In Plain Sight

In Plain Sight was originally scheduled to premiere on Thursday, April 24, 2008,^[2] but USA Network held the series back when the WGA strike delayed production of the summer series Burn Notice. It instead made its debut on Sunday, June 1, 2008.^[3] It was renewed on July 21, 2008, for a second season with a 16-episode run,^[4] which began April 19, 2009.

Then, following creative differences with Executive Producer David Maples, USA Network made the decision to use the season's 15th episode, the first part of a planned two-part season-ender, as the show's season finale.^[5] Series creator David Maples and co-producer Paul Stupin subsequently stepped down as executive producers at the end of season two, although they remained as consulting producers, and were replaced by John McNamara.^[6] Todd Williams and Lesley Ann Warren's roles were changed to guest stars, and a retooling of scriptwriting was designed to place greater emphasis on Mary's cases and less on her personal life, while retaining its character-driven storytelling. According to USA executive Jeff Wachtel, the shift in producers also reflects the network's desire that the show remain upbeat rather than overly dark.^[5]

In Plain Sight was renewed for a third season of 16 episodes on August 2, 2009.^[7] Although the previously planned 16th episode of season two was set to be the opening episode of season three,^[5] the episode was shelved and replaced by a new opening episode, written by new showrunner, John McNamara. The season was later reduced to 13 episodes when McNamara took a leave of absence for medical reasons.^[8] In a statement released exclusively to the Futon Critic, the producer of Universal Cable Productions said, "John Romano assumed executive producer responsibilities for the remaining episodes. Given the unexpected change, we decided to end the season at a natural spot—with the surprising cliffhanger of episode 13."^[8]

After the conclusion of season three, USA Network ordered two more seasons of In Plain Sight ^[9] The fourth season premiered on May 1, 2011, in its original time slot.^[10] The fifth and final season began on March 16, 2012, and consisted of eight episodes.^[11] The series finale aired on May 4, 2012.^[12]

Jeff Beal composed the theme song for the series. W. G. Snuffy Walden composed the music for the first season, followed by Tree Adams for the second season. Evan Frankfort, Liz Phair, and Marc Dauer composed the music for the remainder of the series.^[13]

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2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike

2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike

From November 5, 2007, to February 12, 2008, all 12,000 film and television screenwriters of the American labor unions Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE), and Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) went on strike.

Burn Notice

Burn Notice

Burn Notice is an American espionage television series created by Matt Nix, which originally aired on the USA Network for a total of seven seasons from June 28, 2007, to September 12, 2013. The show stars Jeffrey Donovan, Gabrielle Anwar, Bruce Campbell, Sharon Gless, and Coby Bell.

John McNamara (writer)

John McNamara (writer)

John McNamara is an American writer, producer, showrunner and television creator. He attended East Grand Rapids High School located in Michigan and attended the University of Michigan and New York University. While at NYU, he wrote two children's books published by Delacorte Press and a teleplay for the CBS Afternoon Playhouse.

A Priest Walks Into a Bar

A Priest Walks Into a Bar

"A Priest Walks Into a Bar" is the third-season finale episode of In Plain Sight and the 40th episode overall. It originally aired June 30, 2010 on USA Network.

Jeff Beal

Jeff Beal

Jeff Beal is an American composer of music for film, television, recordings, and the concert hall. Highly regarded as a jazz instrumentalist and versatile composer, Beal creates music that often incorporates a synthesis of improvisatory and composed elements.

W. G. Snuffy Walden

W. G. Snuffy Walden

William Garrett Walden, known as W. G. Snuffy Walden, is an American musician and composer of film and television soundtracks. Walden is an Emmy Award winner for the theme music to The West Wing (NBC), has been nominated for numerous Emmys throughout his career, and has received 26 BMI Awards.

