Shonda Rhimes Shonda Lynn Rhimes (born January 13, 1970) is an American television screenwriter, producer, and author. She is best known as the showrunner—creator, head writer, and executive producer—of the television medical drama '' Grey's Anatomy'', ...

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into s ...

Naomi Bennett Dr. Naomi Bennett is a fictional character on the ''Grey's Anatomy'' spin-off '' Private Practice''. She was initially portrayed by Merrin Dungey in the backdoor pilot ''Grey's Anatomy'' episode, "The Other Side of This Life", but was replaced by ...

Cooper Freedman Dr. Cooper Freedman is a fictional character on the ''Grey's Anatomy'' spin-off, '' Private Practice''. He is portrayed by actor Paul Adelstein.''Private Practice'' aThe Futon Critic/ref> Character history Cooper Freedman (Coop) was the only chi ...

Dell Parker William Parker, more commonly known as Dell Parker, is a character on the ''Grey's Anatomy'' spin-off, '' Private Practice''. He was portrayed by actor Chris Lowell Christopher Lowell (born October 17, 1984) is an American actor. He is best k ...

Violet Turner Dr. Violet Marianne Turner is a fictional character on the American television drama '' Private Practice'', a spin-off from ''Grey's Anatomy''. She is portrayed by Amy Brenneman. Story-lines Season One Violet is a psychiatrist at the Oceansid ...

Pete Wilder Dr. Pete Wilder is a character on the ''Grey's Anatomy'' spin-off '' Private Practice''. He is portrayed by actor Tim Daly. Character history Season One Pete works at the Oceanside Wellness Center as a naturopathic doctor and licensed herbal ...

Charlotte King Dr. Charlotte King is a fictional character from the ABC medical drama '' Private Practice'', portrayed by KaDee Strickland. Initially, Charlotte is the Chief of Staff at the fictional St. Ambrose Hospital in Santa Monica. She tends to have an ...

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

terrestrial Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth. Terrestrial may also refer to: * Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on or near the ground, as opposed to ...

television network A television network or television broadcaster is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay television providers. Until the mid- ...

Living Living or The Living may refer to: Common meanings *Life, a condition that distinguishes organisms from inorganic objects and dead organisms ** Living species, one that is not extinct *Personal life, the course of an individual human's life * ...

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People's Choice Award The People's Choice Awards is an American awards show, recognizing people in entertainment, voted online by the general public and fans. The show has been held annually since 1975, with the winners originally determined using Gallup Polls until ...

Buena Vista Home Entertainment Buena ( ) is a borough in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 4,603,Region 1 and on March 16, 2009, in Region 2. The season is also available for purchase by registered users at the U.S.

iTunes Store The iTunes Store is a digital media store operated by Apple Inc. It opened on April 28, 2003, as a result of Steve Jobs' push to open a digital marketplace for music. As of April 2020, iTunes offered 60 million songs, 2.2 million apps, 25,00 ...

, as well as numerous streaming

video on demand Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos without a traditional video playback device and the constraints of a typical static broadcasting schedule. In the 20th century, broadcasting in the form of ...

services.

Episodes

Production

Development

On February 21, 2007, Edward Wyatt of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' reported that

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

was in the process of developing a spin-off series from the medical drama television series ''

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into s ...

''. Even though network executives and series creator

Shonda Rhimes Shonda Lynn Rhimes (born January 13, 1970) is an American television screenwriter, producer, and author. She is best known as the showrunner—creator, head writer, and executive producer—of the television medical drama '' Grey's Anatomy'', ...

did not confirm plans for ''Private Practice'', Wyatt called it a "well-known secret" as information about the casting and production was becoming increasingly more available. The spin-off was officially confirmed through subsequent media commentators, who stated that the two-part episode "The Other Side of This Life" would serve as the

backdoor pilot A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distri ...

for the new series. ''Grey's Anatomy'' cast members

Ellen Pompeo Ellen Kathleen Pompeo (; born November 10, 1969) is an American actress. She is best known for her role on ''Grey's Anatomy'' as the titular Dr. Meredith Grey. One of the world's highest-paid actors since 2017, she has made multiple appearances ...

