True Blood

Infobox Television
bgcolour = #c40026
show_name = True Blood


caption =
genre = Drama
creator = Series:
Alan Ball
Books:
Charlaine Harris
writer =
director =
starring =
Anna Paquin
Stephen Moyer
Sam Trammell
Ryan Kwanten
Rutina Wesley
Chris Bauer
Alexander Skarsgård
Nelsan Ellis
Jim Parrack
Carrie Preston
Michael Raymond-James
William Sanderson
Lynn Collins
Lois Smith
theme_music_composer =
opentheme = "Bad Things"
by Jace Everett
endtheme =
composer = Nathan Barr
country = USA
language = English
num_seasons = 1
num_episodes = 12
list_episodes = List of True Blood episodes
executive_producer = Alan Ball
runtime = approx. 55 min.
channel = HBO
first_aired = September 7 2008
last_aired = present
preceded_by =
followed_by =
related =
website = http://www.hbo.com/trueblood/
production_website =
imdb_id = 0844441
tv_com_id = 74645

"True Blood" is an American television drama series created by Alan Ball, based on the "Sookie Stackhouse" book series by Charlaine Harris. The show is broadcast on the premium cable network HBO in the United States. It is produced by HBO in association with Ball's production company, Your Face Goes Here Entertainment.cite news |url=http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117969971.html?categoryid=14&cs=1 |title=HBO rolls with Ball's 'True Blood' |accessdate=2008-03-20 |last=Schneider |first=Michael |date=2007-08-09 |work=Daily Variety] It premiered on September 7, 2008. The show has been renewed for a second season.

"True Blood" details the co-existence of vampires and humans in Bon Temps, a fictional small Louisiana town. The series centers on Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin), a telepathic waitress at a diner, who falls in love with vampire Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer).cite news |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/news/e3i0181f5a5ab18b1585b313d1d7524c51a |title=Ball bringing new 'Blood' to HBO |accessdate=2008-03-20 |last=Andreeva |first=Nellie |date=2007-08-10 |work=The Hollywood Reporter]

Production

Development

Series creator Alan Ball had previously worked with premium cable channel HBO on "Six Feet Under", which ran for five seasons. In October 2005, after "Six Feet Under"'s finale, Ball signed a two-year agreement with HBO to develop and produce original programming for the network. "True Blood" became the first project under the deal, after Ball read the first book in Charlaine Harris' "Sookie Stackhouse" series, "Dead Until Dark".cite press release |title= HBO Concludes Exclusive Two-Year Television Deal with "Six Feet Under" Creator Alan Ball |publisher= Time Warner, of which HBO is a subsidiary |date=2005-10-31 |url=http://www.timewarner.com/corp/newsroom/pr/0,20812,1124432,00.html |accessdate=2008-03-20]

Ball was early for a dentist appointment one day when he was browsing through Barnes and Noble and came across the book. Enjoying it, he continued reading the series and halfway through the third entry, "Club Dead", became interested in "bringing [Harris'] vision to television."cite web |title= True Blood SDCC 2008 Pt 2 |url= http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWaHiOYeFMc&feature=related |publisher= Youtube |date= 2008-07-24 |accessdate= 2008-08-17] Ball then contacted Harris about adapting the material and both thought that television was the ideal medium for the series. Ball has said, "The scope of Charlaine's books really lent itself to a series more than just a movie... [because I felt like condensing] it into two hours would do it a disservice." Additionally, Harris had previously been approached by others about adapting the books as a film, but declined due to creative differences. She agreed to go work with Ball, however, because she "became convinced that he understood the agenda of the books and... would do [them] justice."

The project's hour-long pilot was ordered concurrently with the finalization of the aforementioned development deal and was written, directed and produced by Ball. Cast members Paquin, Kwanten and Trammell were announced in February 2007 and Moyer later on in April.cite news |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/news/e3i72ff675fda9c3c4bb99995e58e86eb35 |title=Paquin finds 'True' calling for Ball, HBO |accessdate=2008-03-20 |last=Andreeva |first=Nellie |date=2007-02-26 |work=The Hollywood Reporter] cite news |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3i168a205d21d443f8bf76f1d49f7d5785 |title=Moyer, HBO make 'Blood' pact |accessdate=2008-03-20 |last=Andreeva |first=Nellie |date=2007-04-07 |work=The Hollywood Reporter] The pilot was shot in the early summer of 2007 and was officially ordered to series in August, at which point Ball had already written several more episodes. Production on the series began later that fall, [cite news |last= Mitovitch |first= Matt Webb |title= "True Blood" Vampire Saga Tests Positive at HBO |publisher=TV Guide |url= http://community.tvguide.com/blog-entry/TVGuide-News-Blog/Todays-News/True-Blood-Vampire/800020204 |date= 2007-08-10 |accessdate= 2008-08-17] with Brooke Kerr, who portrayed Tara Thornton in the original pilot, being replaced by Rutina Wesley. Two more episodes of the series had been filmed before the 2007-08 Writers Guild of America strike shut production of the 12-episode first season down until 2008.

Music

Gary Calamar, the music supervisor for the series, said he's working on a soundtrack for the show that is "swampy, bluesy and spooky" and that he plans to feature local Louisiana musicians. [ [http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003690493 Five TV Shows To Enrich The Ears In '08] by Chuck Crisafulli, Billboard.com, January 02, 2008.]

