Pilot (Desperate Housewives episode)
Encyclopedia
The pilot episode of the American comedy-drama series Desperate Housewives
premiered on October 3, 2004 on the ABC network
. It was written by series creator Marc Cherry
and directed by Charles McDougall
. The pilot introduces the residents of the suburban neighborhood of Wisteria Lane
. Following the suicide of an outwardly successful neighbor, her friends begin to deal with the problems in their personal lives. Susan Mayer
(Teri Hatcher
) competes for the attention of a new plumber who has moved across the street; Bree Van de Kamp
(Marcia Cross
) struggles with her failing marriage and ungrateful family; Gabrielle Solis
(Eva Longoria
) continues an affair with her sixteen-year-old gardener; and Lynette Scavo
(Felicity Huffman
) copes with life as a stay-at-home mother of four.
Cherry conceived the idea for the series while watching coverage of the Andrea Yates murder trials, and was fascinated by how women lead lives of quiet desperation. He began writing the script in 2002 and pitched it to several networks throughout the following year. In October 2003, ABC announced that it had picked up the pilot. Casting began in February 2004 and filming took place the following month primarily on the Colonial Street
backlot
set at Universal Studios
. According to Nielsen ratings
, the episode was watched by 21.6 million viewers on its original American broadcast, becoming the most-watched program of the week. The pilot received extremely positive reviews, with critics complimenting the series' tonal diversity. The cast, particularly Hatcher, also received praise. The episode won various awards, including three Emmys.
focuses on the lives of several residents of the fictitious street of Wisteria Lane
. The suburban neighborhood is shocked by the suicide of Mary Alice Young
(Brenda Strong
), who seems to have led an ideal domestic life. Mary Alice's close friends, Susan Mayer
(Teri Hatcher
), Lynette Scavo
(Felicity Huffman
), Bree Van de Kamp
(Marcia Cross
), and Gabrielle Solis
(Eva Longoria
), struggle to come to terms with the news. Later, Mary Alice's son, Zach (Cody Kasch
), awakens in the middle of the night to find his father, Paul
(Mark Moses
), unearthing a mysterious chest from the drained swimming pool in their backyard.
Susan, a divorced mother, takes interest in Mike Delfino
(James Denton
), a plumber who has recently moved to Wisteria Lane; however, she faces competition with neighbor Edie Britt
(Nicollette Sheridan
), a promiscuous serial divorcee. Suspicious that Mike is spending the night with Edie, Susan enters Edie's home uninvited with the pretense of borrowing sugar. While inside, she accidentally knocks over a candle, which sets fire to the entire house. Susan flees the scene, leaving behind her glass measuring cup. Though wracked with guilt, Susan is relieved to learn that Mike was not the man with whom Edie was fornicating. Meanwhile, Lynette, a former career woman, is frustrated with raising four young children while her husband, Tom
(Doug Savant
), is constantly away on business.
Bree, a perfectionist homemaker who feels unappreciated by her family, is troubled when her husband Rex (Steven Culp
) asks for a divorce. She poisons him by mistakenly putting onions, to which he is deathly allergic, in his salad. At the hospital, Rex accuses Bree of being emotionally unavailable and obsessed with achieving domestic perfection. Elsewhere, Gabrielle, a former model, grows increasingly unhappy with her marriage to Carlos
(Ricardo Antonio Chavira
), who buys her love with extravagant gifts. She continues an affair with her sixteen-year-old gardener, John Rowland (Jesse Metcalfe
).
Paul asks Susan, Lynette, Bree, and Gabrielle to sort through Mary Alice's belongings, as he cannot bear to do so himself. In a box of Mary Alice's clothes, the women discover a blackmail note reading "I know what you did[.] It makes me sick[.] I'm going to tell[.]" The postmark indicates that Mary Alice received it the day she killed herself and the women begin to wonder what secret their friend could have been keeping.
was in a precarious financial situation and was having trouble finding a job. He commented, "I was broke, unable to get even an interview for a writing job, and seriously concerned about my future. I had just turned forty and was starting to wonder if I was one of those deluded writers that wander around Hollywood, convincing themselves they're talented when all the evidence points to the contrary." While watching television coverage of the Andrea Yates trials with his mother, Cherry turned to her and asked, "Can you imagine being so desperate that you would do that to your children?" to which his mother replied, "I've been there." Cherry was intrigued by the idea that a "perfectly sane, rational woman could have the life she wanted, being a wife and mother ... and still have moments of insanity;" he began writing the pilot episode soon after. Cherry originally developed the concept as a half-hour comedy. However, after his agent was arrested for embezzlement, Cherry signed with Paradigm Talent Agency
, where he was advised to rewrite the script as a soap opera. Cherry completed the first draft of the pilot in April 2002 and pitched the script to CBS
, NBC
, Fox
, HBO, Showtime, and Lifetime, all of which turned it down.
Following script rewrites, Cherry pitched the series to ABC
, who picked up the pilot. ABC executives were, however, concerned about the title of the series, which Cherry had selected before even writing the script. They suggested renaming the series Wisteria Lane or The Secret Lives of Housewives, but Cherry insisted on keeping the original title. He later commented, "I put 'desperate' [into the title] to try to indicate, however subtly ... I'm going to have some fun with the imagery, to take it to some interesting places. Most critics got the joke. Some people see the word 'housewives' and it pushes a button in them and they seem to lose all reason." The project was officially announced on October 23, 2003 as a cross between American Beauty
and Knot's Landing. While Desperate Housewives, along with fellow new series Grey's Anatomy
and Lost
, would later help reverse ABC's flagging fortune, network executives Lloyd Braun
and Susan Lyne were fired shortly after greenlighting these risky and expensive pilots.
reported seeing around 150 "very good and determined women" audition for the four leads. Eva Longoria was the first actor cast in a lead role, landing the role of Gabrielle Solis, a materialistic ex-model, after two auditions. Longoria, an unknown soap opera actress at the time, stated that prior to her audition, she had not read the entire script. She accounted, "Marc Cherry asks, 'So what did you think of the script?' like the whole thing. And I said, 'Well I didn’t read the script. I only read my part.' And Marc Cherry goes, 'I knew you were Gabrielle at that moment because it was such a Gabrielle thing to say.'" Roselyn Sánchez
also auditioned for the role. Teri Hatcher was cast in the role of Susan Mayer, a single mother looking for love, after a second audition for ABC network executives. Cherry commended Hatcher's audition, calling it "the best audition I've ever seen in network [television]." Actors originally considered for the role include Courteney Cox
, Calista Flockhart
, Mary-Louise Parker
, and Sela Ward
. Julia Louis-Dreyfus
also expressed interest in the role, but network executives felt she was not right for the part.
