The Black Donnellys
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| The Black Donnellys | |
|---|---|
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| Genre | Drama |
| Creator(s) | Paul Haggis Robert Moresco |
| Developer(s) | Scott Corwon Paul Haggis |
| Starring | Jonathan Tucker Thomas Guiry Olivia Wilde Billy Lush Michael Stahl-David Kirk Acevedo Keith Nobbs |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| No. of episodes | 5 (List of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Paul Haggis Robert Moresco |
| Running time | approx. 46 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | NBC |
| Original run | February 26, 2007 – present |
| Links | |
| Official website | |
| IMDb profile | |
| TV.com summary | |
The Black Donnellys is an American television drama that debuted on NBC on February 26, 2007.
The show follows four young Catholic Irish-American brothers in New York's infamous Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood and their involvement with organized crime.[1]Although the show is set in the present day, it draws heavily upon Irish-American history and iconic themes. Their story is narrated by a childhood friend, Joey "Ice Cream", whom the show depicts as an unreliable narrator. As the pilot episode indicates, there is a clear tension and rivalry between the Irish and the Italians.
The show was created by Paul Haggis and Robert Moresco. The show's cast includes Jonathan Tucker, Olivia Wilde, Billy Lush, Tom Guiry and Kirk Acevedo with relative newcomers Michael Stahl-David and Keith Nobbs.
In creating the show, Haggis, a native of London, Ontario, has strongly referenced his hometown's local history about the real-life Black Donnellys and the massacre associated with their name.
Contents |
[edit] Characters
Jimmy Donnelly - The eldest of the brothers. He is a troublemaker and drug user, who is often involved in criminal activity, and known for making poorly thought-out decisions.
Tommy Donnelly - Tommy is the second eldest brother in the Donnelly family. He wised up as a kid after a pivotal mistake and went straight. Tommy is in school studying art. He had the chance to stay out of trouble, but he was not willing to leave his brothers behind. He has a strained relationship with Jenny Reilly, a childhood friend.
Kevin Donnelly - Kevin is the second youngest brother and the gambler in the family. He often needs help from his brothers to get out of his large debts. He tends to be laid-back and easy-going, yet loyal.
Sean Donnelly - He is the youngest of the brothers and is noted for his popularity with women.
Joey Ice Cream - Joey is the jailhouse narrator and a lifelong friend of the brothers. He is typically willing to help them out in their times of need. He is a classic example of an unreliable narrator.
Jenny Reilly - Childhood friends with Tommy and the Donnellys, Jenny runs a local deli with her father. She and Tommy have a complicated and strained relationship.
Nicky Cottero - Italian gangster currently attempting to take over the area formerly controlled by his mentor and uncle, Sal.
[edit] Cast
[edit] Main Cast
- Jonathan Tucker as Tommy Donnelly
- Tom Guiry as Jimmy Donnelly
- Billy Lush as Kevin Donnelly
- Michael Stahl-David as Sean Donnelly
- Olivia Wilde as Jenny Reilly
- Keith Nobbs as Joey Ice Cream
- Kirk Acevedo as Nicky Cottero
[edit] Recurring
- Kate Mulgrew as Helen Donnelly
- Michael Rispoli as Alo
- Peter Greene as Derek "Dokey" Farrell
- Molly Schaffer as Kate Farrell
- Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick as Matthew Farrell
- Betsy Beutler as Joanie
- Kevin Conway as Ian Reilly
- James Badge Dale as Samson Dawlish
- Kevin Corrigan as Whitey
- Jamie Bonelli as Nadine
- Peter Gerety as Bob The Mouth
[edit] Episode list and ratings
- See also: List of The Black Donnellys episodes
Weekly rankings based on Fast National ratings [2] [3] [4].
| # | Episode | Air date | Timeslot (EST) | Season | Rating | Share | 18–49 | Viewers | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pilot" | February 26, 2007 | Monday 10:00pm | 2007 | 5.5 | 9 | 3.5 | 7.93 | # 50 |
| 2 | "A Stone of the Heart" | March 5, 2007* | Monday 10:00pm | 2007 | 4.5 | 8 | 3.0 | 6.88 | # 53 |
| 3 | "The World Will Break Your Heart" | March 12, 2007 | Monday 10:00pm | 2007 | 4.4 | 7 | 2.6 | 6.53 | # 55 |
| 4 | "Lies" | March 19, 2007 | Monday 10:00pm | 2007 | 3.9 | 6 | 2.4 | 5.53 | # 68 |
| 5 | "Run Like Hell" | March 26, 2007 | Monday 10:00pm | 2007 | 3.9 | 7 | 2.3 | 5.67 | TBA |
* During this same week NBC released a web only episode entitled "God is a Comedian"
Key: Rating is the estimated percentage of all TVs tuned to the show, share is the percentage of all TVs in use that are tuned in. Viewers is the estimated number of actual people watching, in millions, while ranking is the approximate ranking of the show against all prime-time TV shows for the week (Monday through the following Sunday).
The pilot episode, while averaging 8.42 million viewers, had a large drop off in its second half. The first half hour was watched by 10 million viewers but that number dropped to 6 million in the second half hour. [5]. The overall average was later revised down to 7.93 million viewers .
[edit] International broadcasters
| Country | TV Network(s) | Series Premiere | Weekly Schedule |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States |
NBC USA Bravo |
2007-02-26 2007-03-06 2007-03-11 |
Mondays, 10pm Tuesdays, 11pm Sundays, 12pm |
 Canada |
Global Television Network | 2007-02-26 | Sundays, 10pm Mondays, 10pm |
 United Kingdom |
ITV2 (first run) and ITV1 (repeats) | 2007 | |
 Australia |
Seven Network[2] | 2007 |
Re-runs of episodes will be airing on the USA Network and Bravo. [6]
[edit] Trivia
- In early drafts, the show was originally titled "The Truth According To Joey Ice Cream."
- The episode called "God Is A Comedian" was originally slated to be the 3rd episode to air, but NBC decided to make it an online-only episode because the content was too violent and graphic for network television. It is currently viewable, only in the USA, on the official Black Donnellys website as well as through iTunes.
- Kirk Acevedo, Michael Rispoli, and Kevin Conway also starred together in the 2006 film Invincible.
- The Donnelly's bar, The Firecracker, is actually The Shannon Pot, located on Jackson Avenue in Long Island City, NY.
- In the episode "The World Will Break Your Heart", when Helen Donnelly (Kate Mulgrew) goes to the hospital and dismisses Kimmy from Sean's bedside, Kim is reading a paperback edition of "All Souls: A Family Story From Southie". The book is a memoir about growing up in a large Irish-Catholic family in a working class neighborhood in South Boston, and his brothers involvement with Irish mob in Southie at the time. The mother in the book is also named Helen.
[edit] References
- ^ The Black Donnellys.
- ^ Zap2It Ratings: Rating and Share.
- ^ Calendar Live Ratings: Viewers and Rankings.
- ^ 18–49 numbers, Media Life magazine
- ^ Pilot Ratings on TV Squad
- ^ [1]: The Black Donnellys on USA, Bravo
[edit] External links
- New Black Donnellys Blog
- The Upfronts: NBC - TV Squad
- The Black Donnellys Reviews at Metacritic
- The Black Donnellys Spot
- Article confirming timeslot change
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|---|---|
| Donnelly Brothers | Kevin Donnelly | Tommy Donnelly | Jimmy Donnelly | Sean Donnelly |
| Other Characters | Jenny Reilly | Joey Ice Cream | Nicky Cottero |
| Further Resources | Episode list | Hell's Kitchen |
