InHouse: "Unplanned Parenthood"

In this week’s InHouse app we are treated to some of the trickery behind the making of the “Unplanned Parenthood” episode.

In The Dark Room, the unsung heroes of the set - the stand-ins - are given their due. Around the diagnostic table sit Fake Chase, Fake Foreman, and Fake Taub (who really looks like Taub, although geekier and somewhat older). Then there is a shot of the real Taub in the diagnostic room photographing Omar, who is studying his phone and possibly “tweeting” about it. Fake babies are here too, looking decidedly less real than in the aired show. Fake Taub in the neo-natal care area, standing by fake baby in its crib is a prime example of things you never see when the show is aired. One thing is apparent from the behind the scenes shots, the magic of television is made by frumpy guys wearing faded jeans and worn t-shirts.

In The Media Room, we are treated to a look at Kayla and Rylie Colbert’s audition tape for the role of Rachel Cuddy. The twins are asked to act angry, sit still, raise their hands over their heads, be very sleepy, and seem to be having fun doing all of it. These two take direction like pros.

This week in the Writer’s Room we hear from David Foster, the writer of “Unplanned Parenthood,” and the only ‘real’ doctor on the writing/production staff. The episode, he tells us, is a combination of two stories he actually read about: a mother who transmitted cancer to her unborn baby, and a person who had two cancers, the first of which was treating the second. Those stories together equaled one very interesting patient of the week.

He says Jennifer Grey was great as the patient and they were glad to have her on the show. As it turns out, Mr. Foster also wrote the episode “Informed Consent”, which featured Ms. Grey’s father, Joel Grey, as the patient. Both these characters ended up dying in their respective episodes. Mr. Foster assures us with a grin that he has nothing against the Grey family and that they are wonderful people. Unfortunately it’s just the way things worked out.

Article Author: Mindy Peterman

Mindy Peterman is a lover of music, books, TV and theater. She is also the author of the Quantum Leap novel "Song and Dance" and is proud to have played a small role in keeping the memory of that TV series alive.

Follow Mindy on Twitter
…

Visit Mindy Peterman's author page — Mindy Peterman's Blog