Main characters

• Mary Shannon (Mary McCormack): Mary is a capable officer, a nonconformist, and uninterested in typical feminine wiles. To her witnesses, she is known as Mary Shepard. She has trust and abandonment issues that lead her to have difficulties with relationships due to a difficult childhood resulting from her fugitive father's abandonment and her mother's alcoholism. During the first two seasons, Mary dates Raphael "Raph" Ramirez, a minor-league baseball player, and they eventually become engaged; however, she often seems unhappy with the relationship and the engagement, and her feelings of doubt about marriage cause Raphael to call off the engagement during the third season. During the fourth season, she has a one-night stand with her ex-husband, Mark, and becomes pregnant. Throughout her pregnancy, Mary is convinced that she wants to give the baby up for adoption, and becomes agitated whenever everyone around her starts treating her differently. In the season-four finale, "Something Borrowed, Something Blew Up", she goes into premature labor. In the season-five premiere, "The Anti-Social Network", after Mary gave birth to a daughter, she changed her mind about giving her up and decided to keep her because she felt that no one could protect her baby better than she could. She names her daughter Norah Shannon, and shares custody with Mark. During the final season, she meets and begins a relationship with Kenny, a single dad.
• Marshall Mann (Fred Weller): A fifth-generation deputy U.S. marshal, to his witnesses, he is known as Marshall Miller. Marshal Mann is Mary's partner, as well as her best (and only) friend, and occasionally appeared to desire more than her friendship as the series progressed. Laconic and laid-back, he seems to know a little about everything, what Mary calls "useless information", and is rarely ever speechless. The only time this has ever happened was in the season-three episode "Whistle Stop", when he discovered Raphael and Mary had broken up, leading her to declare him "verbally impotent". Friction between Marshall and Mary occurs at times, often due to Marshall's cerebral approach and Mary's gut instinct, though both are extremely protective of witnesses and each other. Though Mary and Marshall have occasionally disagreed about the proper course of action regarding policies, Marshall has typically backed down after taking time to get a perspective and will adopt Mary's position if her cause is right—even when her attitude is not. In later seasons, Marshall begins a relationship with Detective Abigail Chaffee of the Albuquerque police force. Abigail and he eventually move in together and ultimately become engaged. In the series finale, he is made Chief of the Albuquerque WITSEC office.
• Stan McQueen (Paul Ben-Victor): As chief inspector for WITSEC's Southwest region, Stan is Marshall and Mary's boss. He is a flexible boss and stand-up guy, quickly backing up both Marshall and Mary when they hit trouble. Stan likes to stick to official WITSEC doctrine as often as possible and is reluctant to bend the rules without authorization. Stan has made an effort to recreate the professional distance in his office, presumably as a way to shield his team from FBI fallout. During the second season, Eleanor and he have a one-time intimate encounter. In the final season, he begins a relationship with his dance instructor, Lia Hernandez, and gets promoted to chief deputy director of WITSEC in Washington, DC.
• Jinx Shannon (Lesley Ann Warren): Mary's alcoholic mother, she was abandoned by her bank-robbing husband to raise her two daughters alone. Although she adores her daughters, she has never been a traditional, supportive, job-holding, maternal figure. She recognizes that Mary is the stable member of their family, and this has inspired her to live up to her daughter's example. Even so, she initially harbors a great deal of resentment against her strong-willed daughter, though this only comes to the surface when she is under great emotional duress. Firmly on the path to recovery, Jinx slowly grows into her own woman, apart from the conniving lifestyle she once enjoyed while being an alcoholic. Currently sober, she still follows Mary's lead, but is slowly becoming more reliable now, having a job and a house of her own. In the final season, she goes to Miami to support Brandi while she’s going through rehab for alcoholism.
• Brandi Shannon (Nichole Hiltz): Mary's younger sister, she is very much her mother's daughter and the baby of the family. She lives in the moment and was originally involved with a shady man named Chuck. Despite this, she looks up to Mary and, at times, sees her as an example. She also tends to be the more mature figure in her relationship with her mother. Brandi is loyal to a fault, but is slowly developing a conscience independent of others' approval. Moved by seeing a young infant in the hands of a meth addict and a drug-dealing boyfriend, Brandi backed out of a drug deal initiated by Chuck so child services would protect the baby. Later, once Mary was rescued from her abduction (which was a fallout from this decision), Brandi later admits privately that if she had known how the events would play out, she would have killed Chuck herself rather than let her sister come into harm's way from her actions. During the second season, she meets and dates Peter Alpert, a man she met in Alcoholics Anonymous, who later turned out to be very rich (Mary stated he "owns half of Albuquerque"). Brandi takes this information differently, believing she is just "one of his girls" and initially tries to act selfishly to have him break up with her. After he stays with her (even offering hang-over remedies), he states his desire that they continue to date, to which she agrees. Brandi eventually moves in with Peter, and in the beginning of the fourth season, she informs Mary that Peter and she are engaged. However, in the season-four finale "Something Borrowed, Something Blew Up", Brandi feels ill-equipped to marry Peter and live as his high-class wife, and she suffers a breakdown on her wedding day and leaves Peter at the altar. During season five, since the wedding fiasco, she has developed a drinking problem, and with the support of Jinx, enters a rehabilitation program. In the series finale, she returns and is revealed to be pregnant, and tells Mary she has decided to keep the baby and move back home to Albuquerque to be near their family.
• Detective Abigail Chaffee (Rachel Boston): Albuquerque Police Department Detective and Marshall's girlfriend, Abigail is extremely outgoing and friendly, much to the annoyance of Mary. During the final season, Marshall proposes to Abigail and she accepts. Later, Abigail tells Marshall he needs to make their relationship a bigger priority than Mary if their relationship stands a chance.
• Delia Parmalee (Tangie Ambrose): a new WITSEC Inspector who joins the cast in Season 4. She is known for her cheerful, optimistic attitude despite the seriousness of her job.

