WINDWARD CIRCLE: PILOT {A.K.A. GILMORE GIRLS: HERE COMES THE SON} {UNAIRED EPISODE} (TV)
Summary
This unaired episode was the intended pilot for a "Gilmore Girls" spin-off series, ultimately canceled for budgetary reasons; most of the scenes from this asset appear in the full-length "Gilmore" episode entitled "Here Comes the Son." In this episode, Jess Mariano writes a letter to his erstwhile girlfriend Rory Gilmore, describing how his irresponsible mother Liz shipped him from New York City to the quaint town of Stars Hollow, Connecticut to live with his gruff uncle Luke Danes. After a fairly disastrous two years of mischief and romance, Jess is shocked by a visit from long-absent father Jimmy, and when he flunks out of high school and is ousted by a furious Luke, Jess flees across the country to join his estranged parent in Venice Beach. Once there, he immediately antagonizes a group of streetwise skateboarder kids and escapes to Jimmy's house, where he meets his dad's dog-loving girlfriend Sasha and her (not Jimmy's) eccentric young daughter Lily.
Sasha escorts Jess to "Dante's Inferno," Jimmy's hot-dog stand on the boardwalk, and a surprised Jimmy awkwardly greets his son and shows him around, describing the beach as his absolute favorite of the many places he has lived, including his brief stint in New York. Back at home, Jess senses the tension and quickly heads out to a bookstore as Sasha angrily confronts her "roomie" about his secret trip to Connecticut and his son's unexpected arrival at their home.
Jimmy finds Jess and demands answers for his sudden arrival, and Jess in turn points out that his father journeyed across the country to meet him and then "chickened out" of an actual conversation. Jimmy protests that he cannot "raise" the troublesome 18-year-old, having bailed on fatherhood early on because of his sense of irresponsibility, but Jess emotionally reveals that he "has nothing" and nowhere to go, and Jimmy uncertainly agrees to let him crash for the time being. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: The WB
- DATE: October 5, 2000
- RUNNING TIME: 0:30:00
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:85698
- GENRE: Drama
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama; Families; California; Venice, Calif.
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Amy Sherman-Palladino … Executive Producer, Director, Created by, Writer
- Milo Ventimiglia … Cast, Jess Mariano
- Rob Estes … Cast, Jimmy Mariano
- Sherilyn Fenn … Cast, Sasha
- Alix Kermes … Cast, Lily
- Lauren Graham … Cast, Lorelai Gilmore
- Scott Patterson … Cast, Luke Danes
- Alexis Bledel … Cast, Rory Gilmore
- Greg Cipes … Cast, Skateboarder