and

Katherine Heigl Katherine Marie Heigl ( ; born November 24, 1978) is an American actress and former fashion model. She played Dr. Izzie Stevens on the ABC television medical drama ''Grey's Anatomy'' from 2005 to 2010, a role that brought her recognition and ...

had mixed reactions to the decision to create a spin-off for Kate Walsh's character Addison Montgomery. ''Today'''s Jeannette Walls reported that Pompeo was angry at not being consulted prior the show's creation. Heigl praised the concept for ''Private Practice'' but wished her character (

Izzie Stevens Isobel Katherine Stevens, M.D. is a fictional character from the medical drama television series ''Grey's Anatomy'', which airs on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) in the United States. The character was created by series producer Shonda ...

) had been chosen for the spin-off instead. The show was officially announced as part of ABC's 2007 fall television schedule on ''

The Ellen DeGeneres Show ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' (often shortened to ''Ellen'' or ''The Ellen Show'') is an American daytime television variety comedy talk show that was created and hosted by its namesake Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it was pro ...

''. The season was produced by

ABC Studios ABC Signature is an American television production studio that is a subsidiary of Disney Television Studios, a division of Walt Disney Television, which is part of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Company. ...

, the Mark Gordon Company, and

ShondaLand Shondaland (stylized as ShondaLand from 2005 to 2016 and shondaland thereafter) is an American television production company founded by television writer/producer Shonda Rhimes. She founded it to be one of the production companies of her first s ...

. The executive producers were Rhimes,

Betsy Beers Betsy Beers (born 1957) is an American television and film producer whose credits include ShondaLand's ''Grey's Anatomy,'' ''Scandal,'' '' Private Practice'', ''How to Get Away with Murder'', '' The Catch'', ''Station 19'', '' For the People'', a ...

,

Marti Noxon Martha Mills Noxon (born August 25, 1964) is an American television and film writer, director, and producer. She is best known for her work as a screenwriter and executive producer on the supernatural drama series '' Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' ...

,

Mark Gordon Mark Gordon (born March 14, 1957) is an American politician who has served as the 33rd governor of Wyoming since January 7, 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as state treasurer; then-governor Matt Mead appointed him ...

, and

Mark Tinker Mark Tinker (born January 16, 1951) is an American television producer and director. Tinker was an executive producer and regular director on the HBO series '' Deadwood''. Prior to ''Deadwood'', Tinker served as a director/producer on ''NYPD Blu ...

; Rhimes also served as the show's cinematographer. Production began on July 18, 2007, in Los Angeles. The series' theme and score were composed by Chad Fischer and Tim Bright.

Casting

The first season features a cast of eight actors who receive star billing. Kate Walsh stars as Dr. Addison Montgomery, a

neonatologist Neonatology is a subspecialty of pediatrics that consists of the medical care of newborn infants, especially the ill or premature newborn. It is a hospital-based specialty, and is usually practised in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). The ...

who moved to Santa Monica in order to reinvent herself.

Audra McDonald Audra Ann McDonald (born July 3, 1970) is an American actress and singer. Primarily known for her work on the Broadway stage, she has won six Tony Awards, more performance wins than any other actor, and is the only person to win in all four act ...

and

Taye Diggs Scott Leo "Taye" Diggs (born January 2, 1971) is an American stage and film actor. He is known for his roles in the Broadway musicals '' Rent'' and '' Hedwig and the Angry Inch'', the TV series '' Private Practice'' (2007-2013), ''Murder in th ...

play the respective characters of

fertility specialist Reproductive endocrinology and infertility (REI) is a surgical subspecialty of obstetrics and gynecology that trains physicians in reproductive medicine addressing hormonal functioning as it pertains to reproduction as well as the issue of infert ...

Dr.

