Lynette Rice - How to Save a Life: The Inside Story of Greys Anatomy

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Summarizing seventeen seasons of Greys Anatomy is almost as difficult as performing a Whipple procedure, so I decided to pay tribute to TVs longest-running medical drama by zeroing in on specific themes, moments, and certain unforgettable stars. To achieve that, I interviewed nearly eighty actors, writers, directors, producers, crew members, and executives over the course of twelve months and one rather nasty pandemic. Not everyone was available due to scheduling and, for a few, because of the extraordinary influence (actual or perceived) of the ever-private Shonda Rhimes. (In fact, heres an actual quote from when I was declined one interview: No one wants to piss her off.) So, for those who were unavailable, including Shonda, I relied on archival interviews that I and some of my colleagues had conducted over the years for Entertainment Weekly magazine. A full list of stories that I drew from is provided at the back of the book.

The Actors

ELLEN POMPEO
(Dr. Meredith Grey, 2005present)

PATRICK DEMPSEY
(Dr. Derek Shepherd, 20052015)

SANDRA OH
(Dr. Cristina Yang, 20052014)

ISAIAH WASHINGTON
(Dr. Preston Burke, 20052007, 2014)

KATHERINE HEIGL
(Dr. Izzie Stevens, 20052010)

T. R. KNIGHT
(Dr. George OMalley, 20052009)

JUSTIN CHAMBERS
(Dr. Alex Karev, 20052020)

JAMES PICKENS, Jr. (Dr. Richard Webber, 2005present)

CHANDRA WILSON
(Dr. Miranda Bailey, 2005present)

KATE WALSH
(Dr. Addison Montgomery, 20052012)

SARA RAMIREZ
(Dr. Callie Torres, 20062016)

ERIC DANE
(Dr. Mark Sloan, 20062012)

BROOKE SMITH
(Dr. Erica Hahn, 20062008)

KEVIN McKIDD
(Dr. Owen Hunt, 2008present)

JESSE WILLIAMS
(Dr. Jackson Avery, 2009present)

SARAH DREW
(Dr. April Kepner, 20092018)

KIM RAVER
(Dr. Teddy Altman, 20092012, 2017present)

JESSICA CAPSHAW
(Dr. Arizona Robbins, 20092018)

JASON GEORGE
(Dr. Ben Warren, 2010present)

CATERINA SCORSONE

(DR. AMELIA Shepherd, 2010present)

CAMILLA LUDDINGTON
(Dr. Jo Wilson, 2012present)

JERRIKA HINTON
(Dr. Stephanie Edwards, 20122017)

TESSA FERRER
(Dr. Leah Murphy, 20122014, 2017)

GAIUS CHARLES
(Dr. Shane Ross, 20122014)

KELLY McCREARY
(Dr. Maggie Pierce, 2014present)

MARTIN HENDERSON
(Dr. Nathan Riggs, 20152017)

GIACOMO GIANNIOTTI
(Dr. Andrew DeLuca, 20152021)

KATE BURTON
(Dr. Ellis Grey, 2005present)

STEVEN W. Bailey (Joe the bartender, 20052010)

MOE IRVIN
(Nurse Tyler, 20052014)

SARAH UTTERBACK
(Nurse Olivia Harper, 20052018)

JOSH BYWATER
(Intern No. 1, 2005)

SENDHIL RAMAMURTHY
(Intern No. 2, 2005)

MONICA KEENA
(Bonnie Crasnoff, 20052007)

JOSEPH SIKORA
(Shane Herman, 2005)

SUNKRISH BALA
(Steve Murphy, 2005)

JEFFREY DEAN MORGAN
(Denny Duquette, 20062009)

KALI ROCHA
(Dr. Sydney Heron, 20062007)

CHRIS ODONNELL
(Dr. Finn Dandridge, 2006)

EMBETH DAVIDTZ
(Dr. Nancy Shepherd, 20062019)

KYLE CHANDLER
(Dylan Young, 20062007)

FAITH PRINCE
(Sonya Cowlman, 2006)

MARK SAUL
(Dr. Steve Mostow, 20072012)

MERRIN DUNGEY
(Dr. Naomi Bennett, 2007)

AUDRA McDONALD
(Dr. Naomi Bennett, 20072012)

PAUL ADELSTEIN
(Dr. Cooper Freedman, 20072013)

LAUREN STAMILE
(Nurse Rose, 20072008)

MADISON LEISLE
(Lisa, 2007)

