Pushing Daisies
Encyclopedia
Pushing Daisies is an American comedy-drama
television series created by Bryan Fuller
that aired on ABC
from October 3, 2007 to June 13, 2009. The series stars Lee Pace
as Ned
, a pie-maker with the ability to bring dead things back to life with his touch, an ability that comes with stipulations. The cast also includes Anna Friel
, Chi McBride
, Kristin Chenoweth
, Ellen Greene
and Swoosie Kurtz
. The series is narrated by Jim Dale
.
Touted as a "forensic fairy tale
", the series is known for its unique visual style, quirky characters, and fast-paced dialogue.
The series received critical acclaim including numerous awards. The series received 17 Emmy Award
nominations, with seven wins; including Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series
for Barry Sonnenfeld
and Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for Kristin Chenoweth.
(Lee Pace
), a pie-maker gifted with the mysterious ability to bring dead things back to life by touching them. There are some conditions to this talent. Ned quickly learns that if something is revived for more than exactly one minute, something of similar "life value" in the vicinity drops dead, as a form of balance. Additionally, if he touches the revived person or thing a second time, it falls dead again, this time permanently.
In the pilot episode, Ned discovers his gift as a child by resurrecting his Golden Retriever
, Digby, after the dog is hit by a truck. He later brings back his mother when she dies of an aneurysm
. However, in doing this, he accidentally causes the death of the father of his childhood sweetheart
, Charlotte "Chuck" Charles (Anna Friel
), as the "price" of keeping his mother alive. Even worse, Ned's mother falls dead permanently when she gives him a good-night kiss (which is how he learns the effect of the second touch).
In their childhood, Ned and Chuck become separated after Chuck's agoraphobic
aunts, Vivian (Ellen Greene
) and Lily (Swoosie Kurtz
), move in to take the role of her parents, while Ned is shipped off by his father to a lonely boarding school.
Inheriting his mother's baking talents, Ned becomes a pie-maker who owns a restaurant called "The Pie Hole", which he runs with the help of waitress Olive Snook (Kristin Chenoweth
). The restaurant is failing financially when private investigator
Emerson Cod (Chi McBride
) accidentally discovers Ned's gift and offers him a proposal: Ned will temporarily bring murder victims back to life, allowing Emerson to inquire about the circumstances of their demise, quickly solve the case and split the reward money with him.
The scheme succeeds until they learn that Chuck, whom Ned has not seen since childhood, was murdered while on a cruise ship. When her body is shipped back home, Ned revives her, but can't bring himself to allow her to stay dead by touching her a second time. Against his better judgment, Ned allows her to live and the larcenous
funeral home director falls dead in her place. Ned and Chuck fall in love again and he brings her home to live with him under the unique circumstances of their never being able to touch each other, with the exception of the occasional kiss through the protective barrier of a sheet of plastic wrap. Chuck, extraordinarily grateful for her second chance at life, starts to appreciate life as a truly precious resource; and Ned, witnessing his vivacious beauty's happiness, begins to break out of his lonely shell. Chuck joins Ned and Emerson in investigating deaths for reward money, starting with tracking down her own killer. Emerson initially dislikes Chuck, whom he calls Deadgirl, but often allows her to take part in detecting.
Other storylines include Emerson's search for his missing daughter, after she was taken away by her mother, a con woman. After meeting a publisher of pop-up book
s, Emerson is inspired to create his own pop-up book, Li'l Gumshoe, hoping that it will be published and that his daughter will read the book and find her way back to him. Olive Snook pines away for Ned. Chuck's aunts slowly learn to accept the death of their only niece, and become friends with Olive, who brings them pie laced with homeopathic mood enhancers baked by Chuck to uplift their spirits. As the series goes on, we find out Chuck is actually Lily's daughter from an infidelity by Chuck's father who was also Vivian's fiancé. We also find out that Ned's father, after abandoning him in boarding school, became the father of twins Maurice and Ralston, aspiring magicians. Ned revives Chuck's father to ask him some questions, and Chuck fakes her father's second death (having him put on a glove so Ned doesn't touch him again) so she can have her father back in her life.
An epilogue at the end of the series reveals that Emerson's daughter returns to him, Chuck is able to reveal that she is alive to her mother Lily and aunt Vivian, and Olive has fallen in love with Ned's friend Randy Mann and opens her own restaurant dedicated to macaroni and cheese
called "The Intrepid Cow".
. Bryan Fuller reportedly made last-minute changes to the ninth episode to allow it to serve as a season finale
, adjusting the episode to be a cliffhanger
.
Because of the Writers Guild strike, the show completed only nine episodes of a full 22-episode season. Instead of attempting to complete the first season, the writers planned to start work on the second season with production restarting around March to June 2008. Although ABC picked Pushing Daisies up for the 2008–09 television season
, when ratings quickly declined ABC opted not to order any additional episodes beyond the second season's initial thirteen. By November 20, 2008, creator Bryan Fuller
had confirmed that Pushing Daisies had been cancelled by ABC and expressed the possibility of wrapping up any lingering plotlines in a comic book or movie sequel.
On July 17, 2008, Pushing Daisies was nominated for twelve Emmy awards, including Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series (Lee Pace
), Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (Kristin Chenoweth
), and Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series (Bryan Fuller
). It won three, for Outstanding Direction of a Comedy Series (Barry Sonnenfeld
), Outstanding Original Score (Jim Dooley
), and Outstanding Editing of a Comedy Series.
The last scheduled episode of the show was broadcast in the United States on December 17, 2008, leaving three episodes unaired, although those episodes were screened at the 2009 Paley Fest. ABC was in negotiations at one time to forfeit broadcast rights to the shows and make the unaired episodes available exclusively online, but announced on April 3, 2009 the final three episodes would be broadcast on ABC Saturdays at 10:00 pm beginning May 30. According to Chenoweth, these episodes do not provide a narrative conclusion to the series.
The final three episodes aired on ABC on successive Saturdays at 10:00 pm from Saturday, May 30, 2009 to June 13, 2009, having already aired elsewhere around the world. In India, the last episode aired on February 27, 2009 as a world premiere. In Germany, the television network ProSieben showed the last three episodes of Pushing Daisies on March 4, 2009 ("Window Dressed to Kill") and March 11, 2009 ("Water and Power", "Kerplunk"). The three remaining unaired episodes were also broadcast in the UK as ITV1 announced it would be showing the complete season during its run on the channel.