Cherry offered the role of Bree Van de Kamp, a "perfect homemaker" reminiscent of The Stepford Wives
, to Dana Delany
three times. Delany rejected the role, as it was too similar to her character on Pasadena
, but would later join the series in its fourth season as Katherine Mayfair
. Marcia Cross was later cast as Bree. Roma Downey
, Jeri Ryan
, and Stacey Travis
were also considered for the role, while Nicollette Sheridan auditioned for the part and was cast as neighborhood tramp Edie Britt instead. On her audition, Sheridan recalled, "At the end of the reading, the director looked at me and said, 'No, no, I see you as Edie.' I said, 'Oh, I see, I come in a housewife and mother of two and leave the slut.'" The Edie character was originally intended to be a small role, but it was expanded once Sheridan was cast. Felicity Huffman was cast as Lynette Scavo, a frustrated stay-at-home mother of four, after talking about her own experiences as a mother during her audition. Cherry called Huffman's casting "very lucky," commenting that "within fifteen minutes she had the part." Alex Kingston
read for the role of Lynette, and has since alleged that she was denied the role for being too heavy. The role of series narrator Mary Alice Young was given to Sheryl Lee
. Cross originally auditioned for the role before being cast as Bree instead. Jeanne Tripplehorn
and Heather Locklear
also auditioned for leading roles.
Ricardo Antonio Chavira was cast as Gabrielle’s wealthy and condescending husband, Carlos Solis. Kyle Searles
joined the cast as John Rowland, the Solis’ teenage gardener with whom Gabrielle is having an affair. Andrea Bowen
was hired to play Susan's teenage daughter, Julie, while James Denton was cast as Susan's love interest and new neighbor, plumber Mike Delfino. Mark Moses was cast as Paul, Mary Alice's mysterious husband, and Cody Kasch as their troubled teenage son Zach. Michael Reilly Burke
was cast as Bree's sexually dissatisfied husband, Rex Van de Kamp. The pilot also introduced several recurring cast members. Christine Estabrook appeared as nosy neighbor Martha Huber, a role originally intended for an Asian American actress. Doug Savant made his first appearance as Tom, Lynette's husband who is always away on business. Savant later became a series regular for the second season, a promise Cherry made to him when he signed on for the first season. Shawn Pyfrom
and Joy Lauren
each made their debut appearances as Andrew
and Danielle Van de Kamp, Bree's defiant teenage children. Cherry stated that casting the two roles was difficult because of their limited involvement in the first few episodes of the series. Additionally, Brent Kinsman, Shane Kinsman
, and Zane Huett
were cast respectively as Preston, Porter, and Parker Scavo, Lynette and Tom's three sons.
Filming for the pilot was initially intended to take place in an actual Los Angeles
neighborhood until the production team realized the difficulties that would ensue. Instead they chose Colonial Street
, a backlot
street set at Universal Studios Hollywood
. The house sets on Colonial Street had been used in numerous film and television productions as early as 1946. Many of the sets, whose styles ranged from contemporary to Victorian
to ranch
, were remodeled to create a uniform neighborhood. Cherry and production designer Thomas A. Walsh wanted the street to recall the Eisenhower era and convey traditional American values, but appear modern at the same time. Walsh viewed episodes of Father Knows Best
, My Three Sons
, and Leave It to Beaver
, among other television series, to capture the visual style of classic conservative America. Walsh commented, "We were trying to honor that sensibility and at the same time create an everyplace that was neither a red state nor a blue state." Instead, Walsh insisted that the street was in "kind of a pink state. We're somewhere in the middle of America's soul." Refurbishments of the house sets, which included building interior rooms, cost around $700,000. While Walsh strove for a visually unified look for the street as a whole, he carefully designed the interior of each home to reflect the tastes and budgets of the characters.
According to McDougall, another director was originally hired to work on the episode but quit after learning casting would be a group decision. Filming took place over thirteen days in March 2004. During filming, McDougall suggested removing references to pop culture from the script to ensure the pilot had "more of a timeless feel." ABC picked up the series for 13 episodes on May 18, 2004. In June, ABC called for three starring cast members to be recast. Jesse Metcalfe replaced Searles as John Rowland, as producers wanted to add more sexual appeal to the role "to justify why (Gabrielle) was having an affair." Metcalfe had previously read for the role during the initial casting process. The role of Rex Van de Kamp was given to Steven Culp, who was Cherry's first choice for the part but was unavailable when the original pilot was filmed. Brenda Strong took over the role of Mary Alice, as producers thought that Lee was not right for the part. Strong commented on the casting change for her character, explaining, "I think it was a conceptual shift ... There certainly wasn't something wrong with what [Lee] did. It was just that instead of vanilla they wanted chocolate, and I happened to be chocolate." Scenes featuring the original actors were refilmed with their replacements, however Burke and Searles are present in the background of some scenes in the final cut of the episode.
