PREMIERE

"DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES," A DARKLY COMIC LOOK AT THE SECRET LIVES OF FOUR SUBURBAN WOMEN, PREMIERES SUNDAY, OCTOBER 3 ON ABC

"Desperate Housewives," a primetime soap with a truly contemporary take on "happily ever after " -- where the secret lives of housewives aren't always what they seem -- premieres SUNDAY, OCTOBER 3 (9:00-10:00 p.m., ET), on the ABC Television Network.

"Desperate Housewives" stars Teri Hatcher as Susan Mayer, Felicity Huffman as Lynette Scavo, Marcia Cross as Bree Van De Kamp, Eva Longoria as Gabrielle Solis, James Denton as Mike Delfino, Nicollette Sheridan as Edie Britt, Steven Culp as Rex Van De Camp, Mark Moses as Paul Young, Ricardo Antonio Chavira as Carlos Solis, Cody Kasch as Zach Young, Andrea Bowen as Julie Mayer, Jesse Metcalfe as John and Brenda Strong as Mary Alice Young.

Guest starring are Doug Savant as Tom Scavo, Christine Estabrook as Mrs. Huber, Zane Huette as Parker Scavo, Brent Kinsman as Preston Scavo, Shane Kinsman as Porter Scavo, Shawn Pyfrom as Andrew Van De Kamp, Joy Lauren as Danielle Van De Kamp, Nike Doukas as Natalie Klein, Marina Malota as Wendy and Sherica Durdley as Denise.

In the series premiere, "Pilot," looking down on her friends and family isn't a way of life for Mary Alice Young (Brenda Strong)... it's a way of death. One day, in her perfect house, in the loveliest of suburbs, Mary Alice ended it all. Now she's taking us into the lives of her family, friends and neighbors, commenting from her elevated P.O.V.

Her small circle of girlfriends are wondering why one of their own would do something so rash... and so messy. There's Susan Mayer (Teri Hatcher), the divorcee and single mom who will go to extraordinary lengths for love; Lynette Scavo (Felicity Huffman), the ex-career woman who traded the boardroom for boredom, mixed with moments of sheer panic as the mother of four unmanageable kids; Bree Van De Kamp (Marcia Cross), the Martha Stewart on steroids, whose family is about to mutiny; and Gabrielle Solis, the ex-model with everything she's ever wanted - a rich husband, a big house - so what is she doing with John, the 17-year-old gardener (Jesse Metcalfe)? And there are her neighbors, including serial divorcee Edie Britt (Nicollette Sheridan), whose romantic conquests have everyone buzzing.

Then there are the men: Hunky new neighbor Mike Delfino (James Denton), a supposedly widowed plumber who has Susan and Edie vying for his attention; Rex Van De Kamp (Steven Culp), who's just told Bree he wants a divorce; Gabrielle's better half, Carlos (Ricardo Antonio Chavira), who figures he bought his wife a $15,000 diamond necklace, so she should do whatever he tells her; as for Mary Alice's newly-widowed husband, Paul (Mark Moses), there must be a reason why he's acting so suspiciously - and why he's digging up the pool in the middle of the night!

From her unique vantage point, Mary Alice sees more now than she ever did alive, and she's planning to share all the delicious secrets that hide behind every neighbor's closed door in this seemingly perfect American suburb.

"Pilot" was written by Mar Cherry. Charles McDougall directed.

Marc Cherry ("The Golden Girls") is executive producer and creator of the series. Michael Edelstein ("Threat Matrix") and Tom Spezialy ("The District," "Ed") are executive producers, Kevin Murphy ("Reefer Madness") is co-executive producer and Charles Pratt Jr., ("Melrose Place," "General Hospital") is consulting producer of the series, from Touchstone Television.

"Desperate Housewives" is broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC's selected HDTV format, with 5.1-channel surround sound.

This program carries a TV-PG,D,L,S,V parental guideline.