Watching Ellie
| Watching Ellie | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Brad Hall |
| Starring | |
| Composer | Oscar Castro-Neves |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 19 (3 unaired) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Producers |
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| Camera setup |
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| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production companies |
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| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | February 26, 2002 – May 20, 2003 |
Watching Ellie is an American television sitcom that starred Julia Louis-Dreyfus and was created by her husband, Brad Hall and was aired on NBC from February 26, 2002 to May 20, 2003. Sixteen episodes were broadcast before it was canceled due to low ratings.
Premise and formats
There were two incarnations of Watching Ellie, neither of which met with any success. Both focused on the character of cabaret singer Ellie Riggs (Louis-Dreyfus), with markedly different approaches.
The first was directed by Ken Kwapis, known for his innovative work in single-camera sitcoms such as The Larry Sanders Show, Malcolm in the Middle and The Bernie Mac Show. Each 22-minute episode was meant to portray a 22-minute slice of Ellie's life, in real time. In the earliest episodes, a clock was even shown in the corner of the screen. Thirteen episodes were filmed but only ten aired before the series was put on indefinite hiatus (the remaining first-season episodes have never aired).
Nearly a full year later, the show reappeared as a more traditional sitcom, with multiple cameras and a live studio audience (plus an added laugh track). This version fared even worse than its predecessor and was canceled after six episodes.
The show also cast Lauren Bowles as Ellie's sister, Susan. In real life, Bowles is Louis-Dreyfus' half-sister (they have the same mother).
Production
Louis-Dreyfus and Hall earned salaries of $350,000 each per episode and their contracts stipulated 15 episodes per season, rather than the usual 22. Carsey-Werner-Mandabach Productions, the original production company, dropped out because of the high costs, and was replaced by NBC Studios.[1]
The show was pitched to ABC, CBS, Fox and HBO, who all turned down the series.[2]
Cast
- Julia Louis-Dreyfus – Ellie Riggs
- Lauren Bowles – Susan
- Steve Carell – Edgar
- Darren Boyd – Ben
- Peter Stormare – Ingvar
- Don Lake – Dr. Zimmerman
Episodes
| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | Rank | Average viewership (in millions) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | |||||
| 1 | 10 | February 26, 2002 | April 23, 2002 | #55 | 10.0 | |
| 2 | 6 | April 15, 2003 | May 20, 2003 | #79 | 8.6 | |
Season 1 (2002)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | US viewers (millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Pilot" | Ken Kwapis | Brad Hall | February 26, 2002 | 16.7 |
| 2 | 2 | "Wedding" | Ken Kwapis | Brad Hall | March 5, 2002 | 12.5 |
| 3 | 3 | "Dinner Party" | Ken Kwapis | Brad Hall | March 12, 2002 | 11.1 |
| 4 | 4 | "Aftershocks" | Michael Lehmann | Jack Burditt | March 19, 2002 | 9.5 |
| 5 | 5 | "Cheetos" | Michael Engler | Teleplay by: Brad Hall Story by: Andrew Gottlieb & Brad Hall | March 26, 2002 | 9.7 |
| 6 | 6 | "Tango" | Michael Engler | Andrew Gottlieb | April 2, 2002 | 9.6 |
| 7 | 7 | "Gift" | Kevin Rodney Sullivan | Joe Furey | April 2, 2002 | 10.4 |
| 8 | 8 | "Medicated" | Craig Zisk | Teleplay by: Joe Furey Story by: Jeffrey Ross | April 9, 2002 | 7.6 |
| 9 | 9 | "Weekend" | Howard Deutch | Andrew Gottlieb | April 16, 2002 | 8.0 |
| 10 | 10 | "Zimmerman" | Allison Liddi-Brown | Mike Armstrong | April 23, 2002 | 6.9 |
| 11 | 11 | "Dream" | TBD | TBD | UNAIRED | TBD |
| 12 | 12 | "Junk" | TBD | TBD | UNAIRED | TBD |
| 13 | 13 | "Drive" | TBD | TBD | UNAIRED | TBD |
Season 2 (2003)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | US viewers (millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | 1 | "Shrink" | Robert Berlinger | Brad Hall & Andrew Gottlieb | April 15, 2003 | 9.8 |
| 15 | 2 | "TV" | Craig Zisk | Andrew Gottlieb | April 22, 2003 | 7.4 |
| 16 | 3 | "Date" | Craig Zisk | Brad Hall & Joe Furey | April 29, 2003 | 8.7 |
| 17 | 4 | "Buskers" | Kevin Rodney Sullivan | Brad Hall & Andrew Gottlieb | May 6, 2003 | 8.3 |
| 18 | 5 | "Fruit Shots" | Andy Ackerman | Brad Hall & Andrew Gottlieb | May 13, 2003 | 7.5 |
| 19 | 6 | "Feud" | Craig Zisk | Brad Hall | May 20, 2003 | 8.4 |
References
- ^ Weinraub, Bernard (January 14, 2002). "You Loved Elaine, Now Meet Ellie; A High-Stakes Gamble Brings Another 'Seinfeld' Star Back to TV". New York Times. Retrieved 17 February 2013.
- ^ Rice, Lynette (May 1, 2002). "Testing: One, Two, Three..." Entertainment Weekly.