The original concept of Pushing Daisies was rooted from Dead Like Me
. The show's creator, Bryan Fuller, intended for Pushing Daisies to be a spinoff of Dead Like Me.
that, "My goal was a storybook come to life. I wanted everything to look almost like an illustration." He achieved this by "concentrating on conflicting patterns in different colors, particularly reds and oranges, but per director Barry Sonnenfeld, virtually no blues." Cinematographer Michael Weaver told Variety that he and the producers decided the visuals should "feel somewhere between Amélie
and a Tim Burton
film — something big, bright and bigger than life."
The distinctive storybook-esque style is continued within the overall design of the visual aspects. Circular background shapes, circular windows, and framing shots within circles was a common theme consistent throughout the series. Symmetry is also a common theme used in its visual style, and characters are often framed in windows, doors, or background props. A heavy use of patterns within a location was often used, where a similar pattern would be used in almost the entire location—the wallpaper, window blinds, bedsheets, pillows, furniture, and even clothing, such as Olive's apartment. The series would often use top-down perspectives and over-head shots which would showcase its overall visual style. Regardless of the fact that the show focuses on murder investigations, the morgue is still painted in candy-cane stripes and many of the outfits worn by the characters are vibrantly colored, bright, and cheery (for example, Olive's work uniform is a lime-green pinstriped dress, and Emerson is frequently seen wearing shades of purple). Only Ned consistently wears black.
CGI is very prominent in the series, with much use of blue screen
technology (the shop window, similar set pieces and outdoor scenery outside often cast a blue halo tinge) and 3D set-extensions (streets, grass and landscape, the pie shop façade). The use of matte painting backdrops are also used to complete the look.
Automobiles featured in the series are often mint-condition vintage vehicles, though some newer vehicles have been used (such as a mid-1990s Chevrolet Lumina APV
minivan, a Hummer
, or a 2006 Toyota Prius
). Emerson drives a mid-1960s Lincoln Continental
with suicide doors in like-new condition. Ned is also seen driving a very old, but like-new car, a Mercedes-Benz W108
. Other characters drive decades-old vehicles as well. 1959 Cadillac
Miller-Meteor cars in their ambulance and hearse configurations figure frequently in the series. Old-fashioned trolley cars can also be seen in several shots panning in to the Pie Hole.
.
. The first six minutes of the series pilot, "Pie-lette
" were composed by Blake Neely
. Dooley describes the musical score as having an Amélie
type of sound (Yann Tiersen
), which is a "wide-angled," adult fairy tale, with a narrator and this super-real world." It was announced on Jim Dooley's website that the soundtrack of the first season was originally going to be released by Varèse Sarabande
on October 21, 2008, but was delayed until December 23, 2008, with the album being available in the iTunes music store on December 10, 2008. A soundtrack for the second season was released on April 5, 2011, also composed by Jim Dooley and released by Varèse Sarabande.
Both Kristin Chenoweth
and Ellen Greene
have backgrounds in musical theater, and have performed musical numbers in some episodes. In "Dummy", Chenoweth sang "Hopelessly Devoted to You
" from the movie musical Grease
. In "Pigeon", Chenoweth and Greene harmonized on the They Might Be Giants
hit, "Birdhouse in Your Soul
". Also in "Smell of Success", Greene sang "Morning Has Broken
". Chenoweth had requested to sing "Eternal Flame
" in an episode, which Bryan Fuller had agreed to accommodate. The song was sung in "Comfort Food". She also performed a cover of Lionel Richie
's "Hello
" in "Window Dressed to Kill".
When the show struggled in the ratings during its second season, Bryan Fuller
said that, should ABC not pick up the series for additional episodes, he would release comic books and maybe a movie based on the show in order to wrap up outstanding stories for fans. Warner Bros. has given the okay to Fuller to produce comic books.
Fuller stated that the "third season" comic book series would be twelve issues long, and be a fresh take on the zombie genre starring all of the characters from the show. It was to have been published by DC Comics' WildStorm
imprint. On October 13, 2009, Entertainment Weekly
reported that Bryan Fuller had just turned in the script for the first comic issue, featuring recurring character Oscar Vibenius, and continued to work with the show's writers on the next three comic scripts. In January 2010, a rumor leaked that the comic series could potentially become a graphic novel instead.
On September 23, 2010, Entertainment Weekly reported the first issue of "season 3" was expected to come out early 2011. Further, Fuller stated that he and the show's composer Jim Dooley had talked about giving the audience a multimedia experience with a Pushing Daisies comic soundtrack, to be released officially or streamed for free online when the comic book was published. Fuller stated that Dooley had started composing musical cues, and that the cast had agreed to sing on the soundtrack, though licensing fees for the actors may have prevented such performances from being included.
In late 2010, DC Comics shut down its WildStorm imprint. On April 23, 2011, Fuller confirmed on Twitter that release of the comic had been postponed by the loss of its publisher. At the same time, Fuller released the first page of the uncolored version the comic book. As of mid 2011, the ultimate disposition of the comic remains unknown.
in San Francisco, Bryan Fuller
was quoted as saying "I am really emboldened by what Starz is doing with Torchwood
and I would love to do a Pushing Daisies mini-series on Starz," Fuller says. "This would be a great way to wrap up the show properly. [We could] do six great episodes or even a Pushing Daisies movie. But I kind of like the idea of a Starz mini-series since they really embraced Torchwood."
("Pie-lette
") attracted 13 million viewers in the United States; it was the most-watched new series and 14th in overall viewership for the week.
claimed that "ABC has found its next Lost
!" upon review and the series has also been touted as "the fall show with the most spring buzz" by many, including the trade publicationVariety
. New York Magazine also provided it with a rave review, calling it "funny, imaginative and smart" while also claiming it "boasts Gilmore Girls
-speed wit." Television Without Pity declared it "one of the most original, most genuinely entertaining shows on TV. It's filled with tongue-tying turns of phrase, fabulous set design and a fantastic cast." Time
magazine's James Poniewozik named it one of the Top 10 New TV Series of 2007, ranking it at #5. The show was also heavily promoted by E! online columnist Kristin Dos Santos (who guest starred in one episode as the "'30s Woman") and was featured in her Top 10 shows of 2007.
s.
In 2008, the series received 12 Emmy Award
nominations, including 3 wins. Barry Sonnenfeld
won for Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series for the pilot episode, "Pie-lette
". James Dooley
won for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series for "Pigeon
". Other notable nominations included Lee Pace
for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, Kristin Chenoweth
for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series and Bryan Fuller
for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for "Pie-lette". The series also received 3 Golden Globe Award
nominations, for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy, Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy (Lee Pace) and Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy (Anna Friel
). Barry Sonnenfeld also won a Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series for "Pie-lette".
