Desperate Housewives on Wikipedia

Desperate Housewives is an American television series, created by Marc Cherry, that began airing on ABC in 2004, in HDTV. Set on Wisteria Lane in the fictional town of Fairview, the series tracks the lives of four housewives, following their domestic struggles while several mysteries involving their husbands, friends and neighbors unfold in the background. The tone and style of the series combine elements of drama, comedy, mystery, farce, soap opera and satire.

Cherry initially pitched the series to HBO, CBS, NBC, Fox, Showtime, and Lifetime, but all turned him down. The series rocketed to the top of the ratings from the premiere episode, and immediately the term "desperate housewives" became a cultural phenomenon, warranting "the real desperate housewives" features in magazines and such TV shows as The Oprah Winfrey Show. The show has been credited with almost single-handedly (along with Lost) reviving the long-dormant fortunes of ABC, whose last major ratings hit had been Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.

The show focuses on four housewives living in suburbia, whose friend recently took her own life and is now sharing all their juicy secrets from beyond the grave. The show has come under critical fire by religious and conservative groups due to what some consider the seeming lack of morality amongst the characters. Though it is not uncommon for soap opera characters to make melodramatically questionable decisions, in the first season of "Housewives" almost every character has arguably committed a crime.

The show was the biggest new success of the 2004-2005 television season and gained instant critical acclaim. All four actresses, especially Cross and Huffman, were critically praised for their roles on the show.

Tagline: Everyone has a little dirty laundry.

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