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Pilot (The Office episode)
Encyclopedia
"Pilot" is the first-season
and series premiere of American comedy
television series
The Office. It premiered in the United States on NBC
on March 24, 2005. The episode's teleplay was adapted by Greg Daniels
from the original script of the first episode of the British version
written by Ricky Gervais
and Stephen Merchant
. The episode was directed by Ken Kwapis
.
"Pilot" introduces each of the main characters as employees of the Scranton, Pennsylvania
branch of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company, as well as establishes the basic premises of the series. In the episode, regional manager Michael
is told to keep possible downsizing a secret, but the rumor spreads like wild fire.
(Steve Carell
), regional manager of the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin, introduces a visiting documentary crew to his employees, who include Jim Halpert
(John Krasinski
), a competent but unmotivated sales representative, Dwight Schrute
(Rainn Wilson
), his petty and power-hungry co-worker, Ryan Howard
(B.J. Novak), a new temporary employee, and Pam Beesly
(Jenna Fischer
), the soft-spoken receptionist and object of Jim's flirtation.
Jan Levenson-Gould (Melora Hardin
), Michael's superior from corporate, arrives to inform Michael that the Scranton branch may be closed down. Michael immediately informs his employees that no one will be fired. Meanwhile, Dwight discovers that Jim has encased his stapler in Jell-O
. Later in the day, Michael attempts to prank Pam by pretending to fire her for stealing Post-it note
s. When Pam breaks down crying, Michael reveals the joke, but Pam is hardly amused.
for the 2004-05 season. Although the episode was primarily adapted from the first episode of the British series, it was partially re-scripted in an attempt to "Americanize" it. Jokes such as Dwight's stapler being put in Jell-O by Jim were transferred verbatim from the original series, while others were only slightly changed. Although later reshot, a scene in which Jim tapes pencils to his desk was originally filmed as a parallel to a scene in the British version, in which Tim Canterbury
stacks up cardboard boxes in front of Gareth Keenan
to restrict Keenan's view of Canterbury.
The table reading for the pilot episode of The Office was held on February 10, 2005.
"Pilot" was filmed almost six months prior to beginning of filming on the second episode of the season "Diversity Day
". Many actors originally filmed as extras in this episode would later go on to become supporting cast members in later episodes, and the two women wearing blue sweaters towards the back of the room at the staff meeting scene were actual accountants that worked on the production staff. The Office used no laugh tracks in the "Pilot", wanting its "deadpan" and "absurd" humor to fully come across.
said, "Maybe, after The Office dies a quick death on NBC, the network will decide that trying to Americanize British TV comedies isn't such a great idea." The New York Daily News said the show was "neither daring nor funny", adding that "NBC's version is so diluted there's little left but muddy water". The Los Angeles Times complained that Steve Carell
, who portrays Scott and also appeared in the movie Anchorman, was "too cartoon" and said: "Lost in translation is the sadness behind the characters."
Although many perceived the first episode to have been a failure, some outlets praised the new show. While berating the show for its for coming across "slowly and painfully", the Boston Globe said that "It is funny". In relation to past failed shows adapted from British shows, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette stated "Despite botching the American remake
of the Britcom
Coupling
, NBC makes a pretty good effort in its version of The Office in duplicating the original's ethos while injecting it with an American sensibility." In viewers aged 18–49, an estimated 11.3 million people viewed the premiere episode of The Office, making it the third most-watched show for that evening. With over 11 million views, it is the second most watched episode of the series, after the fifth season episode "Stress Relief."
, Dwight
, Jim
, Pam, Ryan
, Oscar
, Angela
, Kevin
, Stanley
, Phyllis, Creed
, Jan, and Roy
.
Meredith
, Kelly
, Toby
, and Darryl
are the only other prominent characters introduced within the first season who are not present in the first episode. Devon, who is only present in two episodes of the first season, is likewise absent in the "Pilot" episode.
Three unnamed women and one unnamed man appear in the "Pilot" and are not seen in any other episode. They can be seen during the conference room meeting, which occurs halfway through the episode.
