Girlfriends

For other uses, see Girlfriend (disambiguation).
Girlfriends
Genre Sitcom
Created by Mara Brock Akil
Starring
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 8
No. of episodes 172 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)
Producer(s)
  • Kevin Marburger
  • Mary Fukuto-Salzman
  • Michele Marburger
Camera setup Multi-camera
Running time 22 minutes
Production company(s)
Distributor
Release
Original network UPN
(2000–06)
The CW
(2006–08)
Picture format 480i (SDTV)
1080i (HDTV)
Original release September 11, 2000 (2000-09-11) – February 11, 2008 (2008-02-11)
Chronology
Related shows The Game

Girlfriends is an American situation comedy that premiered on September 11, 2000, on UPN and aired on UPN's successor network, The CW, before being abruptly cancelled in 2008. The final episode aired on February 11, 2008. When Girlfriends returned in fall 2007 for its eighth season, it became the longest-running live-action sitcom on network television that was on air that fall 2007.

It was one of the highest-rated scripted shows on television among African-American adults 18-34, including its spin-off The Game.[1]

Production

The series debuted on UPN on Monday September 11, 2000. After airing for several years on the network at 9/8C on Mondays, The CW moved Girlfriends to Sundays at 8/7C. The ratings plummeted. On October 9, 2006, Girlfriends, along with The CW's other African-American programs, moved back to Mondays. At this point, Girlfriends returned to its original time slot.[2]

While UPN was still airing new episodes of Girlfriends, the network also began airing reruns five days per week. When the show moved to The CW network after UPN merged with The WB network, MyNetwork TV (which was created to take over UPN's former affiliate stations) picked up the rights to air reruns of Girlfriends, although they eventually discontinued this. WE tv, a network with primarily women's programming, later acquired exclusive rights to air the limited-release episodes on Sundays and exercised an option to not allow broadcast television networks re-broadcast rights to these reruns.

Girlfriends also aired on Centric.

Characters

Main characters

Minor characters

Guest appearances

Departure of Jill Marie Jones

Jill Marie Jones left the show at the end of Season 6. Akil stated, "I would love for her (Jones) to come back, but Jill doesn't want to return. I don't know 100% why she made this decision. She didn't tell me. All she said when we talked was that she felt it was time for her to move on. The door is not closed. We've asked her to come back and have offered different ways for her to return. But I completely wish her well. There's no drama involved." The show will now deal with Toni's loss through Joan's struggles.

In a December 2007 interview with Wilson Morales, he asked Jill Marie Jones if she thought the character Toni had run her course. JMJ responded:

No, I think if Toni came back and when I say no, I say it because there are brilliant writers on ‘Girlfriends’. There is so much more that you can do. For me and my career, my contract was up after six seasons and there's a whole film world that I wanted to experience and that's what I’ve been doing. I think if Toni came back to the show, there would be so much more to write and much more to bring. That's a testament to how great Mara and the rest of the writers are.[4] I wish them all well and I still watch the show.[5]

Richard T. Jones was featured in an early episode, which set up the premise that Aaron, a National Guard member, was called to Iraq. When AOL Black Voices[6] columnist Jawn Murray asked Akil if "Ross' character Joan will be dumped again?" Akil responded: "Who's to say I'm getting rid of [the] Richard T. Jones [character]? Don't underestimate me!"[7]

Episodes

Season Episodes Originally aired DVD release
date
First aired Last aired
1 22 September 11, 2000 (2000-09-11) May 14, 2001 (2001-05-14) February 27, 2007
2 22 September 10, 2001 (2001-09-10) May 20, 2002 (2002-05-20) October 9, 2007
3 25 September 23, 2002 (2002-09-23) May 19, 2003 (2003-05-19) February 12, 2008
4 24 September 15, 2003 (2003-09-15) May 24, 2004 (2004-05-24) July 29, 2008
5 22 September 20, 2004 (2004-09-20) May 23, 2005 (2005-05-23) October 28, 2008
6 22 September 19, 2005 (2005-09-19) May 8, 2006 (2006-05-08) February 24, 2009
7 22 October 2, 2006 (2006-10-02) May 7, 2007 (2007-05-07) October 13, 2009
8 13 October 1, 2007 (2007-10-01) February 11, 2008 (2008-02-11) January 19, 2010

