Trivia
- Fisher Plaza, which houses Seattle’s ABC affiliate KOMO-TV, is used for some exterior shots of Seattle Grace Hospital. In the pilot episode when the patient is flown in via helicopter, you can see the KOMO 4 logo on the side of the building and their 10+ satellite dishes on the roof. Fisher Plaza puts Seattle Grace conveniently close to the Space Needle, the Seattle Monorail, and other local landmarks. However, the hospital used for most other exterior and many interior shots is not in Seattle; these scenes are shot at the VA Sepulveda Ambulatory Care Center in North Hills, California.
- As is common for major TV and film productions, stars of the show have become famous in roles other than those they originally sought. Sandra Oh was initially looking to audition for the part of Dr. Bailey. On “The Oprah Winfrey Show” (1986), Isaiah Washington (Dr. Burke) said that he had auditioned to play the role of Dr. Shepherd.
- Isaiah Washington was fired from the show after Season 3.
- ‘Rob Lowe (I)’ was originally considered for the role of Derek Shepherd, but passed on it.
- Patrick Dempsey auditioned for the role of Dr. Chase on FOX’s prime time medical mystery show, _House_, before taking the role of Dr. Shepherd.
- The character Alex Karev was not in the original pilot script; his role was inserted into the pilot as an afterthought in order to provide a foil, as well as male companionship for Dr. George O’Malley. Since he wasn’t added until after the pilot was shot, scenes with him were either re-shoots or digitally altered.
- The Inuit doll that frequently appears in episodes is named Ipecac. Ipecac is featured in an Easter Egg in the Season One DVD Bonus Features, where the cast and crew discuss the doll, its name, origins and a plot to kidnap it.
- The producers of “Grey’s Anatomy” (2005) recently released a novel depicting the lives and happenings of two bit-part characters; Joe the Bartender and Nurse Debbie. The book is double sided written in Blog and IM form, while gossiping on the actions of the Grey’s characters. The events discussed give background information for Joe and Debbie themselves and give insight on the events and cases the doctors deal with in the show.
- In an early episode Meredith is seen posting a poster asking for a roommate. The poster is only visible for a second, but it mentions that “Bush supporters need not apply” along with other details about the house.
- Every episode shares the name with a song title by a popular artists. Several are named after The Beatles and R.E.M. songs.
- The show’s title is a reference to the famous anatomy book “Gray’s Anatomy of the Human Body” by Henry Gray.
- The show was originally supposed to be called “Complications”.
- In order to keep the plot and storylines secret, in the sides for auditions, the main characters’ names are changed.
- Meredith went to Dartmouth College.
- Christina went to Stanford University
- Dr. Meredith Grey lives on 613 Harper Lane.
- The first person to refer to Dr. Shepherd as “McDreamy” was Cristina.
- Dr. Cristina Yang is an MD-PhD.
- Cristina’s stepfather is Jewish.
- Kate Walsh’s character, Addison Shepherd, was only supposed to appear in 5 episodes, but quickly developed a fan base so they kept her on.
- The character name Dr. Mark Sloan is a reference to a ‘Dick Van Dyke’ character by the same name in the TV show ‘”Diagnosis Murder” (1993)’.
- Katherine Heigl dropped herself out of Emmy consideration in 2008, because she felt that she wasn’t given the material that would warrant a nomination.
- Izzie’s full name is Isobel Catherine Stevens.
- Karev’s full name is Alexander Michael Karev.
