme music if he ever gets his own show. When Monk agrees to the promise (only so he can go back to bed), the original music is heard as the scene fades to credits.
The original theme is also heard in episode 8 of season 3 as Monk drives to Los Angeles with his neighbor and father-in-law. It is also heard in several other episodes as the show enters the credits and then kicks into the new theme's instrumental.
For the season 6 episode, "Mr. Monk and the Rapper," guest star Snoop Dogg performed a hip-hop version of "It's a Jungle out There," and he accompanied Monk with "Here's What Happened" in rap form.
The June 16 2008 re-airing of the first episode featured a new credit sequence with the Newman theme.
Other media
Soundtrack
The show's soundtrack features its original music score.
The theme tune is played and sung by Randy Newman.
Podcast
A "behind the scenes" audio podcast with the stars of the show is available for download through the USA website
Novels
Lee Goldberg has written several novels based on the show. The novels are written through the eyes of Natalie, Mr. Monk's assistant. The first novel, Mr. Monk Goes to the Firehouse, was the basis for the fifth season episode "Mr. Monk Can't See a Thing."
DVD releases
Universal Studios Home Entertainment has released the first six seasons of Monk on DVD in Regions 1 and 2 for the very first time. Monk episodes from seasons 1–7 are now available on iTunes; Seasons 5, 6 and 7 are also available in HD.
| Title | Region 1 | Region 2 | Region 3 |
|---|
| Season One | June 15, 2004 | December 27, 2004 | January 20, 2005 | | Season Two | January 11, 2005 | July 18, 2005 | September 19, 2005 | | Season Three | June 5, 2005 | February 27, 2006 | March 7, 2006 | | Season Four | June 27, 2006 | September 18, 2006 | TBA | | Season Five | June 26, 2007 | September 17, 2007 | TBA | | Season Six | July 8, 2008 | September 8, 2008 | – | | Season Seven | TBA 2009 | TBA 2009 | TBA 2009 | | Seasons 1–4
(The Obsessive Compulsive Collection) | June 27, 2006 | November 20, 2006
(R2 has different cover art) | | Seasons 1–5 | N/A | October 22, 2007
(only available in R2) | | Seasons 1–6 | |
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Awards and nominations
Awards won
Emmy Awards:
- Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series Tony Shalhoub (2003, 2005, 2006)
- Outstanding Main Title Theme Music Jeff Beal (2003)
- Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series John Turturro (2004)
- Outstanding Main Title Theme Music Randy Newman (2004)
- Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series Stanley Tucci (2007)
Golden Globe Awards:
- Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy Tony Shalhoub (2003)
Screen Actors Guild:
- Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series Tony Shalhoub (2004, 2005)
Award nominations
Emmy Awards:
- Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series Tony Shalhoub (2003-2008) 6 nominations
- Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series for "Mr. Monk Takes His Medicine" Randall Zisk (2005)
- Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series Laurie Metcalf (2006)
- Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series Anya Colloff, Amy McIntyre Britt, Meg Liberman, Camille H. Patton, Sandi Logan, Lonnie Hamerman (2004)
Golden Globe Awards:
- Best Television Series - Musical or Comedy (2004)
- Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy Tony Shalhoub (2003-2005, 2007, 2009) 5 nominations
- Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy Bitty Schram (2004)
Screen Actors Guild:
- Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series Tony Shalhoub (2003-2005, 2007-2008) 5 nominations
Broadcasters
| Country | Alternate title/Translation | TV Network(s) | Series Premiere |
|---|
 | | Canal 13
Hallmark Channel | |  | | Ten HD (first run)
and TV1 (re-runs) | | | Austria | | ORF 1 | | | Belgium | | VTM | | | Bosnia and Herzegovina | | FTV | | | Brazil | Monk, um detetive diferente
(Monk, an unusual detective) | Rede Record | | | Bulgaria | ???? (Monk) | bTV
GTV
Diema | January 3, 2007 (bTV)
August 19, 2008 (GTV)
September 22, 2008 (Diema) | | Canada | | A-Channel, Citytv, TVA (French), Canal Mystère (French) | | | Colombia | | Record | | | Croatia | | HRT 2 | | | Cyprus | ?tet??t?ß ????
("Detective Monk") | CyBC | October 8, 2006 | | Czech Republic | Muj prítel Monk
("My friend Monk") | TV NOVA | | | Denmark | Monk (Canal+)/
Detektiv Monk (TV 2 Charlie/TV 2) | Canal+ (first run), TV 2 Charlie (re-runs), TV 2 (first run on national television) | | | Estonia | | TV 3 | September 6, 2003 | | Finland | | YLE | September 11, 2004 | | France | Monk | TF1, TV Breizh | March 22, 2003 | | Germany | | RTL | June 29, 2004 | | Greece | ?tet??t?ß ????
("Detective Monk") | Star Channel |
| | Hong Kong | ????
("Detective Monk") | TVB (Season 5) | September 18, 2003 | | Hungary | Monk, a flúgos nyomozó
("Monk, the nutter detective") | TV2 Viasat3 | | | Iceland | | Stöð 2 | | | India | | STAR World | | | Ireland | | RTÉ Finished showing Season 6 | | | Israel | ???? | Israel 10
and Hallmark
and Star World | | | Italy | Monk | Rete 4
Joi | June 9, 2005
May 1, 2008 | | Japan | ?????? [Meitantei Monk]
("Great detective Monk") | NHK BS-2 | May 30, 2004 | | Country | Alternate title/Translation | TV Network(s) | Series Premiere |
|---|
| Kenya | | Kenya Television Network | | | Lithuania | Detektyvas Monkas ("Detective Monk") | TV6 | September 6, 2003 | | South Korea | ?? ?? [Tam Jeong Monk]
("Detective Monk") | KBS 2TV & FOX | KBS : Only Broadcast Season 3 | | Mexico | | 4tv, The Hallmark Channel, Universal Channel | | | Netherlands | | SBS6 | December 6, 2007 | | New Zealand | | Television 3 and SKY 1 | | | Norway | | TV2 Zebra & Hallmark Channel | February 19, 2008 | | Philippines | | Star World | | | Poland | Detektyw Monk
("Detective Monk") | TVN (free-tv-premiere), TVN Siedem (re-runs)
Canal+ (first run), Canal+ Film (re-runs)
Universal Channel (re-runs) | April 11, 2003 | | Portugal | | TVI and FX | | | Romania | | Pro Cinema | | | Republic of Macedonia | | Kanal 5 | | | Russia | ??????????? ????????
("Defective Detective") | Channel One | 2006, first season only | ???????? ????
("Detective Monk") | Telekanal Zvezda | | | Serbia | | RTS | | | Slovakia | Monk | Markíza | | | Slovenia | | POP TV | September 8, 2004 | | South Africa | | SABC 2 | | | Spain | | Calle 13 cable/satellite
Canal 9 (Valencian Community)
ETB2 (Basque Country)
8tv (Catalonia)
TVG (Galicia)
TV Canaria (Canary Islands)
Telemadrid (Community of Madrid) | | | Sweden | | Canal+ Film 1 (first run)
and Kanal 9 (re-runs)
and Comedy Central Sweden (re-runs) | April 8, 2003 | | Switzerland | | SF 2, 3+, TSI 1, TSR 1 | | | Taiwan | Monk ???? | Videoland — W Movie Channel | July 14, 2004 | | Thailand | | Star World | | | Turkey | | Dizimax, TNT Turkey | | | United Kingdom | | BBC, Hallmark Channel | | | | | USA Network (original airing)
and Universal HD (syndication)
and NBC (syndication)
| July 12, 2002 |
External links
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