TV SERIES · 2010–2015 · USA
Louie
- Created by
- Louis C.K.
- Network
- FX
- Seasons
- 5
- Episodes
- 61
- Studio
- Bluebush Productions, Pig Newton, 3 Arts Entertainment
49 archived facts 6 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026
Louis C.K. stars as a fictionalized version of himself; a comedian and newly divorced father raising his two daughters in New York City.
49 Interesting Facts About Louie
Interesting Facts (14)
- #001
- #002
- #003
- #004
The theme song "Brother Louie" reached No. 1 in the US in 1973 by Stories. The theme is sung by Stories' lead singer Ian Lloyd. In the second repeat of the chorus, at C. K.'s request, the word "cry" was changed to "die." It was produced by Reggie Watts. Watts recorded a version, but C. K. rejected it. The cost of publishing it is 5,000 US dollars per episode.
- #005
- #006
- #007
- #008
The break between the third and fourth seasons was Louis C. K.'s own choice. He said: "I want the fourth season to go somewhere new. I look at the time when I made the first season and the time I spent making the series, and I decide which direction to go, and I want that back again. I want a little breathing room."
- #009
- #010
- #011
- #012
- #013
- #014
Production Story (15)
- #015
The series is shot only three days a week because Louis C.K. has custody of his children the rest of the week and refuses to film on those days. He tends to the editing while his children are at school; he says the crew dislikes this pace but has had to accept it. This production is the only exception not subject to FX executives' intervention process.
- #016
After his experience with Lucky Louie (2006) on HBO, Louis C.K. was not very willing to return to television and turned down offers from networks. He admits that he earned enough money from stand-up tours and that, as a divorced father, his responsibilities prevented him from working half the week. FX president John Landgraf met with him and committed to letting him work on his own terms. For the performer, this meant absolute creative freedom, zero interference from the network, receiving no notes, and only the budget allocated for the series. Landgraf accepted these conditions without a written contract; as a result, the comedian is paid 300 thousand dollars per episode and collects the minimum wage from the DGA and the WGA. He films on the days he is not responsible for his daughters, shoots the footage himself, and mostly sends FX episodes he has edited himself. So executives watch the episodes like ordinary viewers and cannot give notes.
- #017
In the opening credits, while Louie is at the pizza place, a passerby is seen giving the camera the middle finger. This was not planned; C.K. interpreted it as a good sign that the series would catch on and decided to leave the finger in the credits. The pizzeria in the credits is Ben's Pizzeria in Greenwich Village in Manhattan, New York; Louis C.K. frequently goes there in real life as well.
- #018
The theme song, "Brother Louie," had been a number one hit in the US in 1973 with the group Stories. The song is sung by Stories' lead singer, Ian Lloyd. In the second repetition of the chorus, the word "cry" was changed to "die" at C.K.'s request. The track was produced by Reggie Watts; Watts recorded a version but C.K. rejected it. Five thousand dollars per episode is paid for the broadcast rights.
- #019
- #020
- #021
- #022
- #023
- #024
- #025
Louis C.K. has said that continuity is not very important in his series and that each episode is its own 'ultimate destination.' Louie's immediate family is the greatest example of this. In the first season he had two different versions of his mother (one an unhappy, selfish old woman, the other a loving and sweet middle-aged woman) and a failed brother named Robert; in the second season his mother is unseen, Robert disappears entirely and is replaced by two sisters (one a sweet, tough, pregnant woman, the other the mentally ill mother of a sullen teenager). In the third season finale, yet another sister, played by Amy Poehler, is introduced.
- #026
While writing the fourth season, Louis C.K. stretched out a story arc so much that he ended up with a roughly 180-page film script. He nevertheless decided to shoot it and, by dividing it into episodes, created the six-episode 'Elevator' series. The fourth season is the first that does not consist of separate sketches but follows a single story.
- #027
- #028
The break between the third and fourth seasons was at Louis C.K.'s own request. He explained it as follows: 'I want the fourth season to go somewhere new. I look back at the time when I made the first season, the time I set aside to prepare the series and decide which directions to go in, and I want that again. I need a little breathing room.'
- #029
Behind the Scenes (11)
- #030
The series is shot only three days a week because Louis C.K. has custody of his children the rest of the week and refuses to shoot on those days. While his children are at school, he deals with editing; he says the crew does not like this pace but has had to accept it. This production is the only exception not subject to the FX executives' intervention process.
