"Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" Pilot (2006)

User Rating:

8.3/10   

Director:

Thomas Schlamme

Writers:

Aaron Sorkin (creator)
Aaron Sorkin (written by)

TV Series:

"Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" (2006)

Original Air Date:

5 August 2006 (Season 1, Episode 1)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

When the Executive Producer of sketch show 'Studio 60' has an on-air meltdown, new network president Jordan McDeere hires Danny Tripp and Matt Albie to replace him and save the show. |

Plot Keywords:

Dinner Party | Marijuana | Awards Dinner | Bong | Drug Testing

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Matthew Perry	...	Matt Albie
Amanda Peet	...	Jordan McDeere
Bradley Whitford	...	Danny Tripp
Steven Weber	...	Jack Rudolph
D.L. Hughley	...	Simon Stiles
Sarah Paulson	...	Harriet Hayes
Nathan Corddry	...	Tom Jeter (as Nate Corddry)
Timothy Busfield	...	Cal Shanley
Edward Asner	...	Wilson White (as Ed Asner)
Judd Hirsch	...	Wes Mendell
Jayma Mays	...	Daphne
Donna Murphy	...	Blair
Wendy Phillips	...	Shelley Green
Michael Stuhlbarg	...	Jerry
Three 6 Mafia	...	Themselves

Filming Locations:

Sowden House - 5121 Franklin Avenue, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Shoe Money Productions

Trivia:

On the DVD commentary, it is revealed that the first scenes Matthew Perry shot as "Matt Albie" were those at the awards dinner.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Matt and Danny take the stage at the end of the episode we hear applause and cheers, but the waiting crowd isn't clapping.

Quotes:

Wes Mendell: We're eating worms for money. Who wants to screw my sister? Guys are getting killed in a war that's got theme music and a logo? That remote in your hands is a crack pipe. Oh, yeah, every once in a while we pretend to be appalled...
Jerry: [in the booth]
Jerry: Cal!
Cal Shanley: I'm waiting for him to say something that isn't true.
Jerry: Who else in here knows how to do this?
Cal Shanley: Don't talk to my control room!
Jerry: Get him off!
Lilly: [aside] You have two kids in school.
Cal Shanley: What?
Jerry: She said you have two kids in private school whose father is about five seconds away from never working again.
[...]

Movie Connections:

References Network (1976)

Soundtrack:

Side 2 Side

Pilot episodes don't get any better than this!!!

Usually when there is as much buildup to a premiere episode it doesn't live up to the hype. This show is the notable exception. Aaron Sorkin and Thomas Schlamme have done it again. Now the challenge is to do keep on doing it as they did with Sports Night and The West Wing.

The cast comprises a mini-The West Wing reunion (Matthew Perry, Bradley Whitford, and Timothy Busfield) along with many familiar and not so familiar faces. In typical Sorkin fashion the dialog is both witty and snappy in its delivery. The humor is sarcastic, cutting edge, biting, and rapid and we get an insight into the background of a live television show modeled eerily after Saturday Night Live.

The pilot does what a good pilot should do, and that is set the stage for the why we are at where we are at. It introduces us not only to the characters but to the whole premise and reason for the show. It grabs the viewer and made me say "I can't wait for next week to see how this storyline takes shape".

Based on the pilot I make the following observations about the cast. Steven Weber is superb as the hard ass corporate exec. who straddles the fence between the corporate suits and the network hierarchy. For me the jury is out on Amanda Peet. I normally like her very much but I am having a tough time seeing her as Network President. Both Perry and Busfield have an unmistakable chemistry and play well off one another. Their characters are those of an extraordinary duo that produce high end material and superb judgment. They are co-dependent and the perfect yin-yang for the show. We'll see how D.L.Hugely's character, along with the others, develops but I have a feeling there are a lot of good places this show can go.

So bring it on NBC, I'm already a new fan...just keep the material fresh and the story lines crisp.