and on dry-cleaning bags across the country. The show's raciness prompted several advertisers to remove their commercials from the broadcast, but they were quickly replaced. The pilot premiered at 9 pm Eastern Time Zone
(ET) on October 3, 2004, one week after its intended broadcast date. The premiere drew 21.6 million viewers and an 8.9 rating/21 share among adults 18 to 49 years of age. It was the highest debut for an ABC series since Spin City
in 1996 and for any non-spinoff series since NBC's Inside Schwartz
in 2001, as well as the most-watched debut of a drama series in eleven years. The pilot was the most-watched program of the week and also had the highest rating among the demographic of women aged 18 to 49. Additionally, it was the most-watched program among men aged 18 to 34. In the United Kingdom, the pilot aired on Channel 4
on January 5, 2005 and drew 4.8 million viewers, the highest premiere for a drama series on the network since ER
nine years earlier.
of USA Today
gave the series premiere four out of four stars, commenting that it was as "involving as any new drama and funnier than any new sitcom [because it] matches high visual style with a witty-but-never arch sensibility." He highlighted the performances of the six leading actresses, writing, "Individually, each is terrific; combined, they're an irresistible feminine force", and praised Hatcher's "revelatory performance." Bianco also noted that Cherry avoided making the pilot campy
. The San Francisco Chronicle
Tim Goodman complimented the pilot's tonal diversity while expressing concern that American audiences would "tune in, get freaked out by the scattershot emotional chords and flip over to something safer." However, he praised Cherry's writing as well as the acting, declaring, "There are almost too many things to love in 'Desperate Housewives.'" In his review of the episode, Matthew Gilbert of The Boston Globe
commended the episode for its "marvelous tonal elasticity, as it stretches from sharp satire to dishy soap opera to tragique tribute and back again."
Justin Ravitz of PopMatters called the series a "cleverly trashy postmodern soap" and credited it for reviving the soap opera genre, which he felt had disappeared but still suited American culture. He compared the pilot to Sex and the City
, declaring it "could potentially replace the departed Sex as the TV Sunday ritual for women and gay men everywhere, although DH is the guiltier pleasure of the two." However, he noted the contrasting tones and dynamics between the two series, and stated that the friendships between Desperate Housewives four leading women seemed "tenuous," opining, "the sisterly, sugar-swapping connection between the surviving women is superficial, and clearly vulnerable to shifting alliances, acts of betrayal and crowd-pleasing cat-fights." Brian Lowry of Variety
called the pilot "oodles of fun." He complimented the cast, stating that while Hatcher provides "the emotional core" of the series, "nearly everyone is intriguing in one way or another," and predicted that Eva Longoria would become the show's breakout star. However, Lowry noted that Desperate Housewives may be "a little too smart for its own good" and expressed concern over the series' "soapy elements." Tom Shales of The Washington Post
praised the pilot, assessing, "In visual style, witty language, borderline surrealism and overall mad attitude, [the series] stands on a mountaintop all its own, the best new drama of the season and perhaps the best new comedy, too." He complimented Cross and Hatcher's performances, as well as the writing for the Mary Alice character's narrations.
(Charles McDougall), and Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series
(Michael Berenbaum). Marc Cherry was nominated for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series. Berenbaum also won for an American Cinema Editor's Award for his work on the episode. McDougall was also nominated for a Directors Guild of America Award for directing the episode.
Desperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives is an American television comedy-drama series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. Executive producer Cherry serves as Showrunner. Other executive producers since the fourth season include Marc Cherry, Bob Daily, George W...
premiered on October 3, 2004 on the ABC network
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
. It was written by series creator Marc Cherry
Marc Cherry
Marc Cherry is an American writer and producer, best known for creating the show Desperate Housewives.-Early life and career:...
and directed by Charles McDougall
Charles McDougall
Charles McDougall is a British Emmy Award and BAFTA-winning director.-Biography:McDougall has directed for popular television series which include the pilot episode of ABC's Desperate Housewives . McDougall has also directed episodes of Queer as Folk on Channel 4 and Sex and the City on HBO...
. The pilot introduces the residents of the suburban neighborhood of Wisteria Lane
Wisteria Lane
Wisteria Lane is the fictional name of a street which the characters of the American drama television series Desperate Housewives live. Desperate Housewives storylines primarily centre around the residents of the street. Wisteria Lane is located inside Universal Studios Hollywood, and is actually...
. Following the suicide of an outwardly successful neighbor, her friends begin to deal with the problems in their personal lives. Susan Mayer
Susan Mayer
Susan Delfino is a fictional character played by Teri Hatcher on the American Broadcasting Company television series Desperate Housewives. The character was created by television producer and screenwriter Marc Cherry and first appeared in the pilot episode of the series on October 3, 2004...
(Teri Hatcher
Teri Hatcher
Teri Lynn Hatcher is an American actress, writer, and presenter. She is known for her television roles as Susan Mayer on the ABC comedy-drama series Desperate Housewives, and Lois Lane on the ABC comedy-drama series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman...
) competes for the attention of a new plumber who has moved across the street; Bree Van de Kamp
Bree Van De Kamp
Bree Van de Kamp is a fictional character on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives, played by Marcia Cross. Actress Marcia Cross was nominated from 2005 to 2007 for a Golden Globe Award in the category of Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy...
(Marcia Cross
Marcia Cross
Marcia Anne Cross is an American actress. She is known for her television roles as Bree Van de Kamp on the ABC comedy-drama series Desperate Housewives, and as Dr...
) struggles with her failing marriage and ungrateful family; Gabrielle Solis
Gabrielle Solis
Gabrielle Solís is one of four main characters on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives. She is portrayed by Eva Longoria...
(Eva Longoria
Eva Longoria
Eva Jacqueline Longoria is an American actress, best known for portraying Gabrielle Solis on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives...
) continues an affair with her sixteen-year-old gardener; and Lynette Scavo
Lynette Scavo
Lynette Scavo is a fictional character on the series Desperate Housewives. The character is playedby actress Felicity Huffman, who won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for the role in 2005, and was nominated for Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series...
(Felicity Huffman
Felicity Huffman
Felicity Kendall Huffman is an American film, stage, and television actress. She is known for her role as executive producer Dana Whitaker on the ABC television show Sports Night , which earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination, and as hectic supermom Lynette Scavo on the ABC show Desperate...
) copes with life as a stay-at-home mother of four.
