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Monk
Monk title card (seasons two through eight)
Format	Police procedural Comedy-drama
Created by	Andy Breckman
Starring	Tony Shalhoub Bitty Schram (seasons 1–3) Traylor Howard (seasons 3–8) Ted Levine Jason Gray-Stanford
Opening theme	Instrumental theme by Jeff Beal (season 1) "It's a Jungle out There" by Randy Newman (seasons 2–8)
Ending theme	Instrumental theme by Jeff Beal (season 1) "It's a Jungle out There" (instrumental) (seasons 2–8)
Country of origin	United States
Language(s)	English
No. of seasons	8
No. of episodes	125 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Andy Breckman David Hoberman Tony Shalhoub Rob Thompson Tom Scharpling
Producer(s)	Universal Network Television (seasons 1-2) NBC Universal Television Studio Universal Media Studios Universal Cable Productions Touchstone Television Mandeville Films
Camera setup	Jessica Phelps
Running time	40-45 minutes without commercials (approx.) 1 hour with commercials
Broadcast
Original channel	USA Network
Picture format	1080i
Original run	July 12, 2002 – December 4, 2009

Monk is an American police procedural comedy-drama, created by Andy Breckman and starring Tony Shalhoub as the titular Adrian Monk. It is primarily a mystery series, although the show also features broad comic touches. It is unusual for shows of this genre because its principal character, Monk, accompanied by his astute brilliance at solving crimes, is beset by a range of psychiatric disorders exacerbated by severe trauma from the death of his wife, the peculiarities of which largely define his character-role in the series. The show debuted on July 12, 2002, on the USA Network. Its eighth and final season concluded on December 4, 2009. The series currently holds the record for the most-watched scripted drama episode in cable television history, a record previously held by The Closer. Monk set the record with "Mr. Monk and the End (Part Two)", its series finale, with 9.4 million viewers — 3.2 million of them in the 18-49 demographic. [1]

[edit] Plot

Adrian Monk was a brilliant detective for the San Francisco Police Department until his wife, Trudy, was killed by a car bomb in a parking garage, which Monk then believed was intended for him. Trudy's death led Monk to suffer a nervous breakdown. He was discharged from the force and became a recluse, refusing to leave his house for over three years. He was finally able to leave the house with the help of his nurse, Sharona Fleming (Bitty Schram). The breakthrough allowed him to work as a private detective and a consultant for the homicide unit despite retaining limitations rooted in his obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD), which had grown significantly worse after the tragedy.

Monk's compulsive habits are numerous, and a number of phobias compound his situation, such as his fear of germs. Monk has 312 fears, some of which are milk, ladybugs, harmonicas, heights, imperfection and risk. The OCD and plethora of phobias inevitably lead to very awkward situations and cause problems for Monk and anyone around him, as he investigates cases. These same personal struggles, particularly the OCD, are what aid him in solving cases such as his sharp memory, specific mindset and attention to detail. In one episode entitled "Mr.Monk and His Biggest Fan", Marci Maven (Sarah Silverman) had compiled a list of all of Adrian's fears and had put icons on her desktop of them. On another episode, he tried to conquer his fears by doing various activities which involved his phobias. For example, he tried drinking milk, climbing a ladder, putting a ladybug on his hand, and when things were scattered unorganized across a table, he could not help the compulsion to arrange them neatly.

Captain Leland Stottlemeyer (Ted Levine) and Lieutenant Randall "Randy" Disher (Jason Gray-Stanford) call on Monk when they have trouble with an investigation. Stottlemeyer is often irritated by Monk's disorder, but respects his friend and former colleague's amazing observational abilities, as does Disher. Ever since childhood, Monk's obsessive attention to detail allowed him to spot tiny discrepancies, find patterns, and make connections that others often fail to make. Monk continues to search for information about his wife's death, the one case that he has been unable to solve, and eventually closes it in the series finale.

