Secrets of a Small Town
Encyclopedia
Secrets of A Small Town is a television pilot
ordered by ABC for the 2006-2007 television season by ABC
. Despite being rated as 'one of the highest testing dramas', the show was not picked up for series order as part of ABC's fall lineup due to its high budget. It was created by Charles Pratt, Jr.
(current Head Writer
/Consulting Producer of ABC Daytime
's All My Children
) and directed by Adam Davidson. Bert Salke and Chris Brancato
also serve as executive producer
s.
The show's cast includes well-known actors such as Denise Richards
, John Terry
and Angie Harmon
.
The small, seemingly perfect town of Santa Ruiz is stunned by these crimes - the first such serious acts in a century. While the police investigate, Steele has her own advantages: notably, her inside knowledge of the three big families in town. However, she also had her own reasons for leaving the town, which all come back to her.
Joined by her cameraman (John L. Adams
), Beth joins the search for the missing Kayla (Leighton Meester
). There's the girls' family: father Russell (Terry) - who is one of the primary suspects, brother Peter (Jacob Smith
) who seems to know most of the town's secrets, and young stepmother Brenda (Richards). There's town doctor Tom Wilson (Brian Van Holt
), who has his own past with Beth and has two brothers - Grant (Tyler Christopher) and Chad (Matt Long
) who both wish they had gotten out of town when they could. Then there is Beth's estranged sister, Sheriff Sam Steele (Samantha Mathis
), who lives with Jimmy Daniels (Sean Patrick Flanery
), a man with a past of his own. Her daughter Tisha (Lucy Hale
) is growing close to Chad, who dated both of the twins and knows he will soon become a suspect.
John L. Adams and Sean Patrick Flanery both starred in TV series The Dead Zone
. The lighthouse featured in the pilot is Pigeon Point Lighthouse
located in Historic Park, California.
Television pilot
A "television pilot" is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell the show to a television network. At the time of its inception, the pilot is meant to be the "testing ground" to see if a series will be possibly desired and successful and therefore a test episode of an...
ordered by ABC for the 2006-2007 television season by 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...
. Despite being rated as 'one of the highest testing dramas', the show was not picked up for series order as part of ABC's fall lineup due to its high budget. It was created by Charles Pratt, Jr.
Charles Pratt, Jr.
Charles Pratt, Jr. is an American television writer, producer and director.-Daytime Soap Positions held:All My Children *Head Writer: August, 2008 - November, 2009...
(current Head Writer
Head writer
A head writer is a person who oversees the team of writers on a television or radio series. The title is common in the soap opera genre, as well as with sketch comedies and talk shows that feature monologues and comedy skits, but in prime time series this function is generally performed by an...
/Consulting Producer of ABC Daytime
ABC Daytime
ABC Daytime is a programming block on the ABC Network which has historically encompassed soap operas, game shows and talk shows.-Schedule:...
's All My Children
All My Children
All My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...
) and directed by Adam Davidson. Bert Salke and Chris Brancato
Chris Brancato
Chris Brancato is a Hollywood writer and producer of several films and television programs. Brancato grew up in Teaneck, New Jersey and graduated from Teaneck High School. He subsequently attended and graduated from Brown University. He now lives in Los Angeles, California...
also serve as executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
s.
The show's cast includes well-known actors such as Denise Richards
Denise Richards
Denise Lee Richards is an American actress and former fashion model of Croatian and Welsh descent. She has appeared in films including Starship Troopers, Wild Things, and The World Is Not Enough...
, John Terry
John Terry (actor)
John Terry is an American film, television, and stage actor.-Early life:Terry was born in Florida, where he attended Vero Beach High School. He was also educated at the prestigious Loomis Chaffee prep school in Windsor, Connecticut, and began a career building original custom log homes in North...
and Angie Harmon
Angie Harmon
Angela Michelle "Angie" Harmon is an American fashion model and television/film actress. She became a well-known model before gaining international fame for her roles in Baywatch Nights and Law & Order....