In 2009, the series received 5 Emmy Award nominations, including 4 wins. Kristin Chenoweth won for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series while the series won 3 Creative Arts Emmy Awards.
Comedy-drama
Comedy-drama is a genre of theatre, film and television programs which combines humorous and serious content.-Theatre:Traditional western theatre, beginning with the ancient Greeks, was divided into comedy and tragedy...
television series created by Bryan Fuller
Bryan Fuller
Bryan Fuller is an American screenwriter and television producer.Fuller graduated from Clarkston High School in Clarkston, Washington in 1987...
that aired on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
from October 3, 2007 to June 13, 2009. The series stars Lee Pace
Lee Pace
Lee Grinner Pace is an American actor. Pace has been featured in film, stage and television. He is known best for his starring role as Ned in the ABC series Pushing Daisies for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe award and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 2008.-...
as Ned
Ned (Pushing Daisies)
Ned is the protagonist from the 2007-9 ABC television series Pushing Daisies. He is portrayed by Lee Pace.Ned works as a pie maker at his restaurant The Pie Hole. He also has the ability to resurrect the dead with a single touch...
, a pie-maker with the ability to bring dead things back to life with his touch, an ability that comes with stipulations. The cast also includes Anna Friel
Anna Friel
Anna Louise Friel is an English actress. She rose to fame in the UK as Beth Jordache on the Channel 4 soap Brookside.-Early life:...
, Chi McBride
Chi McBride
Kenneth "Chi" McBride is an American actor. He starred as Steven Harper on the series Boston Public, as Emerson Cod on Pushing Daisies, and recently appeared in Fox's drama Human Target.-Early life:...
, Kristin Chenoweth
Kristin Chenoweth
Kristin Chenoweth is an American singer and actress, with credits in musical theatre, film and television. She is best known on Broadway for her performance as Sally Brown in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown , for which she won a Tony Award, and for originating the role of Glinda in the musical...
, Ellen Greene
Ellen Greene
Ellen Greene is an American singer and actress. Greene has had a long and varied career as a singer, particularly in cabaret, as an actor and singer in numerous stage productions, particularly musical theatre, as well as having performed in many films – notably Little Shop of Horrors...
and Swoosie Kurtz
Swoosie Kurtz
Swoosie Kurtz is an American actress. She began her career in theater during the 1970s and shortly thereafter began a career in television, garnering ten nominations and winning one Emmy Award. Her most famous television project was her role on the 1990s NBC drama Sisters...
. The series is narrated by Jim Dale
Jim Dale
Jim Dale, MBE is an English actor, voice artist, singer and songwriter. He is best known in the United Kingdom for his many appearances in the Carry On series of films and in the US for narrating the Harry Potter audiobook series, for which he received two Grammy Awards, and the ABC series Pushing...
.
Touted as a "forensic fairy tale
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
", the series is known for its unique visual style, quirky characters, and fast-paced dialogue.
The series received critical acclaim including numerous awards. The series received 17 Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
nominations, with seven wins; including Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series
The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series is an Emmy presented to the best directing of a television comedy series.-1960s:*1960: Ralph Levy / Bud Yorkin – Jack Benny Hour Specials...
for Barry Sonnenfeld
Barry Sonnenfeld
Barry Sonnenfeld is an American filmmaker and television director. He worked as cinematographer for the Coen brothers, then later he directed and produced big budget films such as Men in Black.-Life and career:...
and Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for Kristin Chenoweth.
Plot
Pushing Daisies centers on the life of NedNed (Pushing Daisies)
Ned is the protagonist from the 2007-9 ABC television series Pushing Daisies. He is portrayed by Lee Pace.Ned works as a pie maker at his restaurant The Pie Hole. He also has the ability to resurrect the dead with a single touch...
(Lee Pace
Lee Pace
Lee Grinner Pace is an American actor. Pace has been featured in film, stage and television. He is known best for his starring role as Ned in the ABC series Pushing Daisies for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe award and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 2008.-...
), a pie-maker gifted with the mysterious ability to bring dead things back to life by touching them. There are some conditions to this talent. Ned quickly learns that if something is revived for more than exactly one minute, something of similar "life value" in the vicinity drops dead, as a form of balance. Additionally, if he touches the revived person or thing a second time, it falls dead again, this time permanently.
In the pilot episode, Ned discovers his gift as a child by resurrecting his Golden Retriever
Golden Retriever
The Golden Retriever is a medium-sized breed of dog. They were historically developed as gundogs to retrieve shot waterfowl such as ducks and upland game birds during hunting and shooting parties. As such, they were bred to have a soft mouth to retrieve game undamaged and have an instinctive love...
, Digby, after the dog is hit by a truck. He later brings back his mother when she dies of an aneurysm
Aneurysm
An aneurysm or aneurism is a localized, blood-filled balloon-like bulge in the wall of a blood vessel. Aneurysms can commonly occur in arteries at the base of the brain and an aortic aneurysm occurs in the main artery carrying blood from the left ventricle of the heart...
. However, in doing this, he accidentally causes the death of the father of his childhood sweetheart
Childhood sweetheart
Childhood sweetheart is a reciprocating phrase for a relationship between young persons, traditionally of the opposite sex occurring in their formative years...
, Charlotte "Chuck" Charles (Anna Friel
Anna Friel
Anna Louise Friel is an English actress. She rose to fame in the UK as Beth Jordache on the Channel 4 soap Brookside.-Early life:...
), as the "price" of keeping his mother alive. Even worse, Ned's mother falls dead permanently when she gives him a good-night kiss (which is how he learns the effect of the second touch).
In their childhood, Ned and Chuck become separated after Chuck's agoraphobic
Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia is an anxiety disorder defined as a morbid fear of having a panic attack or panic-like symptoms in a situation from which it is perceived to be difficult to escape. These situations can include, but are not limited to, wide-open spaces, crowds, or uncontrolled social conditions...
aunts, Vivian (Ellen Greene
Ellen Greene
Ellen Greene is an American singer and actress. Greene has had a long and varied career as a singer, particularly in cabaret, as an actor and singer in numerous stage productions, particularly musical theatre, as well as having performed in many films – notably Little Shop of Horrors...
) and Lily (Swoosie Kurtz
Swoosie Kurtz
Swoosie Kurtz is an American actress. She began her career in theater during the 1970s and shortly thereafter began a career in television, garnering ten nominations and winning one Emmy Award. Her most famous television project was her role on the 1990s NBC drama Sisters...
), move in to take the role of her parents, while Ned is shipped off by his father to a lonely boarding school.
