Did You Know?
Fisher Plaza, which houses Seattle's ABC affiliate KOMO-TV, is used for some exterior shots of Seattle Grace Hospital. In the pilot episode when the patient is flown in via helicopter, you can see the KOMO 4 logo on the side of the building and their 10+ satellite dishes on the roof. Fisher Plaza puts Seattle Grace conveniently close to the Space Needle, the Seattle Monorail, and other local landmarks. However, the hospital used for most other exterior and many interior shots is not in Seattle; these scenes are shot at the VA Sepulveda Ambulatory Care Center in North Hills, California.
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As is common for major TV and film productions, stars of the show have become famous in roles other than those they originally sought. Sandra Oh was initially looking to audition for the part of Dr. Bailey. On The Oprah Winfrey Show, Isaiah Washington (Dr. Burke) said that he had auditioned to play the role of Dr. Shepherd.
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Patrick Dempsey auditioned for the role of Dr. Chase on FOX's prime time medical mystery show, House M.D., before taking the role of Dr. Shepherd.
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The character Alex Karev was not in the original pilot script; his role was inserted into the pilot as an afterthought in order to provide a foil, as well as male companionship for Dr. George O'Malley. Since he wasn't added until after the pilot was shot, scenes with him were either re-shoots or digitally altered.
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The Inuit doll that frequently appears in episodes is named Ipecac. Ipecac is featured in an Easter Egg in the Season One DVD Bonus Features, where the cast and crew discuss the doll, its name, origins and a plot to kidnap it.
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The producers of Grey's Anatomy recently released a novel depicting the lives and happenings of two bit-part characters; Joe the Bartender and Nurse Debbie. The book is double sided written in Blog and IM form, while gossiping on the actions of the Grey's characters. The events discussed give background information for Joe and Debbie themselves and give insight on the events and cases the doctors deal with in the show.
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In an early episode Meredith is seen posting a poster asking for a roommate. The poster is only visible for a second, but it mentions that "Bush supporters need not apply" along with other details about the house.
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Every episode shares the name with a song title by a popular artists. Several are named after The Beatles and R.E.M. songs.
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The show's title is a reference to the famous anatomy book "Gray's Anatomy of the Human Body" by Henry Gray.
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In order to keep the plot and storylines secret, in the sides for auditions, the main characters' names are changed.
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Kate Walsh's character, Addison Shepherd, was only supposed to appear in 5 episodes, but quickly developed a fan base so they kept her on.
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The character name Dr. Mark Sloan is a reference to a 'Dick Van Dyke' character by the same name in the TV show '"Diagnosis Murder" (1993)'.
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Katherine Heigl dropped herself out of Emmy consideration in 2008, because she felt that she wasn't given the material that would warrant a nomination.
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T.R. Knight left the show at the end of season 5, because he felt that his character George O'Malley wasn't given enough storyline or on-screen time throughout the season. He said that there was a "breakdown in communication" between him and creator Shonda Rhimes. Instead of making any demands, he just asked to be written out of the show.
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Similarities between Katherine Heigl's characters in Roswell and Grey's Anatomy: in each her character, Isabel/Isobel, has a pivotal scene in a pink, strapless gown, has a love interest named Alex, sees, talks to and dances with a dead lover, and is extremely fussy about the holidays.
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Original cast-member Katherine Heigl was released from her contract during season 6. She appeared in some episodes of the season and then took some time off to spend time with her family. She was supposed to come back for the season's finale, though. This never happened and her last episode as cast-member was Grey's Anatomy: I Like You So Much Better When You're Naked.
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All the original interns (Meredith Grey, Cristina Yang, George O'Malley, Izzie Stevens, Alex Karev) are or have been married: Meredith to head of neurosurgery Derek Shepherd, Cristina to head of trauma Owen Hunt, George to orthopedic surgeon Calliope Torres (divorced), and Izzie to Alex (divorced).
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All of the original interns (Meredith Grey, Cristina Yang, Alex Karev, George O'Malley, and Isobel Stevens) have all had surgery at some point in the series. Meredith for liver donation to her father and appendicitis, Christina for an ectopic pregnancy, Alex for the gunshot, George after he got hit by a bus, and Isobel for her cancer.
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My So-Called Life, whose protagonist was named Angela Chase, was an ABC show, just as Grey's Anatomy is. Three of the stars of My So-Called Life have made memorable appearances on Grey's Anatomy: Wilson Cruz, who played a gay teen who was one of Angela's best friends, Rickie Vasquez, made a guest appearance as Kyle, a gay man in 2011; Tom Irwin who starred as Angela's father, Graham Chase, appeared 3 times as police commander Marty Hancock who assisted Seattle Grace during one of its most crucial crises in 2010/11; and, Jeff Perry, who played Angela's teacher, Richard Katimski, was featured as Thatcher Grey, the father of Meredith, from 2006-2011.
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