Special episodes

No.
overall 
No. in
season 
Title  Original air date 
0"Unaired pilot"September 11, 2000 (2000-09-11)
Joan Clayton is at the great peak of her life. She is almost 30, is almost junior partner at her law firm, and has a great friend circle. She hires a sassy urban woman named Maya Wilkes as her assistant, and has had a friendship with one of her colleagues, William, for over three months. But Joan is going crazy that she hasn't had a man for a year and her plan was to be married by now. Her friends, egotistical Toni Childs, and lazy 27-year-old college student named Lynn, have to cheer Joan up and get her a man, with the help of Maya whom Toni calls "ghetto".
573.13"Howdy Partner"January 27, 2003 (2003-01-27)

Joan and William vie for a senior partner position, and are shocked when the firm instead brings in an outsider, Sharon Upton Farley (Anne-Marie Johnson). They plan to demonstrate their outrage by walking out, but only one of them follows through with it. Meanwhile, Lynn and Maya help Toni deal with her fears after Todd asks her to take an HIV test.

Note: This episode aired as a special Tuesday night showing in an attempt to boost ratings for the new sitcom Abby, which was making its premiere airing in on its regularly scheduled night.
1336.18"The Game"April 17, 2006 (2006-04-17)

Joan's cousin Melanie Barnett (Tia Mowry), an aspiring med student, wants to give up her future for a pro athlete.

Note: This episode served as the backdoor pilot episode for the Girlfriends spinoff, The Game.

Other details

Spin-off

A 2006 episode of Girlfriends entitled The Game featured guest star Tia Mowry as Joan's cousin Melanie Barnett, an aspiring medical student, who wants to give up her future to follow her professional athlete boyfriend to San Diego. That episode was the launching pad for The Game, a spin-off series, which was canceled by The CW television network. In April 2010, BET announced that it would pick up the series, which aired new episodes until the August 5, 2015 series finale.

U.S. television ratings

Seasonal rankings (based on average total viewers per episode) of Girlfriends on UPN and The CW.

Note: Each U.S. network television season starts in late September and ends in late May, which coincides with the completion of May sweeps.

Season Network Season premiere Season finale TV season Ranking Viewers (in millions)
1st UPN September 11, 2000 May 14, 2001 2000–01 #136 4.0[8]
2nd September 10, 2001 May 20, 2002 2001–02 #129 4.2[9]
3rd September 23, 2002 May 19, 2003 2002–03 #133 4.0[10]
4th September 15, 2003 May 24, 2004 2003–04 #128 3.6[11]
5th September 20, 2004 May 23, 2005 2004–05 #129 3.4[12]
6th September 19, 2005 May 8, 2006 2005–06 #135 3.4[13]
7th CW October 1, 2006 May 7, 2007 2006–07 #138 2.5[14]
8th October 1, 2007 February 11, 2008 2007–08 #150 2.1[15]

Cancellation

The final two episodes recorded before the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike aired back-to-back on Monday, February 11 at 9/8c. However, this was not a 2-part episode. The timeslot was planned to be moved to Sundays due to the writer's strike and the returning of The CW's reality series.[16] On February 13, 2008, it was announced by a The CW representative that a proper series finale would not be done because it would be too expensive, also confirming the show's cancellation.[17] A retrospective episode was to be aired on The CW Network to conclude the eight-year series. However, the characters' storylines would receive no resolutions as the retrospective/series finale did not come to pass. The network offered the actors only half of their usual episodic salary to take part, and the actors collectively turned them down.[18]

Awards

The cast of ‘Girlfriends’ honoring the show creator with her 2013 Essence ‘Visionary’ award. Left to right: Mara Brock Akil, Persia White, Golden Brooks, Tracee Ellis Ross, Jill Marie Jones.
Year Award Category Recipient
2005Outstanding Writing for a Comedy SeriesMara Brock Akil, Mark Alton Brown, Veronica Chambers, Tim Edwards, Karin Gist, Dee LaDuke, Regina Y. Hicks, Kevin Marburger, Michele Marburger, Prentice Penny, and Shauna Robinson
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy SeriesTracee Ellis Ross
2005NAACP Image AwardsOutstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy SeriesReginald C. Hayes
2006
2007Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy SeriesReginald C. Hayes
Outstanding Actress in a Comedy SeriesTracee Ellis Ross
2009Outstanding Actress in a Comedy SeriesTracee Ellis Ross

