The Designing Women Reunion

Last updated
The Designing Women Reunion
Written byAllen Crowe
Pamela Norris
Effie Belford
Directed by Harry Thomason
Starring Dixie Carter
Annie Potts
Delta Burke
Jean Smart
Meshach Taylor
Music byBruce Miller
Opening theme"Georgia on My Mind"
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producers Harry Thomason
Linda Bloodworth
ProducerDouglas G. Jackson
EditorLeo Papin
Running time90 minutes
Production companies Elmo Productions
Sony Pictures Television
Original release
Network Lifetime
ReleaseJuly 28, 2003 (2003-07-28)
Related
Designing Women

The Designing Women Reunion is a 2003 American television special that reunited the cast of the 1986–1993 sitcom Designing Women . It originally aired on Lifetime on July 28, 2003.

Contents

Summary

A retrospective of Designing Women reunites original cast members Dixie Carter, Annie Potts, Delta Burke, Jean Smart, and Meshach Taylor for the first time in 12 years. They reminisce about their time together on the series and about their characters. The special includes a compilation of clips highlighting the show's memorable moments, including topics such as initial casting, favorite episodes, how the women met their real-life husbands on the show, and Burke openly discussing her battle with depression and panic attacks prior to her departure from the series.

Also featured are a special appearance by Alice Ghostley, new interviews with crew members and series creators/producers Linda Bloodworth-Thomason and Harry Thomason, recurring cast members Hal Holbrook, Richard Gilliland, Gerald McRaney, and writer/executive producer Pamela Norris sharing their memories of the show in pre-recorded separate interviews. [1]

The special was taped on June 4, 2003, in front of a live audience at CBS Studio Center in Studio City, California.

Cast

Main cast

Guest stars

Interviews (pre-recorded)

Reception

The Designing Women Reunion was the second highest-rated special in Lifetime network's 19-year history, averaging a 3.1 household rating (3.3 million viewers) during its premiere on July 28, 2003. The first was The Golden Girls: Their Greatest Moments , which scored a 3.7 rating with 4.2 million viewers the previous month.

The "Designing Women" evening on Lifetime from 7:00 to 11:00 p.m., which included an intimate portrait of Delta Burke, the 90-minute reunion special, the pilot episode, and two episodes of Designing Women especially selected by the cast, [2] was seen by an estimated 9.7 million viewers. [3]

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"Killing All the Right People" is the 26th episode of the sitcom Designing Women. Originally airing on October 5, 1987, as the fourth episode of the second season. It features Tony Goldwyn as Kendall Dobbs, a young gay man dying of AIDS who asks the Sugarbaker ladies to design his funeral. Series creator Linda Bloodworth-Thomason's mother died of AIDS and her experience with her mother's disease and the prejudice associated with it inspired the episode.

Linda Joyce Bloodworth-Thomason is an American writer, director, and television producer. She is best known for creating, writing, and producing several television series, most successfully with the sitcoms Designing Women and Evening Shade. She and her husband, Harry Thomason, are also notable for their friendship with former President Bill Clinton, and the role they played in his election campaigns.

<i>Designing Women</i> season 1 Season of television series

The first season of Designing Women premiered on CBS on September 29, 1986, and concluded on May 11, 1987. The season consisted of 22 episodes. Created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, the series was produced by Bloodworth/Thomason Mozark Productions in association with Columbia Pictures Television.

<i>Designing Women</i> season 2 Season of television series

The second season of Designing Women premiered on CBS on September 14, 1987, and concluded on March 28, 1988. The season consisted of 22 episodes. Created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, the series was produced by Bloodworth/Thomason Mozark Productions in association with Columbia Pictures Television.

<i>Designing Women</i> season 3 Season of television series

The third season of Designing Women premiered on CBS on November 14, 1988, and concluded on May 22, 1989. The season consisted of 22 episodes. Created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, the series was produced by Bloodworth/Thomason Mozark Productions in association with Columbia Pictures Television.

<i>Designing Women</i> season 4 Season of television series

The fourth season of Designing Women premiered on CBS on September 18, 1989, and concluded on May 21, 1990. The season consisted of 28 episodes. Created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, the series was produced by Bloodworth/Thomason Mozark Productions in association with Columbia Pictures Television.

<i>Designing Women</i> season 5 Season of television series

The fifth season of Designing Women premiered on CBS on September 17, 1990, and concluded on May 13, 1991. The season consisted of 24 episodes. Created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, the series was produced by Bloodworth/Thomason Mozark Productions in association with Columbia Pictures Television.

<i>Designing Women</i> season 6 Season of television series

The sixth season of Designing Women premiered on CBS on September 16, 1991, and concluded on May 4, 1992. The season consisted of 23 episodes. Created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, the series was produced by Bloodworth/Thomason Mozark Productions in association with Columbia Pictures Television.

<i>Designing Women</i> season 7 Season of television series

The seventh and final season of Designing Women premiered on CBS on September 25, 1992, and concluded on May 24, 1993. The season consisted of 22 episodes. Created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, the series was produced by Bloodworth/Thomason Mozark Productions in association with Columbia Pictures Television.

The Golden Girls: Their Greatest Moments is a 2003 American television special that reunited the cast of the 1985–1992 sitcom The Golden Girls. It originally aired on Lifetime on June 2, 2003.

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