Trivia
Creator Marc Cherry said he got the idea to write the pilot after a conversation with his mother. She told him that raising Cherry and his siblings with their father away most of the time made her feel "desperate" sometimes.
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At first, the show was pitched as a female driven comedy. All the networks turned it down. It was then slightly rewritten and pitched as a nighttime soap opera and it sold.
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Teri Hatcher broke two ribs filming the scene where she stumbles into a wedding cake and insisted they didn't stop production.
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Originally started off as a comedy pilot, and was rejected by every network including Lifetime and HBO. ABC expressed an interest, and it was retooled to its current format of a dark comedy/drama.
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Oprah Winfrey loved the show so much, she was invited to the set, and had an exclusive show in which she showcased a 15 minute "episode" where Oprah (as a new neighbor) learned of all the secrets of the housewives.
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The first television series to win the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series for a show that had not yet completed its first season.
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Marcia Cross originally tried for the part of Mary Alice Young, but was cast as Bree Van De Kamp. Nicollette Sheridan tried for the part of Bree Van De Kamp, but was cast as Edie Britt.
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The characters The Scavo Brothers (Parker, Preston, and Porter) were ranked #4 in TV Guide's list of "TV's 10 Biggest Brats" (27 March 2005 issue).
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Bree's response when her son tells her he's gay is, "I'd love you even if you were a murderer," the same quote that Marc Cherry's mother told him when he came out.
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Producers believed Ricardo Chavira to be too young and not suave enough, and almost didn't cast him as Carlos Solis.
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Calista Flockhart, Heather Locklear, and Mary-Louise Parker were considered for the role of Susan. Courteney Cox was also considered for the role of Susan. Marc Cherry didn't ask her because at the time she was pregnant with her daughter Coco and had expressed interest in taking some time off to raise the baby.
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Miranda Richardson turned down a significant guest part in the second season of the show.
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The character of Mr Shaw, played by Richard Roundtree, works for the Hafts Detective Agency. "Hafts" is an anagram of Shaft, who was played by Richard Roundtree in the 1970's film of the same name.
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All episodes except the pilot are named after songs and in the first season, all the song titles were from songs written by Stephen Sondheim. At Sondheim's birthday celebration, the cast filmed a segment specifically for the party, featuring the titles.
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Teri Hatcher's character Susan Mayer is a children's illustrator. Her first book was called "Ants in My Picnic Basket".
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Lynette's boss's name is Ed Ferrara. In real life, Ed Ferrara is writer and producer Kevin Murphy's former writing partner of several TV shows including Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show and Weird Science.
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Dana Delany auditioned for the role of Bree and was offered the part. After thinking about it, she declined the role. Her reasoning was that she had played a similar role in the soap Pasadena, and felt she would be repeating herself.
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Sheryl Lee was originally cast as Mary Alice Young and actually shot the pilot but at the last minute Brenda Strong was cast in the role and Mary Alice's scenes had to be re-shot.
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A fan loved the dress Gabrielle wore in the pilot and so much she wrote to the producers asking the name of the designer and if he could design her a prom dress. The producers instead sent her the actual gown and she wore it to her prom.
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Teri Hatcher is the first person to win the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series for a show that has not yet completed its first season.
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Tom Scavo (Doug Savant) appeared in seventeen of twenty-three episodes (missing only six episodes), and was still listed as a guest star. However, in the second season he will be listed as a regular.
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Susan Walters, Sharon Lawrence, Laura Leighton, Roma Downey and Jeri Ryan all auditioned for the part of Bree.
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According to the book Desperate Networks, show creator Marc Cherry insisted every actor had to audition for a part. Several actresses up for the part of Susan, including Mary-Louise Parker, Calista Flockhart and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, declined to audition and passed on the role. Felicity Huffman also declined to audition for the role of Lynette, preferring to be offered the role instead. Her agents convinced her otherwise, and she agreed to audition. Marc Cherry was so impressed with her performance, that he offered her the part on the spot.
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The house that Marcia Cross (Bree Van De Kamp) lives in was previously used in the NBC drama Providence.
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Each hour-long episode is filmed in eight days, typically three on location, and five on the Universal Studios lot.
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Bree is based on Marc Cherry's own mother. Dana Delany was the original actress considered for the part, declining it three times.
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Michelle Rodriguez turned down a part in "Desperate Housewives" to do Lost. When Ellen DeGeneres asked her why on her chat show, Rodriguez joked: "Because if you're not a housewife, then what's the point?"