Sharona decided to re-marry her ex-husband and move back to New Jersey, and Natalie Teeger (Traylor Howard) was hired as Monk's new assistant—a widow and mother of an eleven-year-old daughter (now 17). Monk has a brother Ambrose (John Turturro), and a half-brother, Jack, Jr. (Steve Zahn), whose existence Monk discovered in the fifth season.^[1] He later met Jack, Jr. in season seven, in "Mr. Monk's Other Brother".

[edit] Characters

[edit] Main characters

Jason Gray-Stanford, Traylor Howard and Tony Shalhoub sign autographs at Edwards Air Force Base after the filming of the episode "Mr. Monk and the Astronaut".

Character Natalie Teeger made her entrance into the show partway through the third season when actress Bitty Schram, who played Monk's nurse Sharona Fleming, left "precipitous[ly]", reportedly over a contract dispute. The new actress, Traylor Howard, had not yet seen the show and was unenthusiastic about her manager's urgings to audition for Sharona's replacement. She nevertheless tried out and got the part. Despite her initial "cool" reception from fans, show co-creator Andy Breckman believes Howard quickly and successfully filled the void. "I will always be grateful to Traylor because she came in when the show was in crisis and saved our baby [....] We had to make a hurried replacement, and not every show survives that. I was scared to death."^[2]

Bitty Schram returned as a special guest star during the 8th and final season on October 23, 2009 ("Mr. Monk and Sharona"), in order to give closure to her character, who departed from the show abruptly in season three after re-marrying her ex-husband and moving back to New Jersey. In this episode, Sharona confirms that she and her ex-husband, Trevor, are now separated for good and in the end, she actually falls for Randy, who obviously likes her enough to kiss her and drive her to the airport to head back to New Jersey. Sharona does tell Monk, however, that she will be coming back to San Francisco a few weeks later to handle her law suit against the country club where she broke her arm after solving a stressful case involving the murder of her Uncle Howie with Monk and Natalie. Still, this was Sharona Fleming's final appearance on the show in person. In "Mr. Monk and the End, Part 2", a picture of her was shown on the desk of Randy Disher, who got a new job as Summit, New Jersey Chief of Police. He mentions that he and Sharona found a place to live. Furthermore, in a montage of the series, she was shown numerous times. ^[3]

