Lucky Louie

Lucky Louie
Genre Sitcom
Created by Louis C.K.
Directed by Gary Halvorson (pilot)
Andrew D. Weyman
Starring Louis C.K.
Pamela Adlon
Kelly Gould
Mike Hagerty
Jim Norton
Laura Kightlinger
Rick Shapiro
Jerry Minor
Kim Hawthorne
Theme music composer Mark Rivers
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 1
No. of episodes 13 (1 unaired)[1] (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s) Louis C.K.
Mike Royce
Vic Kaplan
Dave Becky
Producer(s) Leo Clarke
Editor(s) Brian Schnuckel
Cinematography Bruce L. Finn
Camera setup Multiple-camera
Running time 30 minutes
Production company(s) Snowpants Productions
Aloha Filmworks
Space Floor Television
3 Arts Entertainment
OH! Media
HBO Entertainment
Release
Original network HBO
Original release June 11 (2006-06-11) – August 27, 2006 (2006-08-27)

Lucky Louie is an American television sitcom created by Louis C.K., which aired on HBO in the U.S. for one season in 2006 — and in Canada on Movie Central, The Movie Network, and The Comedy Network. As the show's creator, writer and executive producer, C.K. also starred as the eponymous central character, a part-time mechanic at a muffler shop.

A first for HBO, Lucky Louie was filmed before a live studio audience, in a multiple-camera setup with a laugh track.[2] Inspired by Norman Lear's situation comedies, the show depicts the life of a modest working-class family while using spartan sets and wardrobe. Dealing with a range of topics including sex and racism, the series uses considerable adult language and casts performers widely known as stand-up comedians, including Jim Norton, Laura Kightlinger, Nick DiPaolo, Todd Barry and Rick Shapiro.

HBO ordered 12 episodes, which aired during the 2006 summer season, as well as eight scripts for a second season,[3] before canceling the show in September 2006[4] — for numerous reasons ranging from the nature of the show to network economic pressure.[5]

Plot

The show revolves around the life of Louie, a part-time mechanic at a muffler shop owned by his friend Mike; Louie's wife, Kim, a full-time nurse and the family breadwinner (Pamela Adlon); and their four-year-old daughter, Lucy (Kelly Gould).

Cast

Actor Role Notes
Louis C.K. Louie Protagonist
Pamela Adlon Kim Louie's wife
Kelly Gould Lucy Louie's & Kim's daughter
Michael G. Hagerty Mike Louie's employer and friend
Laura Kightlinger Tina Mike's wife
Jerry Minor Walter Louie's & Kim's neighbor
Kim Hawthorne Ellen Walter's wife
Rick Shapiro Jerry Kim's brother
Jim Norton Rich Louie's friend

Crew

Louis C.K. served as creator, star, head writer and executive producer. Mike Royce served as showrunner and executive producer. Other executive producers included Dave Becky and Vic Kaplan. Writers included C.K. and Royce, Kit Boss (Co-Executive Producer), Patricia Breen (Executive Story Editor), Jon Ross (Executive Story Editor), Mary Fitzgerald (Staff Writer), Greg Fitzsimmons (Staff Writer), Dan Mintz (Staff Writer), Dino Stamatopoulos (writer), and Aaron Shure (Consulting Producer), formerly of Everybody Loves Raymond.

The theme, entitled "Lucky Louie Theme", was composed by Mark Rivers. Animated title sequence by David Tristman

Andrew D. Weyman served as the series' main director. Producers on the show were Leo Clarke and Andrew D. Weyman. Associate producer was Ralph Paredes. Consulting producer was Tracy Katsky.

