Who said they can not become famous after thirty actresses? "Desperate Housewives" gave world fame to a galaxy of performers who are "far beyond." The project enjoyed unprecedented popularity and was closed only in 2012. What is it about the screen heroines captivated the audience?
History of the creation of the series
The idea to create a fascinating series about the life of four housewives first came up with producer Mark Cherry in 2002. He went around a number of television and radio companies (Showtime, HBO, CBS, FOX, NBC), but everywhere this project was considered unprofitable. One can only guess how the owners of the channels bit their elbows when the “unpromising” television series was taken into development by ABC and suddenly became a real hit.
The film was first released in October 2004. The ratings of the series were so high that it was extended for eight seasons. Viewers watched the fate of residents from Wisteria Lane until 2012. During this time, actors and actresses involved in the project managed to earn quite large amounts.
“Desperate Housewives” attracted the attention of a large audience. Each series in the first season attracted an average of 20 million viewers to the screens. Such popularity could boast except for the sensational project of Aaron Spelling's "Beverly Hills". By the seventh season, ratings fell to 13 million. Nevertheless, the final episode expressed a desire to watch 30 million people.
Short story
What is the story of the television series Desperate Housewives? Season 1 begins with the fact that a resident of one of the streets of a fictional town commits suicide. Her name is Mary Alice Young. After her death from heaven, she watches her friends (concurrently also her neighbors) Susan, Gabrielle, Bree and Lynette, commenting on the back of everything that happens in their life.
And there is something to comment on. In a comedic form, the screen describes all the hardships that desperate housewives face: unsuccessful marriages, betrayals, intrigues, gossip, sometimes even murders!
In subsequent seasons, the usual quintet of housewives is supplemented by new characters. Most often, intrigue is built around the "newcomers". The genre of the whole action can be defined as a tragicomedy with elements of a detective story. Perhaps that is why the project was very popular: it managed to combine a lot of funny and dramatic life moments, flavored with criminal and espionage "little things."
Brenda Strong as Mary Alice Young
The main roles in the project were played by mature and little-known actresses. "Desperate Housewives" turned the lives of performers, who up to thirty did not succeed in anything in their careers.
The fewest shooting days were for the actress Brenda Strong, but she worked most of all on scoring. The fact is that her heroine Mary Alice died before the start of the series, and in the frame acted as the main storyteller.
Around Mary Alice throughout the project, there was a halo of mystery. Even in the pilot issue, the heroine received a strange letter from an unknown blackmailer, after which she shot herself. The mysterious death of Mary-Alice, her friends discussed almost all seasons.
As a result, it turned out that Mary-Alice and her husband raised a foster child. One day, Zak's biological mother, a long-standing drug addict, showed up at the Yangs' house and tried to pick up her son. Protecting the boy, Mary Alice accidentally killed Deirdre. Many years later, a certain Marta, who knew about this incident, decided to blackmail Mary Alice. She did not even suspect that the woman brought to the handle would kill herself.
Brenda Strong got into the project when she was 44. The actress was not very lucky in her career, so she additionally mastered the profession of a yoga instructor. Strong can be seen in episodic roles in the TV series Twin Peaks, Dawson's Creek and Dallas.
Teri Hatcher as Susan Mayer
Teri Hatcher has been in films since 1989. She managed to play Katherine Tango in the action movie Tango and Cash and Claudett in Prisoners of Heaven. But the main roles were not assigned to the artist until she got into the series "Desperate Housewives."
Teri Hatcher played in the film one of the most charming heroines - Susan Mayer. This woman looks like a child in adult guise: she is clumsy, loves children's books, works as an illustrator and is just a very kind and naive person.
Susan's husband cheated on her with the secretary, and then completely filed for divorce. So the housewife also became a single mother. But soon on the street Wisteria Lane appears a new attractive character named Mike Delfino. For his heart, Susan fights with the brutal Go and wins. But then various shocking facts from the life of Delfino begin to open, so that after the second marriage Susan’s misadventures only begin.
For playing the role of a “desperate” housewife from Wisteria, Lane Teri Hatcher received the prestigious Golden Globe Award.