Cherry conceived the idea for the series while watching coverage of the Andrea Yates murder trials, and was fascinated by how women lead lives of quiet desperation. He began writing the script in 2002 and pitched it to several networks throughout the following year. In October 2003, ABC announced that it had picked up the pilot. Casting began in February 2004 and filming took place the following month primarily on the Colonial Street
Colonial Street
Colonial Street is one of the backlot street sets at Universal Studios Hollywood. The street set has a long history, spanning over 60 years of movies and television...
backlot
Backlot
A backlot is an area behind or adjoining a movie studio, containing permanent exterior buildings for outdoor scenes in filmmaking or television productions, or space for temporary set construction....
set at Universal Studios
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
. According to Nielsen ratings
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
, the episode was watched by 21.6 million viewers on its original American broadcast, becoming the most-watched program of the week. The pilot received extremely positive reviews, with critics complimenting the series' tonal diversity. The cast, particularly Hatcher, also received praise. The episode won various awards, including three Emmys.
Plot
Desperate HousewivesDesperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives is an American television comedy-drama series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. Executive producer Cherry serves as Showrunner. Other executive producers since the fourth season include Marc Cherry, Bob Daily, George W...
focuses on the lives of several residents of the fictitious street of Wisteria Lane
Wisteria Lane
Wisteria Lane is the fictional name of a street which the characters of the American drama television series Desperate Housewives live. Desperate Housewives storylines primarily centre around the residents of the street. Wisteria Lane is located inside Universal Studios Hollywood, and is actually...
. The suburban neighborhood is shocked by the suicide of Mary Alice Young
Mary Alice Young
Mary Alice Young is a fictional character on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives. The character is played by actress Brenda Strong and narrates the series from beyond the grave; the character's suicide in the pilot episode served as the catalyst of the series...
(Brenda Strong
Brenda Strong
Brenda Lee Strong is an American actress and yoga instructor, known for her roles as as Capt. Deladier in the 1997 hit movie Starship Troopers and Mary Alice Young on the television show Desperate Housewives....
), who seems to have led an ideal domestic life. Mary Alice's close friends, Susan Mayer
Susan Mayer
Susan Delfino is a fictional character played by Teri Hatcher on the American Broadcasting Company television series Desperate Housewives. The character was created by television producer and screenwriter Marc Cherry and first appeared in the pilot episode of the series on October 3, 2004...
(Teri Hatcher
Teri Hatcher
Teri Lynn Hatcher is an American actress, writer, and presenter. She is known for her television roles as Susan Mayer on the ABC comedy-drama series Desperate Housewives, and Lois Lane on the ABC comedy-drama series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman...
), Lynette Scavo
Lynette Scavo
Lynette Scavo is a fictional character on the series Desperate Housewives. The character is playedby actress Felicity Huffman, who won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for the role in 2005, and was nominated for Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series...
(Felicity Huffman
Felicity Huffman
Felicity Kendall Huffman is an American film, stage, and television actress. She is known for her role as executive producer Dana Whitaker on the ABC television show Sports Night , which earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination, and as hectic supermom Lynette Scavo on the ABC show Desperate...
), Bree Van de Kamp
Bree Van De Kamp
Bree Van de Kamp is a fictional character on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives, played by Marcia Cross. Actress Marcia Cross was nominated from 2005 to 2007 for a Golden Globe Award in the category of Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy...
(Marcia Cross
Marcia Cross
Marcia Anne Cross is an American actress. She is known for her television roles as Bree Van de Kamp on the ABC comedy-drama series Desperate Housewives, and as Dr...
), and Gabrielle Solis
Gabrielle Solis
Gabrielle Solís is one of four main characters on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives. She is portrayed by Eva Longoria...
(Eva Longoria
Eva Longoria
Eva Jacqueline Longoria is an American actress, best known for portraying Gabrielle Solis on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives...
), struggle to come to terms with the news. Later, Mary Alice's son, Zach (Cody Kasch
Cody Kasch
-Early life:Kasch was born of Scottish heritage in Santa Monica, California and raised in Ojai, California on a working ranch until he was nearly fourteen, when he moved to Camarillo, California.-Movie career:...
), awakens in the middle of the night to find his father, Paul
Paul Young (Desperate Housewives)
Paul Young is a fictional character on ABC television series Desperate Housewives. The character is played by actor Mark Moses. He is the widower of Mary Alice Young, the show's narrator, as well as the widower of Beth Young....
(Mark Moses
Mark Moses
Mark W. Moses is an American actor, known for his roles of Paul Young on Desperate Housewives and Herman "Duck" Phillips on the AMC series Mad Men.-Life and career:...
), unearthing a mysterious chest from the drained swimming pool in their backyard.
Susan, a divorced mother, takes interest in Mike Delfino
Mike Delfino
Michael "Mike" Delfino is the name of a fictional character on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives. The character is played by actor James Denton.- Season 1 :...
(James Denton
James Denton (actor)
James "Jamie" Thomas Denton, Jr. is an American film and television actor, best known for playing Mike Delfino in the television series Desperate Housewives.-Early life:...
), a plumber who has recently moved to Wisteria Lane; however, she faces competition with neighbor Edie Britt
Edie Britt
Edie Britt Williams is a fictional character created by television producer and screenwriter Marc Cherry for the ABC television series Desperate Housewives...
(Nicollette Sheridan
Nicollette Sheridan
Nicollette Sheridan is an English film and television actress. She is best known for her roles as Edie Britt on Desperate Housewives and as Paige Matheson on Knots Landing.-Early life:...
), a promiscuous serial divorcee. Suspicious that Mike is spending the night with Edie, Susan enters Edie's home uninvited with the pretense of borrowing sugar. While inside, she accidentally knocks over a candle, which sets fire to the entire house. Susan flees the scene, leaving behind her glass measuring cup. Though wracked with guilt, Susan is relieved to learn that Mike was not the man with whom Edie was fornicating. Meanwhile, Lynette, a former career woman, is frustrated with raising four young children while her husband, Tom
Tom Scavo
Thomas "Tom" Scavo is a fictional character on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives, played by actor Doug Savant.Tom originally was a recurring throughout the first season but became a regular in season two. Early storylines often revolve around Tom's working habits and that he is alway...
