Motherhood (ER)
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Episode 24
| "Motherhood" | |
|---|---|
| ER episode | |
 Carol and Susan take a break to sunbathe on the roof of the hospital, in a scene Decider found reminiscent of Reservoir Dogs.[1] | |
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 24 |
| Directed by | Quentin Tarantino |
| Written by | Lydia Woodward |
| Featured music | Martin Davich |
| Cinematography by | Richard Thorpe |
| Editing by | Jim Gross |
| Production code | 456623 |
| Original air date | May 11, 1995 |
| Running time | 47 minutes |
| Guest appearances | |
| |
"Motherhood" is the twenty-fourth and penultimate episode of the first season of the American medical drama ER. Written by supervising producer Lydia Woodward and directed by Quentin Tarantino, the episode was first broadcast on NBC on May 11, 1995.
In the Mother's Day-themed episode, Susan Lewis helps her sister Chloe give birth, John Carter learns the true outcome of his surgical internship application, and Peter Benton is told tragic news about his mother. Writing the episode, Woodward said she did not create the script with Tarantino in mind, but that she did try to "gross out" the screenplay after learning he would direct.
In its initial airing, "Motherhood" received the highest rating of the week, in front of episodes from Friends and Seinfeld, and was watched in a total of 21.8 million homes by 33.1 million viewers. The episode also received generally positive reviews from critics, who enjoyed the episode but also said that for ER, the directing style of Tarantino did not stand out.
Late at night, pregnant Chloe (Kathleen Wilhoite) tells her sister Susan Lewis (Sherry Stringfield) that she is experiencing frequent contractions. At the hospital, Chloe gives birth and sings "Blackbird" to her newly born daughter, who she names "Little Susan" after her sister. On Mother's Day, Susan learns from her mother Cookie Lewis (Valerie Perrine) that she will have to help Chloe take care of her daughter. Meanwhile, John Carter (Noah Wyle) learns that he has not been accepted to the surgical internship he applied for, and Peter Benton (Eriq La Salle) learns that his mother has died. Additionally, Doug Ross (George Clooney) takes a long time to decide whether he wants to move in with his girlfriend Diane Leeds (Lisa Zane), who later rejects him after seeing him with his former girlfriend Linda. At night, Benton expresses his grief over his mother's death and Susan sings "Blackbird" to help her baby niece fall asleep.
Production
"Motherhood" was directed by Quentin Tarantino and written by ER supervising producer Lydia Woodward. Tarantino decided to come on board as director after George Clooney (the actor who was portraying Doug Ross on ER) gave him the idea after being cast in From Dusk till Dawn. Writing the episode, Woodward said that she did not create the script with Tarantino in mind, but did try to "gross out" the scenes featured in the episode after learning he would direct.[2][3]
For his work on the episode, Tarantino received $30,000 from NBC.[4] Filming it, Tarantino said he "liked the ER style" and the use of Steadicams to shoot long takes. On set, the director encountered a problem with executive producer John Wells, who told him to go back and reshoot a scene. Tarantino said that the incident taught him that in television, the choices were actually made by the producers as it was "their show. I'm directing the episode, and then I'm leaving".[5] Julianna Margulies mentioned that Tarantino would only shoot one take for the scenes so the network would be forced to accept his cut of the episode without any interference.[6]