Recurring characters

• Raphael Ramirez (Cristián de la Fuente): Mary's former fiancé, commonly known as "Raph", a Dominican minor-league baseball player for the Albuquerque Isotopes until injuries forced his retirement. His relationship with Mary was complicated for a time when he became close to her sister Brandi. After Mary was kidnapped by drug dealers, Raph disposed of a suitcase full of drugs Brandi brought to Albuquerque, which Mary eventually discovers. When they become engaged, Mary tells Raph what she does for a living, which proves difficult for Raph to understand. Raph is aware of Mary's doubts about marriage, which finally leads to his decision to call off their engagement. In the final season, Mary runs into Raph, who tells her he is now married, and his wife and he meet Mary for dinner. Later, Raph stops by and wishes Mary well with her life, parting on good terms.
• Peter Alpert (Joshua Malina): Brandi's boyfriend and a wealthy businessman, he meets Brandi at an AA meeting, where she pretends to be Jinx for her mother to pass a required AA meeting set by the courts. Despite initially disapproving of Brandi's actions, Peter begins dating Brandi after she makes a determined effort to apologize to him. They later become engaged and plan for their wedding during the fourth season, but Peter is left at the altar when Brandi decides at the last minute not to go through with the wedding.
• Scott Griffin (Aaron Ashmore): Mary's half-brother, he, along with his sister, is Mary's father's child from a later marriage about which Mary knew nothing. Brandi goes in search of him and brings him to Albuquerque. Scott is revealed to have a gambling problem, but works hard to beat it. He is later shown in the final season when Mary and his father reappears and Mary tries to talk him into entering WITSEC to avoid an old enemy of their father's, but Scott refuses, resulting in his eventual death.
• Detective Robert Dershowitz (Todd Williams): A homicide detective, known as Bobby D, he is occasionally assigned to cases involving Mary's witnesses. He has deduced that Mary is a U.S. marshal working for WITSEC and does not hide his disgust for the branch of law enforcement that puts known criminals back on the street. This attitude has softened as Dershowitz becomes involved in cases associated with the Marshal Service's witnesses. While his relationship with Mary had been antagonistic at times, and he appreciates the friction. After her disappearance, Marshall and he bonded during the subsequent investigation, resulting in a respect for the two marshals, though he occasionally disagrees with the less savory parts of their jobs. Currently, he is in a task force in Chicago.
• Eleanor Prince (Holly Maples): The recently widowed WITSEC office manager, both her deceased husband and she worked for the FBI. Eleanor's calm efficiency clashes with Mary's abrasive work style, but earns the affection of Stan and the admiration of Marshall. In times of emergency, Eleanor uses her connections in the FBI to assist with Mary and Marshall's cases, particularly ones that have dealt with Agent O'Conner's relentless pursuit of Mary and her family. Eleanor eventually leaves WITSEC to take a position as an analyst with the FBI.
• Special Agent Robert O'Connor (Will McCormack): A New Jersey–based FBI agent now working in Albuquerque, he is in charge of investigating the murders related to the drug dealing in which Brandi was involved and has relentlessly focused his investigation on Brandi. He also becomes interested in the whereabouts of Mary and Brandi's father. Mary and he have an extremely hostile relationship. Will McCormack is Mary McCormack's younger brother in real life.
• Special Agent Michael Faber (Steven Weber): He is an FBI agent with whom Mary has a brief relationship after they work on a case together. He tells Mary about his relationship with his father, something Faber tries hard not to repeat with his own son. Mary eventually convinces him to reunite with his son and his ex-wife.