Composer Nathan Barr writes the original score for the series which features cello, guitar, prepared piano and glass harmonica among other instruments, all of which he performs himself.fact|date=September 2008

Viral marketing campaign

The premiere of "True Blood" has been prefaced with a viral marketing/ARG campaign, based at [http://bloodcopy.com/ BloodCopy.com] . This has included setting up multiple websitesCite web
title = BloodCopy
accessdate = 2008-06-19
url = http://bloodcopy.com/] Cite web
title = RevenantOnes
accessdate = 2008-06-19
url = http://www.revenantones.com/] Cite web
title = Chishio.jp
accessdate = 2008-06-19
url = http://www.chishio.jp/] , encoding web address into unmarked envelopes mailed to high profile blog writers and others, and even performances by a "vampire" who is attempting to reach out to others of their kind, to discuss the recent creation of "TruBlood", a material apparently pivotal to the initial plot.

A MySpace account with the username "Blood"Cite web
title = MySpace.com - Blood - 28 - Male - SHREVEPORT, Louisiana - www.myspace.com/389839563
accessdate = 2008-06-19
url = http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=389839563] has, as of June 19, uploaded two videosCite web
title = MySpaceTV Videos: Blood Video Channel
accessdate = 2008-06-19
url = http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.channel&ChannelID=389839563] ; one entitled "Vampire Taste Test - Tru Blood vs Human",Cite video
title = MySpaceTV Videos: Vampire Taste Test - Tru Blood vs Human by Blood
accessdate = 2008-06-19
time = 1:29
url = http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=36335810] and one called "BloodCopy Exclusive INTERVIEW WITH SAMSON THE VAMPIRE". There is a wiki at [http://trublood.wikidot.com/ trublood.wikidot.com] which collates information on the campaign. On July 13th, the website [http://true-blood.tv True-Blood.tv] indicated they would be making samples of Tru Blood available as part of a give-away contest.

A rough version of the pilot has been released/leaked online. It has been met with mixed reviews. [http://wastelandculture.blogspot.com/2008/07/pilot-watch-part-one-bloody-mess.html Pilot Review] [ [http://community.tvguide.com/thread.jspa?threadID=800043010&rw=true Fall TV Schedule News: True Blood - Roush Dispatch | TVGuide.com ] ]

A prequel comic was handed out to attendees of the 2008 Comic-Con. The comic centers around an old vampire named Lamar, who tells the reader about how TruBlood surfaced and was discussed between many vampires before going public. At one point, Lamar wonders if TruBlood is making the world safe for vampires or from them.

Several commercials featured on HBO and Facebook.com [cite web |url=http://www.new.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=608447658860#/video/?id=23768668081 | title=TruBlood's Videos |accessdate=2008-09-14] aired prior to the series premiere, placing vampires in ads similar to those of beer and wine.

Thousands of DVDs of the first episode were handed out to attendees of Midnight Madness, a special screenings event of the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival.

Plot summary

Thanks to a Japanese scientist's invention of synthetic blood, vampires have progressed from legendary monsters to fellow citizens overnight. And while humans have been safely removed from the menu, many remain apprehensive about these creatures "coming out of the coffin." Religious leaders and government officials around the world have chosen their sides, but in the small Louisiana town of Bon Temps, the jury is still out.

Local waitress Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin), however, knows how it feels to be an outcast. "Cursed" with the ability to listen in on people's thoughts, she's also open-minded about the integration of vampires — particularly when it comes to Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer), a handsome 175-year-old living up the road. But as Sookie is drawn into a series of mysteries surrounding Bill's arrival in Bon Temps, that tolerance will be put to the test. [www.hbo.com]

Cast and characters

Main characters

* Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin), a telepathic cocktail waitress in a small town diner.
* Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer), a vampire with whom Sookie falls in love.
* Sam Merlotte (Sam Trammell), the owner of the restaurant where Sookie works.
* Jason Stackhouse (Ryan Kwanten), Sookie's brother.
* Tara Thornton (Rutina Wesley), Sookie's best friend (played by Brook Kerr in the unaired pilot).

Supporting characters

* Lafayette Reynolds (Nelsan Ellis), Sookie's co-worker and Tara's cousin.
* Detective Andy Bellefleur (Chris Bauer), the detective investigating Jason Stackhouse.
* Eric Northman (Alexander Skarsgård), a thousand-year-old vampire Viking.
* Arlene Fowler (Carrie Preston), a waitress working with Sookie.
* Hoyt Fortenberry (Jim Parrack), a friend of Jason's and Rene's.
* Rene Lenier (Michael Raymond James), Arlene's cajun boyfriend.
* Sheriff Bud Dearborne (William Sanderson), the town sheriff.
* Dawn Green (Lynn Collins), another waitress and Jason's love interest.
* Adele Hale Stackhouse (Lois Smith), Sookie and Jason's grandmother 'Gran'.
* Dianne, black female vampire who became a vampire in 1930s.
* Malcolm, vampire who is older than Bill Compton.
* Pam (Kristin Bauer) Eric's child. In Vampire way.

Reception

The overall critical reception of "True Blood" has generally been favorable but individual reviews have been uncommonly mixed, ranging from overwhelmingly positive to very negative. Many critics have praised the show for its originality, storytelling and aesthetics; others have criticized it for being "muddled" and resorting to stereotypes in its characterization. [cite web |url=http://www.metacritic.com/tv/shows/trueblood |title=True Blood (HBO) - Reviews from Metacritic |accessdate=2008-09-13 |publisher=MetaCritic]

ee also

*Vampire films
*Vampire literature

References

External links

* [http://www.hbo.com/trueblood/ Official site]
*