Already have an account?

I agree to the terms of the Terms and Conditions,
the Privacy Policy and receive emails from Closer Weekly

See 10 ‘Desperate Housewives’ Facts Every Die-Hard Fan Should Know!

Reality TV

Mar 26, 2018 1:01 pm·

By Julia Birkinbine

Comment

Picture

Where Does Kathie Lee Gifford Live? Photos of Nashville Home

Settled Down! Tour Kathie Lee Gifford’s Beautiful Nashville Estate

Where Does Kelly Ripa Live? Photos of New York City Penthouse

Tour Kelly Ripa's NYC Penthouse With Husband Mark Consuelos [Photos]

Mel Gibson Is a Proud Dad to 9 Kids: Meet His Huge Family!

sandra-bullocks-son-louis-bardo-bullock-today

Sandra Bullock's Son Made Her a Mom: Photos of Louis Over the Years

steve-martin-kids-meet-the-funny-mans-only-daughter

'Parenthood' in Real Life! Get to Know Steve Martin's Only Daughter Mary

Think you know everything about Desperate Housewives? Think again! The hit series ran for eight seasons from 2004 until 2012 and with 180 mysterious episodes, there are tons of fascinating facts every die-hard DH fan should know about the show.

For instance, do you know which Wisteria Lane lady was the first to be cast on the series? Or that all of the DH episode titles follow the same theme? Lucky for you, we've rounded up all of our favorite facts about Desperate Housewives in the gallery below — scroll down to learn more about the cast, characters, set, and show's history!

1 of 10

Desperate Housewives wasn't the show's original title

Alternate titles including The Secrets of Wisteria Lane and The Secret Lives of Housewives were pitched before the creators settled on DH!

2 of 10

Bree Van de Kamp was based on a real person

The show's creator, Marc Cherry, reportedly wrote Marcia Cross' character to be like his own mother.

3 of 10

The show was a hit from the get-go

The pilot episode drew 21.3 million viewers and the series was the biggest success of the 2004-2005 television season.

4 of 10

A lot of characters died on the show

In fact, 52 characters perished during DH's eight-season run.

5 of 10

The Wisteria Lane set was built in 1946

The street was also used in shows Leave it to Beaver and The Munsters!

6 of 10

The show's format was changed from early ideas

The creators originally thought the show would be a half-hour comedy but later changed DH to have hour-long dramedy episodes.

7 of 10

Eva Longoria was the first to join the cast

Eva was the first star to commit to the show to play housewife Gabrielle Solis. Series creator Marc Cherry later said he never intended Gaby's character to be likable!

8 of 10

The show's cast made history

With eight seasons and 180 episodes, Desperate Houswives holds the record of longest-running one-hour American series with an all-female principal cast.

9 of 10

Tom Scavo's storyline majorly changed

Tom was originally supposed to cheat on his wife, Lynette Scavo, in Season 1 but the writers later decided they wanted at least one of the housewife's marriages to remain stable.

10 of 10