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List of In Plain Sight characters

List of In Plain Sight characters

This is a list of characters in the USA Network original drama TV series In Plain Sight, which follows two U.S. marshals working in the witness protection program. The principal cast has undergone many changes over the course of the show. Additionally, various recurring characters have appeared during the show's run.

List of In Plain Sight cast members

List of In Plain Sight cast members

Below is a list of actors and actresses that are or were part of the cast of the American drama television series In Plain Sight.

Mary McCormack

Mary McCormack

Mary Catherine McCormack is an American actress. She has had leading roles as Justine Appleton on the series Murder One (1995–97), as Deputy National Security Adviser Kate Harper on The West Wing (2004–06), as Deputy U.S. Marshal Mary Shannon on In Plain Sight (2008–12), and as Peggy on the comedy series The Kids Are Alright (2018–19).

Abandonment (emotional)

Abandonment (emotional)

Emotional abandonment is a subjective emotional state in which people feel undesired, left behind, insecure, or discarded. People experiencing emotional abandonment may feel at a loss. They may feel like they have been cut off from a crucial source of sustenance or feel withdrawn, either suddenly or through a process of erosion. Emotional abandonment can manifest through loss or separation from a loved one.

Fred Weller

Fred Weller

Frederick Weller is an American actor known for portraying Johnny Sandowski on Missing Persons, Shane Mungitt in Take Me Out and Marshall Mann on In Plain Sight.

Paul Ben-Victor

Paul Ben-Victor

Paul Ben-Victor is an American character actor. He is best known for playing Greek mobster Spiros "Vondas" Vondopoulos on the HBO drama series The Wire, Alan Gray in Entourage (2005–2008), and Ray in Body Parts (1991).

Lesley Ann Warren

Lesley Ann Warren

Lesley Ann Warren is an American actress and singer.

Nichole Hiltz

Nichole Hiltz

Nichole Marie Hiltz is an American actress. She has appeared in several films, made-for-TV movies, and television series. Her most recent long-running television credit is for USA Network's In Plain Sight from 2008 to 2012 in which she portrayed Brandi Shannon, younger sister of the main character.

Alcoholics Anonymous

Alcoholics Anonymous

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is an international peer-led mutual aid fellowship meeting online and in-person dedicated to abstinence-based recovery from alcoholism through its spiritually-inclined Twelve Step program. Following its Twelve Traditions, AA is non-professional and non-denominational as well as apolitical and unaffiliated. In 2020 AA estimated its worldwide membership to be over two million, with 75% of those in the U.S. and Canada.