(Doug Savant
Doug Savant
Douglas Peter "Doug" Savant is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Matt Fielding on Melrose Place and Tom Scavo on the ABC dramedy series Desperate Housewives.-Career:...
), is constantly away on business.
Bree, a perfectionist homemaker who feels unappreciated by her family, is troubled when her husband Rex (Steven Culp
Steven Culp
Steven Bradford Culp is an American film and television actor, best known for his roles as Rex Van de Kamp in the television series Desperate Housewives and CIA Agent Clayton Webb in JAG.-Early life:...
) asks for a divorce. She poisons him by mistakenly putting onions, to which he is deathly allergic, in his salad. At the hospital, Rex accuses Bree of being emotionally unavailable and obsessed with achieving domestic perfection. Elsewhere, Gabrielle, a former model, grows increasingly unhappy with her marriage to Carlos
Carlos Solis
Carlos Solis is a fictional character on the ABC television series, Desperate Housewives. The character is played by actor Ricardo Antonio Chavira.-Early life:Carlos was born in Guadalajara, Mexico to Juanita and Diego Solis...
(Ricardo Antonio Chavira
Ricardo Antonio Chavira
Ricardo Antonio Chavira is an American actor, perhaps best known for his role as Carlos Solis on Desperate Housewives.-Early life:...
), who buys her love with extravagant gifts. She continues an affair with her sixteen-year-old gardener, John Rowland (Jesse Metcalfe
Jesse Metcalfe
Jesse Eden Metcalfe is an American actor, best known for his role on Desperate Housewives as John Rowland. He is also notable for his portrayal of Miguel Lopez-Fitzgerald on the soap opera Passions and his starring role as the title character in the movie John Tucker Must Die.-Early life:Metcalfe...
).
Paul asks Susan, Lynette, Bree, and Gabrielle to sort through Mary Alice's belongings, as he cannot bear to do so himself. In a box of Mary Alice's clothes, the women discover a blackmail note reading "I know what you did[.] It makes me sick[.] I'm going to tell[.]" The postmark indicates that Mary Alice received it the day she killed herself and the women begin to wonder what secret their friend could have been keeping.
Creation and development
In 2002, Marc CherryMarc Cherry
Marc Cherry is an American writer and producer, best known for creating the show Desperate Housewives.-Early life and career:...
was in a precarious financial situation and was having trouble finding a job. He commented, "I was broke, unable to get even an interview for a writing job, and seriously concerned about my future. I had just turned forty and was starting to wonder if I was one of those deluded writers that wander around Hollywood, convincing themselves they're talented when all the evidence points to the contrary." While watching television coverage of the Andrea Yates trials with his mother, Cherry turned to her and asked, "Can you imagine being so desperate that you would do that to your children?" to which his mother replied, "I've been there." Cherry was intrigued by the idea that a "perfectly sane, rational woman could have the life she wanted, being a wife and mother ... and still have moments of insanity;" he began writing the pilot episode soon after. Cherry originally developed the concept as a half-hour comedy. However, after his agent was arrested for embezzlement, Cherry signed with Paradigm Talent Agency
Paradigm Talent Agency
Paradigm is a full service entertainment agency based in Beverly Hills, with offices in New York, Monterey and Nashville, and is considered be one of the "Big Five" US talent agencies...
, where he was advised to rewrite the script as a soap opera. Cherry completed the first draft of the pilot in April 2002 and pitched the script to CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
, NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
, Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
, HBO, Showtime, and Lifetime, all of which turned it down.
Following script rewrites, Cherry pitched the series to ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
, who picked up the pilot. ABC executives were, however, concerned about the title of the series, which Cherry had selected before even writing the script. They suggested renaming the series Wisteria Lane or The Secret Lives of Housewives, but Cherry insisted on keeping the original title. He later commented, "I put 'desperate' [into the title] to try to indicate, however subtly ... I'm going to have some fun with the imagery, to take it to some interesting places. Most critics got the joke. Some people see the word 'housewives' and it pushes a button in them and they seem to lose all reason." The project was officially announced on October 23, 2003 as a cross between American Beauty
American Beauty (film)
American Beauty is a 1999 American drama film directed by Sam Mendes and written by Alan Ball. Kevin Spacey stars as Lester Burnham, a middle-aged magazine writer who has a midlife crisis when he becomes infatuated with his teenage daughter's best friend, Angela...
and Knot's Landing. While Desperate Housewives, along with fellow new series Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy is an American medical drama television series created by Shonda Rhimes. The series premiered on March 27, 2005 on ABC; since then, seven seasons have aired. The series follows the lives of interns, residents and their mentors in the fictional Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital in...
and Lost
Lost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...
, would later help reverse ABC's flagging fortune, network executives Lloyd Braun
Lloyd Braun
Lloyd Braun is a television and Internet media executive who currently runs the entertainment firm BermanBraun.-Early life and career:Braun earned his B.A. from Vassar College in 1980, and his law degree from Hastings College of the Law in 1983...
and Susan Lyne were fired shortly after greenlighting these risky and expensive pilots.
