GIRLFRIENDS {UNAIRED PILOT} (TV)
Summary
The unaired pilot of this comedy series about a young lawyer and her tight-knit circle of friends.
Joan Clayton, a young successful lawyer, is celebrating her birthday, but receives news that her date has gotten back together with his ex-girlfriend, meaning that she will be unaccompanied to her own birthday party. Her friend Toni prepares to attend and hopes to attract the attention of Charles, one of Joan’s ex-boyfriends. However, her roommate Lynn believes this is a bad idea, and that she should at least warn Joan beforehand. Joan learns from her co-worker William that she is being made a junior partner in her firm, making her elated, although she is advised not to say anything until the partners tell her personally. Lynn literally twists Toni’s arm into informing Joan about her intention to arrive at her party with Charles. Joan is upset at this news; she recalls that she enjoyed a great relationship with Charles, but that he backed out of it after she said that she intended to marry him eventually. However, she reluctantly gives Toni permission to arrive with him, warning her that he is not the marrying type since she knows of Toni’s intentions to marry into money. In desperation, Joan asks William to be her date to her party, and he recognizes that he is serving as her “pinch-hitter.”
That night, she and her friends prepare for the party. Joan is turning 29, but claims that she is turning 26, and Lynn asks her to stop lying about her age. William arrives with Charles, and Joan makes an effort to make Charles jealous. When William implies that he and Joan have a serious relationship, she pulls him aside to remind him that he is “a date in name only.” Maya interrupts when she discovers that Charles used to be Joan’s boyfriend, incensed at Toni for what she feels is a violation of their friendship. However, Joan continues to insist that she has no problem with Toni dating Charles, as they have been friends since childhood. Later, Joan discovers that Charles intends to settle down and get married, making her more upset at his previous rejection of her. Joan and Charles argue about the circumstances of their breakup until Toni decides to leave with Charles, further angering Joan. Maya gets in on the argument as well and physical violence nearly erupts until Lynn breaks it up. A frustrated Joan yells at everyone to leave, ending her party early; she retreats into her room when she accidentally rips open her dress.
Toni ultimately ends her relationship with Charles, partially due to not wanting to be considered a gold-digger, and partially out of disgust for Charles’s toe-sucking habit. The next day, Joan calls William into her office, revealing her true age and admitting that her outburst the previous night was motivated by her fear of being unable to find someone with whom to share her life. Lynn organizes a meeting between Toni and Joan in the hopes that they will reconcile their differences. Charles unexpectedly arrives and apologizes for arriving at her party with Toni. He reveals that the reason he didn’t want to marry her was that he intended to wait until he had his career in order, and Joan asks him why he didn’t explain that to her when they broke up. He admits that he made a mistake in doing so and kisses her. They nearly have sex but Joan asks him to stop, feeling uncomfortable about the whole situation. Toni arrives and Joan gets him to hide before she comes in. Toni enters and apologizes for her behavior, explaining that she broke up with Charles and feeling terrible for her slight against her. Joan tries to conceal Charles’s presence, but when Toni says that Joan would never do the same to her she gets him to reveal himself. Toni feels that this is acceptable “payback” and passes up on the chance to be with Charles, unwilling to jeopardize her friendship with Joan. They decide to all go out to dinner to clear up the matter, but Joan, Toni, and Lynn deceive Charles and send him off on his own. At dinner, Lynn and Joan also coerce Toni into apologizing to Maya for insulting her at the party.
Details
- NETWORK: UPN
- DATE: 2000 NaN:NaN
- RUNNING TIME: 0:23:25
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:76499
- GENRE: Comedy
- SUBJECT HEADING: African-American Collection - Comedy; Comedy
- SERIES RUN: UPN - TV series, 2000-2006; The CW, 2006-2008
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Dee LaDuke … Executive Producer
- Mark Alton Brown … Executive Producer
- Rudy Hornish … Executive Producer
- Kelsey Grammer … Executive Producer
- Mara Brock Akil … Co-Executive Producer, Writer
- Nancy Sprow … Producer
- Tony Hicks … Associate Producer
- Leonard R. Garner Jr. … Director
- Tracee Ellis Ross … Cast, Joan Clayton
- Leslie SIlva … Cast, Toni Childs
- Christina Cox … Cast, Lynn
- Golden Brooks … Cast, Maya Wilkes
- Reggie Hayes … Cast, William Dent
- Dondré T. Whitfield … Cast, Charles
- Alexander Folk … Cast, Minister
- James Giordano … Cast, Treadmill Guy
- Eloy Mendez … Cast, Bagger