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4351 Wisteria Lane, the house in which Betty Applewhite lived with her family, was originally the house at 1313 Mockingbird Lane in which The Munsters lived and was the address for the invisible rabbit's friend Elwood P. Dowd in the movie Harvey.
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Eva Longoria and Jesse Metcalfe are only 3 years apart, Longoria being the older one. However in the first season, she was accused of having an affair with a minor.
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According to her gravestone, Mary Alice Young was born on 18 November 1965 and died on 26 September 2004.
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Gabrielle's under-aged lover calls her constantly "Mrs. Solis". It's a clear reference to the relationship of Benjamin Braddock and Mrs. Robinson in The Graduate, since both situations are very similar.
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Three actresses on the show have played Lois Lane: 'Leslie Ann Warren' (Susan's mother) in Superman, Teri Hatcher in The New Adventures of Superman, and 'Dana Delaney' provided her voice for the animated series Superman.
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In April 2010, Nicollette Sheridan sued series creator Marc Cherry for $20 million on charges of assault and battery, gender violence, wrongful termination, and "intentional infliction of emotional distress". She said that Cherry created a hostile working environment and behaved unprofessionally towards her on and off-set.
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Season 1 episodes that have Stephen Sondheim song titles or lyric references as their show titles (Except where denoted):
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- 1.2: Pilot (No Sondheim Reference)
- 1.2: Ah, But Underneath (Song title from the London production of Follies)
- 1.3: Pretty Little Picture (Song title from A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum)
- 1.4: Who's That Woman? (Song title from Follies)
- 1.5: Come in, Stranger (No Sondheim Reference; Johnny Cash song)
- 1.6: Running to Stand Still (No Sondheim Reference; U2 song)
- 1.7: Anything You Can Do (No Sondheim Reference; Irving Berlin: Annie Get Your Gun) 1.8: Guilty (No Sondheim Reference; Randy Newman song)
- 1.9: Suspicious Minds (No Sondheim Reference; Elvis Presley song)
- 1:10: Come Back to Me (No Sondheim Reference. Burton Lane/Alan Jay Lerner: On a Clear Day You Can See Forever)
- 1.11: Move On (Song title from Sunday in the Park With George)
- 1. 12: Every Day a Little Death (Song title from A Little Night Music)
- 1.13: Your Fault (Song title from Into the Woods)
- 1.14: Love Is in the Air (Song title from A Funny Thing Happened On the Way To the Forum Cut)
- 1.15: Impossible (Song title from A Funny Thing Happened On the Way To the Forum)
- 1.6: The Ladies Who Lunch (Song title from Company)
- 1.17 There Won't Be Trumpets (Song title from Anyone Can Whistle. Cut and later reinstated)
- 1.18: Children Will Listen (Song title from Into the Woods)
- 1.19: Live Alone and Like It (Song title from Dick Tracy Film)
- 1.20: Fear No More (Song title from The Frogs)
- 1.21: Sunday in the Park with George (Song title from Sunday in the Park with George)
- 1.22: Goodbye for Now (Instrumental from Reds movie Lyrics added later)
- 1.23: One Wonderful Day (Song title from Saturday Night).