Felicity Huffman as Lynette Scavo
Lynette Skawo is a colorful character. A strong and enterprising woman who, before marriage, ran a large business. But then Skavo gave birth to four children and turned into a home hen. This tormented the woman for many years. But she found a way out of her indefatigable energy: she opened a pizzeria and gave birth to twins in subsequent seasons.
Felicity Huffman, who plays Lynette, got into the Desperate Housewives project when she was 42 years old. Prior to that, her arsenal had only episodic roles in various television series like The X-Files and The West Wing.
For her role, Lynette Felicity received an Emmy Award. A year after her triumph in the successful series, Huffman played a transgender in the drama Transamerica, for which she was nominated for an Oscar and even received a Golden Globe.
Felicity is the only one of all the "housewives" who has their own personalized star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Desperate Housewives: Marcia Cross as Bree van de Camp
Marcia Cross before “Desperate Housewives” flashed in many TV shows. Cross devoted five years of her life to shooting in the legendary long-playing soap “Melrose Place”. Since the performer is distinguished by her non-standard appearance, she was entrusted with the role of a very ambiguous character - a doctor who survived from the mind by the name of Kimberly Shaw.
In the project of the ABC television channel, the heroine of Marcia is also similar to an alien from another planet. Bree is an idealist in everything; she does not know how to do anything in half. Mrs. van de Camp is a wonderful cook, she has phenomenal cleanliness in her house. Therefore, for a woman, the news that her husband wants to divorce her is a big blow. Bree fights for his marriage for the first season, but her husband eventually dies of a heart attack.
Eva Longoria as Gabriel Solis
Well, who managed to make a name for himself during the filming of the series is Eva Longoria. “Desperate Housewives” gave a good start to her career. Before and after the project, the actress did not receive at least one more or less decent role, but she shone on the covers of many magazines, became the face of the cosmetics company Loreal and mastered the profession of producer and restaurateur.
The heroine of Longoria is a spectacular supermodel
Gabrielle Solis. The girl had the imprudence to leave the podium for marriage, but in the end she received only a headache. Her husband Carlos was an incredible jealous. Gabriel cheated on him many times until they got divorced. But as soon as this happened, the former spouses again felt attraction to each other. However, at that time, Gaby was married to a completely different person. And only the accidental death of the spouse of the main character, Victor, allows Gaby and Carlos to reunite again.
N. Sheridan as Idi Britt
Nicolette Sheridan, unlike Longoria, Strong, Hatcher, Huffman and Cross, starred in only the first five seasons of the project. Her heroine, Idi Britt, is a real estate agent, and part-time is a heartbreaker. Go hate all the respectable residents of Wisteria Lane, because the heroine slept with the entire male population of the street. Go died in a car accident at the end of season five.
Nicolette Sheridan, who played the role of Britt, is a British actress who first became famous for her role as Page Matheson in the soap opera Quiet Pier. Then she starred in a galaxy of television films, but only “Desperate Housewives” became known throughout the world.
D. Delaney as Catherine Mayfair
Dana Dylaney is a pretty famous person in the States. For 40 years, she successfully combined the profession of actress, producer and television presenter. The first success came to the performer in 1988, when she got the main role in the television show China Beach. Then there were the films “Sensitive Dream”, “Housewife” and many other projects.
In “Desperate Housewives,” Dana appeared only in season 4. Initially, the artist was offered the role of Bree van de Camp. But she did not like this image. Then the creators of the series came up with Catherine Mayfair for her - a cold, prudent and erudite person. Katherine did not go well with her personal life: two divorces, an unsuccessful affair with Mike Delfino, a nervous breakdown and a departure for homosexuality. In the sixth season finale, Katherine Mayfair left the series, leaving for another city with her new passion.
Guest Actors and Actresses: Desperate Housewives - Episode Heroes
A myriad of different artists participated in the project. So there are other colorful characters in the series "Desperate Housewives."
Season 1 could not have done without the hero Stephen Culp: the actor played Rex van de Camp - Bree's husband, who has a passion for girls of easy virtue. The role of husband Gabriel went to Ricardo Antonio Chavira. By the way, he appeared in absolutely all seasons of the project. Mark Moses played Paul Young - husband of the late Mary Alice. The image of his beloved Susan embodied on the screens of
James Denton, and Tom Skavo was played by Doug Sevant - the star of the series "Melrose Place".