DVD releases

Season Releases
DVD Name Release Date No. Additional Features
The First Season February 27, 2007
22
  • N/A
The Second Season October 9, 2007
22
  • We All Fall Down: A Closer Look at "Trick Or Truth?"
  • Creating the Show
  • Getting the Girls Together
  • Episode Guide
The Third Season February 12, 2008
25
  • It's What You Wear That Counts
  • Here Comes the Bride: An Invitation Inside "The Wedding"
The Fourth Season July 29, 2008
24
  • N/A
The Fifth Season October 28, 2008
22
  • N/A
The Sixth Season February 24, 2009
22
  • Includes the Backdoor pilot of The Game
The Seventh Season October 13, 2009
22
Mara Brock Akil Comments on:
  • I Want My Baby Back
  • Hot For Preacher
  • Time To Man Up
  • Willie Or Won't He III: This Time It's Personal
  • What Had Happened Was...
The Eighth and Final Season January 19, 2010
13
  • Bonus Episode from The Game: "Away Game"

U.S. broadcast history

Worldwide broadcast information/Syndication

Soundtrack

Girlfriends: The Soundtrack
Soundtrack album by Various artists
Released May 26, 2008
Genre Soundtrack
Length 48:09
Label Koch Records
Producer Larry Robinson

Track listing

  1. Erykah Badu - "Vibrate On" (4:14)
  2. Jill Scott - "Golden" (3:52)
  3. Angie Stone - "Wish I Didn't Miss You" (4:32)
  4. Corinne Bailey Rae - "Put Your Records On" (3:35)
  5. Algebra - "I Know" (3:57)
  6. Amy Winehouse - "Stronger Than Me" (3:42)
  7. Estelle - "All Comes Back to You" (3:22)
  8. Chrisette Michele - "Girl Respect Yourself" (3:44)
  9. Chaka Khan - "Disrepectful" [feat. Mary J. Blige] (4:46)
  10. India.Arie - "I Am Not My Hair" (3:48)
  11. Dre - "Soulmate" (4:22)
  12. Persia White - "Choices" (2:47)
  13. Lira - "Feel Good" (5:15)

References

  1. Littlejohn, Janice Rhoshalle (December 18, 2007). "Series creator has game plan if 'Girlfriends' is canceled". newsok.com. Retrieved March 28, 2009.
  2. Braxton, Greg (September 30, 2006). "'Girlfriends' feels left out of the clique". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on September 13, 2009. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  3. Stated in the episode Willie or Won't He II: The Last Chapter?
  4. Morales, Wilson (December 18, 2007). "The Perfect Holiday: An Interview with Jill Marie Jones". Black Film. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  5. Byrd, Kenya N. (January 22, 2008). "Jill Marie Jones: Our Favorite Girlfriend". Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  6. http://blackvoices.aol.com/
  7. Murray, Jawn (August 20, 2007). "TV Talk". AOL Black Voices. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  8. "TV Ratings 2000-2001". Retrieved 9 January 2010.
  9. "How did your favorite show rate?". USA Today. May 28, 2002.
  10. "Nielsen's TOP 156 Shows for 2002-03". rec.arts.tv. May 20, 2003.
  11. "I.T.R.S. Ranking Report". ABC Television Network. June 2, 2004.
  12. "2004-05 primetime series wrap". The Hollywood Reporter. May 27, 2005. Archived from the original on April 23, 2008.
  13. "2005-06 primetime series wrap". The Hollywood Reporter. May 26, 2006. Archived from the original on October 29, 2007.
  14. "2006-07 primetime wrap". The Hollywood Reporter. May 25, 2007. Archived from the original on January 29, 2010.
  15. "2007-2008 TV season". ABC Medianet. February 10, 2008.
  16. "The CW Network Announces Midseason Schedule". CW Blog. January 7, 2008. Retrieved March 27, 2009.
  17. "Girlfriends: Cancelled, Proper Series Finale Too Expensive". TV Series Finale. February 14, 2008. Retrieved March 29, 2009.
  18. "Girlfriends: Will the CW Series Finale Retrospective Happen?". TV Series Finale. April 30, 2008. Retrieved March 27, 2009.

Sources

Wikiquote has quotations related to: Girlfriends

External links

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