Synopsis of Dear Louise


Written by Bethany

At the end of their nightly broadcast, Dan invites Casey to go out for a drink with him. He declines until Dan tells him Dana's coming, and they invite Jeremy, recalling that when Dana even has 1/2 a margarita "there's a better-than-even chance she'll get up on the table and start dancing to 'Boogie Shoes.'" When Jeremy declines, Natalie and Dana try to tell him work's over, he needs to loosen up now. He says he wants to stay and write a letter to his sister Louise. Casey says he never writes letters anymore, he does every thing by phone. Jeremy explains that his sister can't hear. Natalie offers to stay for company, but Jeremy says she should go out and have fun.

Jeremy starts his letter by saying that even though he's only been there 3 months he really loves working there, and tonight he got his first invitation to go out with the guys after the show. Then he proceeds to respond to Louise's last letter to him, in which she asked about the people he works with. Jeremy tells her he is always amazed that the pressures of hosting and producing a nightly show never seem to wear Dan and Casey down.

We then see Dan telling Casey he has "emergency writer's block," and totally freaking out! Casey tells him to relax, but Natalie tries to "shock it out of him" by repeatedly throwing water in his face. =)

Next comes a list of Isaac's previous achievements, including working as a printer for the Atlanta Journal, winning a Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of the Gemini missions, a position as London Bureau Chief for CNN, then coming out of retirement to work as managing editor of Sports Night. We see Isaac complaining to Dana that his 16-year-old daughter is dating a Republican!

Jeremy says they have four run-down meetings a day: at noon, 6 pm, 8 pm, and 10 o'clock. He tells about a noon run-down a few weeks ago in which he made the mistake of dismissing the importance of adding a segment to that night's show on a topic that had special meaning to Isaac.

Next Jeremy describes executive producer Dana, who got her love of sports from her father and six brothers, and her education from a string of all-girls' schools her mother sent her to so she wouldn't grow up to be like her father and six brothers. He says the result is a combination of "brilliance inside the office, and something a little less than brilliance anywhere outside it."

Jeremy also tries to explain the odd relationship between Dana and Casey. We see Dana passing out instructions to crew members, then fretting to Casey about whether or not her hair looks good, and asking why he feels inferior to Gordon, her lawyer-boyfriend. Casey says he doesn't feel inferior to him, and brings up a big court case Gordon just lost. Jeremy finishes his letter with a bit about Natalie, saying things have calmed down since the locker-room incident, but "things have been kind of awkward between us" since the night he made her dinner. He says he wants to ask her out, but doesn't think that would lessen the awkwardness.

Jeremy is interrupted from his letter-writing at 1 o'clock AM, when he hears music coming from the studio. The gang comes into the newsroom, drinks in hand. Dana yells, "I can't hear it in here, crank it!" and starts dancing as "Boogie Shoes" comes over the loudspeaker, and Casey explains that Dana's wild behavior got them thrown out of the bar (everyone is inebriated to a certain degree)!

Natalie pulls Jeremy off to the side, saying she's about to do something and she doesn't want it to startle him. After he asks if she's going to throw water at him, she KISSES him then says, "No big deal, just something we did." They go back and dance with everyone else.


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