Inheriting his mother's baking talents, Ned becomes a pie-maker who owns a restaurant called "The Pie Hole", which he runs with the help of waitress Olive Snook (Kristin Chenoweth
Kristin Chenoweth
Kristin Chenoweth is an American singer and actress, with credits in musical theatre, film and television. She is best known on Broadway for her performance as Sally Brown in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown , for which she won a Tony Award, and for originating the role of Glinda in the musical...
). The restaurant is failing financially when private investigator
Private investigator
A private investigator , private detective or inquiry agent, is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private detectives/investigators often work for attorneys in civil cases. Many work for insurance companies to investigate suspicious claims...
Emerson Cod (Chi McBride
Chi McBride
Kenneth "Chi" McBride is an American actor. He starred as Steven Harper on the series Boston Public, as Emerson Cod on Pushing Daisies, and recently appeared in Fox's drama Human Target.-Early life:...
) accidentally discovers Ned's gift and offers him a proposal: Ned will temporarily bring murder victims back to life, allowing Emerson to inquire about the circumstances of their demise, quickly solve the case and split the reward money with him.
The scheme succeeds until they learn that Chuck, whom Ned has not seen since childhood, was murdered while on a cruise ship. When her body is shipped back home, Ned revives her, but can't bring himself to allow her to stay dead by touching her a second time. Against his better judgment, Ned allows her to live and the larcenous
Larceny
Larceny is a crime involving the wrongful acquisition of the personal property of another person. It was an offence under the common law of England and became an offence in jurisdictions which incorporated the common law of England into their own law. It has been abolished in England and Wales,...
funeral home director falls dead in her place. Ned and Chuck fall in love again and he brings her home to live with him under the unique circumstances of their never being able to touch each other, with the exception of the occasional kiss through the protective barrier of a sheet of plastic wrap. Chuck, extraordinarily grateful for her second chance at life, starts to appreciate life as a truly precious resource; and Ned, witnessing his vivacious beauty's happiness, begins to break out of his lonely shell. Chuck joins Ned and Emerson in investigating deaths for reward money, starting with tracking down her own killer. Emerson initially dislikes Chuck, whom he calls Deadgirl, but often allows her to take part in detecting.
Other storylines include Emerson's search for his missing daughter, after she was taken away by her mother, a con woman. After meeting a publisher of pop-up book
Pop-up book
The term pop-up book is often applied to any three-dimensional or movable book, although properly the umbrella term movable book covers pop-ups, transformations, tunnel books, volvelles, flaps, pull-tabs, pop-outs, pull-downs, and more, each of which performs in a different manner...
s, Emerson is inspired to create his own pop-up book, Li'l Gumshoe, hoping that it will be published and that his daughter will read the book and find her way back to him. Olive Snook pines away for Ned. Chuck's aunts slowly learn to accept the death of their only niece, and become friends with Olive, who brings them pie laced with homeopathic mood enhancers baked by Chuck to uplift their spirits. As the series goes on, we find out Chuck is actually Lily's daughter from an infidelity by Chuck's father who was also Vivian's fiancé. We also find out that Ned's father, after abandoning him in boarding school, became the father of twins Maurice and Ralston, aspiring magicians. Ned revives Chuck's father to ask him some questions, and Chuck fakes her father's second death (having him put on a glove so Ned doesn't touch him again) so she can have her father back in her life.
An epilogue at the end of the series reveals that Emerson's daughter returns to him, Chuck is able to reveal that she is alive to her mother Lily and aunt Vivian, and Olive has fallen in love with Ned's friend Randy Mann and opens her own restaurant dedicated to macaroni and cheese
Macaroni and cheese
Macaroni and cheese, also known as "mac and cheese", "macaroni cheese" in British English, or "macaroni pie" in Caribbean English, is a casserole consisting of cooked macaroni and cheese sauce...
called "The Intrepid Cow".
Main cast
- Lee PaceLee PaceLee Grinner Pace is an American actor. Pace has been featured in film, stage and television. He is known best for his starring role as Ned in the ABC series Pushing Daisies for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe award and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 2008.-...
as NedNed (Pushing Daisies)Ned is the protagonist from the 2007-9 ABC television series Pushing Daisies. He is portrayed by Lee Pace.Ned works as a pie maker at his restaurant The Pie Hole. He also has the ability to resurrect the dead with a single touch...
. A pie maker and owner of the Pie Hole restaurant. - Anna FrielAnna FrielAnna Louise Friel is an English actress. She rose to fame in the UK as Beth Jordache on the Channel 4 soap Brookside.-Early life:...
as Charlotte "Chuck" Charles. Ned's childhood sweetheart, murdered, but brought back to life by Ned. - Chi McBrideChi McBrideKenneth "Chi" McBride is an American actor. He starred as Steven Harper on the series Boston Public, as Emerson Cod on Pushing Daisies, and recently appeared in Fox's drama Human Target.-Early life:...
as Emerson Cod. A private investigator, Ned's business partner. - Jim DaleJim DaleJim Dale, MBE is an English actor, voice artist, singer and songwriter. He is best known in the United Kingdom for his many appearances in the Carry On series of films and in the US for narrating the Harry Potter audiobook series, for which he received two Grammy Awards, and the ABC series Pushing...
as Narrator. Third-person omniscient. - Field CateField CateField Adreanus Cate is an American actor. He is best known to date for his series-regular role playing Young Ned on the dramedy Pushing Daisies.- Biography :...
as Young Ned. Becomes a regular cast member in the second season premiere. - Ellen GreeneEllen GreeneEllen Greene is an American singer and actress. Greene has had a long and varied career as a singer, particularly in cabaret, as an actor and singer in numerous stage productions, particularly musical theatre, as well as having performed in many films – notably Little Shop of Horrors...
as Vivian Charles. Chuck's aunt, an agoraphobic. - Swoosie KurtzSwoosie KurtzSwoosie Kurtz is an American actress. She began her career in theater during the 1970s and shortly thereafter began a career in television, garnering ten nominations and winning one Emmy Award. Her most famous television project was her role on the 1990s NBC drama Sisters...
as Lily Charles. Chuck's mother, originally thought to be her aunt. - Kristin ChenowethKristin ChenowethKristin Chenoweth is an American singer and actress, with credits in musical theatre, film and television. She is best known on Broadway for her performance as Sally Brown in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown , for which she won a Tony Award, and for originating the role of Glinda in the musical...
as Olive Snook. "Pie Hole" waitress, and "hopelessly devoted" to Ned.