The Office (U.S. TV series) season 1
The first season of the American television comedy The Office premiered in the United States on NBC on March 24, 2005, concluded on April 26, 2005, and consists of six episodes...
and series premiere of American comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
television series
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
The Office. It premiered in the United States on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
on March 24, 2005. The episode's teleplay was adapted by Greg Daniels
Greg Daniels
Gregory Martin "Greg" Daniels is an American television comedy writer, producer, and director.-Life and career:...
from the original script of the first episode of the British version
The Office (UK TV series)
The Office is a British sitcom television series that was first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 9 July 2001. Created, written, and directed by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, the programme is about the day-to-day lives of office employees in the Slough branch of the fictitious...
written by Ricky Gervais
Ricky Gervais
Ricky Dene Gervais is an English comedian, actor, director, radio presenter, producer, musician, and writer.Gervais achieved mainstream fame with his television series The Office and the subsequent series Extras, both of which he co-wrote and co-directed with friend and frequent collaborator...
and Stephen Merchant
Stephen Merchant
Stephen James Merchant is an English writer, director, radio presenter, comedian, and actor. He is best known for his collaborations with Ricky Gervais, as the co-writer and co-director of the popular British sitcom The Office, as the co-writer, co-director and a co-star of Extras, and as the...
. The episode was directed by Ken Kwapis
Ken Kwapis
Ken Kwapis is an American film and television director and screenwriter. He specialized in the single-camera sitcom in the 1990s and 2000s and has directed feature films such as Sesame Street Presents Follow That Bird, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, and He's Just Not That Into...
.
"Pilot" introduces each of the main characters as employees of the Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton is a city in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania, United States. It is the county seat of Lackawanna County and the largest principal city in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area. Scranton had a population of 76,089 in 2010, according to the U.S...
branch of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company, as well as establishes the basic premises of the series. In the episode, regional manager Michael
Michael Scott (The Office)
Michael Gary Scott is a fictional character on NBC's The Office, portrayed by Steve Carell, and based on David Brent from the original British version. Michael, the central character of the series, was the manager of the Scranton branch of paper and printer distribution company Dunder Mifflin Inc...
is told to keep possible downsizing a secret, but the rumor spreads like wild fire.
Plot
Michael ScottMichael Scott (The Office)
Michael Gary Scott is a fictional character on NBC's The Office, portrayed by Steve Carell, and based on David Brent from the original British version. Michael, the central character of the series, was the manager of the Scranton branch of paper and printer distribution company Dunder Mifflin Inc...
(Steve Carell
Steve Carell
Steven John "Steve" Carell is an American comedian, actor, voice artist, producer, writer, and director. Although Carell is notable for his role on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, he found greater fame in the late 2000s for playing Michael Scott on The Office...
), regional manager of the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin, introduces a visiting documentary crew to his employees, who include Jim Halpert
Jim Halpert
James Duncan "Jim" Halpert is a fictional character in the United States version of the television sitcom The Office, played by John Krasinski. The character is based on Tim Canterbury from the original version of The Office...
(John Krasinski
John Krasinski
John Burke Krasinski is an American actor, film director, and writer. He is most widely known for playing Jim Halpert on the NBC sitcom The Office...
), a competent but unmotivated sales representative, Dwight Schrute
Dwight Schrute
Dwight Kurt Schrute III is a character on NBC's The Office portrayed by Rainn Wilson. He originally exactly resembled Gareth Keenan from the original UK version of The Office. Dwight is the top salesman and former acting manager for the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company and has won numerous awards for...
(Rainn Wilson
Rainn Wilson
Rainn Dietrich Wilson is an American actor and comedian. He is primarily known for his role as the egomaniacal Dwight Schrute on the American version of the television comedy The Office...
), his petty and power-hungry co-worker, Ryan Howard
Ryan Howard (The Office)
Ryan Bailey Howard , played by B. J. Novak, is a fictional character on the US television sitcom The Office. He is based upon Ricky Howard from the original version of The Office , but his role is significantly expanded and he is a main character.-Character profile:Little is known about Ryan's...
(B.J. Novak), a new temporary employee, and Pam Beesly
Pam Beesly
Pamela Morgan "Pam" Halpert is a fictional character on the U.S. television sitcom The Office, played by Jenna Fischer. Her counterpart in the original UK series of The Office is Dawn Tinsley....
(Jenna Fischer
Jenna Fischer
Regina Marie "Jenna" Fischer is an American actress and director. She is most widely known for her Emmy-nominated portrayal of Pam Halpert on the NBC situation comedy and mockumentary The Office, and has also appeared in several films, including Blades of Glory, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story,...
), the soft-spoken receptionist and object of Jim's flirtation.
Jan Levenson-Gould (Melora Hardin
Melora Hardin
Melora Diane Hardin is an American actress, best known for her roles as Jan Levinson on NBC's The Office and Trudy Monk on USA's Monk.-Early life:...
