List of Monk episodes
The following is a complete episode list for the criminal dramedy television series "Monk". It premiered on the USA Network on July 12, 2002 in the United States and ended with a two-part series finale on November 27 and December 4, 2009. The complete series has a total of 125 episodes, including three 2-part episodes and four Christmas specials.
The first four of these webisodes were also released on the Season 5 DVD.USA Network ordered ten episodes that would deal with the Monk brothers' childhood. The first premiered on August 21, 2009. The series starred Aaron Linker as Little Monk, Chris Lizardi as Little Ambrose and Bella Thorne as Wendy, one of the Monks' classmates. The series was directed by Randall Zisk, with Hy Conrad, Andy Breckman, Kevin Albright, and Justin Brenneman serving as writers. Aaron Linker also appeared in the parent show as Little Monk in a flashback. The episodes are available only on the "Best of Monk" DVD.
Mr. Monk and the Candidate
"Monk" was originally envisioned as an Inspector Clouseau type of show by an American Broadcasting Company (ABC) executive. Learning about it, co-creator David Hoberman came up with the idea of a detective with obsessive–compulsive disorder in 1998. This was inspired by his own bout with self-diagnosed obsessive–compulsive disorder. Initially, Michael Richards was considered, but ABC and Touchstone (now ABC Studios) worried that the audience would typecast him for more comedic roles after his previous work as Cosmo Kramer on the sitcom series "Seinfeld". Hoberman revealed that the casting sessions were "depressing". USA Network's executive vice president Jeff Wachtel stated that looking for the right actor to portray Monk was "casting hell". After two years of search, the producers still had not found an actor to play the part.