- #031
After his experience with Lucky Louie (2006) on HBO, Louis C.K. was not very willing to return to television and turned down offers from networks. He admits that he earns enough money from stand-up tours and that, as a divorced father, his responsibilities prevent him from working half the week. FX president John Landgraf met with him and committed to letting him work on his own terms. For the actor, this meant absolute creative freedom, zero interference from the network, taking no notes, and only the budget allocated for the series. Landgraf accepted these conditions without a written contract; as a result, the comedian is paid 300 thousand dollars per episode and collects the minimum wage from the DGA and the WGA. He shoots on the days when he is not responsible for his daughters, films it himself, and sends FX episodes that he has mostly edited himself. So the executives watch the episodes like an ordinary viewer and cannot give notes.
- #032
In the opening credits, while Louie is at the pizzeria, a passerby is seen giving the camera the middle finger. This was not planned; C.K. interpreted it as a good sign that the series would catch on and decided to leave the finger in the credits. The pizzeria in the credits is Ben's Pizzeria in Greenwich Village in Manhattan, New York; Louis C.K. often goes there in real life as well.
- #033
The theme song "Brother Louie" had been a number one hit in the US in 1973 with the group Stories. The song is sung by Stories' lead singer Ian Lloyd. In the second repetition of the chorus, the word "cry" was changed to "die" at C.K.'s request. The track was produced by Reggie Watts; Watts recorded a version but C.K. rejected it. Five thousand dollars per episode is paid for the broadcast rights.
- #034
- #035
- #036
- #037
Louis C.K. has said that continuity is not very important in his series, that each episode is its own 'ultimate destination.' Louie's immediate family is the biggest example of this. In the first season he had two different versions of his mother (one an unhappy, selfish old woman, the other a loving and sweet middle-aged woman) and a failed brother named Robert; in the second season his mother is unseen, Robert disappears entirely and is replaced by two sisters (one a sweet, tough, pregnant woman, the other the mentally ill mother of a sullen teenager). In the third season finale, yet another sister, played by Amy Poehler, is introduced.
- #038
While writing the fourth season, Louis C.K. stretched out a storyline so much that he ended up with a roughly 180-page film script. He decided to shoot it anyway and, by dividing it into episodes, created the six-episode 'Elevator' series. The fourth season is the first that does not consist of separate sketches but follows a single story.
- #039
- #040
The break between the third and fourth seasons was at Louis C.K.'s own request. He explained: 'I want the fourth season to go to a new place. I look back at the time when I did the first season, the time I set aside to prepare the show and decide which directions to go in, and I want that again. I need a little breathing room.'
Characters & Cast (6)
Deeper Meaning (2)
- #047
This series is currently the only exception to the process of network executives interfering. After his bad experience with HBO on his show Lucky Louie (2006), the comedian had no particular interest in returning to TV and turned down offers from networks. By his own admission, he earned enough money from stand-up tours, and his duties as a divorced father prevented him from working half the week. FX president John Landgraf met with C. K. and was determined to work according to his terms. For the actor, this meant absolute creative freedom, no control over the channel, no notes, and money only for the series. Landgraf accepted C. K.'s conditions without putting them in writing, so that the comedian receives 300,000 dollars for the production of each episode and the minimum wage for the DGA and WGA. He shoots on the days he is not responsible for his daughters, films by himself, and sends the episodes to FX mostly after editing them himself. For this reason, executives watch them like any other viewer and cannot give notes.
- #048
Life & Family (1)
- #049
Louis C. K. said continuity was not very important for his series because each episode had its own "end goal." Louie's immediate family was a major example of this. In Season 1, two different versions of his mother appeared (one a miserable, selfish old woman, the other a kind and lovable middle-aged woman), and he had a pathetic brother named Robert; in Season 2, his mother does not appear and Robert is gone, replaced by two sisters (one a lovable, tough, pregnant woman, the other the mentally ill mother of a sullen teenager), and in the Season 3 finale another sister, played by Amy Poehler, was introduced. Different actresses were sometimes used to play his daughters; however, with a few exceptions, they are almost always played by series regulars Hadley Delaney and Ursula Parker.
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
- Wikipedia
- IMDb
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