), Michael's superior from corporate, arrives to inform Michael that the Scranton branch may be closed down. Michael immediately informs his employees that no one will be fired. Meanwhile, Dwight discovers that Jim has encased his stapler in Jell-O
Gelatin dessert
Gelatin desserts are desserts made with sweetened and flavored gelatin. They can be made by combining plain gelatin with other ingredients or by using a premixed blend of gelatin with additives...
. Later in the day, Michael attempts to prank Pam by pretending to fire her for stealing Post-it note
Post-it note
A Post-it note is a piece of stationery with a re-adherable strip of adhesive on the back, designed for temporarily attaching notes to documents and other surfaces. Although now available in a wide range of colours, shapes, and sizes, Post-it notes are most commonly a square, canary yellow in colour...
s. When Pam breaks down crying, Michael reveals the joke, but Pam is hardly amused.
Production
The episode debuted the series as a midseason replacementMidseason replacement
In American and Canadian television, a midseason replacement is a television series that premieres in the second half of the traditional television season, usually between January and May...
for the 2004-05 season. Although the episode was primarily adapted from the first episode of the British series, it was partially re-scripted in an attempt to "Americanize" it. Jokes such as Dwight's stapler being put in Jell-O by Jim were transferred verbatim from the original series, while others were only slightly changed. Although later reshot, a scene in which Jim tapes pencils to his desk was originally filmed as a parallel to a scene in the British version, in which Tim Canterbury
Tim Canterbury
Tim Canterbury is a main character in the BBC sitcom The Office, played by Martin Freeman. He is a 30-year-old sales representative for paper merchants Wernham Hogg and lives with his parents. He spent one year at a university before dropping out, and one day hopes to return to get a psychology...
stacks up cardboard boxes in front of Gareth Keenan
Gareth Keenan
Gareth Keenan is a fictional paper salesman on BBC's comedy The Office. He is portrayed in the series by Mackenzie Crook as a gaunt, self-important team leader proud of his alleged lieutenant status in the Territorial Army...
to restrict Keenan's view of Canterbury.
The table reading for the pilot episode of The Office was held on February 10, 2005.
"Pilot" was filmed almost six months prior to beginning of filming on the second episode of the season "Diversity Day
Diversity Day
"Diversity Day" is the second episode of the first season of the American version of The Office. Written by B. J. Novak and directed by Ken Kwapis, it first aired in the United States on March 29, 2005, on NBC. The episode guest stars Office consulting producer Larry Wilmore as Mr...
". Many actors originally filmed as extras in this episode would later go on to become supporting cast members in later episodes, and the two women wearing blue sweaters towards the back of the room at the staff meeting scene were actual accountants that worked on the production staff. The Office used no laugh tracks in the "Pilot", wanting its "deadpan" and "absurd" humor to fully come across.
Reception
"Pilot" received mixed reviews after its premiere. Many sources deemed it another failed American reincarnation of a British show. As the Deseret Morning NewsDeseret Morning News
The Deseret News is a newspaper published in Salt Lake City, Utah, and is Utah's oldest continuously published daily newspaper. It has the second largest daily circulation in the state behind The Salt Lake Tribune. The Deseret News is owned by Deseret News Publishing Company, a subsidiary of...
said, "Maybe, after The Office dies a quick death on NBC, the network will decide that trying to Americanize British TV comedies isn't such a great idea." The New York Daily News said the show was "neither daring nor funny", adding that "NBC's version is so diluted there's little left but muddy water". The Los Angeles Times complained that Steve Carell
Steve Carell
Steven John "Steve" Carell is an American comedian, actor, voice artist, producer, writer, and director. Although Carell is notable for his role on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, he found greater fame in the late 2000s for playing Michael Scott on The Office...
, who portrays Scott and also appeared in the movie Anchorman, was "too cartoon" and said: "Lost in translation is the sadness behind the characters."
Although many perceived the first episode to have been a failure, some outlets praised the new show. While berating the show for its for coming across "slowly and painfully", the Boston Globe said that "It is funny". In relation to past failed shows adapted from British shows, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette stated "Despite botching the American remake
Coupling (U.S. TV series)
Coupling is a 2003 American remake of the British television sitcom of the same title which aired on NBC.-Reception:It failed to perform in the ratings and was canceled before the November sweeps, with several episodes remaining unaired despite heavy publicity by the network. It was immediately...
of the Britcom
British sitcom
A British sitcom tends, as it does in most other countries, to be based on a family, workplace or other institution, where the same group of contrasting characters is brought together in each episode. Unlike American sitcoms, where twenty or more episodes in a season is the norm, British sitcoms...