Season 2 episodes that have Stephen Sondheim song titles or lyric references as their show titles (Except where denoted):
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- 2.1: Next (Song title from Pacific Overtures)
- 2.2: You Could Drive a Person Crazy (Song title from Company)
- 2.3: You'll Never Get Away from Me (Song title from Gypsy Music by Jule Styne)
- 2.4: My Heart Belongs to Daddy (No Sondheim Reference. Cole Porter Leave It To Me)
- 2.5: They Asked Me Why I Believe in You (Song title from I Believe In You Unproduced)
- 2.6: I Wish I Could Forget You (Song title from Passion)
- 2.7: Color and Light (Song title from Sunday in the Park with George)
- 2.9: That's Good, That's Bad Season (Song title from Hot Spot. Music by Mary Rodgers)
- 2.10: Coming Home (Song title from Bounce)
- 2.11: One More Kiss (Song title from Follies)
- 2.12: We're Gonna Be All Right (Song title from Do I Hear A Waltz? Music by Richard Rodgers)
- 2.13: There's Something About a War (Song title from A Funny Thing Happened On the Way To the Forum Cut)
- 2.14: Silly People (Song title from A Little Night Music Cut)
- 2.15: Thank You So Much (Song title from Do I Hear A Waltz? Music by Richard Rodgers)
- 2.16: There Is No Other Way (Song title from Pacific Overtures)
- 2.17: Could I Leave You? (Song title from Follies)
- 2.18: Everybody Says Don't (Anyone Can Whistle)
- 2.19: Don't Look at Me (Song title from Follies)
- 2.20: It Wasn't Meant to Happen (Song title from Follies Cut)
- 2.21: I Know Things Now (Song title from Into the Woods)
- 2.22: No One Is Alone (Song title from Into the Woods)
- 2.23 & 2.24 Remember: Part 1 & 2 (Song title from A Little Night Music)
Season 3 episodes that have Stephen Sondheim song titles or lyric references as their show titles (Except where denoted):
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- 3.1: Listen to the Rain on the Roof (Song title from Follies)
- 3.2: It Takes Two (Song title from Into the Woods)
- 3.3: A Weekend in the Country (A Little Night Music)
- 3.4: Like It Was (Song title from Merrily We Roll Along)
- 3.5: Nice She Ain't (Song title from Gypsy Cut song. Music by Jule Styne)
- 3.6: Sweetheart, I Have to Confess (Lyric line from Could I Leave You? from Follies)
- 3.8: Children and Art (Song title from Sunday In the Park With George)
- 3.9 Beautiful Girls (Song title from Follies)
- 3.10 The Miracle Song (Song title from Anyone Can Whistle)
- 3.11 No Fits, No Fights, No Egos (Lyric line from Together Wherever We Go from Gypsy)
- 3.12 Not While I'm Around (Song title from Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street)
- 3.13 Come Play Wiz Me (Anyone Can Whistle)
- 3.14 I Remember That (Could be lyric quote from I Remember from Evening Primrose)
- 3.15 Little Things You Do Together (Song title from Company)
- 3.16 My Husband The Pig (Song title cut and later reinstated into some productions to A Little Night Music and also used in Putting It Together)
- 3.17 Dress Big (Song title from The Frogs)
- 3.18 Liaisons (Song title from A Little Night Music)
- 3.19 God That's Good (Sweeney Todd)
- 3.20 Gossip (Song title from Sunday In The Park With George)
- 3.21 Into the Woods (Song title from Into the Woods)
- 3.22 What Would We Do Without You? (Company)
- 3.23 Getting Married Today (Song title from Company)
Season 4 episodes that have Stephen Sondheim song titles or lyric references as their show titles (Except where denoted):
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- 4.1 Now You Know (Song Title From Merrily We Roll Along)
- 4.2 Smiles of a Summer Night (The Ingmar Bergman film that A Little Night Music is based on.)
- 4.3 The Game (Could be a reference to a musical section from Putting It Together)
- 4.4 If There's Anything I Can't Stand (Song title from By George)
- 4.5 Art Isn't Easy (Lyric line from Putting It Together from Sunday In The Park)
- 4.6 Now I Know, Don't Be Scared (Lyric quote from I Know Things Now from Into the Woods)
- 4.7 You Can't Judge a Book By Its Cover (Lyric quote from Simple from Anyone Can Whistle)
- 4.8 Distant Past (Instrumental from Stavisky)
- 4.9 Something's Coming (Song title from West Side Story. Music by Leonard Bernstein)
- 4.10 Welcome To Kanagawa (Song title from Pacific Overtures)
- 4.11 Sunday (Song title from Sunday In the Park With George)
- 4.12 In Buddy's Eyes (Song title from Follies)
- 4.13 Hello Little Girl (Song title from Into the Woods)
- 4.14 Opening Doors (Song title from Merrily We Roll Along)
- 4.15 Mother Said (Could be first two lyrics from I Know Things Now from Into the Woods. See also 4.6 Now I Know, Don't Be Scared, or lyrics from Into the Woods Act I Prologue)
- 4.16 The Gun Song (Song title from Assassins)
- 4.17 Free (Song title from A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To the Forum)
Season 5 episodes that have Stephen Sondheim song titles or lyric references as their show titles (Except where denoted):
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- 5.1 You're Gonna Love Tomorrow (Song Title From Follies)
- 5.2 We're So Happy You're So Happy (Lyric line from Prologue Act 2 from Into the Woods)
- 5.3 Kids Ain't Like Everybody Else (Deleted song from West Side Story)
- 5.4 Back in Business (Song Title From Dick Tracy & Putting It Together)
- 5.5 Mirror Mirror (Lyric line from Who's That Woman? (The Mirror Song) from Follies)
- 5.6 There's Always a Woman (Deleted song and later reinstated from Anyone Can Whistle)
- 5.7 What More Do I Need? (Song title from Saturday Night)
- 5.8 City on Fire (Song title from Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street)
- 5.9 Me and My Town (Song title from Anyone Can Whistle)
- 5.10 A Vision's Just a Vision (Lyric line from "Putting It Together from Sunday In the Park With George)
- 5.11 Home Is The Place (Song written for Tony Bennett. Music by Jule Styne)
- 5.12 Connect! Connect! (Lyric line from Everybody's Got the Right To Be Happy from Assassins)
- 5.13 The Best Thing That Ever Could Have Happened (Lyric line from Now You Know from Merrily We Roll Along)
- 5.14 Mama Spent Money When She Had None (Lyric line from Children and Art from Sunday In The Park)
- 5.15 In a World Where the Kings Are Employers (Lyric line from Liaisons from A Little Night Music.)