[edit] Secondary characters

• Julie Teeger (Emmy Clarke): teenage daughter of Natalie Teeger. First appeared in "Mr. Monk and the Red Herring."
• Benjamin "Benjy" Fleming (Kane Ritchotte during pilot episode and second and third seasons, Max Morrow during first season): Sharona's son. Last appearance was in season three, "Mr. Monk and the Employee of the Month," though he was mentioned in eighth and final season episode "Mr. Monk and Sharona."
• Dr. Charles Kroger (Stanley Kamel): Adrian Monk's psychiatrist. Actor Stanley Kamel died of a heart attack on April 8, 2008, between production of seasons six and seven.^[4] His character was said to have died of a heart attack as well when Monk restarted. His last appearance was in season six, "Mr. Monk Paints His Masterpiece."
• Dr. Neven Bell (Héctor Elizondo): Adrian Monk's new therapist. First appeared in "Mr. Monk Buys a House."^[5][6][7]
• Kevin Dorfman (Jarrad Paul): accountant and next-door neighbor of Monk. First appeared in "Mr. Monk and the Paperboy." Dorfman was murdered in "Mr. Monk and the Magician."
• Harold J. Krenshaw (Tim Bagley): a rival of Adrian and another patient of Dr. Kroger with whom Mr. Monk supports constant disputes for his incompatible obsessions. Harold is constantly trying to find out who Monk's new psychiatrist is (Dr. Bell). However, he did uncover Monk's psychiatrist in the season seven finale, "Mr. Monk Fights City Hall." In the episode "Mr. Monk Goes to Group Therapy," Harold and Monk finally become friends by conquering claustrophobia together. Harold generously leaves the group at the end of the episode so that Monk can share private therapy with Dr. Bell.
• Ambrose Monk (John Turturro): agoraphobic brother of Adrian Monk. Seems to be based on Mycroft Holmes (smarter brother of Sherlock) First appeared in "Mr. Monk and the Three Pies."
• Jack Monk (Dan Hedaya): father of Adrian and Ambrose, abandoned the family when Adrian and Ambrose were young (left for Chinese food and never came back) and started another family. Appeared in "Mr. Monk Meets His Dad".
• Jack Monk Jr. (Steve Zahn): the other son of Jack Monk, Adrian's half brother. Appeared in "Mr. Monk's Other Brother."
• Dale "the Whale" Biederbeck (Adam Arkin, Tim Curry, and Ray Porter): Adrian Monk's archenemy and most hated rival. A wealthy and morbidly obese financier whom Adrian blames for ruining the remainder of Trudy's life. Just as Adrian Monk is compared to Sherlock Holmes, it's possible that Dale Biederbeck (the "Genghis Khan of World Finance") is compared to Professor Moriarty (the Napoleon of Crime). First appeared in "Mr. Monk Meets Dale the Whale," at the end of which Monk sends him to prison for a murder-for-hire. Biederbeck later appears funneling information to Monk about Trudy's murder.
• Linda Fusco (Sharon Lawrence): Captain Stottlemeyer's girlfriend. First appeared in "Mr. Monk, Private Eye". She was later proven by Monk to be a murderer in "Mr. Monk and the Bad Girlfriend."
• Trudy "T. K." Jensen Stottlemeyer (Virginia Madsen): Captain Stottlemeyer's love interest. First appeared in "Happy Birthday, Mr. Monk" and marries Stottlemeyer in "Mr. Monk is the Best Man."
• Trudy Anne Monk (Melora Hardin) is Monk's deceased wife. Her husband's attempt to solve her murder is the show's longest-running plot arc. She has formerly been played by Stellina Rusich during the first and second seasons. Lindy Newton plays Trudy in a college flashback in the fifth season.

[edit] Episodes

Most episodes have titles in the form of "Mr. Monk and (a person or thing)" or "Mr. Monk (does something)", much like novels in a series about a starring detective. While solving a murder is the plot for most episodes, there are a few episodes in which Monk helps investigate other crimes, such as a kidnapping in the season two episode "Mr. Monk and the Missing Granny." In season seven, in the 100th episode, Mr. Monk solved his 100th (and 101st) case since his wife's death, a milestone in his career.

[edit] "Here's What Happened"

Most episodes feature a sequence in which Monk reveals how the crime was committed, almost always prefacing his explanation with the words "Here's what happened." Most of these sequences are featured near the end of the episode, but have been known to occur at the beginning. Some of these sequences are told in an unusual fashion, such as being told to a bear ("Mr. Monk Goes Camping")^[8], in the form of a bedtime story ("Mr. Monk and the Kid")^[9], being chanted during a ritual at a monastery ("Mr. Monk and the Miracle")^[10], and being rapped out by Snoop Dogg ("Mr. Monk and the Rapper")^[11].

[edit] Production

According to an interview with executive producer David Hoberman^[12], ABC first conceived the series as a police show with an Inspector Clouseau-like character suffering from obsessive–compulsive disorder. Hoberman said ABC wanted Michael Richards for the show^[12], but Richards turned it down. Hoberman brought in Andy Breckman as creator, and Breckman, inspired by Sherlock Holmes, introduced a Doctor Watson-like character as Monk's nurse and an Inspector Lestrade-like character which eventually became Captain Stottlemeyer.

