American mockumentary sitcom Parks and Recreation has risen to become a global fan-favorite comedy show since its release on NBC in 2009. Following in the footsteps of their previous work on The Office, writer Greg Daniels and Michael Schur based the show’s storyline on the life of a perky government employee Leslie Knope, played by Amy Poehler, in the Parks Department of Pawnee, Indiana.
The show has been praised by viewers and critics alike for its highly rewatchable quality. Here, we take a look at ten facts you might not have known about the making of the iconic show.
10 It Was Originally Supposed To Be A Spin-Off Of The Office
Due to the popularity of the hit NBC show The Office, the network’s co-chairman approached Greg Daniels for a possible spin-off series. With the help of writer Michael Schur, the two came up with a number of different storylines, including one where a broken copy machine in the Dunder Mifflin office ends up in Pawnee.
Daniels and Schur eventually settled on the idea of creating an entirely new show while still employing the mockumentary format. They also decided to keep one of The Office’s actresses, Rashida Jones.
9 Chris Pratt Was Cast Due To His Work On The O.C.
Andy Dwyer has risen to become a fan-favorite character over the years, with his wealth of comedic lines and quirky personality. Before landing his role of a lifetime, Chris Pratt played an activist named Winchester Cook on The O.C., a popular teen drama.
J.J. Philbin, one of the writers of the series, recommended Pratt to her husband Michael Schur as she believed he was perfect for the role of Andy Dwyer. Pratt later improvised some of Schur’s favorite ever lines from the show.
8 April Ludgate Was Written Specifically For Aubrey Plaza
After meeting Aubrey Plaza in an audition room, casting director Allison Jones approached Schur to inform him that she had just met ‘the weirdest girl’. Curious, Schur went to meet Plaza for himself and described the initial encounter as ‘really uncomfortable for like an hour’.
He then decided to cast her on the spot even though a clear part had not been written for her yet. The writers eventually worked together to create the part of April Ludgate, a government intern, specifically for the actress.
7 It Was Originally Titled Public Service
Originally, the writers had considered the name Public Service as a possible title for the show. The name soon changed to The Untitled Amy Poehler Sitcom in many of the draft scripts. In a Super Bowl commercial around two months before the series premiere.
However, NBC finally decided to stick with the title Parks and Recreation. Silverman had revealed that the title went through so many editorial changes as both the network and show’s producers did not want to blatantly make fun of public service.
6 Ron Swanson Drew Inspiration From A Real Government Official
According to Mental Floss, while doing field research for the series, Daniels and Schur met with a libertarian official in Burbank, California who inspired them to create the character of Ron Swanson.
They mentioned to her the humorous idea of Leslie Knope’s boss being anti-government, a character trait which she admitted she could whole-heartedly relate to as she didn’t ‘really believe in the mission’ of her government job. Schur had commented further that the unidentified government official was well aware of the irony of her statement.
5 Leslie Knope Was Rewritten To Become Less Ditzy
After the release of the commercially unsuccessful first season of the show, some viewers reported that they found Amy Poehler’s character to appear too ‘unintelligent’ and ‘ditzy’.
Editorial changes were therefore made to some of her most quotable lines and her character descriptions in season two to make her seem smarter in comparison to the other government workers. Daniels and Schur also made sure that Leslie Knope was to become the main recipient of both professional and moral support from her close friends and coworkers.
4 The First Season Received Mainly Bad Reviews
The show experienced rocky beginnings compared to its predecessor The Office in terms of viewer ratings and critic reviews. Many critics at the time predicted at the time that the show was never going to take off as the narrative premise was not strong or engaging enough.
The Chicago Tribune even called it a bigger failure than the universally denounced spin-off from Friends, Joey. Both critics and viewers soon changed their minds however after the masterfully crafted second season of the show was released.
3 Ron Swanson’s Hobbies Were Based On Nick Offerman’s
Many of Ron Swanson’s quirky character traits were based on actor Nick Offerman’s own personality and idiosyncratic preferences. This extends to his hobbies which include eating breakfast foods, woodworking, and building handy DIY creations.
In addition to being an actor, Offerman is also a professional woodworker. He owns his own L.A. based store called Offerman Wood Shop where he sells many of his handmade items. Another hobby that Offerman shares with Swanson’s secret nightclub persona Duke Silver is his ability to play the saxophone.
2 The Writers Had Always Meant For Mark Brendanawicz To Leave The Show
During the production stage of the show, the writers formed an agreement with actor Paul Schneider that his character Mark Brendanawicz was to repeatedly leave and return to the show. The successful introduction of fan-favorite characters Ben Wyatt and Chris Traeger at the time of Schneider’s absence, however, incentivized the writers to write his character out of the narrative permanently.
The actor’s incredibly busy movie schedule at the time also helped to encourage the show’s writers and producers in making this bold creative decision.
1 The Pit Wasn’t Supposed To Become A Park Until The Series Finale
While doing his research on the government’s parks department, Schur came across a number of urban planners in Claremont, California who told him that it took the Claremont government about eighteen years to break ground on a new park. That detail alone motivated Schur and Daniels to not have Leslie’s goal to turn the pit into a park become a reality until the series finale.
However, viewers of the show soon became impatient and demanded the pit to be filled. The writers complied and soon came up with a number of different storylines to fill the gap.
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