(ABC) |
Channel: ABC
Genre: Soap Opera, Dramedy
Creators: Marc Cherry
Country of origin: United States
Running time: 42 minutes approx.
Started: October 3, 2004
Status: Running
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Desperate Housewives is an Emmy
and Golden Globe award-winning American television
comedy-drama series, created by Marc Cherry, that
began airing on October 3, 2004 on ABC. It is the
most popular show in its demographic worldwide,
with an audience of approximately 119 million viewers.
The show takes place on the fictional Wisteria
Lane in the American suburban town of Fairview,
located in the fictional Eagle State. It follows
the lives of five women, seen through the eyes of
their dead neighbour - only two of whom are actually
housewives as of January 2007 - as they work through
domestic struggles while several mysteries unfold
in the background. Desperate Housewives combines
many styles such as: drama, comedy, mystery, thriller,
farce, camp, soap opera and satire.
The show stars Golden Globe award winning actresses
Teri Hatcher and Felicity Huffman, TV veterans Marcia
Cross and Nicollette Sheridan, and rising star Eva
Longoria. Since the second pilot episode, Brenda
Strong narrates the series.
A primetime soap with a truly contemporary take
on the "happily ever after," this hit
series takes a darkly comedic look at suburbia,
where the secret lives of housewives aren't always
what they seem.
The series began with Mary Alice Young (Brenda
Strong) leaving her perfect house, in the loveliest
of suburbs, and ending it all. Now she takes us
into the lives of her family, friends and neighbors,
commenting from her elevated P.O.V.
Her circle of girlfriends on Wisteria Lane includes
Susan Mayer (Teri Hatcher), the divorcee and single
mom who will go to extraordinary lengths for love;
Lynette Scavo (Felicity Huffman), who struggles
with balancing the complications of work and family
issues; Bree Van De Kamp (Marcia Cross) -- Martha
Stewart on steroids -- who battles the demons of
widowhood, alcoholism and vengeful children; Gabrielle
Solis (Eva Longoria), the ex-model with everything
she has ever wanted - a rich husband, a big house
-- everything that is, but a good marriage; and
serial divorcee Edie Britt (Nicollette Sheridan),
the free spirited real estate maven whose love life
has everyone buzzing.
Then there are the men: Mike Delfino (James Denton),
a plumber who is the on-again/off- again love of
Susan's life; Lynette's adorable husband, Tom (Doug
Savant), who, it's turning out, has his own share
of secrets, and Gabrielle's estranged husband, Carlos
(Ricardo Antonio Chavira). Joining the group is
Bree's husband, Orson Hodge (Kyle MacLachlan); the
charming Ian Kavanaugh (Dougray Scott), a new love
interest for Susan; and Austin Britt (Josh Henderson),
Edie's 17-year-old nephew, who shares his aunt's
knack for stirring up trouble.
From her unique vantage point, Mary Alice sees
more now than she ever did alive, and she's planning
to share all the delicious secrets that hide behind
every neighbor's closed door in this seemingly perfect
American suburb.
Desperate Housewives stars Teri Hatcher as Susan
Mayer, Felicity Huffman as Lynette Scavo, Marcia
Cross as Bree Van De Kamp, Eva Longoria as Gabrielle
Solis, Nicollette Sheridan as Edie Britt, Brenda
Strong as Mary Alice Young, James Denton as Mike
Delfino, Doug Savant as Tom Scavo, Ricardo Antonio
Chavira as Carlos Solis, Andrea Bowen as Julie Mayer,
Shawn Pyfrom as Andrew Van De Kamp, Joy Lauren as
Danielle Van De Kamp, Josh Henderson as Austin Britt,
Rachel Fox as Kayla Huntington and Brent and Shane
Kinsman as Porter and Preston Scavo.
Marc Cherry (The Golden Girls) is executive producer
and creator. Desperate Housewives is produced by
ABC Television Studio and is the winner of both
the 2005 and 2006 Golden Globe Award for Best Television
Series - Musical or Comedy.
The set for the street, comprising facades of houses,
is located on the Universal Studios backlot. It
is referred to by film crews as Colonial Street,
and before Desperate Housewives it was used in several
motion pictures and televisions shows, starting
in the 1950s.