Although ABC originated the show, the network handed it off to the USA Network. USA is now owned by NBC (NBC Universal).^[13] Monk was the first ABC Studios-produced show (formerly Touchstone Television) aired on USA Network instead of ABC. Although ABC initially refused Monk, they did air repeats of the show on ABC in the summer and fall of 2002, and then again in the spring of 2004. On January 12, 2006, USA Network announced that Monk had been picked up through at least season six as one of the "highest-rated series in cable history."^[14] Season 5 premiered Friday, July 7, 2006, at 9:00 p.m. Eastern time. This marked the first time change for the program, which aired at 10:00 p.m. during its first four seasons. The change allowed the show to work as a lead-in to a new USA Network series, Psych, another offbeat detective program. Monk has followed a consistent format of airing half of its 16 episodes in mid-year and the second half early the following year, with the exception of the final season, which broadcast entirely between August and December 2009.

Previously aired episodes of Monk began airing on NBC Universal sibling network NBC April 6, 2008. NBC eyed the show because its block with Psych could be plugged into NBC's schedule intact. The shows are being used to increase the amount of scripted programming on the network as production of its own scripted programming ramp back up following the writers' strike.^[15] Ratings for the broadcast debut were well below NBC averages for the time period. The show came in third behind Big Brother 9 on CBS and Oprah's Big Give on ABC.^[16]

[edit] Location

Although set in San Francisco and its area, Monk is for the most part shot elsewhere except for occasional exteriors featuring city landmarks. The pilot episode was shot in Vancouver, British Columbia, and the subsequent Season 1 episodes were shot in the Toronto, Ontario, area^[17]. Most of the episodes in Seasons 2-6 were filmed in the Los Angeles, California, area, including on-stage at Ren-Mar Studios for seasons 2-5 and at Paramount Studios for season 6 (these include Adrian’s apartment, Stottlemeyer's precinct house, Dr. Kroger’s office and Natalie’s house).^[18]

Many scenes in Season 4 were shot in San Francisco, in downtown Union Square and Chinatown (shown in "Mr. Monk Gets Jury Duty," as the police chase Escobar up Jackson Street).

[edit] Theme music

During the first season of Monk, the series used a jazzy instrumental intro to the show by songwriter Jeff Beal, performed by guitarist Grant Geissman.^[19] The theme won the 2003 Emmy Award for Best Main Title Music.^[20] When the second season began, the series had new theme music, a song entitled "It's a Jungle out There", by Randy Newman. Reaction to the new theme was mixed. A review of the second season of Monk in the New York Daily News included a wish that producers would revert to the original theme.^[21] Shalhoub expressed his support for the new theme in USA Today, saying its "dark and mournful sound,...[its] tongue-in-cheek, darkly humorous side.... completely fits the tone of the show."^[22] Newman was awarded the 2004 Emmy Award for Best Main Title Music for "It's a Jungle out There".^[23] This debate was referenced in the episode "Mr. Monk and the TV Star", which features an actor who plays a detective in a TV show, and several characters mention an in-story controversy over the change of that show's theme music, including obsessed fan Marci Maven, played by Sarah Silverman. In the epilogue of the story, she implores Monk to promise her that he will never change the theme music if he ever gets his own show. When Monk agrees to the promise (only so he can go back to bed), the original music is heard as the scene fades to credits.

The original theme is also heard in episode 8 of season 3 as Monk drives to Los Angeles with his neighbor and father-in-law. It is also heard in several other episodes as the show enters the credits and then kicks into the new theme's instrumental.

For the season 6 episode, "Mr. Monk and the Rapper," guest star Snoop Dogg performed a hip-hop version of "It's a Jungle out There," and he accompanied Monk with "Here's What Happened" in rap form.

The June 16, 2008, re-airing of the first episode featured a new credit sequence with the Newman theme.

Randy Newman also wrote a new song for the final episode entitled "When I'm Gone." The song was released on iTunes on December 1, 2009.

[edit] Inaccuracies

Monk is often referred to as a "former detective." In the eighth season episode, "Mr. Monk Takes the Stand," Jay Mohr's defense attorney character refers to Monk with the courtesy title, "Former Detective." And in the eighth season episode, "Mr. Monk and the Badge," Monk returns to the police force as "Detective First Class Adrian Monk." But the San Francisco Police Department is unique among big-city police departments in the United States in that it doesn't use the rank "Detective." Those SFPD officers who investigate crimes and perform tasks equivalent to detectives in other departments are given the title "Inspector." On "Monk," the inspector rank is never used, with detective being used instead, and incorrectly.