- 5.16 Crime Doesn't Pay (Song title from The Lady Or The Tiger written with Mary Rodgers. Abandoned)
- 5.17 The Story of Lucy and Jessie (Song title from Follies)
- 5.18 A Spark to Pierce the Dark (Lyric line from Broadway Baby from Follies)
- 5.19 Look Into Their Eyes And You See What They Know (Lyric Line from The Ladies Who Lunch from Company)
- 5.20 Rose's Turn (Song title from Gyps. Music by Jule Styne)
- 5.21 Bargaining (Song Title from Do I Hear a Waltz? Music by Richard Rodgers)
- 5.22 Marry Me A Little (Cut and then reinstated into Company. It was also used a song in the musical revue "Marry Me A Little"
- 5.23 Everyone Says Don't (Song title from Anyone Can Whistle Also used as episode title for episode 2.18)
- 5.24 If It's Only In Your Head (Lyric line from Putting It Together from Sunday In The Park)
Season 6 episodes that have Stephen Sondheim song titles or lyric references as their show titles (Except where denoted):
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- 6.1: Nice is Different from Good (Lyric line from "I Know Things Now" from Into the Woods)
- 6.2: Being Alive (Song Title from Company)
- 6.3: Never Judge a Lady by Her Lover (Lyric line from "Ah, But Underneath" from the London production of Follies
- 6.4: The God-Why-Don't-You-Love-Me Blues (Song Title aka "Buddy's Blues" from Follies)
- 6.5:Everybody Ought to Have a Maid (Song title from A Funny Thing Happened On the Way To The Forum)
- 6.6: Don't Walk On The Grass (Lyric line from Everyone Says Don't from Anyone Can Whistle)
- 6.7 Careful The Things You Say (Lyric line from Children Will Listen from Into the Woods)
- 6.8: The Coffee Cup (Lyric Line from Losing My Mind from Follies)
- 6.9: Would I Think Of Suicide? (Lyric line from Could I Leave You? from Follies)
- 6.10 Boom Crunch (Song Title. Cut from Into the Woods)
- 6.11: If (Early title for the song It Would Have Been Wonderful from A Little Night Music.)
- 6.12 You Gotta Have a Gimmick (from Gypsy. Music by Jules Styne)
- 6.13 How About A Friendly Shrink? (Lyric line From A Country House from the London version of Follies and also in Putting It Together)
- 6.14 The Glamorous Life (Song Title from A Little Night Music)
- 6.15 Lovely (Song Title from A Funny Thing Happened On The Way to the Forum)
- 6.16 The Chase (Instrumental from film version of A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum)
- 6.17 Chromolume No. 7 (Instrumental from Sunday In the Park With George)
- 6.18 My Two Young Men (Song Title from Bounce)
- 6.19 We All Deserve to Die (Lyric line from the song "Epiphany" from Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street)
- 6.20 Epiphany (Song title from Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street)
- 6.21 A Little Night Music (Title of show)
- 6.22 The Ballad of Booth (Song Title from Assassins)
- 6.23 I Guess This Is Goodbye (Song Title from Into the Woods)
Season 7 episodes that have Stephen Sondheim song titles or lyric references as their show titles (Except where denoted):
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- 7.1: Remember Paul? (Lyric Line from the song "Getting Married Today" from Company)
- 7.2: You Must Meet My Wife (Song Title From A Little Night Music)
- 7.3: Truly Content (Song Title from Passionella)
- 7.4: The Thing That Counts Is What's Inside (Lyric Line from the song "Ah, But Underneath" from the London production of Follies)
- 7.5: Let Me Entertain You (Song Title from Gypsy. Music by Jule Styne)
- 7.6: Excited and Scared (Lyric Line from the song "I Know Things Now" from Into the Woods)
- 7.7: A Humiliating Business (Lyric Line from the song "Every Day a Little Death" in A Little Night Music)
- 7.8: Sorry Grateful (Song Title from Company)
- 7.9: Pleasant Little Kingdom (Song Title. Cut from Follies)
- 7.10: Down the Block There's a Riot (Lyric Line from the song "What More Do I Need" from Saturday Night)
- 7.11: Assassins (Title of Show)
- 7.12: Where Do I Belong? (Song Title from the unproduced musical Climb High);