Rachel Boston

Rachel Boston

Rachel Elizabeth Boston is an American actress and producer. Boston has had leading roles in a number of independent films, and was a regular cast member in several television series. She starred in the NBC drama series, American Dreams as Beth Mason from 2002 to 2005, in the short-lived CBS sitcom The Ex List in 2008, and on the USA Network series In Plain Sight from 2008 to 2012. From 2013 to 2014, Boston starred as Ingrid Beauchamp in the Lifetime fantasy-drama series, Witches of East End.

Ratings

The pilot episode of In Plain Sight attracted 5.25 million viewers, making it USA Network's highest-rated series premiere since Psych in 2006. It also outperformed the previous summer's debut of Burn Notice by 32% and the network premiere of Law & Order: Criminal Intent by 40%.^[14]

Awards and nominations

Home media

On March 31, 2009, Universal Studios Home Entertainment released season one of In Plain Sight on DVD in Region 1. Season two was released on DVD on March 9, 2010.^[29]

^1 The wide release for the season 4 DVD occurred on June 5, 2012.^[31] An early promotional release at Target stores occurred on March 13, 2012.

Syndication

Start TV started airing reruns on October 14, 2019.

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Psych

Psych

Psych is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks for USA Network. The series stars James Roday Rodriguez as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observational skills" and impressive eidetic memory allow him to convince people that he solves cases with psychic abilities. The program also stars Dulé Hill as Shawn's intelligent best friend and reluctant partner Burton "Gus" Guster, as well as Corbin Bernsen as Shawn's father, Henry, a former detective with the Santa Barbara Police Department.

Burn Notice

Burn Notice

Burn Notice is an American espionage television series created by Matt Nix, which originally aired on the USA Network for a total of seven seasons from June 28, 2007, to September 12, 2013. The show stars Jeffrey Donovan, Gabrielle Anwar, Bruce Campbell, Sharon Gless, and Coby Bell.

Law & Order: Criminal Intent

Law & Order: Criminal Intent

Law & Order: Criminal Intent is an American police procedural drama television series set in New York City, where it was also primarily produced. Created and produced by Dick Wolf and René Balcer, the series premiered on September 30, 2001, as the third series in Wolf's successful Law & Order franchise. Criminal Intent focuses on the investigations of the major case squad in a fictionalized version of the New York City Police Department set in New York City's One Police Plaza. In the style of the original Law & Order, episodes are often "ripped from the headlines" or loosely based on a real crime that received media attention.

2008 in American television

2008 in American television

The following is a list of events affecting American television in 2008. Events listed include television show debuts, finales, cancellations, and new channel launches.

2009 in American television

2009 in American television

The following is a list of events affecting American television in 2009. Events listed include television show debuts, finales, cancellations, and new channel launches.

2010 in American television

2010 in American television

The following is a list of events that affected American television in 2010, a year marked by the usual debuts, cancellations, and continuations of shows; the launches, closures, or rebrandings of channels; but also significant cable/satellite carriage disputes.

2011 in American television

2011 in American television

This is a list of significant events involving American television in 2011. Events listed include television show debuts, finales, cancellations, and channel launches, closures and re-branding, as well as information about controversies and carriage disputes.

2012 in American television

2012 in American television

The following is a list of events affecting American television in 2012. Events listed include television show debuts, finales, and cancellations; channel launches, closures, and rebrandings; stations changing or adding their network affiliations; and information about controversies and carriage disputes.

Target Corporation

Target Corporation

Target Corporation is an American retail corporation headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the eighth largest retailer in the United States, and a component of the S&P 500 Index. The company is one of the largest American-owned private employers in the United States.

Start TV

Start TV

Start TV is an American free-to-air television network owned as a joint venture between Weigel Broadcasting and the CBS News and Stations subsidiary of Paramount Global. Predominantly carried on the digital subchannels of its affiliated television station in most markets, it primarily airs classic television drama series from the 1980s through the 2000s, with a focus on women-led dramas, police and legal procedurals. The network originates from Weigel Broadcasting's headquarters on North Halsted Street in Chicago, Illinois.