Naomi Bennett Dr. Naomi Bennett is a fictional character on the ''Grey's Anatomy'' spin-off '' Private Practice''. She was initially portrayed by Merrin Dungey in the backdoor pilot ''Grey's Anatomy'' episode, "The Other Side of This Life", but was replaced by ...

and health guru Dr. Sam Bennett, Addison's divorcee college friends. The role of Naomi was originally played by

Merrin Dungey Merrin Melissa Dungey (born August 6, 1971) is an American film and television actress, known for her roles on the television series '' The King of Queens'', ''Alias'', '' Malcolm in the Middle'', '' Summerland'', '' Conviction'', '' The Resident ...

in the backdoor pilot. According to a writer from ''Variety'', network executives replaced her with McDonald due to concerns over the lack of chemistry between Dungey and Diggs. The recasting did not result in reshooting any of the pilot's previous scenes. Amy Brenneman is Dr.

Violet Turner Dr. Violet Marianne Turner is a fictional character on the American television drama '' Private Practice'', a spin-off from ''Grey's Anatomy''. She is portrayed by Amy Brenneman. Story-lines Season One Violet is a psychiatrist at the Oceansid ...

, a therapist who constantly doubts herself.

Paul Adelstein Paul Adelstein (born April 29, 1969) is an American actor and writer, known for the role of Agent Paul Kellerman in the Fox television series ''Prison Break'' and his role as pediatrician Cooper Freedman in the ABC medical drama '' Private Prac ...

portrays pediatrician Dr.

Cooper Freedman Dr. Cooper Freedman is a fictional character on the ''Grey's Anatomy'' spin-off, '' Private Practice''. He is portrayed by actor Paul Adelstein.''Private Practice'' aThe Futon Critic/ref> Character history Cooper Freedman (Coop) was the only chi ...

, who is a sex addict.

Tim Daly James Timothy Daly (born March 1, 1956) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Joe Hackett on the NBC sitcom ''Wings'' and his voice role as Clark Kent/Superman in '' Superman: The Animated Series'', as well as his recurring role as ...

plays the seductive alternative medicine specialist, Dr.

Pete Wilder Dr. Pete Wilder is a character on the ''Grey's Anatomy'' spin-off '' Private Practice''. He is portrayed by actor Tim Daly. Character history Season One Pete works at the Oceanside Wellness Center as a naturopathic doctor and licensed herbal ...

, and

Chris Lowell Christopher Lowell (born October 17, 1984) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the roles of Stosh "Piz" Piznarski in the television series '' Veronica Mars'' (2006–2007), William "Dell" Parker in the television series '' Priva ...

is the receptionist

Dell Parker William Parker, more commonly known as Dell Parker, is a character on the ''Grey's Anatomy'' spin-off, '' Private Practice''. He was portrayed by actor Chris Lowell Christopher Lowell (born October 17, 1984) is an American actor. He is best k ...

, who frequently appears shirtless in the office.

KaDee Strickland Katherine Dee Strickland (born December 14, 1975) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Charlotte King on the ABC drama '' Private Practice'' (2007–2013). Strickland began acting during high school. She studied acting in ...

portrays Dr.

Charlotte King Dr. Charlotte King is a fictional character from the ABC medical drama '' Private Practice'', portrayed by KaDee Strickland. Initially, Charlotte is the Chief of Staff at the fictional St. Ambrose Hospital in Santa Monica. She tends to have an ...

, who also works as a hospital administrator. Strickland's character was introduced in the first season and did not make an appearance in the backdoor pilot. Her addition to the main cast was announced on July 11, 2007, prior to the commencement of the first season. Strickland did not have to audition for the role, but was cast after a meeting with Rhimes. Numerous supporting characters have been given expansive and recurring appearances in the progressive storylines.

David Sutcliffe David Sutcliffe (born June 8, 1969) is a Canadian-American retired actor. He is known for playing Christopher Hayden on the television series ''Gilmore Girls'' and Detective Aidan Black on the television series ''Cracked''. Early life Sutcliffe ...

plays police officer Kevin Nelson, who was introduced as a love interest of Addison. Sutcliffe later appeared in 11 episodes in the second season. Geffri Maya Hightower plays Naomi and Sam's daughter, Maya Bennett. Hightower would return for future seasons, and was included in 30 episodes over the course of the series.

James Pickens Jr. James Pickens Jr. (born October 26, 1954) is an American actor. He is best known for his starring role as Dr. Richard Webber on the ABC medical drama television series ''Grey's Anatomy'', and for his supporting role as Deputy Director Alvin Kers ...

portrays Dr.