Casting
Casting for Desperate Housewives began in February 2004. Director Charles McDougallCharles McDougall
Charles McDougall is a British Emmy Award and BAFTA-winning director.-Biography:McDougall has directed for popular television series which include the pilot episode of ABC's Desperate Housewives . McDougall has also directed episodes of Queer as Folk on Channel 4 and Sex and the City on HBO...
reported seeing around 150 "very good and determined women" audition for the four leads. Eva Longoria was the first actor cast in a lead role, landing the role of Gabrielle Solis, a materialistic ex-model, after two auditions. Longoria, an unknown soap opera actress at the time, stated that prior to her audition, she had not read the entire script. She accounted, "Marc Cherry asks, 'So what did you think of the script?' like the whole thing. And I said, 'Well I didn’t read the script. I only read my part.' And Marc Cherry goes, 'I knew you were Gabrielle at that moment because it was such a Gabrielle thing to say.'" Roselyn Sánchez
Roselyn Sanchez
Roselyn Sánchez is a Puerto Rican singer-songwriter, model, actress, producer and writer of film and television.-Early life:...
also auditioned for the role. Teri Hatcher was cast in the role of Susan Mayer, a single mother looking for love, after a second audition for ABC network executives. Cherry commended Hatcher's audition, calling it "the best audition I've ever seen in network [television]." Actors originally considered for the role include Courteney Cox
Courteney Cox
Courteney Bass Cox is an American actress, she is best known for her roles as Monica Geller on the NBC sitcom Friends, Gale Weathers in the horror series Scream and as Jules Cobb in the ABC sitcom Cougar Town, for which she earned her first Golden Globe nomination....
, Calista Flockhart
Calista Flockhart
Calista Kay Flockhart is an American actress who is primarily recognized for her work in television. She is best known for playing the title character in the Fox comedy-drama series Ally McBeal for which she won a Golden Globe Award...
, Mary-Louise Parker
Mary-Louise Parker
Mary-Louise Parker is an American actress, known for her current lead role on Showtime's television series Weeds portraying Nancy Botwin, for which she has received several nominations and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in 2006...
, and Sela Ward
Sela Ward
Sela Ann Ward is an American movie and television actress, perhaps best known for her television roles as Teddy Reed on the American TV series Sisters and as Lily Manning on Once and Again...
. Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Julia Scarlett Elizabeth Louis-Dreyfus is an American actress and comedienne, widely known for her sitcom roles in Seinfeld and The New Adventures of Old Christine....
also expressed interest in the role, but network executives felt she was not right for the part.
Cherry offered the role of Bree Van de Kamp, a "perfect homemaker" reminiscent of The Stepford Wives
The Stepford Wives
The Stepford Wives is a 1972 satirical thriller novel by Ira Levin. The story concerns Joanna Eberhart, a photographer and young mother who begins to suspect that the frighteningly submissive housewives in her new idyllic Connecticut neighborhood may be robots created by their husbands.Two films of...
, to Dana Delany
Dana Delany
Dana Welles Delany is an American film, stage, and television actress, producer, host and health activist.After various roles in the early career, Delany garnered her first leading role in 1987 in the short-lived NBC sitcom Sweet Surrender and achieved wider fame in 1988–1991 as Colleen McMurphy...
three times. Delany rejected the role, as it was too similar to her character on Pasadena
Pasadena (TV series)
Pasadena is an American primetime soap opera originally broadcast in the U.S. from September to November 2001 on Fox.-Summary:The series starred Alison Lohman as Lily McAllister, an initially naïve young woman who witnesses a stranger's suicide and begins to investigate the secrets being hidden by...
, but would later join the series in its fourth season as Katherine Mayfair
Katherine Mayfair
Katherine Mayfair is a fictional character created by television producer and screenwriter Marc Cherry for the ABC television series Desperate Housewives...
. Marcia Cross was later cast as Bree. Roma Downey
Roma Downey
Roma Downey is an actress, singer, and producer, from Derry, Northern Ireland. She is best known as Tess's angel/employee, Monica, the main character of the TV series Touched by an Angel. She is also the wife of television producer, Mark Burnett.-Early life:Downey was born and raised in Derry...
, Jeri Ryan
Jeri Ryan
Jeri Lynn Zimmermann Ryan is an American actress best known for her roles as the liberated Borg, Seven of Nine, on Star Trek: Voyager; Tara Cole on Leverage; and Veronica "Ronnie" Cooke on Boston Public. She was also a regular on the science fiction show Dark Skies and the legal drama series...
, and Stacey Travis
Stacey Travis
Stacey Travis is an American actress whose films include Earth Girls Are Easy , Hardware , The Super , Traffic , and Ghost World . Travis starred on the comedy TV series Just Say Julie from 1989–1992 where she played a variety of characters...
were also considered for the role, while Nicollette Sheridan auditioned for the part and was cast as neighborhood tramp Edie Britt instead. On her audition, Sheridan recalled, "At the end of the reading, the director looked at me and said, 'No, no, I see you as Edie.' I said, 'Oh, I see, I come in a housewife and mother of two and leave the slut.'" The Edie character was originally intended to be a small role, but it was expanded once Sheridan was cast. Felicity Huffman was cast as Lynette Scavo, a frustrated stay-at-home mother of four, after talking about her own experiences as a mother during her audition. Cherry called Huffman's casting "very lucky," commenting that "within fifteen minutes she had the part." Alex Kingston
Alex Kingston
Alexandra Elizabeth "Alex" Kingston is an English actress. She is most widely known for her roles as Dr. Elizabeth Corday on the NBC medical drama ER and as River Song in Doctor Who.-Early life and education:...
read for the role of Lynette, and has since alleged that she was denied the role for being too heavy. The role of series narrator Mary Alice Young was given to Sheryl Lee
Sheryl Lee
Sheryl Lee is an American actress. She came to international attention for her performances as Laura Palmer and Maddy Ferguson on the 1990 cult TV series Twin Peaks and in the 1992 film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me...
. Cross originally auditioned for the role before being cast as Bree instead. Jeanne Tripplehorn
Jeanne Tripplehorn
Jeanne Marie Tripplehorn is an American film and television actress. She was brought to the public's attention through her supporting role in the 1992 film Basic Instinct, and since 2006 has starred opposite Bill Paxton in the HBO drama Big Love.-Early life:Tripplehorn was born in Tulsa,...
and Heather Locklear
Heather Locklear
Heather Deen Locklear is an American actress best known for her television roles as Sammy Jo Carrington on Dynasty, Officer Stacy Sheridan on T.J...
also auditioned for leading roles.
