Pilot

From West Wing Wiki

The entire White House staff bristles with activity when it's learned that the President injured himself during a bicycle accident, and his absence becomes a factor as chief of staff Leo McGarry must juggle a host of impending crises, including a mass boat lift of Cuban refugees approaching the Florida coast and the reaction of conservative Christians to a controversial televised comment by Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman. Meanwhile, Sam Seaborn , the trouble-prone Deputy White House Communications Director, unknowingly spends the night with a call girl and then makes another critical error during a children's White House tour.

Contents 1 Summary 1.1 Teaser 1.2 Act One 1.3 Act Two 1.4 Act Three 1.5 Act Four 2 Cast 2.1 Starring 2.2 Guest Starring 2.3 Co-Starring 3 Memorable Quotes 4 Trivia 5 Goofs 6 See Also 7 External Links 8 References

[edit] Summary

[edit] Teaser

It's night in Washington, DC. Sam Seaborn is sitting with reporter Billy Kentworthy. Billy is pressuring Sam into saying something on the record regarding Josh Lyman's future in the White House after a recent on-air misstep. After refusing several times, Sam notices a woman staring at him and shares a smile with her.

The following morning, Leo McGarry is complaining to his maid about an error in the New York Times crossword puzzle when his wife informs him that he's got a call from POTUS. Meanwhile, CJ Cregg is using the morning to exercise in a gym and hit on a man exercising next to her. Josh Lyman is still at work, asleep, and awoken by his beeper going off--and a member of the cleaning staff vacuuming around him--and Toby Zeigler is aboard an airplane antagonizing a stewardess over his use of his laptop during landing when a message was delivered to the cockpit: POTUS in a bicycle accident.

Sam, we find out, ended up going to the apartment of the girl he met in the bar - Laurie. As Sam discusses the impressive shower facilities she owns, Laurie mentions that Sam received a page in the shower: POTUS in a bicycle accident. Sam immediately starts dressing, to Laurie's horror, and asks for her number saying he has to get to work despite it being 5:30 in the morning. As he's leaving, Laurie tells him to tell POTUS that he has a funny name, to which Sam replies "He's not my friend, he's my boss and it's not his name, it's his title.... President Of The United States"

[edit] Act One

Leo walks into the West Wing of the White House and has a brief word with the security guard, Mike. He is approached by Bonnie, who requests he not kill the messenger. Leo says good morning to Emma, Wilson and Jeffrey, but calls Jeffrey Joe. Leo doesn't seem to care. He is going to the desk of Donna Moss, who he asks if Josh is in yet. She says yes, and yells for him. Donna asks about the accident, but Leo insists it was a mild sprain, and that he will be back later.

Leo enters Josh's office, and Josh is on the phone with the Coast Guard. Leo asks Josh for information on the Cuban refugees. Josh has very little information. Leo says, "True or false: if I were standing on high ground in Key West with binoculars, I'd be informed as I am now."

Josh finally asks if he said anything, and Leo says the President is pissed and so is he. Leo says they need these people, and while Josh says that they need Al Caldwell, they don't need Mary Marsh or John Van Dyke. Leo makes a reference to football and walks off. Josh admits it was stupid, but says he was right. Leo agrees, sotto vocce.

Leo walks into a room where Delores Landingham, the President's personal secretary, is waiting. She asks about an X-Ray as they enter the Oval Office, and Leo says the only thing that is broken is the bike he loaned to the President. He then calls the President a klutz, to which Mrs. Landingham requests he keep that talk out of the Oval Office. He walks into his office, and talks to Bonnie about some meetings. He then asks Margaret to call the New York Times about the misspelling in the crossword puzzle.

The senior staff begins to enter Leo's room, where they begin a meeting. C.J. asks if there's anything else she can say about the President's accident, to which Leo says he has nothing. They discuss the situation with the Cubans, to which Josh still wants to help them while Toby is more concerned about what happens once they land. Sam suggests they send in the military, and the staff is shocked. Toby said it's a miracle they got elected, and Sam leaves to talk to his guy from the Center for Disease Control. Leo says they have to talk about Josh.

Billy walks up to Bobbi in the briefing room and tells her that Josh is going to be fired. Bobbi says he won't fire Josh, but Billy says he has to. C.J. walks in and begins a briefing. She says that Dr. Randall Haymen looked at the President's ankle and diagnosed it as a mild sprain. She then passes out photos of the President refusing help from the Secret Service, then falling down again. Chris tries to ask a question, but C.J. says to wait for the end of the briefing.

