The Book of Daniel(TV series)

The Book of Danielis an Americandramatelevision series that was broadcast onNBC.The network promoted it as a serious drama aboutChristiansand theChristian faith,but it was controversial with some Christians. The show had been proposed for NBC's 2005 fall line-up, but was rescheduled as a 2006mid-season replacement.The program premiered on January 6, 2006, in the US and was scheduled to air in thirteen episodes on Friday nights. The series ended on January 20, 2006. NBC called the show "edgy", "challenging", and "courageous" in its promotional material. On January 24, 2006, a spokeswoman for NBC announced the show had been dropped.

The Book of Daniel
Genre	Drama
Created by	Jack Kenny
Starring	Aidan Quinn Susanna Thompson Christian Campbell Alison Pill Ivan Shaw Ellen Burstyn James Rebhorn
Composers	W.G. Snuffy Walden Bennett Salvay
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No.of seasons	1
No.of episodes	8 (3 unaired)
Production
Executive producers	Jack Kenny Flody Suarez John Tinker
Producers	Aidan Quinn Dan E. Fesman Harry Victor Tracey Stern Michael Stricks
Running time	60 minutes
Production companies	The Flody Co. Bumpy Night Productions NBC Universal Television Studio Sony Pictures Television
Original release
Network	NBC
Release	January 6(2006-01-06)– January 20, 2006(2006-01-20)

Synopsis

Set in the fictional town of Newbury inWestchester County, New York,the main character is the Reverend Daniel Webster (Aidan Quinn), an unconventionalEpiscopalpriestwho is addicted tonarcotic painkillerswhile his wife Judith (Susanna Thompson) fights her dependence on mid-daymartinis.

Struggling to be a good husband, father, and priest, Webster regularly sees and talks with a traditionalWestern-world,white-skinned, white-robed and beardedJesus(Garret Dillahunt) who nonetheless is rather unconventional. Daniel's Jesus appears only to him and openly questions modern interpretations of Church teachings, reminding Daniel of his own strengths and weaknesses.

The Webster family includes 23-year-oldgayson Peter (Christian Campbell), 16-year-old daughter Grace (Alison Pill) (arrested for drug possession in thepilot episode), and 16-year-old adopted Chinese son Adam (Ivan Shaw), who is dating Caroline Paxton (Leven Rambin), the daughter of one of Daniel's parishioners who harbors anti-Asian prejudices. Another son, Peter's twin brother Jimmy, died ofleukemiatwo years prior to the beginning of the series; Christian Campbell also played the role of Jimmy in flashback scenes in an unaired episode (which was included in the DVD release).

When Daniel's brother-in-law Charlie absconds with church funds and abandons his family, Daniel's sister-in-law (Cheryl White) enters a lesbian relationship with Charlie'sbisexualsecretary. Bishop Beatrice Congreve (Ellen Burstyn) is involved with Daniel's married father (James Rebhorn), a retiredbishopwho, despite his gruff exterior, is troubled by dealing with his wife'sAlzheimer's disease.

Cast

• Aidan Quinnas Daniel Webster
• Susanna Thompsonas Judith Webster
• Ivan Shawas Adam Webster
• Garret Dillahuntas Jesus
• Alison Pillas Grace Webster
• Christian Campbellas Peter Webster
• Ellen Burstynas Beatrice Congreve
• James Rebhornas Bertram Webster
• Dylan Bakeras Roger Northrup

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	US viewers (millions)
1	"Temptation"	James Frawley	Jack Kenny	January 6, 2006(2006-01-06)	9.02
2	"Forgiveness"	James Frawley	Jack Kenny	January 6, 2006(2006-01-06)	9.02
3	"Acceptance"	Perry Lang	Dan E. Fesman& Harry Victor	January 13, 2006(2006-01-13)	6.87
4	"Revelations"	John Fortenberry	John Tinker	January 20, 2006(2006-01-20)	5.81
5	"Assignation"	Mel Damski	Teleplay by : Dava Savel Story by : Dan E. Fesman & Harry Victor	Unaired	N/A
6	"Withdrawal"	Adam Bernstein	Tracey Stern	January 20, 2006(2006-01-20)	5.81
7	"God's Will"	Michael Fields	David Simkins	Unaired	N/A
8	"Betrayal"	Jeremy Podeswa	Jack Kenny	Unaired	N/A

Controversy

The New York Timesreported NBC had difficulty selling advertising during the program, even after offering significant rate discounts, because of controversial content.

Stations refuse to air

Eight of NBC's 232 affiliates refused to carry the program due to viewer complaints:WSMVinNashville, Tennessee(owned at the time byMeredith Corporation);WGBCinMeridian, Mississippi;WTVAinTupelo, Mississippi,and six stations owned byNexstar Broadcasting Group–WTWOinTerre Haute, Indiana;KARK-TVinLittle Rock, Arkansas;KFTA-TV/KNWA-TVinFayetteville-Fort Smith, Arkansas(the former is now affiliated withFox);KAMRinAmarillo, TexasandKBTV-TVinBeaumont, Texas(owned at the time by Nexstar). Most of the affiliates refusing to air the program were located in theBible Belt.

After KARK-TV refused to air the series, KWBF (nowMyNetworkTVaffiliateKARZ-TV), then an affiliate ofThe WB,picked up the series. The company stated that it was excited to offer an outlet for viewers in the central Arkansas area who wanted to watch the show. However, the station soon received a number of threats, which required it to hire extra security.Both KARK-TV and KARZ have been owned by Nexstar since 2009, some three years after the show's cancellation.

Unconnected to the controversy, stations inMichigan,includingWDIVinDetroit(owned byPost-Newsweek),WOOD-TVinGrand Rapids(owned at the time byLIN),WILXinLansing(owned byGray Television) and stationsWPBN and WTOMinTraverse CityandSault Ste. Marie(owned at the time byBarrington Broadcasting), andWLUCinMarquettedid not air the series's second episode. This was because of the traditional televised charity preview of that year'sNorth American International Auto Showoriginated by WDIV; most of those stations carried it in off-peak timeslots elsewhere during the week.

NBC'sSalt Lake Cityaffiliate,KSL-TV(whose owner,Bonneville International,is operated bythe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), did carryThe Book of Daniel,despite the station's history of preempting shows claiming that they would offendUtah's religious population.

Mid-season cancellation

On January 24, 2006,NBCannounced the show had been dropped from the schedule. The last airing of the show was on January 20, 2006. The January 20 episode was the fourth in the series, drawing 5.8 million viewers.NBCgave no official explanation for the cancellation.

DVD release

On September 26, 2006, a complete-series collection ofThe Book of Danielwas released on DVD exclusively onAmazonbyUniversal Studios Home Entertainment.The set includes two discs, featuring all eight episodes.

External links

• The Book of DanielatIMDb