Ricardo Antonio Chavira was cast as Gabrielle’s wealthy and condescending husband, Carlos Solis. Kyle Searles
Kyle Searles
Kyle Evan Searles is an American actor best known for his recurring roles on 7th Heaven, The George Lopez Show and Dawson's Creek. Other guest appearances include an episode of Veronica Mars and Malcolm in the Middle. Searles also appeared as a contestant on the reality show Moolah Beach, in the...
joined the cast as John Rowland, the Solis’ teenage gardener with whom Gabrielle is having an affair. Andrea Bowen
Andrea Bowen
Andrea Lauren Bowen is an American actress who is best known for playing Julie Mayer on Desperate Housewives . She has won two SAG Awards.-Biography:...
was hired to play Susan's teenage daughter, Julie, while James Denton was cast as Susan's love interest and new neighbor, plumber Mike Delfino. Mark Moses was cast as Paul, Mary Alice's mysterious husband, and Cody Kasch as their troubled teenage son Zach. Michael Reilly Burke
Michael Reilly Burke
Michael Reilly Burke is an American actor. He played Rex Van De Kamp on the unaired pilot of Desperate Housewives. Steven Culp replaced him before the pilot aired. He also appeared in The WB series Charmed in the episode Heartbreak City...
was cast as Bree's sexually dissatisfied husband, Rex Van de Kamp. The pilot also introduced several recurring cast members. Christine Estabrook appeared as nosy neighbor Martha Huber, a role originally intended for an Asian American actress. Doug Savant made his first appearance as Tom, Lynette's husband who is always away on business. Savant later became a series regular for the second season, a promise Cherry made to him when he signed on for the first season. Shawn Pyfrom
Shawn Pyfrom
Shawn Caminiti Pyfrom is an American actor who has appeared in several television series and movies, and is best known for his portrayal of Andrew Van de Kamp on ABC's Desperate Housewives-Life and career:...
and Joy Lauren
Joy Lauren
Joy Lauren is an American actress who is best known for playing Danielle Van de Kamp, on the hit ABC Comedy-drama Desperate Housewives....
each made their debut appearances as Andrew
Andrew Van De Kamp
Andrew Van de Kamp is a fictional character in the ABC television series Desperate Housewives played by Shawn Pyfrom, and is the son of Bree Van de Kamp and the late Rex Van de Kamp....
and Danielle Van de Kamp, Bree's defiant teenage children. Cherry stated that casting the two roles was difficult because of their limited involvement in the first few episodes of the series. Additionally, Brent Kinsman, Shane Kinsman
Shane Kinsman
Shane Kinsman is an American child actor who typically plays a rambunctious twin alongside his identical twin brother Brent. He played Kyle Baker in the 2003 film Cheaper by the Dozen and its 2005 sequel Cheaper by the Dozen 2...
, and Zane Huett
Zane Huett
Zane Alexander Huett is an American child actor.Zane is most famous for his featured role on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives playing the role of Parker Scavo, the younger son of Lynette and Tom Scavo. He plays the youngest Scavo boy, yet is older by six months than the actors Brent...
were cast respectively as Preston, Porter, and Parker Scavo, Lynette and Tom's three sons.
Filming and subsequent casting changes
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
neighborhood until the production team realized the difficulties that would ensue. Instead they chose Colonial Street
Colonial Street
Colonial Street is one of the backlot street sets at Universal Studios Hollywood. The street set has a long history, spanning over 60 years of movies and television...
, a backlot
Backlot
A backlot is an area behind or adjoining a movie studio, containing permanent exterior buildings for outdoor scenes in filmmaking or television productions, or space for temporary set construction....
street set at Universal Studios Hollywood
Universal Studios Hollywood
Universal Studios Hollywood is a movie studio and theme park in the unincorporated Universal City community of Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is one of the oldest and most famous Hollywood movie studios still in use...
. The house sets on Colonial Street had been used in numerous film and television productions as early as 1946. Many of the sets, whose styles ranged from contemporary to Victorian
Victorian house
In the United Kingdom, and former British colonies, a Victorian house generally means any house built during the reign of Queen Victoria...
to ranch
Ranch-style house
Ranch-style houses is a domestic architectural style originating in the United States. First built in the 1920s, the ranch style was extremely popular amongst the booming post-war middle class of the 1940s to 1970s...
, were remodeled to create a uniform neighborhood. Cherry and production designer Thomas A. Walsh wanted the street to recall the Eisenhower era and convey traditional American values, but appear modern at the same time. Walsh viewed episodes of Father Knows Best
Father Knows Best
Father Knows Best is an American radio and television comedy series which portrayed a middle class family life in the Midwest. It was created by writer Ed James in the 1940s.-Radio:...
, My Three Sons
My Three Sons
My Three Sons is an American situation comedy. The series ran from 1960 to 1965 on ABC, and moved to CBS until its end on August 24, 1972. My Three Sons chronicles the life of a widower and aeronautical engineer named Steven Douglas , raising his three sons.The series was a cornerstone of the CBS...
, and Leave It to Beaver
Leave It to Beaver
Leave It to Beaver is an American television situation comedy about an inquisitive but often naïve boy named Theodore "The Beaver" Cleaver and his adventures at home, in school, and around his suburban neighborhood...
, among other television series, to capture the visual style of classic conservative America. Walsh commented, "We were trying to honor that sensibility and at the same time create an everyplace that was neither a red state nor a blue state." Instead, Walsh insisted that the street was in "kind of a pink state. We're somewhere in the middle of America's soul." Refurbishments of the house sets, which included building interior rooms, cost around $700,000. While Walsh strove for a visually unified look for the street as a whole, he carefully designed the interior of each home to reflect the tastes and budgets of the characters.