Josh is in his office watching the tape of him and Mary Marsh arguing on Capitol Beat. Donna walks in and is bringing him coffee. Josh seems confused by this and shuts the door. She admits that she just wants to know if he's fired. Josh says he doesn't know, but will have to live with the decision regardless. The door knocks, it's Toby. Donna asks if Josh thinks he'll get fired, and Josh says no.

Toby walks in and yells at Josh for getting "cute with Mary Marsh," but offers him a way to save his job, and mentions a Presidential address of family values. Josh is upset that the event is even scheduled, but Toby says it's his fault. Toby says that Mary and Al are coming for coffee, and that Josh should come and be nice. Josh protests, but Toby says that it's the only way for Josh to keep his job. Toby hands Josh a newspaper clipping about someone they obviously both know (Mandy Hampton). She's starting a job in town. Josh says that the photo is a good one.

[edit] Act Two

Mandy is speeding along the streets of D.C., talking on her cell to "Bruce". She runs a red light, and is pulled over by a motorcycle cop. The cop becomes very irritated as she ignores him while continuing to talk on the phone.

Leo is meeting with a group of economists. He asks two of them where the Dow will be a year from today. One says up 1000, the other says down 1000. "A year from now, one of you will look pretty stupid." The defecting Cubans are due to run into a storm.

Josh tells Leo that Lloyd Russell is putting together an exploratory committee to run against the President, with Mandy at its head. Leo storms off, telling Margaret to get him Senator Russell. Sam and Josh both notice they are both wearing the same clothes they wore the day before, but neither of them knows it is for different reasons.

Josh is having lunch with Mandy, and 2 female fans of Josh ask for his autograph. One of them remembers that Mandy and Josh had a relationship. Mandy tells Josh that he will be fired, and wants him to come to work for Lloyd Russell. Josh realizes that Mandy is dating Russell. She tells him that the latest polls indicate that the President's unfavorables are up to 48%.

Leo is on the phone (anonymously) with the editor of the New York Times crossword puzzle when C.J. enters. She asks him if the President has made a decision on Josh, and Leo honestly has no idea.

Sam is talking with Ed and Larry about an upcoming speech about gun control. Cathy comes up to him and tells him that Leo's wife called requesting that Leo's daughter's 4th grade class is coming to the White House and needs a tour. He gets a page, and returns the call, finding himself connected with "Cashmere Escorts". He realizes he accidentally traded pagers with Laurie, and asks his assistant to page him and punch in his personal number. Laurie returns his call, and Sam asks to meet with her.

CJ talks to a gaggle of reporters and tells Toby that she, Sam, and he will be meeting with some leaders of the Religious Right to try to smooth things over.

[edit] Act Three

Al Caldwell and Leo are having a conversation. Leo tells Al that the President is a deeply religious man, who believes abortion is wrong, but that it is not the government's place to regulate it. Al asks Leo why the President dislikes him, and Leo tells him that Al is friends with Mary and John Van Dyke, and that it's hard not to tar them all with the same brush. He then tells Al that it's "six to five and pick 'em" whether Josh will still have a job at the end of the day.

Sam arrives at Laurie's apartment and she confirms that she is a high-class call-girl. He tells her that the sensitivity of his job means that he will--reluctantly--be unable to see her socially again. They give their pagers back to each other.

Mary Marsh, Al Caldwell, and John Van Dyke arrive at the White house for a meeting with the senior staff. Mallory O'Brien's class arrives in the Roosevelt room, and Sam is reluctant to try to give them a tour, since he knows little about the history of the White House. He tries his best to fake it but Mallory calls him outside, and calls him a moron. He then asks her which of the kids is Leo's daughter, describing his extraordinarily bad day that started with him accidentally sleeping with a prostitute, and asking her to show him some compassion. She tells him that she is Leo's daughter (surprise!) and that she is not inclined to show him any compassion. "Well this is bad on so many levels" he replies.

[edit] Act Four

CJ, Josh, and Toby meet with Mary, Al, and John. Josh is apologetic to Mary for his remarks. Mary asks what else do they get. In the Presidential Radio address, will the President talk about public morals, school prayer, or pornography. Condoms in public schools will also work. Toby tells her that the Surgeon General has determined that condoms prevents pregnancy and STD's. John says that showing condoms to teenage boys inspires lust. Toby says that showing lug wrenches to teenage boys inspires lust.