Recurring cast
- Sy RichardsonSy Richardson-Early life:Richardson was born in Cincinnati, Ohio and raised in Chicago, Illinois. He started singing at age 12 and recorded his first record with Lil June and the Januarys at 16. Richardson served two years on active duty with the United States Navy.-Career:...
as the Coroner (12 episodes) - Sammi HanrattySammi HanrattySamantha "Sammi" Hanratty professionally known as Sammi Hanratty is an American actress and singer. In 2007, she began her acting career portraying young Charlotte "Chuck" Charles on the ABC series Pushing Daisies...
as Young Chuck (6 episodes) - Stephen RootStephen RootStephen Root is an American actor. He is best known for his comedic work on the TV sitcom NewsRadio, in the film Office Space and as the voice of Bill Dauterive and Buck Strickland in the animated series King of the Hill...
as Dwight Dixon (5 episodes) - David ArquetteDavid ArquetteDavid Arquette is an American actor, film director, producer, screenwriter, fashion designer, and occasional professional wrestler. A member of the Arquette acting family, he first became known during the mid 1990s after starring in several Hollywood films, such as the Scream series, Wild Bill and...
as Randy Mann (4 episodes) - Diana ScarwidDiana ScarwidDiana Scarwid is an American actress. Scarwid has done work in film, television and theater.-Personal life:Scarwid was born in Savannah, Georgia, and left Georgia at the age of 17, heading to New York to become an actress. She graduated from Pace University and The American Academy of Dramatic...
as Mother Superior (4 episodes) - Christine AdamsChristine Adams (actress)Christine Adams is an English actress. She has made guest appearances in various television series and was a regular on ABC's The Whole Truth. She currently stars as Mira on FOX's Terra Nova.-Filmography:-External links:...
as Simone Hundin (3 episodes) - Raúl EsparzaRaúl EsparzaRaúl Eduardo Esparza is an American stage actor, singer, and voice artist noted for his award winning performances in Broadway shows...
as Alfredo Aldarisio (2 episodes) - Alex Miller as Maurice (2 episodes)
- Graham Miller as Ralston (2 episodes)
- Josh RandallJosh RandallJosh Randall is an American television actor. He is best known for his role as Dr. Mike Burton in the NBC sitcom Ed and the recurring guest role of Jake in Scrubs in 2005. He was married to Claire Rankin on 10 September 2000....
as Charles Charles (2 episodes) - Paul ReubensPaul ReubensPaul Reubens is an American actor, writer, film producer, and comedian, best known for his character Pee-wee Herman. Reubens joined the Los Angeles troupe The Groundlings in the 1970s and started his career as an improvisational comedian and stage actor...
as Oscar Vibenius (2 episodes)
Guest stars
Production history
The series was greenlit and given a 13-episode order by ABC on May 11, 2007. On October 23, 2007, the show received a full season order. However, scripts for only nine episodes were completed before the start of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
The 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, more commonly referred to as simply the Writers' Strike, was a strike by the Writers Guild of America, East and the Writers Guild of America, West ....
. Bryan Fuller reportedly made last-minute changes to the ninth episode to allow it to serve as a season finale
Season finale
A season finale is the final episode of a season of a television program...
, adjusting the episode to be a cliffhanger
Cliffhanger
A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a plot device in fiction which features a main character in a precarious or difficult dilemma, or confronted with a shocking revelation at the end of an episode of serialized fiction...
.
Because of the Writers Guild strike, the show completed only nine episodes of a full 22-episode season. Instead of attempting to complete the first season, the writers planned to start work on the second season with production restarting around March to June 2008. Although ABC picked Pushing Daisies up for the 2008–09 television season
2008–09 United States network television schedule
The following is the 2008–2009 network television schedule for the six major English language broadcast networks in the United States. The schedule covers primetime hours from September 2008 through May 2009. The schedule is followed by a list per network of returning series, new series, and...
, when ratings quickly declined ABC opted not to order any additional episodes beyond the second season's initial thirteen. By November 20, 2008, creator Bryan Fuller
Bryan Fuller
Bryan Fuller is an American screenwriter and television producer.Fuller graduated from Clarkston High School in Clarkston, Washington in 1987...
had confirmed that Pushing Daisies had been cancelled by ABC and expressed the possibility of wrapping up any lingering plotlines in a comic book or movie sequel.
On July 17, 2008, Pushing Daisies was nominated for twelve Emmy awards, including Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series (Lee Pace
Lee Pace
Lee Grinner Pace is an American actor. Pace has been featured in film, stage and television. He is known best for his starring role as Ned in the ABC series Pushing Daisies for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe award and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 2008.-...
), Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (Kristin Chenoweth
Kristin Chenoweth
Kristin Chenoweth is an American singer and actress, with credits in musical theatre, film and television. She is best known on Broadway for her performance as Sally Brown in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown , for which she won a Tony Award, and for originating the role of Glinda in the musical...
), and Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series (Bryan Fuller
Bryan Fuller
Bryan Fuller is an American screenwriter and television producer.Fuller graduated from Clarkston High School in Clarkston, Washington in 1987...
). It won three, for Outstanding Direction of a Comedy Series (Barry Sonnenfeld
Barry Sonnenfeld
Barry Sonnenfeld is an American filmmaker and television director. He worked as cinematographer for the Coen brothers, then later he directed and produced big budget films such as Men in Black.-Life and career:...
), Outstanding Original Score (Jim Dooley
James Dooley (composer)
James Michael Dooley is a film score composer. Dooley studied music at New York University, majoring in music composition. After finishing the university he moved to Los Angeles, where he studied music with prolific film score composers Christopher Young, Elmer Bernstein and Leonard Rosenman...
), and Outstanding Editing of a Comedy Series.
The last scheduled episode of the show was broadcast in the United States on December 17, 2008, leaving three episodes unaired, although those episodes were screened at the 2009 Paley Fest. ABC was in negotiations at one time to forfeit broadcast rights to the shows and make the unaired episodes available exclusively online, but announced on April 3, 2009 the final three episodes would be broadcast on ABC Saturdays at 10:00 pm beginning May 30. According to Chenoweth, these episodes do not provide a narrative conclusion to the series.
The final three episodes aired on ABC on successive Saturdays at 10:00 pm from Saturday, May 30, 2009 to June 13, 2009, having already aired elsewhere around the world. In India, the last episode aired on February 27, 2009 as a world premiere. In Germany, the television network ProSieben showed the last three episodes of Pushing Daisies on March 4, 2009 ("Window Dressed to Kill") and March 11, 2009 ("Water and Power", "Kerplunk"). The three remaining unaired episodes were also broadcast in the UK as ITV1 announced it would be showing the complete season during its run on the channel.