[edit] Little Monk

USA Network premiered a 10-episode online series entitled "Little Monk" on August 22, 2009. It includes Adrian Monk and Ambrose Monk during their middle-school years, bringing a back story to Monk's detective skills and phobias. However, as they would have been middle schoolers in the late 1960s and early 1970s, viewers will see anachronisms; the various cars seen in the episodes do not belong to the time-period. Moreover, the fashion of all the seen characters does not fit the times.

[edit] Other media

[edit] Soundtrack

The show's soundtrack features its original music score, composed by Jeff Beal.

[edit] Podcast

A "behind the scenes" audio podcast entitled "Lunch at Monk" is available for download through the USA website. [2] In the podcast, cast and crew members of the show are interviewed over lunch.

[edit] Novels

Lee Goldberg has written several novels based on the show.^[24] The novels are written in first-person narrative form, from the perspective of Mr. Monk's assistant Natalie. The first novel, Mr. Monk Goes to the Firehouse, was the basis for the fifth season episode "Mr. Monk Can't See a Thing."

[edit] DVD releases

Universal Studios Home Entertainment has released the first six seasons of Monk on DVD in Regions 1 and 2, and Season 7 in Region 1. The first five seasons have also been released in Region 4. Monk episodes from seasons 1–8 are also available on iTunes. All seasons are also available in HD format.[3]. It should be noted that the Region 2 DVDs of seasons 1-3 are in the 4:3 aspect ratio.

[edit] Awards and nominations

[edit] Awards won

Emmy Awards:

• Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series Tony Shalhoub (2003, 2005, 2006)
• Outstanding Main Title Theme Music Jeff Beal (2003)
• Outstanding Main Title Theme Music Randy Newman (2004)
• Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series John Turturro (2004)
• Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series Stanley Tucci (2007)

Golden Globe Awards:

• Best Performance by an Leading Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy Tony Shalhoub (2003)

Screen Actors Guild:

• Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series Tony Shalhoub (2004, 2005)

[edit] Award nominations

Emmy Awards:

• Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series Tony Shalhoub (2003-2009) 7 nominations^[38]
• Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series Anya Colloff, Amy McIntyre Britt, Meg Liberman, Camille H. Patton, Sandi Logan, Lonnie Hamerman (2004)
• Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series for "Mr. Monk Takes His Medicine" Randall Zisk (2005)
• Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series Laurie Metcalf (2006)
• Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series Sarah Silverman (2008)
• Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series Gena Rowlands (2009)^[38]

Golden Globe Awards:

• Best Television Series - Musical or Comedy (2004)
• Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy Tony Shalhoub (2003-2005, 2007, 2009) 5 nominations
• Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy Bitty Schram (2004)

Screen Actors Guild:

• Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series Tony Shalhoub (2003-2005, 2007-2008) 5 nominations