For the first 14 episodes of season one, scenes
set in Bree's living room were filmed inside the
Young house on the street. To cover up the similarities
between the rooms, most of the Youngs' scenes took
place in a fictional area of the house, which only
existed on a sound stage.
From the outside, Bree's home has a set of windows
either side of the front porch. However indoors,
windows can only be seen on one side of the front
door. This is because the inside of Bree's house
is actually shot on a soundstage.
On the street, Lynette's green house is simply
a facade, and Bree's house functions solely as restrooms
for the production crew.
At the end of Wisteria Lane, by Edie's house, there
is a cul-de-sac. However, cars are seen both entering
and leaving the neighborhood from there.
The former home of the Applewhites' was also used
as the exterior of Herman and Lily Munster in The
Munsters. Late in the first season the house underwent
a facelift to become less recognisable as the home
from The Munsters.
One of the main reasons for Edie burning down Susan's
home was that it could be opened up inside, making
filming easier for the production crew.
Reception and critical reactions
The show was the big success of the 2004-2005
television season, and gained much critical acclaim.
Its pilot episode which aired in October 2004, gained
a stunning 21.3 million viewers making it the best
new drama for the year, the highest rated show of
the week, and also the best performance by a pilot
for ABC, since Spin City in 1996.
In the footsteps of the show, the term "desperate
housewives" became a cultural phenomenon. This
warranted "real" desperate housewives
features in magazines and TV shows such as The Oprah
Winfrey Show and The Dr. Phil Show. The show, along
with Lost, has been credited with reviving ABC's
ratings. Later on, Grey's Anatomy, and more recently,
Ugly Betty have helped further this revival. Prominent
names like Oprah Winfrey and Michele Lee have stated
that they are fans of the show.
However as the series has progressed, critics have
noticed its growing disconnect with the stories
of real women and have also pointed out how it is
gaining characteristics of a soap opera.
[ SYNOPSES
]
Season 1 (2004-2005)
Season one began airing on October 3, 2004 and featured
a total of 23 episodes . The show opens with the
mysterious suicide of housewife Mary Alice Young
on a beautiful day in the suburbs, on a street called
Wisteria Lane. Mary Alice, who narrates the show
from the afterlife, had four friends: Bree Van De
Kamp, the seemingly-perfect mother (of two teenagers)
struggling to save her marriage; Lynette Scavo,
the mother of four whose husband is always away
on business; Susan Mayer, the divorced mother in
search of love, who finds love in the form of her
new neighbour Mike Delfino, who has a secret of
his own; and Gabrielle Solis, the materialistic
ex-runway model who cheats on her husband. While
trying to be good wives and mothers, the four friends
also try to find out why their friend committed
suicide. The discovery of a blackmail note among
Mary Alice's belongings, a therapy session tape
in which she admits her real name was Angela, and
her widowed husband's strange behaviour really make
them wonder about the mystery surrounding their
deceased friend.
Season 2 (2005-2006)
Season two began airing September 25, 2005 and featured
a total of 23 episodes (including a two-hour season
finale) and two clip shows. After discovering Mary
Alice's dark secret, the housewives continue to
move on with their lives. Bree, whose husband just
died, is not coping well with being a widow, and
is unknowingly dating the man who poisoned her husband
to be with her. Susan, still searching for love
after breaking up with Mike, ends up in bed with
her ex-husband who is now dating the neighbourhood
hussy, Edie Britt. Lynette goes back to her career
in advertising, as her husband Tom becomes a stay-at-home
dad. And now-pregnant Gabrielle decides to be faithful
to her husband Carlos who is now in jail; just as
she starts accepting her upcoming motherhood, she
suffers a miscarriage. While managing their busy
lives, the women cannot help but notice something
suspicious about the new neighbours: Betty (played
by Alfre Woodard) and Matthew Applewhite, who moved
in in the middle of the night, and are keeping a
prisoner in their basement.
Season 3 (2006-2007)
Season three began airing September 24, 2006 and
features a total of 23 episodes and one clip show.