.
Plot
Successful reporter Bethany Steele (Harmon) returns to her hometown of Santa Ruiz for the first time in 8 years when her boss asks her to cover the murder of a teenage girl, and the disappearance of her twin sister.The small, seemingly perfect town of Santa Ruiz is stunned by these crimes - the first such serious acts in a century. While the police investigate, Steele has her own advantages: notably, her inside knowledge of the three big families in town. However, she also had her own reasons for leaving the town, which all come back to her.
Joined by her cameraman (John L. Adams
John L. Adams
John L. Adams is an American film and television actor.After attending Winston-Salem State University, Adams moved to Los Angeles where he began a career as a stand-up comic, performing at such venues as The Improv, The Laugh Factory, The Comedy Store, as well as the Riviera Casino in Las Vegas.In...
), Beth joins the search for the missing Kayla (Leighton Meester
Leighton Meester
Leighton Marissa Meester is an American actress and singer. Meester first garnered attention for playing Blair Waldorf in the CW television series Gossip Girl...
). There's the girls' family: father Russell (Terry) - who is one of the primary suspects, brother Peter (Jacob Smith
Jacob Smith (actor)
Jonathan Jacob Charles William Smith is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his role in the film Cheaper by the Dozen and its 2005 sequel.-Life and career:...
) who seems to know most of the town's secrets, and young stepmother Brenda (Richards). There's town doctor Tom Wilson (Brian Van Holt
Brian Van Holt
-Early life:Van Holt was born in Waukegan, Illinois and raised in California. Despite his Dutch surname, he is of mainly Scotch-Irish ancestry. Van Holt has a degree in Sociology from UCLA. At 18 years of age, he struck the perfect image of a Huntington Beach, California surfer...
), who has his own past with Beth and has two brothers - Grant (Tyler Christopher) and Chad (Matt Long
Matt Long
Matthew Clayton "Matt" Long is an American actor. He played the teenaged Jack McCallister on Jack & Bobby, the younger Johnny Blaze in Ghost Rider, and Tyler Prince in Sydney White....
) who both wish they had gotten out of town when they could. Then there is Beth's estranged sister, Sheriff Sam Steele (Samantha Mathis
Samantha Mathis
Samantha Mathis is an American actress. The daughter of actress Bibi Besch, Mathis made her film debut in Pump Up the Volume , opposite Christian Slater...
), who lives with Jimmy Daniels (Sean Patrick Flanery
Sean Patrick Flanery
Sean Patrick Flanery is an American actor known for such roles as Connor MacManus in The Boondock Saints, Greg Stillson in The Dead Zone and for portraying Indiana Jones in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, as well as Bobby Dagen in Saw 3D.He is currently known for his role as Sam Gibson on The...
), a man with a past of his own. Her daughter Tisha (Lucy Hale
Lucy Hale
Karen Lucille "Lucy" Hale is an American actress and singer. She is known for her roles as Becca Sommers in Bionic Woman, Rose Baker in Privileged, Sherrie in the horror film Scream 4, and as Aria Montgomery on the hit ABC Family series Pretty Little Liars...
) is growing close to Chad, who dated both of the twins and knows he will soon become a suspect.
John L. Adams and Sean Patrick Flanery both starred in TV series The Dead Zone
The Dead Zone (TV series)
The Dead Zone, aka Stephen King's Dead Zone is an American-Canadian science fiction/suspense series starring Anthony Michael Hall as Johnny Smith, who discovers he has developed psychic abilities after a coma...
. The lighthouse featured in the pilot is Pigeon Point Lighthouse
Pigeon Point Lighthouse
Pigeon Point Light Station or Pigeon Point Lighthouse is a lighthouse built in 1871 to guide ships on the Pacific coast of California. It is the tallest lighthouse on the West Coast of the United States. It is still an active Coast Guard aid to navigation...
located in Historic Park, California.