Richard Webber Richard Webber, M.D., F.A.C.S is a fictional character from the ABC medical drama television series ''Grey's Anatomy''. The character was created by Shonda Rhimes and is portrayed by actor James Pickens Jr. since the start of the show in 200 ...

, as a special guest star, appearing in the teaser sequence for the first episode.

Reception

Viewing figures

The pilot episode, which aired on September 26, 2007, garnered 14.1 million viewers, ranking number 13 in its time slot of Wednesdays at 9:00 pm

Eastern Time Zone The Eastern Time Zone (ET) is a time zone encompassing part or all of 23 states in the eastern part of the United States, parts of eastern Canada, the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico, Panama, Colombia, mainland Ecuador, Peru, and a small p ...

(ET) (8:00 pm Central Time Zone (Americas) T. ABC picked up the series for a full 22-episode season on October 18, 2007, after it had aired four episodes. At the time of its renewal, ''Private Practice'' was the most-watched new drama of the 2007 television season. Overall, the first season averaged 10.76 million viewers for the nine episodes aired in the U.S., with the pilot being the highest rated episode. Of the regular prime time programming that aired during the 2007–08 American television season, ''Private Practice'' ranked 36 out of 225 programs, according to the Nielsen ratings.

Critical response

''Private Practice'' received generally negative critical reviews when it was first broadcast. On the review aggregator website

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

, the first season scored 45 out of 100, based on 25 reviews, indicating "mixed to average" responses. The series was called "shallow and smirky" by ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

''s Tom Shales, who felt the dialogue and storylines relied too much on sexual humor; he thought the first season would not appeal to Grey's Anatomy fans. David Hinckley of the '' New York Daily News'' was critical of the pilot's opening sequences, finding they represented the show too much as a sitcom, but felt that it found its footing as the episode progressed and more emphasis was placed on "the more nuanced personal and professional sides of its characters". David Zurawik of ''

The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by T ...

'' praised Brenneman and McDonald's performances, but was disappointed in the series premiere. Some critics commented negatively on the characters and the show's representation of women. The series was described as an improvement over the backdoor pilot by ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgi ...

''s Robert Blanco, but he criticized the doctors' characters as childish and seemingly incapable of doing their jobs. Blanco viewed the show as a misstep in Addison's character development, writing that she is "a woman who was once a tough, smart, flawed, sexy adult hohas turned into a fluttering, indecisive sorority girl". Alessandra Stanley of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' was critical of the show's interpretation of feminism, describing the characters as "one of the most depressing portrayals of the female condition since ''

The Bell Jar ''The Bell Jar'' is the only novel written by the American writer and poet Sylvia Plath. Originally published under the pseudonym "Victoria Lucas" in 1963, the novel is semi-autobiographical with the names of places and people changed. The book ...

''", and reminiscent of the "seven stages of womanly despair" in

William Hogarth William Hogarth (; 10 November 1697 – 26 October 1764) was an English painter, engraver, pictorial satirist, social critic, editorial cartoonist and occasional writer on art. His work ranges from realistic portraiture to comic strip-like ...

's engraving ''A Surgeon's Progress''. Dough Elfman of the ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the ''Chicago ...

'' wrote that the actors were better than the show's premise and writing, and ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'''s Matthew Gilbert described the characters as a "stock cast of whiney healers" and the storylines as "hokey, gimmicky medical cases of the week".

Awards and nominations

The first season of ''Private Practice'' was nominated for three NAACP Image Awards—Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series (Diggs), Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (McDonald), and Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series (Rhimes) for the pilot. The series received a nomination for the

People's Choice Award The People's Choice Awards is an American awards show, recognizing people in entertainment, voted online by the general public and fans. The show has been held annually since 1975, with the winners originally determined using Gallup Polls until ...

for Favorite New TV Drama. Chad Fischer and Tim Bright won the BMI TV Music Award at the BMI Film & TV Awards.

DVD release

References

External links

*
''Private Practice''
at ABC.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Private Practice (Season 1) 2007 American television seasons Private Practice (TV series) seasons