Josh tries to break in, but Mary smugly tells him that he'll be gone before the day is over, and she'd prefer to negotiate with someone whose voice still matters. She makes a thinly veiled anti-Semitic remark, and is offended when Toby, getting increasingly agitated, calls her on it. John thinks that they should begin to honor the 1st Commandment, "honor thy father and mother" which Toby angrily declares to be the 3rd commandment. John asks angrily what the 1st commandment is. President Bartlet enters and loudly declares, "I am the Lord your God. Thou shalt worship no other god before me."

The president, casually clad and with the assistance of a cane, walks into the room, and greets everyone warmly, Van Dyke asks if that pornography is available for $5 on every street corner, isn't that too high a price to pay for free speech. The president tells him that's too high a price to pay for pornography, and casually asks for coffee from an assistant.

Talking to Caldwell, he asks him how many times he has been asked to denounce an extremist group called the Lambs of God. He tells the group that he once backed his car out of a garage without opening the garage door because he was extremely irritated after a bad day in the state legislature. He tells them that he was advised not to board the bicycle he rode into a tree, but he was also very angry. He relates a story of his 12 year old granddaughter's interview with a teen magazine, and how amidst "movie stars and makeup tips" she talked about a woman's right to choose. He wondered why his daughter called him in tears, and told him that Annie received a Raggedy Ann doll with a knife though its throat. He asks Al where the Lambs of God got their divine inspiration to do this, and tells him that until he denounces the LoG publicly, "you can all Get your fat asses out of my White House".

In the Oval office, the senior staff is chattering, until the President calls their attention: "Hello Mr. President. Did you have a nice trip sir? How's the ankle sir?" He relates a story about Annie and a press clipping she brought him about a Tomato. The President tells them that they've all been taking a little break, thinking about their personal lives, and ignoring their jobs. Well, "Break's over!" Time to get back to work! He requotes Josh's gaffe on TV with Mary. "Don't ever do it again!" After they all leave, "Mrs. Landingham, what's next?"

[edit] Cast

[edit] Starring

• Rob Lowe as Sam Seaborn
• Moira Kelly as Mandy Hampton
• Allison Janney as C.J. Cregg
• Richard Schiff as Toby Ziegler
• John Spencer as Leo McGarry
• Bradley Whitford as Josh Lyman
• and Martin Sheen as Jed Bartlet

[edit] Guest Starring

• Annie Corley as Mary Marsh
• Lisa Edelstein as Laurie
• Suzy Nakamura as Kathy
• Allison Smith as Mallory O'Brien
• Marc Grapey as Bill Kenworthy
• Janel Moloney as Donna Moss
• F. William Parker as Reverend Al Caldwell

[edit] Co-Starring

• Kathryn Joosten as Delores Landingham
• NiCole Robinson as Margaret Hooper
• Devika Parikh as Bonnie
• David Sage as John Van Dyke
• Jana Lee Hamblin as Bobbi
• Mindy Seeger as Chris
• Ossi Taylor as College Student #1
• Tressa DiFiglia as Jennifer
• Wendell Wright as Fred
• Hamilton Mitchell as Luther
• Molly Schaffer as Senior Staffer
• Melissa Fitzgerald as Carol Fitzpatrick
• Wendy Blair as Flight Attendant 2
• Elizabeth Greer as Flight Attendant 3
• Peter James Smith as Ed
• Bill Duffy as Larry
• Marlene Warfield as Ruth
• Dean Biasucci as Man
• Diane Michelle as Woman's Voice Over
• Marcus Boddie as D.C. Cop
• Dafidd McCracken as USS Officer Mike

[edit] Memorable Quotes

Flight Attendant: "You can't use your phone until we land sir".

Toby Ziegler: "We're flying in a Lockheed Eagle series L-1011. It came off the line 20 months ago. It carries a Sim-5 transponder tracking system. And you're telling me I can still flummox this thing with something I bought at Radio Shack?"

Leo McGarry: "He was swerving to avoid a tree."

Donna Moss: "And what happened?"

Leo McGarry: "He was unsuccessful."

Leo McGarry: "How many are there?"

Josh Lyman: "We don't know."

Leo McGarry: "What time did they leave?"

Josh Lyman: "We don't know."

Leo McGarry: "Do we know when they get here?"

Josh Lyman: "No."