- 7.13: I'm Still Here (Song Title from Follies)
- 7.14: Flashback (No Sondheim Reference)
- 7.15: Farewell Letter (Song Title from Passion)
- 7.16: Searching (Sequence Title from Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street)
- 7.17: Everything's Different, Nothing's Changed (Lyric Line from the song Sorry-Grateful from Company)
- 7.18: Moments In The Woods (Song Title from Into The Woods)
- 7.19: The Lies Ill Concealed (Lyric Line from the song Could I Leave You? from Follies)
- 7.20: I Will Swallow Poison On Sunday (Lyric Line from the song Kiss Me from Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street)
- 7.21: Then I Really Got Scared (Lyric Line from the song I Know Things Now from Into the Woods
- 7.22: Buried Sweetly (Lyric Line from the song Johanna from Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street)
- 7.23: One Day I'll Steal You (Lyric Line from the song Johanna from Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street)
Season 8 episodes that have Stephen Sondheim song titles or lyric references as their show titles (Except where denoted):
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- 8.1 Secrets That I Never Want To Know (Lyric line from the song I Know Things Now from Into the Woods)
- 8.2 Making the Connection (Lyric line from the song Putting It Together From Sunday In the Park With George)
- 8.3 Watch While I Revise The World (Lyric line from the song Beautiful From Sunday In the Park With George)
- 8.4 School of Hard Knocks (Song title from Climb High)
- 8.5 Art of Making Art (Lyric line from the song Putting It Together From Sunday In the Park With George)
- 8.6 Witch's Lament (Song title from Into the Woods. aka Lament)
- 8.7 Always In Control (Lyric line from Marry Me A Little original cut and latter reinstated into Company. Also used in Marry Me A Little)
- 8.8 Suspicion Song (Song Title from The Exception and the Rule aka The Race to Urga and A Pray by Blech. Abandoned Music by Leonard Bernstein)
- 8.9 Putting It Together (Song Title from Sunday In The Park With George)
- 8.10 What's To Discuss Old Friend (Lyric line from Old Friends from Merrily We Roll Along)
- 8.11 Who Can Say What's True? (Lyric line from No One Is Alone from Into the Woods)
- 8.12 What's the Good of Being Good (Lyric line from Prologue (Act 1) from Into the Woods)
- 8.13 Is This What You Call Love? (Song title from Passion)
- 8.14 Get Out of My Life (Song title from Bounce)
- 8.15 She Needs Me (title for an unused from Manos Hadjidakis' 1967 musical Illya Darling, for which Sondheim wrote lyrics for just this song)
- 8.16 You Take for Granted (lyric line from Good Thing Going from Merrily We Roll Along
- 8.17 Women and Death (track title from the Sondheim-written score for the 1974 movie Stavisky)
- 8.18 Any Moment (part of a song title from Into the Woods)
- 8.19 With So Little to Be Sure Of (song title from Anyone Can Whistle)
- 8.20 Lost My Power (lyric from Ever After from Into the Woods)
- 8.21 The People Will Hear (song title from All That Glitters)
- 8.22 Give Me the Blame (lyric from Last Midnight from Into the Woods)
- 8.23 Finishing the Hat (song title from Sunday in the Park with George; also the title of Sondheim's first book of collected lyrics [1954-1981])
There are only two episodes of the show not to be narrated by Brenda Strong. "My Husband, The Pig" was narrated by Steven Culp and "Look Into Their Eyes and You See What They Know" was narrated by Nicollette Sheridan.
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Marc Cherry admitted that he was originally going to marry Mike and Katherine at the season 6 premiere, but seeing the huge fan response to the possibility of Mike and Susan getting back together, decided to rewrite it.
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Kathryn Joosten said in an interview that when Marc Cherry approached with the idea of having her character had cancer, she agreed as long as the plot was realistic and not sweetened.
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