Determined touse televisionas a tool for societal change , Linda Bloodworth - Thomason developedDesigning Womenpartly with the purpose of creating a television serial publication that featured levelheaded women who were both sassy and sympathetic and who expressed differ persuasion on women ’s issues and other topics of word that came across her soapbox . Almost 30 years after its initial debut , here are some fact about the Emmy Award - winning serial publication .
1. NONE OF THE LEAD ACTRESSES HAD TO AUDITION FOR THEIR ROLES.
When Linda Bloodworth - Thomason decided to create a show about four sound , impudent southerly charwoman , she had Delta Burke , Dixie Carter , Jean Smart , and Annie Potts in psyche from the start . She ’d previously work with Burke and Carter on a unawares - inhabit series calledFilthy Rich , and Smart and Potts had guest - star together on an episode of the Robert Wagner seriesLime Street . Of the four , only Jean Smart was not a aboriginal Southerner ; she was born and raised in Seattle .
2. ANTHONY BOUVIER WAS NOT INTENDED TO BE A REGULAR CHARACTER.
Anthony Bouvier was to begin with presuppose to make a one - time appearance in the sixth instalment of season one . The handwriting for the episode was n’t yet consummate when Meshach Taylor audition , so or else he wasinstructed to improvisewith the other cast members . The producers were so impressed with the alchemy between Taylor and the four distaff stars that Anthony became a recurring character , and then a series veritable . Taylor was the first casting member to be nominated for an Emmy Award for his body of work on the show .
3. A LETTER-WRITING CAMPAIGN SAVED THE SHOW FROM CANCELLATION.
Midway through time of year one , CBS movedDesigning Womenfrom its Monday nighttime time slot to Thursday , direct opposite NBC’sNight Court . The showplummetedto number 65 in the Nielsen rating and was put on hiatus , which was web code for “ this is nigh to being cancelled . ” Executive producer Harry Thomason adjoin a grassroots system called Viewers for Quality Television ( VQT ) to engage the help of their rank . A letter - penning campaign was launched , with watcher advance to publish letters of protest to CBS president Bud Grant as well as to major TV diary keeper and critics . All told , CBS received an estimated 50,000 letter in support ofDesigning Women . The serial publication ’ adept appeared on an episode ofEntertainment Tonightto discuss the political campaign and encourage viewers to support them . Obviously , the strategy paid off ; the show was not only renew , it was also moved back toMonday nights .
4. DIXIE CARTER HAD SOME “DESIGN” WORK OF HER OWN DONE AFTER THE FIRST SEASON.
Dixie Carter was 47 years onetime whenDesigning Womendebuted in 1986 . swell - eyed fans believably noticed a slight difference in Julia Sugarbaker ’s appearance between seasons one and two . That ’s because after Carter watched the screening of the pilot episodeshe cerebrate , “ If this turn out to be my first big success , after all these years of performing , I could n’t bear to be identified as ‘ the older one . ’ ”
5. SADLY, “KILLING ALL THE RIGHT PEOPLE” WAS BASED ON A REAL-LIFE EXPERIENCE.
The championship of the Emmy - nominated season two instalment was inspired by an factual quotation mark series creator Linda Bloodworth - Thomason overheard in a infirmary corridor . In tardy 1986 her female parent was dying of AIDS be a polluted rakehell transfusion , and Thomason proceed a watch at her bedside while at the same time publish the former scripts forDesigning Women . She was indignant at the ignorance of many of the medical personnel department ( some nanny refuse to touch the AIDS patients and or else put their medication in a bucket and sound off it into their rooms ) and it saddened her that so many of the patient role were break alone in their elbow room with even kinsperson members afraid to get too close . She put pen to paper when she heard a woman in the hallwayconfiding to a fellow traveller , “ If you require me , this disease has one affair going for it . It ’s killing all the right people . ”
6. DIXIE CARTER FELT UNEASY DELIVERING MANY OF HER FAMOUS RANTS.
Julia Sugarbaker was a unswerving liberal who never hesitated to found into one of her trademarkTerminator Tiradesif someone got her dander up . Dixie Carter , however , was a register Republican who sometimes matte a small uncomfortable with Julia ’s political relation . She reach a via media with Harry and Linda Bloodworth - Thomason : for every case where Julia was necessitate to spout off on a Thomason pet topic , Carter ( who ’d had years of professional vocal training)would get to peach a songin a ulterior episode .
7. ANNIE POTTS HAD TO HIDE HER PREGNANCY.
The actress was in a mob path during time of year six but the producers decided that they did n’t desire her persona , Mary Jo , to be a unmarried mom . So Annie had to pass much of that seasonhidden behind furnitureor oversized shirts . There was a brief endeavour at a maternity plot of land — with Mary Jo longing for a baby and chaffer a sperm bank — but the writer had already gone the maternity route not too long before with Charlene . Besides , Murphy Brown(which aired in the time slot just prior toDesigning Womenon Monday night ) was farm all sorts of hackles with her impending maternity , and the Thomasons did n’t desire to seem like they were hop aboard the exclusive motherhood bandwagon as an endeavor to leech off of some of Candice Bergen ’s promotion .