The original concept of Pushing Daisies was rooted from Dead Like Me
Dead Like Me
Dead Like Me was an American-Canadian comedy-drama television series starring Ellen Muth and Mandy Patinkin as grim reapers who reside and work in Seattle, Washington. Filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, the show was created by Bryan Fuller for the Showtime network, where it ran for two seasons...
. The show's creator, Bryan Fuller, intended for Pushing Daisies to be a spinoff of Dead Like Me.
Visual design
Production designer Michael Wylie told TV GuideTV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
that, "My goal was a storybook come to life. I wanted everything to look almost like an illustration." He achieved this by "concentrating on conflicting patterns in different colors, particularly reds and oranges, but per director Barry Sonnenfeld, virtually no blues." Cinematographer Michael Weaver told Variety that he and the producers decided the visuals should "feel somewhere between Amélie
Amélie
Amélie is a 2001 romantic comedy film directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Written by Jeunet with Guillaume Laurant, the film is a whimsical depiction of contemporary Parisian life, set in Montmartre...
and a Tim Burton
Tim Burton
Timothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
film — something big, bright and bigger than life."
The distinctive storybook-esque style is continued within the overall design of the visual aspects. Circular background shapes, circular windows, and framing shots within circles was a common theme consistent throughout the series. Symmetry is also a common theme used in its visual style, and characters are often framed in windows, doors, or background props. A heavy use of patterns within a location was often used, where a similar pattern would be used in almost the entire location—the wallpaper, window blinds, bedsheets, pillows, furniture, and even clothing, such as Olive's apartment. The series would often use top-down perspectives and over-head shots which would showcase its overall visual style. Regardless of the fact that the show focuses on murder investigations, the morgue is still painted in candy-cane stripes and many of the outfits worn by the characters are vibrantly colored, bright, and cheery (for example, Olive's work uniform is a lime-green pinstriped dress, and Emerson is frequently seen wearing shades of purple). Only Ned consistently wears black.
CGI is very prominent in the series, with much use of blue screen
Chroma key
Chroma key compositing is a technique for compositing two images together. A color range in the top layer is made transparent, revealing another image behind. The chroma keying technique is commonly used in video production and post-production...
technology (the shop window, similar set pieces and outdoor scenery outside often cast a blue halo tinge) and 3D set-extensions (streets, grass and landscape, the pie shop façade). The use of matte painting backdrops are also used to complete the look.
Automobiles featured in the series are often mint-condition vintage vehicles, though some newer vehicles have been used (such as a mid-1990s Chevrolet Lumina APV
Chevrolet Lumina APV
The Chevrolet Lumina APV was a minivan produced by General Motors for the 1990 to 1996 model years. In 1994 the APV was dropped from the name to make the name more consistent with the cars, and it was simply known as Lumina or Lumina Minivan. It is similar to the Pontiac Trans Sport and Oldsmobile...
minivan, a Hummer
Hummer
Hummer was a brand of trucks and SUVs, first marketed in 1992 when AM General began selling a civilian version of the M998 Humvee. In 1998, General Motors purchased the brand name and marketed three vehicles: the original Hummer H1, based on the Humvee; and the H2 and H3 models that were...
, or a 2006 Toyota Prius
Toyota Prius
The Toyota Prius is a full hybrid electric mid-size hatchback, formerly a compact sedan developed and manufactured by the Toyota Motor Corporation...
). Emerson drives a mid-1960s Lincoln Continental
Lincoln Continental
The Lincoln Continental is an automobile which was produced by the Lincoln division of Ford Motor Company from 1939 to 1948 and again from 1956 to 2002...
with suicide doors in like-new condition. Ned is also seen driving a very old, but like-new car, a Mercedes-Benz W108
Mercedes-Benz W108
The Mercedes-Benz W108 and W109 were luxury cars built by Mercedes-Benz from 1965 through 1972. The line was an update of the predecessor W111 and W112 fintail sedans. The cars were successful in West Germany and in export markets that included including North America and Southeast Asia...
. Other characters drive decades-old vehicles as well. 1959 Cadillac
Cadillac
Cadillac is an American luxury vehicle marque owned by General Motors . Cadillac vehicles are sold in over 50 countries and territories, but mostly in North America. Cadillac is currently the second oldest American automobile manufacturer behind fellow GM marque Buick and is among the oldest...
Miller-Meteor cars in their ambulance and hearse configurations figure frequently in the series. Old-fashioned trolley cars can also be seen in several shots panning in to the Pie Hole.
Quirkiness
Critics have noted that Pushing Daisies has a distinctive visual style. A NYTimes critic describes it as a "candy-colored, computer-generated bucolic scenery" and another describes a "Technicolor world that seems to exist at right angles to our own" and also note "bizarre dialogue" and the use of alliterative and near-duplicate names of both characters (such as Deedee Duffield, Billy Balsam, the Darling Mermaid Darlings, Charles Charles, Charlotte "Chuck" Charles, John Joseph Jacobs, etc.) and locations (Boutique Travel Travel Boutique, Über Life Life Insurance, Coeur d'Coeurs, etc.). Some of the narration is done in the poetic style of Dr. SeussDr. Seuss
Theodor Seuss Geisel was an American writer, poet, and cartoonist most widely known for his children's books written under the pen names Dr. Seuss, Theo LeSieg and, in one case, Rosetta Stone....
.
Music
The show contains original music composed and arranged by Jim DooleyJames Dooley (composer)
James Michael Dooley is a film score composer. Dooley studied music at New York University, majoring in music composition. After finishing the university he moved to Los Angeles, where he studied music with prolific film score composers Christopher Young, Elmer Bernstein and Leonard Rosenman...
. The first six minutes of the series pilot, "Pie-lette
Pie-lette
"Pie-lette" is the series premiere of the American comedy-drama television series Pushing Daisies. The episode aired a day earlier in Canada than the United States.-Plot:...
" were composed by Blake Neely
Blake Neely
Blake Neely is an American composer, arranger, orchestrator, conductor, and author. His father was a rancher and his brother Tom Neely is an artist in Los Angeles....
. Dooley describes the musical score as having an Amélie
Amélie
Amélie is a 2001 romantic comedy film directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Written by Jeunet with Guillaume Laurant, the film is a whimsical depiction of contemporary Parisian life, set in Montmartre...
type of sound (Yann Tiersen
Yann Tiersen
Yann Tiersen is a musician from France. His musical career is split between studio albums, collaborations and film soundtracks with a distinctive sound that is always involved...
