''Desire'' is an American

telenovela A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar drama genres around the world include '' teleserye'' ...

which debuted at 8:00PM Eastern/7:00PM Central on September 5, 2006, on the

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

network Network, networking and networked may refer to: Science and technology * Network theory, the study of graphs as a representation of relations between discrete objects * Network science, an academic field that studies complex networks Mathematic ...

MyNetworkTV MyNetworkTV (unofficially abbreviated MyTV, MyNet, MNT or MNTV, and sometimes referred to as My Network) is an American commercial broadcast television syndication service and former television network owned by Fox Corporation, operated by its ...

, and ended on December 5. It was produced by

Twentieth Television 20th Television (formerly 20th Century Fox Television, 20th Century-Fox Television, and TCF Television Productions, Inc.) is an American television production company that is a division of Disney Television Studios, part of The Walt Disney Comp ...

. The program starred

Sofia Milos Sofia Milos (; gr, Σοφία Μίλος, born 27 September 1969) is a Swiss-born actress. She is best known for her role as Yelina Salas on ''CSI: Miami''. She has also had a role on ''The Sopranos'' as Camorra boss Annalisa Zucca, as well ...

, Michelle Belegrin,

Nate Haden Nathaniel "Nate" Richard Haden (born March 9, 1976) is an American actor who appeared in several TV shows. His most well known role is "Louis Thomas" in the TV drama series '' Desire (TV series)''. Haden grew up in Lincoln, Nebraska as the oldes ...

, Kelly Albanese, Zack Silva, Chuti Tiu, Jessie Ward,

Tanisha Harper Tanisha Mariko Harper is an American model actress and television host. Early life Harper was born in Tokyo, Japan. She is of mixed Cherokee and African American descent. At the age of 15 she was discovered in a shopping mall in her hometown of ...

, Will Rolland,

Al Bandiero Al Bandiero is an American film, radio personality, and television actor, known for playing Peter Evans in the television series ''Desire''. Other works * Extensive TV Hosting; Children's Miracle Network Telethon, TV 2000, This Week's Music, Mu ...

, Kristen Kerr, and

Eliana Alexander Eliana Alexander is a Mexican actress. She portrayed the role of Rita Thomas on My Network TV's ''Desire.'' Filmography * Agenda (2007) .... Magdalena Linney * ''Desire'' (2006) .... Rita Thomas * Madam Marina (2005) .... Marina * '' Ley de ...

. Haden and Silva played two brothers on the run from the Gamarras, a

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

crime family. They run from Bayonne to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

and become restaurateurs. Along the way, the pair find themselves on a heated trail of passion, betrayal, and murder over the woman they both loved (played by Belegrin). The ''Desire'' brand is also used as an umbrella name for Twentieth's limited-run serials. As of 2021, the entire series can be seen on TubiTV.

Origins

The show first emerged in late 2005 as a September syndicated program for the stations on the FOX network to air in a weekend or midday time period. The idea was greenlit by Fox Television Stations Chairman

Roger Ailes Roger Eugene Ailes (May 15, 1940 – May 18, 2017) was an American television executive and media consultant. He was the chairman and CEO of Fox News, Fox Television Stations and 20th Television. Ailes was a media consultant for Republica ...

as a contingency plan for Fox-owned UPN stations. After receiving lukewarm response from stations not owned and operated by Fox, Twentieth Television decided to pitch the show for June 2006 on the premise that teenagers are out of school and planted in front of their TV sets, and that reruns dominate network schedules. ''Desire'' had a few takers for a planned summer syndication run. Twentieth made those stations surrender the show, thanks to a clause in its contract that allows Fox to take away the show if it is carried by a network. It was also briefly considered for placement on

The CW Television Network ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

, but was taken off the table by Fox for use on

. ''Desire'' is based on the 2004

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the ...

n television program ''

Mesa Para Tres ''Mesa para tres'' ("Table for Three") is a 2004 Colombian telenovela produced and broadcast by Caracol TV. Plot Luis and Alejandro Toro arrive with their mother to Bogotá, after escaping their home town, where they owned a restaurant. In Bogotá ...