According to McDougall, another director was originally hired to work on the episode but quit after learning casting would be a group decision. Filming took place over thirteen days in March 2004. During filming, McDougall suggested removing references to pop culture from the script to ensure the pilot had "more of a timeless feel." ABC picked up the series for 13 episodes on May 18, 2004. In June, ABC called for three starring cast members to be recast. Jesse Metcalfe replaced Searles as John Rowland, as producers wanted to add more sexual appeal to the role "to justify why (Gabrielle) was having an affair." Metcalfe had previously read for the role during the initial casting process. The role of Rex Van de Kamp was given to Steven Culp, who was Cherry's first choice for the part but was unavailable when the original pilot was filmed. Brenda Strong took over the role of Mary Alice, as producers thought that Lee was not right for the part. Strong commented on the casting change for her character, explaining, "I think it was a conceptual shift ... There certainly wasn't something wrong with what [Lee] did. It was just that instead of vanilla they wanted chocolate, and I happened to be chocolate." Scenes featuring the original actors were refilmed with their replacements, however Burke and Searles are present in the background of some scenes in the final cut of the episode.
Promotion and viewership
To promote the series, ABC issued a laundry-themed campaign and purchased advertisement space in magazines such as InStyle and PeoplePeople (magazine)
In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
and on dry-cleaning bags across the country. The show's raciness prompted several advertisers to remove their commercials from the broadcast, but they were quickly replaced. The pilot premiered at 9 pm Eastern Time Zone
Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
(ET) on October 3, 2004, one week after its intended broadcast date. The premiere drew 21.6 million viewers and an 8.9 rating/21 share among adults 18 to 49 years of age. It was the highest debut for an ABC series since Spin City
Spin City
Spin City is an American sitcom television series that aired from September 17, 1996 until April 30, 2002 on the ABC network. Created by Gary David Goldberg and Bill Lawrence, the show was based on a fictional local government running New York City, and originally starred Michael J. Fox as Mike...
in 1996 and for any non-spinoff series since NBC's Inside Schwartz
Inside Schwartz
Inside Schwartz was an American sitcom starring Breckin Meyer as the titular character. The show was produced by 20th Century Fox Television and National Broadcasting Company and first aired on NBC.- Plot :...
in 2001, as well as the most-watched debut of a drama series in eleven years. The pilot was the most-watched program of the week and also had the highest rating among the demographic of women aged 18 to 49. Additionally, it was the most-watched program among men aged 18 to 34. In the United Kingdom, the pilot aired on Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
on January 5, 2005 and drew 4.8 million viewers, the highest premiere for a drama series on the network since ER
ER (TV series)
ER is an American medical drama television series created by novelist Michael Crichton that aired on NBC from September 19, 1994 to April 2, 2009. It was produced by Constant c Productions and Amblin Entertainment, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
nine years earlier.
Critical reception
The pilot was met with extremely positive critical reception. Robert BiancoRobert Bianco
Robert Bianco is an American television critic. He currently works for USA Today and has an online column. He began his career as a restaurant critic in Pittsburgh and eventually became a television critic at the Pittsburgh Press.-References:...
of USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
gave the series premiere four out of four stars, commenting that it was as "involving as any new drama and funnier than any new sitcom [because it] matches high visual style with a witty-but-never arch sensibility." He highlighted the performances of the six leading actresses, writing, "Individually, each is terrific; combined, they're an irresistible feminine force", and praised Hatcher's "revelatory performance." Bianco also noted that Cherry avoided making the pilot campy
Camp (style)
Camp is an aesthetic sensibility that regards something as appealing because of its taste and ironic value. The concept is closely related to kitsch, and things with camp appeal may also be described as being "cheesy"...
. The San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
Tim Goodman complimented the pilot's tonal diversity while expressing concern that American audiences would "tune in, get freaked out by the scattershot emotional chords and flip over to something safer." However, he praised Cherry's writing as well as the acting, declaring, "There are almost too many things to love in 'Desperate Housewives.'" In his review of the episode, Matthew Gilbert of The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
commended the episode for its "marvelous tonal elasticity, as it stretches from sharp satire to dishy soap opera to tragique tribute and back again."
Justin Ravitz of PopMatters called the series a "cleverly trashy postmodern soap" and credited it for reviving the soap opera genre, which he felt had disappeared but still suited American culture. He compared the pilot to Sex and the City
Sex and the City
Sex and the City is an American television comedy-drama series created by Darren Star and produced by HBO. Broadcast from 1998 until 2004, the original run of the show had a total of ninety-four episodes...
, declaring it "could potentially replace the departed Sex as the TV Sunday ritual for women and gay men everywhere, although DH is the guiltier pleasure of the two." However, he noted the contrasting tones and dynamics between the two series, and stated that the friendships between Desperate Housewives four leading women seemed "tenuous," opining, "the sisterly, sugar-swapping connection between the surviving women is superficial, and clearly vulnerable to shifting alliances, acts of betrayal and crowd-pleasing cat-fights." Brian Lowry of Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
called the pilot "oodles of fun." He complimented the cast, stating that while Hatcher provides "the emotional core" of the series, "nearly everyone is intriguing in one way or another," and predicted that Eva Longoria would become the show's breakout star. However, Lowry noted that Desperate Housewives may be "a little too smart for its own good" and expressed concern over the series' "soapy elements." Tom Shales of The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
praised the pilot, assessing, "In visual style, witty language, borderline surrealism and overall mad attitude, [the series] stands on a mountaintop all its own, the best new drama of the season and perhaps the best new comedy, too." He complimented Cross and Hatcher's performances, as well as the writing for the Mary Alice character's narrations.
Awards
The pilot episode won three Emmy Awards: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series (Felicity Huffman), Outstanding Directing for a Comedy SeriesPrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series
The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series is an Emmy presented to the best directing of a television comedy series.-1960s:*1960: Ralph Levy / Bud Yorkin – Jack Benny Hour Specials...
(Charles McDougall), and Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series
This is a list of winners and nominees of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Picture-Editing for a Comedy Series. It was created in 2003 alongside Outstanding Picture-Editing for a Drama Series...
(Michael Berenbaum). Marc Cherry was nominated for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series. Berenbaum also won for an American Cinema Editor's Award for his work on the episode. McDougall was also nominated for a Directors Guild of America Award for directing the episode.
External links
- "Pilot" at ABC.comAmerican Broadcasting CompanyThe American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...