), which is a "wide-angled," adult fairy tale, with a narrator and this super-real world." It was announced on Jim Dooley's website that the soundtrack of the first season was originally going to be released by Varèse Sarabande
Varèse Sarabande
Varèse Sarabande is an American record label, distributed by Universal Music Group, which specializes in film scores and original cast recordings. It aims to reissue rare or unavailable albums as well as newer releases by artists no longer under a contract...
on October 21, 2008, but was delayed until December 23, 2008, with the album being available in the iTunes music store on December 10, 2008. A soundtrack for the second season was released on April 5, 2011, also composed by Jim Dooley and released by Varèse Sarabande.
Both Kristin Chenoweth
Kristin Chenoweth
Kristin Chenoweth is an American singer and actress, with credits in musical theatre, film and television. She is best known on Broadway for her performance as Sally Brown in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown , for which she won a Tony Award, and for originating the role of Glinda in the musical...
and Ellen Greene
Ellen Greene
Ellen Greene is an American singer and actress. Greene has had a long and varied career as a singer, particularly in cabaret, as an actor and singer in numerous stage productions, particularly musical theatre, as well as having performed in many films – notably Little Shop of Horrors...
have backgrounds in musical theater, and have performed musical numbers in some episodes. In "Dummy", Chenoweth sang "Hopelessly Devoted to You
Hopelessly Devoted to You
"Hopelessly Devoted to You", written by John Farrar, is a song originally performed by Olivia Newton-John. The song, featured in the film version of Grease, received an Oscar nomination as Best Original Song, losing to "Last Dance" at the 51st Academy Awards. She performed the song at the 21st...
" from the movie musical Grease
Grease (film)
Grease is a 1978 American musical film directed by Randal Kleiser and based on Warren Casey's and Jim Jacobs's 1971 musical of the same name about two lovers in a 1950s high school. The film stars John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John, Stockard Channing, and Jeff Conaway...
. In "Pigeon", Chenoweth and Greene harmonized on the They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years Flansburgh and Linnell were frequently accompanied by a drum machine. In the early 1990s, TMBG became a full band. Currently, the members of TMBG are...
hit, "Birdhouse in Your Soul
Birdhouse in Your Soul
"Birdhouse in Your Soul" is a song by American alternative rock band They Might Be Giants. It was released in March 1990 as a single from the album Flood. It reached #3 on the United States Modern Rock Tracks chart and #6 on the UK Singles Chart and remains their highest-charting single in both...
". Also in "Smell of Success", Greene sang "Morning Has Broken
Morning Has Broken
"Morning Has Broken" is a popular and well-known Christian hymn first published in 1931. It has words by English author Eleanor Farjeon and is set to a traditional Gaelic tune known as "Bunessan" . It is often sung in children's services...
". Chenoweth had requested to sing "Eternal Flame
Eternal Flame (song)
"Eternal Flame" is a song by The Bangles from their 1988 album Everything. It became a hit single, when released in 1989, peaking at number one in the charts in nine countries, including Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It was written by popular songwriters Billy Steinberg and...
" in an episode, which Bryan Fuller had agreed to accommodate. The song was sung in "Comfort Food". She also performed a cover of Lionel Richie
Lionel Richie
Lionel Brockman Richie, Jr. , is an American singer-songwriter, musician and record producer. Since 1968, he has been a member of the musical group Commodores signed to Motown Records...
's "Hello
Hello (Lionel Richie song)
"Hello" is a song by Lionel Richie. Taken as the third single from Richie's multi-platinum album Can't Slow Down, the song was released in 1984 and reached number one on three Billboard music charts: the pop chart , the R&B chart , and the adult contemporary chart . The song also went to number one...
" in "Window Dressed to Kill".
Comics
The show's official website included a comic book that was distributed at the 2007 San Diego Comic-Con International, which featured new mysteries and background information not shown on the televised episodes. The book also contained recaps of aired episodes.When the show struggled in the ratings during its second season, Bryan Fuller
Bryan Fuller
Bryan Fuller is an American screenwriter and television producer.Fuller graduated from Clarkston High School in Clarkston, Washington in 1987...
said that, should ABC not pick up the series for additional episodes, he would release comic books and maybe a movie based on the show in order to wrap up outstanding stories for fans. Warner Bros. has given the okay to Fuller to produce comic books.
Fuller stated that the "third season" comic book series would be twelve issues long, and be a fresh take on the zombie genre starring all of the characters from the show. It was to have been published by DC Comics' WildStorm
WildStorm
WildStorm Productions, or simply WildStorm, published American comic books. Originally an independent company established by Jim Lee and further expanded upon in subsequent years by other creators, WildStorm became a publishing imprint of DC Comics in 1999...
imprint. On October 13, 2009, Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
reported that Bryan Fuller had just turned in the script for the first comic issue, featuring recurring character Oscar Vibenius, and continued to work with the show's writers on the next three comic scripts. In January 2010, a rumor leaked that the comic series could potentially become a graphic novel instead.
On September 23, 2010, Entertainment Weekly reported the first issue of "season 3" was expected to come out early 2011. Further, Fuller stated that he and the show's composer Jim Dooley had talked about giving the audience a multimedia experience with a Pushing Daisies comic soundtrack, to be released officially or streamed for free online when the comic book was published. Fuller stated that Dooley had started composing musical cues, and that the cast had agreed to sing on the soundtrack, though licensing fees for the actors may have prevented such performances from being included.
In late 2010, DC Comics shut down its WildStorm imprint. On April 23, 2011, Fuller confirmed on Twitter that release of the comic had been postponed by the loss of its publisher. At the same time, Fuller released the first page of the uncolored version the comic book. As of mid 2011, the ultimate disposition of the comic remains unknown.
Mini-series/Film
On April 1, 2011, at WonderConWonderCon
WonderCon is an annual comic book, science fiction, and motion picture convention, held in the San Francisco Bay Area since 1987.The convention was conceived by retailer John Barrett and originally held in the Oakland Convention Center, where it remained until 2003, when it moved to San...
in San Francisco, Bryan Fuller
Bryan Fuller
Bryan Fuller is an American screenwriter and television producer.Fuller graduated from Clarkston High School in Clarkston, Washington in 1987...
was quoted as saying "I am really emboldened by what Starz is doing with Torchwood
Torchwood
Torchwood is a British science fiction television programme created by Russell T Davies. The series is a spin-off from Davies's 2005 revival of the long-running science fiction programme Doctor Who. The show has shifted its broadcast channel each series to reflect its growing audience, moving from...
and I would love to do a Pushing Daisies mini-series on Starz," Fuller says. "This would be a great way to wrap up the show properly. [We could] do six great episodes or even a Pushing Daisies movie. But I kind of like the idea of a Starz mini-series since they really embraced Torchwood."