'' (''Table for Three''), which aired on

Caracol TV Caracol is a large ancient Maya archaeological site, located in what is now the Cayo District, of Belize. It is situated approximately south of Xunantunich, and the town of San Ignacio, and from the Macal River. It rests on the Vaca Plateau ...

. Changes have been made in the location and the plot to make them more palatable to Americans. The serial was known as ''Table for Three'' and ''Three's a Crowd'' before its debut. The show was filmed at

Stu Segall Productions Stu Segall Productions is a studio facility located in San Diego, California. Filmings The studio is used primarily for filming television series and movies in the San Diego area. Television shows shot in the studio or on location in San Dieg ...

in San Diego, using 25 principal actors, 250 supporting actors and about 2,000 extras.

Cast

Episodes

The ''Desire'' Brand

The original format of the ''Desire'' syndicated program was for three

telenovelas A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar drama genres around the world include ''teleserye'' (P ...

to run with different titles. The ''Desire'' name was intended as an umbrella for all the separate

within. When

picked up the

, ''Desire'' was used as the name of one series. The network later revived the ''Desire'' name as an umbrella title.

promoted ''

Wicked Wicked Games ''Wicked Wicked Games'' is a telenovela that debuted on December 6, 2006 on the American television network MyNetworkTV. Twentieth Television produced 63 episodes to air weekdays. The limited-run serial was directed by Terry Cunningham, Dennis ...

'' and ''

American Heiress ''American Heiress'' is a telenovela which debuted on March 13, 2007 at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT on the American television network MyNetworkTV. This romantic melodrama tells the story of a roughneck pilot and a pampered heiress who survive a plane cras ...

'' as "part of the ''Desire'' series."

Performance

Ratings for ''Desire'' fell below expectations. The debut scored a 2.0 rating and the first week averaged an 0.8 rating and 1 share. It averaged a 0.4 rating in the adult 18–49 demographi

falling to a 0.3 in its second wee

The program has also been sold to several international markets, however. In Asia, for example,

Star World Star World (formerly known as Star Plus) is an English language entertainment television channel originally launched on 15 December 1991 as Star Entertainment () by STAR TV in Hong Kong as the old iteration of Star Plus. On 30 March 1996, th ...

debuted the show on November 7, 2006, and in the United Kingdom

Trouble Trouble may refer to: Film and television * ''Trouble'' (1922 film), an American silent comedy-drama film directed by Albert Austin * ''Trouble'' (1933 film), a British comedy film * ''Trouble'' (1977 film), a Soviet drama film * ''Trouble'' ...

has picked up the rights to show the series.

Theme

The theme song is sung by

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, pop, country, folk, and blues. She has released eleven studio albums, five compilations and three ...

and is called "

Always on Your Side "Always on Your Side" is a song by American singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow from her fifth studio album, ''Wildflower'' (2005). It was released as the second single from the album in February 2006. While the original album version features only Cr ...

". It was released on her ''

Wildflower A wildflower (or wild flower) is a flower that grows in the wild, meaning it was not intentionally seeded or planted. The term implies that the plant probably is neither a hybrid nor a selected cultivar that is in any way different from the ...

'' CD. We 3 Kings also performed music in various episodes. The U.K. Based trio All Mighty Whispers also have their song "Heaven have me now" included in an episode of the series.

Profanity

The

Parents Television Council The Parents Television and Media Council (PTMC), formerly the Parents Television Council (PTC), is an American media advocacy group founded by conservative Christian activist L. Brent Bozell III in 1995, which advocates for what it considers ...

filed a complaint with the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdicti ...

, saying that the word "shit" was used in scripted dialogue during the September 21st broadcast. The group also said the show was rated "TV-14," without the "L" descriptor that notes strong language. It argued that MyNetworkTV was "deliberately breaking the indecency law" and deserves "stiff fines."

International sales

References

Telenovela ready to heat up U. S. TV
(''

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel The ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'' is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where it is the primary newspaper. It is also the largest newspaper in the state of Wisconsin, where it is widely distributed. It is currently ...

'')
Ailes was prepared for UPN's demise
(''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large ...

'')

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Desire (Tv Series) MyNetworkTV original programming 2006 American television series debuts 2006 American television series endings Television series by 20th Century Fox Television 2006 telenovelas American telenovelas American television series based on telenovelas Television series about organized crime Television series about brothers