JAMES IMMEKUS
(Andrew Langston, 2008)

ROBERT BAKER
(Dr. Charles Percy, 20092016)

NORA ZEHETNER
(Dr. Reed Adamson, 20092010)

SHARON LAWRENCE
(Robbie Stevens, 2009)

SARAH PAULSON
(Dr. Ellis Grey, 2010)

MICHAEL ONEILL
(Gary Clark, 2010)

ART CHUDABALA
(Jerry Adams, 2010)

TINA MAJORINO
(Dr. Heather Brooks, 20122013)

JUSTIN BRUENING
(Matthew Taylor, 20132018)

HILARIE BURTON
(Dr. Lauren Boswell, 2013)

REBECCA FIELD
(Sabine McNeil, 2014)

GEENA DAVIS
(Dr. Nicole Herman, 20142018)

SAMANTHA SLOYAN
(Dr. Penelope Blake, 20152016)

MIKE McCOLL
(Dr. Paul Castello, 20152019)

SAVANNAH PAIGE Rae (Winnie, 2015)

JAICY ELLIOT
(Dr. Taryn Helm, 2017present)

SOPHIA ALI
(Dr. Dahlia Qadri, 20172019)

MATTHEW MORRISON
(Dr. Paul Stadler, 20172018)

ALEX LANDI
(Dr. Nico Kim, 2018present)

AMY ACKER
(Dr. Kathleen Shepherd, 2019)

BEANIE FELDSTEIN
(Tess Anderson, 2020)

ROB LOWE
(considered for Dr. Derek Shepherd, 2005)

The Writers

SHONDA RHIMES
(2005present)

KRISTA VERNOFF
(2005present)

STACY McKEE
(20052018)

TONY PHELAN
(20052014)

JOAN RATER
(20052014)

MARK WILDING
(20052012)

HARRY WERKSMAN
(20052007)

ERIC BUCHMAN
(20052007)

JAMES PARRIOTT
(20052007, 2015)

CAROLINA PAIZ
(2006)

JENNA BANS
(20082012)

JEANNINE RENSHAW
(20112014)

ELISABETH R. Finch
(2014present)

The Directors/Producers

ZOANNE CLACK
(2005present)

ROB CORN
(20052017)

PETER HORTON
(20052007)

JEFF MELMAN
(20052007)

MARK TINKER
(20052008)

BILL DELIA
(20092019)

DEBBIE ALLEN
(2010present)

ROB HARDY
(20132015)

The Production Staff

NORMAN LEAVITT
(makeup artist, 20052018)

MARTY CARRILLO
(electrician, 20052007)

MIMI MELGAARD
(costumes, 20062018)

TOM BURMAN
(special effects makeup, 20062018)

MATT MANIA
(key grip, 20062012)

NICOLE RUBIO
(script supervisor/paramedic Nicole 20072017)

The Musical Artists

ISAAC SLADE and JOE KING of the Fray

GARY LIGHTBODY of Snow Patrol

INGRID MICHAELSON

The ABC Executives

STEPHEN MCPHERSON
(ABC Entertainment Group president, 20042010)

CHANNING DUNGEY
(ABC Entertainment Group president, 20162018)

The Staff of Entertainment Weekly

HENRY GOLDBLATT
(editor in chief, 20022019)

JENNIFER ARMSTRONG
(senior writer, 20022011)

MICHAEL AUSIELLO
(columnist, 20082011)

MELISSA MAERZ
(senior writer, 20112016)

RICHARD MALTZ
(photo editor, 19942017)

NICHOLAS FONSECA
(senior editor, 19992009)

MARK HARRIS
(executive editor/columnist, 19892010)

Reporters Who Cover Greys Anatomy

KRISTIN DOS SANTOS
(columnist/on-air TV expert, E! Entertainment, 2001present)

LESLEY GOLDBERG
(West Coast TV editor, The Hollywood Reporter, 2003present)

I remember I was on a plane with Isaiah Washington, T. R. Knight, Jim Pickens, and Patrick Dempsey, headed to Seattle. It was during the third season of Greys Anatomy, when we were definitely at the height of our popularity. We were walking through the airport. Of course, nobody knows me because Im the writer. But it was like being with the Beatles. People would stop them every thirty seconds to get a picture.

We mostly shot in the woods, which was an hours drive outside the city, but we also shot on the streets of Seattle. That was crazy, because women were on their way to work and would just stop because they were all of a sudden face-to-face with the