Leo McGarry: "True or false: If I were to stand on high ground in Key West with a good pair of binoculars I'd be informed as I am right now?"

Josh Lyman: "That's true."

Leo McGarry: "The intelligence budget's money well spent."

C.J. Cregg: "Is there anything I can say other than the President rode his bicycle into a tree?"

Leo McGarry: "He hopes never to do it again."

C.J. Cregg: "Seriously, they're laughing pretty hard."

Leo McGarry: "He rode his bicycle into a tree, CJ! What do you want me...'The President, while riding his bicycle on vacation in Jackson Hole came to a sudden arboreal stop.'"

Kathy: "Leo's wife called."

Sam Seaborn: "That woman hates me."

Kathy: "Yeah"

Sam Seaborn: "What'd I do?"

Kathy: "You tried to hit on her at a party fundraiser."

Sam Seaborn: "Yes. I meant recently!"

Sam Seaborn: "Please believe me when I tell you I'm nice guy having a bad day. I just found out the Times is publishing a poll that says a considerable portion of Americans feel that the White House has lost energy and focus, a perception that's not likely to be altered by the video footage of the President riding his bicycle into a tree. As we speak, the Coast Guard are fishing Cubans out of the Atlantic while the Governor of Florida wants to blockade the port of Miami. A good friend of mine is about to get fired for going on television and making sense, and it turns out I accidentally slept with a prostitute last night. Now, would you please in the name of compassion tell me which one of those kids is my boss's daughter?"

Mallory O'Brien: "That would be me."

Sam Seaborn: "You?"

Mallory O'Brien: "Yes."

Sam Seaborn: "Leo's...daughter's...4th grade class..."

Mallory O'Brien: "Yes"

Sam Seaborn: "Well, this is bad on so many levels."

[edit] Trivia

Rob Lowe says the line, "Alger Hiss just walked in with my secret pumpkin." Hiss was a State Department official in the 1940s accused of spying for the Soviet Union. His accuser was Whittaker Chambers, who hid copies of government files in a pumpkin on his farm before giving them to then Rep. Richard Nixon, a member of the House Un-American Activities Committee. The line most likely refers not to the original incident, but to North by Northwest (1959), in which Cary Grant's character asks, "Did you get the pumpkin?" [1]

The Lambs of God are based on a real life group "The Lambs of Christ." (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

The Press Briefing Room shown early in the Pilot is a different set than the one used in subsequent episodes.

[edit] Goofs

It is mentioned that the Roosevelt Room is named after Theodore Roosevelt. The Roosevelt Room is, in fact, named after both President Roosevelts. Normally, when Democrats control the White House, the portrait of Theodore Roosevelt is replaced with the portrait of Franklin Roosevelt ^[1]

Honor Thy Father is the fifth commandment.

Near the very start of the episode Josh and Leo are talking and walking. They then stop and Josh rests his arm on the glass wall. The next shot is of Leo, through the glass and over Josh's arm, but when the shot changes again (into a wider one) Josh's arm has changed position into a higher one that would have blocked Leo's face.

The US military doesn't use the Exocet, a french-built anti-ship missle whose uses against aeroplanes is limited, preferring sea-launched Tomahawk missles.

The Governor of Florida is named as Pat Thomas, but later on the series it is established that Robert Ritchie is Governor of Florida, having been elected in 1996.

The reference Toby makes while on the flight (that the L-1011 "came off the line 20 months ago") is incorrect given that Lockheed produced that aircraft from 1968 to 1984. Likewise all US carriers had long since retired the L-1011 from their fleets before 1999.

[edit] See Also

West Wing Wiki has a collection of Quotes for Pilot.

West Wing Wiki has a transcript of this episode.

[edit] External Links

"The West Wing" Pilot (1999)

[edit] References

1. ↑ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0745667/

Season 1
Pilot	Post Hoc, Ergo Propter Hoc	Proportional Response	Five Votes Down
The Crackpots and These Women	Mr. Willis of Ohio	The State Dinner	Enemies
The Short List	In Excelsis Deo	Lord John Marbury	He Shall, from Time to Time...
Take Out the Trash Day	Take This Sabbath Day	Celestial Navigation	20 Hours in L.A.
The White House Pro-Am	Six Meetings Before Lunch	Let Bartlet Be Bartlet	Mandatory Minimums
	Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics	What Kind of Day Has It Been?	Season 2 ...