As a lead-in to the highly anticipated special that brings back one of the most admired comedies in TV history, NBC and the Paley Center for Media are collaborating on “The Paley Center Salutes Parks and Recreation,” scheduled to air Thursday, April 30 at 8PM ET/PT.
The telecast will highlight many of the show’s most memorable moments as well as all that went on behind the scenes. The series, which ran from 2009-15, starred Amy Poehler, Rashida Jones, Aziz Ansari, Nick Offerman, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Pratt, Adam Scott, Rob Lowe, Jim O’Heir, and Retta.
“There has been an incredible response since we announced the all-new ‘A Parks and Recreation Special‘ and that’s truly a tribute to what this show means to people,” said Doug Vaughan, Executive Vice President, Special Programs, NBC Entertainment. “It’s a testament to the cast and producers that ‘Parks‘ remains such a touchstone and beloved comedy for its millions of fans around the world.”
“For seven seasons, television viewers could not get enough of Leslie Knope, Ron Swanson and the rest of the team from the Pawnee, Ind., Parks and Recreation department,” said Maureen J. Reidy, the Paley Center’s President & CEO. “We’re thrilled to partner with NBC to present this behind-the-scenes look at the revered series.”
Both NBC’s original “A Parks and Recreation Special,” which airs April 30 at 8:30PM, and “The Paley Center Salutes Parks and Recreation” will be available beginning Friday, May 1 on Peacock, NBCUniversal’s new streaming service. In addition to Peacock, “The Paley Center Salutes Parks and Recreation” will also be available on demand on Hulu and NBC App, MVPD’s and streaming on NBC App.
In the network’s highly anticipated “A Parks and Recreation Special,” all of the original characters from the series will return, and, in addition, several guest stars from the Pawnee universe may pop in.
The story comes from the events of the day – Pawnee’s most dedicated civil servant, Leslie Knope, is determined to stay connected to her friends in a time of social distancing.
“Parks and Recreation” is the recipient of a Peabody Award for excellence in television programming, an AFI honor as one of the Top 10 Television Shows of the Year, several Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series and Amy Poehler’s individual performance. Poehler won a Golden Globe Award in 2014.
Additional accolades include Writers Guild Award and Producers Guild Award nominations, 2010 GLAAD Award for Outstanding Individual Episode, 2013 Television Critics Award for Outstanding Achievement in Comedy and TCA nominations for Program of the Year and Individual Achievement in Comedy for Poehler and co-star Nick Offerman, which Offerman won, as well as NAACP Image Award and Imagen Award nominations.
In 2019, to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the series premiere, the Paley Center honored the cast and creative team at their annual television festival PaleyFest LA, which took place in front of a sold-out audience at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. For the first time ever, this program together with past “Parks and Recreation” PaleyFest LA appearances from 2011, 2012, and 2014 are now available for viewing as part of the Paley@Home series on the Paley Center’s YouTube channel.
“Parks and Recreation” is a production of Deedle-Dee Productions, Fremulon, 3 Arts Entertainment, and Universal Television. Greg Daniels, Michael Schur, Howard Klein, David Miner, Morgan Sackett, and Dean Holland serve as executive producers for the series.
“The Paley Center Salutes Parks and Recreation” will be produced by The Paley Center for Media in association with Brad Lachman Productions. Maureen J. Reidy, Diane Lewis, and Brad Lachman will executive produce. Bill Bracken will co-executive produce.