8 . JULIA SUGARBAKER AND REESE WATSON WERE MARRIED IN REAL animation .
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Dixie Carter and Hal Holbrook were espouse in 1984 , the third fourth dimension down the gangway for both . He turn down the theatrical role of Julia ’s beau , attorney Reese Watson , several times until Bloodworth - Thomason asked him , “ Do you really need some other man get love to your wife on television set ? "
9. SUZANNE SUGARBAKER AND DASH GOFF WERE ALSO MARRIED … EVENTUALLY.
Gerald McRaney edged out John Ritter to gain ground the office of Suzanne Sugarbaker ’s first x - hubby , author Dash Goff . There was an immediate attraction between the actor when theyfirst metat a publicists ’ lunch in 1987 , which only strengthened when he was cast on the show . One scene call for the pair to snog , and the two were inseparable afterward . They were married in 1989 in an elaborated ceremony in front of 400 guest , with Dixie Carter serving as Burke ’s matron of honor .
10. CHARLENE AND BILL WERENOTA REAL-LIFE COUPLE, BUT CHARLENE AND J.D. WERE.
Richard Gilliland was cast in a recurring role as Mary Jo ’s boyfriend , J.D. Shackleford , in season one . But it was Jean Smart who sat across from Gilliland during the first board read and decided that she needed to get to know him well . “ I asked Delta to find out if he was married,”Smart recalledtoLadies Home Journalin 1990 . “ of course , Delta walk up to him and blurt , ‘ Jean want to bed if you ’re married . ’ ” Smart invited him to her dressing room to help her with a crossword mystifier , and in June 1987 the pair tied the Calidris canutus ( in the gardenof Hal Holbrook and Dixie Carter ’s Brentwood place ) .
Even though they were now marry in real living , on TV Gilliland was still copulate with Annie Potts ' Mary Jo , and Smart ’s Charlene eventually married Air Force Colonel Bill Stillfield ( played by Douglas Barr ) . All four of the human seem with their onscreen well halves in just one episode , time of year two ’s “ Reservations for Eight . ”
11 . DELTA BURKE CLAIMED THAT SHE WAS BEING TERRORIZED ON THE SET .
In 1990 , Delta Burke appeared on a Barbara Walters special without alerting theDesigning Womenproducers . During the interviewshe statedthat the set was not a glad one , and accused the Thomasons of “ terrorizing ” and “ manipulating ” her . She claimed that Harry Thomason once lock away her and her co - stars in a room and screamed at them ( no other form member corroborated this story ) . She also express her sorrowfulness that her protagonist Dixie Carter had side with the producers .
Burkestarted showing up late or not at all during season five and the cast was force to find out two version of each script — one with Suzanne , and one without Suzanne . At the terminal of the time of year , Harry Thomason asked the mold to vote on whether or not they ’d care to continue working with Burke . The resultant of the vote was that Burke was released from her contract .
12.227’S JACKÉE HARRY WAS CONSIDERED AS A REPLACEMENT FOR BURKE.
Season six started out with two new cast extremity , since Jean Smart had decided that she ’d had enough of the situation comedy format and work docket and wanted to expend some time at home with her infant son . Julia Duffy ( Newhart ) was cast as Allison Sugarbaker and Jan Hooks ( Saturday Night Live ) was brought in as Charlene ’s sister ( and permutation ) Carlene .
Bloodworth - Thomasonstated toTV Guideat the time that , “ There are only a smattering of actress who can pull off being whiny and petulant and self - center and still be liked by the audience , and Julia Duffy has that caliber . ” Unfortunately , the author taste too laborious to make Allison different from Suzanne , and they never quite catch the “ likable ” part of her character down pat . Duffy ’s contract was not regenerate at the final stage of the season .
Jackée Harry made a guest appearing as Anthony ’s fiancée in the time of year six cliffhanger finale , with the plan that her character would bribe into Sugarbaker ’s and become a serial publication even . But it was adjudicate that her personality wastooover - the - top and that idea was argufy .
Additional sources : Close - Ups : Conversations with Our TV Favoritesby Eddie Lucas , Pub . by BearManor Media
endeavor to Get to Heavenby Dixie Carter
Delta Styleby Delta Burke
Entertainment Tonight present The Real Designing Women(2000 TV Special)“Delta Burkes Escalates Was withDesigning WomenBrass on Weighty Issues,“Baltimore Sun , November 14 . 1990
" Burke at the Top , attempt to Change,“Orlando Sentinel , August 2 , 1990
" Delta Burke Bad - mouth Bosses — Again,“Sun Sentinel , November 14 , 1990