Coupling
Coupling (UK TV series)
Coupling is a British television sitcom written by Steven Moffat that aired on BBC2 from May 2000 to June 2004. Produced by Hartswood Films for the BBC, the show centres on the dating and sexual adventures and mishaps of six friends in their thirties, often depicting the three women and the three...
, NBC makes a pretty good effort in its version of The Office in duplicating the original's ethos while injecting it with an American sensibility." In viewers aged 18–49, an estimated 11.3 million people viewed the premiere episode of The Office, making it the third most-watched show for that evening. With over 11 million views, it is the second most watched episode of the series, after the fifth season episode "Stress Relief."
Cast
Characters present in the "Pilot" episode include MichaelMichael Scott (The Office)
Michael Gary Scott is a fictional character on NBC's The Office, portrayed by Steve Carell, and based on David Brent from the original British version. Michael, the central character of the series, was the manager of the Scranton branch of paper and printer distribution company Dunder Mifflin Inc...
, Dwight
Dwight Schrute
Dwight Kurt Schrute III is a character on NBC's The Office portrayed by Rainn Wilson. He originally exactly resembled Gareth Keenan from the original UK version of The Office. Dwight is the top salesman and former acting manager for the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company and has won numerous awards for...
, Jim
Jim Halpert
James Duncan "Jim" Halpert is a fictional character in the United States version of the television sitcom The Office, played by John Krasinski. The character is based on Tim Canterbury from the original version of The Office...
, Pam, Ryan
Ryan Howard (The Office)
Ryan Bailey Howard , played by B. J. Novak, is a fictional character on the US television sitcom The Office. He is based upon Ricky Howard from the original version of The Office , but his role is significantly expanded and he is a main character.-Character profile:Little is known about Ryan's...
, Oscar
Oscar Martinez
Oscar Jual Paul Martinez is a fictional character from the US television series The Office. He is played by Oscar Nunez.-Overview:Oscar Martinez is an accountant at the paper distributor Dunder Mifflin. He is a first generation Mexican-American. Oscar is also openly homosexual after being...
, Angela
Angela Martin
Angela Noelle Martin is a fictional character from the US television series The Office played by American actress Angela Kinsey. She is an original character, and has no equivalent in the British version of the show, The Office.-Overview:...
, Kevin
Kevin Malone
Kevin Jaye Malone is a character in the United States television series The Office. He is played by Brian Baumgartner. Kevin's counterpart in the UK series is Keith Bishop.-Biography:...
, Stanley
Stanley Hudson
Stanley James Hudson is a fictional character from the US television series The Office. He is played by Leslie David Baker. Stanley's counterpart in the UK series is Malcolm.-Overview:...
, Phyllis, Creed
Creed Bratton (character)
Creed Rowland Bratton a.k.a. "William Charles Schneider" is a fictional character from the U.S. television series The Office. Confusion may arise from the fact that the character is played by and partially based on the musician of the same name, Creed Bratton...
, Jan, and Roy
Roy Anderson (The Office)
Royson "Roy" Allan Anderson is a fictional character from the US television series The Office, portrayed by David Denman. His counterpart in the original UK series of The Office is Lee.-Overview:...
.
Meredith
Meredith Palmer
Meredith Elizabeth Palmer is a fictional character from the US television series The Office. She is played by Kate Flannery. She is an original character and has no equivalent in the British version of the show, The Office....
, Kelly
Kelly Kapoor
Kelly Rajnigandha Kapoor , is a fictional character from the US television series, The Office. She is played by Mindy Kaling, who is also a writer and producer for the show....
, Toby
Toby Flenderson
Toby Wyatt Flenderson, M.S.W. born 1971 is a character from the US television series The Office. He is played by Paul Lieberstein. He is an original character and has no equivalent in the British version of the show, The Office.-Overview:...
, and Darryl
Darryl Philbin
Darryl Mathias Philbin is a fictional character from the US television series The Office. He is played by Craig Robinson.-Overview:Darryl Philbin is the foreman of the warehouse of the Scranton branch of fictitious paper distributor Dunder Mifflin....
are the only other prominent characters introduced within the first season who are not present in the first episode. Devon, who is only present in two episodes of the first season, is likewise absent in the "Pilot" episode.
Three unnamed women and one unnamed man appear in the "Pilot" and are not seen in any other episode. They can be seen during the conference room meeting, which occurs halfway through the episode.
External links
- "Pilot" at NBC.com