[edit] Broadcasters

Country	Series Title in Country	TV Network(s)	Series Premiere
Albania		RTSH
Argentina		Hallmark Channel
Australia		Network Ten (original run) and TV1 (re-runs)
Austria	Monk	ORF 1
Belgium		VTM
Bosnia and Herzegovina		FTV
Brazil	Monk, um detetive diferente (Monk, a different detective)	Rede Record Hallmark Channel Universal Channel
Bulgaria	Монк (Monk)	bTV GTV Diema Diema 2	January 3, 2007 August 19, 2008 September 22, 2008 April 14, 2009
Canada		A-Channel, Citytv, TVA (French), Canal Mystère (French)
Chile		Hallmark Channel
Colombia	Monk	Universal Channel, Hallmark Channel
Croatia	Monk	HRT 2
Cyprus	Ντετέκτιβ Μόνκ ("Detective Monk")	CyBC	October 8, 2006
Czech Republic	Můj přítel Monk ("My friend Monk")	TV NOVA
Denmark	Monk (Canal+)/ Detektiv Monk (TV 2 Charlie/TV 2)	Canal+ (first run), TV 2 Charlie (re-runs), TV 2 (first run on national television)
Egypt		MBC 4
Estonia		TV 3	September 6, 2003
Finland	Monk	Canal+, YLE TV1	September 11, 2004
France	Monk	TF1, TV Breizh	March 22, 2003
Germany	Monk	RTL, TNT Serie	June 29, 2004
Greece	Ντετέκτιβ Μονκ ("Detective Monk")	Star Channel, Universal Channel
Jamaica	Monk	Television Jamaica	May 2005-
Holland		SBS6
Hong Kong	神探阿蒙 ("Detective Monk")	TVB (Season 5)	September 18, 2003
Hungary	Monk - Flúgos nyomozó ("Monk - Nutty detective")	TV2 and Viasat3
Iceland		Stöð 2
India		STAR World
Sri Lanka		STAR World
Ireland		RTÉ
Israel	מונק	Israel 10 and Hallmark and Star World
Italy	Monk	Rete 4 Joi	June 9, 2005 May 1, 2008
Japan	名探偵モンク [Meitantei Monk] ("Great detective Monk")	NHK BS-2	March 30, 2004
Country	Series Title in Country	TV Network(s)	Series Premiere
Kenya		Kenya Television Network
Lithuania	Detektyvas Monkas ("Detective Monk")	TV6	September 6, 2003
South Korea	탐정 몽크 [Tam Jeong Monk] ("Detective Monk")	KBS 2TV & Fox	KBS : Only Broadcast Season 3
Mexico	Monk	4tv, The Hallmark Channel, Universal Channel
Nepal	Monk	Star World
Netherlands		SBS6	December 6, 2007
New Zealand		Television 3 and SKY 1 (Now Called "THE BOX")
Norway		TV2 Zebra & Hallmark Channel	February 19, 2008
Pakistan	Monk	STAR World
Philippines		Star World
Poland	Detektyw Monk ("Detective Monk")	TVN (free-tv-premiere), TVN Siedem (free-tv-re-runs) Canal+ (first run), Canal+ Film (re-runs) Universal Channel (re-runs)	April 11, 2003
Portugal		TVI and FX
Romania		Pro Cinema
Republic of Macedonia		Kanal 5
Russia	Дефективный детектив ("Defective Detective")	Channel One	2006, 1-3 seasons
	Детектив Монк ("Detective Monk")	Telekanal Zvezda
Serbia	Детектив Монк ("Detective Monk")	RTS
Slovakia	Monk	Markíza
Slovenia		POP TV	September 8, 2004
South Africa		SABC 2
Spain	Monk	Calle 13 cable/satellite Canal 9 (Valencian Community) ETB2 (Basque Country) 8tv (Catalonia) TVG (Galicia) TV Canaria (Canary Islands) Telemadrid (Community of Madrid)
Sweden		Canal+ Film 1 (first run) and Kanal 9 (re-runs) and Comedy Central Sweden (re-runs)	April 8, 2003
Switzerland	Monk	SF zwei, 3+, RSI La 1 (form. TSI 1), TSR 1,4uTV
Taiwan	Monk 神經妙探	Videoland — W Movie Channel	July 14, 2004
Thailand		Star World
Turkey		Dizimax, TNT Turkey
United Kingdom		Quest , BBC, Hallmark Channel
United States	Monk	USA Network (original airing) and Universal HD (syndication) and NBC (syndication)	July 12, 2002

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Monk

• Official website
• Monk Wiki
• Monk on USA from the TV Guide website
• Monk Season 7 - premieres on Monday 17th August on Star World
• Monk at Allmovie
• Monk at the Internet Movie Database
• Monk at TV.com