It has been six months since Orson Hodge deliberately
ran Mike over with his car. Gabrielle, who found
out Carlos cheated on her with their former maid
and now surrogate mother, refused to take him back,
and now they're getting divorced but both want to
raise the unborn child. Bree, who has finally put
Rex's death behind her, marries Orson. At their
engagement party, a mysterious woman accused him
of killing his wife, and Bree can't help but wonder
if that's true. Lynette, meanwhile, has to adjust
to having another child around the house when Tom's
ex is killed and they have to take her daughter
in. Ultimately she quits her job at the advertising
agency to start a pizzeria with Tom. Susan, who
had been waiting for Mike to wake up from his coma,
is shocked when she finds out her nemesis Edie has
been posing as his girlfriend, since he has amnesia.
And Edie has her nephew Austin move to Wisteria
Lane, after she finds him trying to break into her
house.
Season 4 (2007-2008)
On March 21, 2007, ABC announced that it has renewed
Desperate Housewives for a fourth season. The season
is due to premiere on ABC on September 23, 2007.
[ CAST
]
Nicolette Sheridan, Felicity
Huffman, Marcia Cross, Eva Longoria,
and Teri Hatcher |
|
Main Characters
Teri Hatcher as Susan Mayer, an accident
prone single mother living on Wisteria Lane with
her daughter.
Felicity Huffman as Lynette Scavo, a former
businesswoman turned mom who more recently has returned
back to the work force.
Marcia Cross as Bree Van De Kamp Hodge,
the perfect housewife who has a not-so-perfect family
Eva Longoria as Gabrielle Solis, a former
runway model turned housewife.
Nicolette Sheridan as Edie Britt, the "neighborhood
maneater".
Other Characters
Alfre Woodard - Betty Applewhite (Season
2, guest starring previous)
Steven Culp - Rex Van De Kamp (Season 1,
guest starring afterwards)
Ricardo Antonio Chavira - Carlos Solis
Mark Moses - Paul Young (Season 1-2, guest
starring afterwards)
Doug Savant - Tom Scavo (Season 2-3, guest
starring previous)
Andrea Bowen - Julie Mayer
Cody Kasch - Zach Young (Season 1-2, guest
starring afterwards)
Jesse Metcalfe - John Rowland (Season 1,
guest starring afterwards)
Richard Burgi - Karl Mayer (Season 2, guest
starring otherwise)
Kyle MacLachlan - Orson Hodge (Season 3,
guest starring previous)
Brenda Strong - Mary Alice Young
James Denton - Mike Delfino
Shawn Pyfrom - Andrew Van De Kamp (Season
2-3, guest starring previous)
Joy Lauren - Danielle Van De Kamp (Season
2-3, guest starring previous)
Roger Bart - George Williams (Season 2,
guest starring previous)
Mehcad Brooks - Matthew Applewhite (Season
2, guest starring previous)
Josh Henderson - Austin McCann (Season
3, up until episode 62)
Brent Kinsman - Preston Scavo (Season 2-3,
guest starring previous)
Shane Kinsman - Porter Scavo (Season 2-3,
guest starring previous)
Zane Huett - Parker Scavo (Season 2-3,
guest starring previous)
Page Kennedy - Caleb Applewhite (Season
2, up until episode 30)
Nashawn Kearse - Caleb Applewhite (Season
2, starting with episode 31)
[ AWARDS
]
By the end of the first season, all the housewives
except Eva Longoria were nominated for both a Golden
Globe and Emmy. Longoria responded with a skit in
the Emmys with Ellen DeGeneres mocking her situation.
The following year all four were nominated for the
Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress
in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy.
This is a list of the Golden Globe, Emmy and Screen
Actors Guild Awards that the show has won.
Golden Globe Awards
2005
Best Performance by an Actress in a TV Series:
Musical or Comedy: Teri Hatcher
Best TV Series: Musical or Comedy
2006
Best TV Series: Musical or Comedy
Primetime Emmy Awards
2005
Outstanding Guest Actress in A Comedy Series:
Kathryn Joosten
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series: Felicity
Huffman
Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series, Charles
McDougall for "Pilot"
Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series
Outstanding Main Title Theme Music
Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a
Comedy Series ("Pilot")
Screen Actors Guild Awards
2005
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a
Comedy Series: Teri Hatcher
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy
Series
2006
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a
Comedy Series: Felicity Huffman
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy
Series