U.S. ratings
The heavily-promoted pilot episodeTelevision pilot
A "television pilot" is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell the show to a television network. At the time of its inception, the pilot is meant to be the "testing ground" to see if a series will be possibly desired and successful and therefore a test episode of an...
("Pie-lette
Pie-lette
"Pie-lette" is the series premiere of the American comedy-drama television series Pushing Daisies. The episode aired a day earlier in Canada than the United States.-Plot:...
") attracted 13 million viewers in the United States; it was the most-watched new series and 14th in overall viewership for the week.
| Season | Episodes | Timeslot (ET) | Season premiere | Season finale | TV season | Season rank |
Viewers (in millions) |
Network |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9 | Wednesday 8:00 pm | October 3, 2007 | December 12, 2007 | 2007–2008 2007–08 United States network television schedule The following article details the developing fall prime time schedules for the United States' six major English language broadcast networks. Following are lists of what programs have been either renewed or canceled by their networks, the new programs picked up by the networks, and then a schedule... |
#52 | 9.46 | ABC American Broadcasting Company The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948... |
| 2 | 13 | Wednesday 8:00 pm (October 1, 2008 – December 17, 2008) Saturday 10:00 pm (May 30, 2009 – June 13, 2009) |
October 1, 2008 | June 13, 2009 | 2008–2009 2008–09 United States network television schedule The following is the 2008–2009 network television schedule for the six major English language broadcast networks in the United States. The schedule covers primetime hours from September 2008 through May 2009. The schedule is followed by a list per network of returning series, new series, and... |
#95 | 6.10 | |
Critical reception
Critics responded well to the series, comparing the style and direction to that of director Tim Burton. The pilot, before it officially aired, was well-received by critics who were able to screen it. TV Guides Michael AusielloMichael Ausiello
Michael Ausiello is an American television industry journalist and actor. He was a Senior Writer at TV Guide and its companion website, TVGuide.com. On May 28, 2008, Ausiello left TV Guide for Entertainment Weekly and posted his first blog for Entertainment Weekly on July 2, 2008...
claimed that "ABC has found its next Lost
Lost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...
!" upon review and the series has also been touted as "the fall show with the most spring buzz" by many, including the trade publicationVariety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
. New York Magazine also provided it with a rave review, calling it "funny, imaginative and smart" while also claiming it "boasts Gilmore Girls
Gilmore Girls
Gilmore Girls is an American family comedy-drama series created by Amy Sherman-Palladino, starring Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel. On October 5, 2000, the series debuted on The WB and was cancelled in its seventh season, ending on May 15, 2007 on The CW...
-speed wit." Television Without Pity declared it "one of the most original, most genuinely entertaining shows on TV. It's filled with tongue-tying turns of phrase, fabulous set design and a fantastic cast." Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
magazine's James Poniewozik named it one of the Top 10 New TV Series of 2007, ranking it at #5. The show was also heavily promoted by E! online columnist Kristin Dos Santos (who guest starred in one episode as the "'30s Woman") and was featured in her Top 10 shows of 2007.
Awards and nominations
The show was nominated for 57 awards, and won 18 of them, including seven Emmy AwardEmmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
s.
In 2008, the series received 12 Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
nominations, including 3 wins. Barry Sonnenfeld
Barry Sonnenfeld
Barry Sonnenfeld is an American filmmaker and television director. He worked as cinematographer for the Coen brothers, then later he directed and produced big budget films such as Men in Black.-Life and career:...
won for Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series for the pilot episode, "Pie-lette
Pie-lette
"Pie-lette" is the series premiere of the American comedy-drama television series Pushing Daisies. The episode aired a day earlier in Canada than the United States.-Plot:...
". James Dooley
James Dooley (composer)
James Michael Dooley is a film score composer. Dooley studied music at New York University, majoring in music composition. After finishing the university he moved to Los Angeles, where he studied music with prolific film score composers Christopher Young, Elmer Bernstein and Leonard Rosenman...
won for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series for "Pigeon
Pigeon (Pushing Daisies)
"Pigeon" is the fourth episode of the first season of the American television comedy-drama Pushing Daisies. The episode—which features a duet version of the They Might Be Giants song "Birdhouse in Your Soul"—earned Jim Dooley a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for...
". Other notable nominations included Lee Pace
Lee Pace
Lee Grinner Pace is an American actor. Pace has been featured in film, stage and television. He is known best for his starring role as Ned in the ABC series Pushing Daisies for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe award and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 2008.-...
for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, Kristin Chenoweth
Kristin Chenoweth
Kristin Chenoweth is an American singer and actress, with credits in musical theatre, film and television. She is best known on Broadway for her performance as Sally Brown in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown , for which she won a Tony Award, and for originating the role of Glinda in the musical...
for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series and Bryan Fuller
Bryan Fuller
Bryan Fuller is an American screenwriter and television producer.Fuller graduated from Clarkston High School in Clarkston, Washington in 1987...
for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for "Pie-lette". The series also received 3 Golden Globe Award
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
nominations, for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy, Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy (Lee Pace) and Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy (Anna Friel
Anna Friel
Anna Louise Friel is an English actress. She rose to fame in the UK as Beth Jordache on the Channel 4 soap Brookside.-Early life:...
). Barry Sonnenfeld also won a Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series for "Pie-lette".
In 2009, the series received 5 Emmy Award nominations, including 4 wins. Kristin Chenoweth won for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series while the series won 3 Creative Arts Emmy Awards.
DVD and Blu-ray releases
| Season | Region 1 Release Date | Region 2 Release Date | Region 4 Release Date | Episodes | Discs | Bonus Features |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 16, 2008 | June 23, 2008 September 15, 2008 (Blu-ray) |
December 9, 2008 | 9 | 3 |
|
| 2 | July 21, 2009 | May 25, 2009 | April 28, 2010 | 13 | 4 |
Jumanji Jumanji is the title of a 1981 children's illustrated short story and fantasy story written and illustrated by the American author Chris Van Allsburg. It was made into a 1995 film of the same name. Both the book and the movie are about a magical board game that implements real animals and other... ! |
External links
- Pushing Daisies at The WB
- What Would've Happened on Pushing Daisies If It Hadn't Been Cancelled? – Interview with Bryan Fuller from TheTorchOnline.com