The pilot episode of the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation originally aired on April 9, 2009. It was written by series co-creators Michael Schur and Greg Daniels, and directed by Daniels. The episode introduces the protagonist Leslie Knope, played by Amy Poehler (pictured), a mid-level bureaucrat in the Parks and Recreation department in the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana. Knope sets out to turn a construction pit into a park after local nurse Ann Perkins (Rashida Jones) complains about it. Her anti-government boss Ron Swanson (Nick Offerman) reluctantly allows her to form an exploratory committee after her friend and colleague Mark Brendanawicz (Paul Schneider) secretly intervenes. Daniels and Schur began writing the script in the summer of 2008, when they were in the early stages of conceiving the series. The episode received generally mixed reviews, although Poehler was widely praised by most television critics. According to Nielsen Media Research, it was watched by 6.77 million households in its original airing. Like the rest of the series, it was filmed in the same mockumentary style as The Office, the NBC comedy series also created by Daniels.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilot_(Parks_and_Recreation)

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1413:

Henry V, who is featured in three plays by William Shakespeare, was crowned King of England. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_V_of_England

1917:

First World War: The Canadian Corps began the first wave of attacks at the Battle of Vimy Ridge in Vimy, France. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Vimy_Ridge

1940:

During the German invasion of Norway, Vidkun Quisling seized control of the government in a Nazi-backed coup d'état. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vidkun_Quisling

1959:

NASA announced the selection of the Mercury Seven (pictured), the first astronauts in Project Mercury. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury_Seven

2003:

Invasion of Iraq: Coalition forces captured Baghdad and the statue of Saddam Hussein in Firdos Square was toppled. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firdos_Square_statue_destruction

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

unheralded: Without prior warning; unexpected or unannounced. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/unheralded

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

The monuments of wit survive the monuments of power.   --Francis Bacon https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Francis_Bacon