Episodes

No. Title Directed by[6] Written by[6] Original air date
1"Pilot"Gary HalvorsonLouis C.K.June 11, 2006
Kim's offer of a week full of sex arouses Louie's suspicions of her motives; Louie tries to befriend his neighbor, Walter.
2"Kim's O"Andrew D. WeymanDan Mintz & Aaron ShureJune 18, 2006
Having led Kim into uncharted sexual terrain, Louie is asked to rekindle the magic—or face the consequences.
3"A Mugging Story"Andrew D. WeymanPatricia BreenJune 25, 2006
Kim tries to turn the tables on a young mugger, but instead ends up forcing Louie into the role of night watchman.
4"Long Weekend"Andrew D. WeymanLouis C.K.July 2, 2006
With the Fourth of July approaching, Louie impulsively spends Kim's picnic money on an expensive Frankenstein's monster doll he bought over the internet.
5"Control"Andrew D. WeymanDino StamatopoulosJuly 9, 2006
Concerned about Louie's bad eating habits, Kim puts him on a healthy diet that only aggravates the problem.
6"Flowers for Kim"Andrew D. WeymanJon RossJuly 16, 2006
After an argument with Kim, Louie calls his wife a cunt, leading to an abrupt end to what was supposed to be a sex-filled weekend.
7"Discipline"Andrew D. WeymanStory: Pamela Adlon & Louis C.K.
Teleplay: Louis C.K.
July 23, 2006
Louie asks for Walter's help in correcting Lucy's rude behavior.
8"Get Out"Andrew D. WeymanMike RoyceJuly 30, 2006
Tina's rebellious daughter Shannon (Emma Stone) walks out of her mother's life and ends up walking into Louie and Kim's.
9"Drinking"Andrew D. WeymanKit BossAugust 6, 2006
After Louie decides to attend a basketball game with Mike and Rich instead of taking care of his sick daughter, he is arrested for DUI.
10"Confession"Andrew D. WeymanMary Fitzgerald & Aaron ShureAugust 13, 2006
Forced to go to church after pawning Lucy off on Ellen, Louie finds an unexpected ear for his gripes in the confessional booth.
11"Louie Quits"Andrew D. WeymanDan MintzAugust 20, 2006
After discovering that the only reason he got a raise in his job (and got hired to begin with) was due to the "charity" of his wife and friends, Louie quits and looks for new work.
12"Kim Moves Out"Andrew D. WeymanLouis C.K.August 27, 2006
Kim realizes that she hates Louie and decides to move out.
13"Clowntime Is Over"Andrew D. WeymanJon RossUnaired
After Bingo the clown doesn't turn up to Lucy's party, Louie is forced to become "Mr. Pizza Box Man" to the enjoyment of all the children. Other families start contracting his services.

Critical reception

Lucky Louie received mixed reviews from critics and retains a Metacritic score of 48 out of 100 based on 19 reviews.[7]

Home release

HBO released the entire series of Lucky Louie on January 30, 2007.[8] It includes an unaired episode "Clowntime is Over". The DVD also includes four commentaries and a look at the taping of an episode.

Controversy

In August 2006, during the show's run, Bill Donohue, president of the American organization Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, issued a news release about Lucky Louie, calling the series "barbaric".[9] The release provides a bulleted list of content from the show that the organization finds obscene, from the ten episodes that had been broadcast at that time. In January 2007, Louis C.K. was a guest in studio on the Opie & Anthony radio show (co-hosted by Jim Norton, who plays Rich on Lucky Louie). Donohue appeared on the show as a phone-in guest that day, and C.K. started a conversation with him about his comments on Lucky Louie. C.K. challenged Donohue's news release and accused him of misrepresenting the show by taking things out of context. Donohue admitted that even though the press release bears his name, he had never seen an episode of the show.[10][11]

References

  1. "Lucky Louie – The Complete First Season". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2010-09-27.
  2. "About the Show". Lucky Louie website. HBO. 2006. Archived from the original on 2008-05-03. Retrieved 2010-10-05.
  3. retrieved December 10, 2006
  4. retrieved June 18, 2007
  5. "Louis C.K. on the Words You Can't Say on FX (NSFW)". Tvsquad.com. 2010-06-26. Archived from the original on June 16, 2013. Retrieved 2012-08-05. What did HBO tell you when they let the show go? Ratings are not a big thing for them... No they're not. And they have pressure of different kinds. And at the time, we were hearing a lot of things. One of them was that Warner Brothers was sending word out to every company, that you have to make big cuts. And so I knew that Chris Albrecht was up against it trying to renew us to begin with. I knew he was, he had pressure. And he didn't have enough proof that we were definitely going to keep growing. I think that they are really into critics. I mean, on one hand, NY Times, LA Times, and Shales all loved the show. I mean, those were all positive reviews, and there were others. line feed character in |quote= at position 89 (help)
  6. 1 2 DVD insert
  7. "Lucky Louie – Season 1 Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More". Metacritic. 2006-06-11. Retrieved 2012-08-05.
  8. retrieved December 10, 2006
  9. "HBO's "Lucky Louie" is Barbaric". Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights. August 14, 2006. Retrieved April 14, 2012.
  10. Hosts: Hughes, Gregg; Cumia, Anthony; Norton, Jim (January 24, 2007). "Show of January 24, 2007". The Opie & Anthony Show. Textual recap of the show: User "Struff" (September 1, 2008). "1.24.07 SHOW RECAP: Louis CK In Studio, Bill Donohue On Phone". Retrieved February 7, 2011.
  11. C.K., Louis (January 24, 2007). "catholiclouie". Archived from the original on March 31, 2009. Retrieved April 14, 2012.

External links

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