Series star Lauren Graham was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series and received two consecutive nominations for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series from the Screen Actors Guild. Graham has also won two Family Television Awards. Series star Alexis Bledel has won a Young Artist Award and a Family Television Award. Gilmore Girls won a Family Television Award for New Series, and was named Best Family TV Drama Series by the Young Artist Awards, which also honored series star Keiko Agena in the supporting young actress category.

Thirtysomething Lorelai Gilmore (Lauren Graham) has made her share of mistakes in life, but she has been doing her best to see that her college-bound daughter - and best friend in the world - Rory (Alexis Bledel, Tuck Everlasting), doesn't follow in her footsteps. That may be easier said than done, considering that the two share the same interests, the same intellect, the same coffee addiction and the same eyes. Rory is more serious than Lorelai, but there are tendencies, especially in the love department, that clearly indicate she is her mother's daughter.
From the beginning, this unique mother-daughter team has been growing up together. Lorelai was just Rory's age when she became pregnant and made the tough decision to raise her baby alone. This defiant move -- along with Lorelai's fiercely independent nature -- caused a rift between her and her extremely proper, patrician, old-money parents, Emily (Kelly Bishop, Dirty Dancing) and Richard (Edward Herrmann, The Cat's Meow). However, Lorelai was forced to reconcile with them when she found herself in desperate need of money for Rory's tuition. This season, a handsome new partner in Richard's business could spark a renewed connection between father and daughter -- even as a rift develops between Richard and Emily.

As season four unfolds, both Gilmore girls are facing major life changes. Surprisingly, Rory chose Yale University, her grandfather Richard's alma mater, over her longtime dream school, Harvard. With Yale so close, Rory will be able to visit home for laundry runs and the traditional Friday-night dinner with her grandparents at their elegant and oppressive house. In addition to continued bonding time with Lorelai, Rory stays in contact with her best friend, Lane (Keiko Agena, Felicity), who attends a local college and resolutely pursues her musical streak as drummer in a rock band, contrary to her conservative Korean mother's wishes. Another constant in Rory's life is the presence of intense former classmate Paris Geller (Liza Weil, Stir of Echoes), who is now her roommate at Yale. Rory also explores the world of college dating, since Dean (Jared Padalecki), one of her high school love interests, is getting married, and bad boy Jess (Milo Ventimiglia) has headed west to Venice, California in search of his father.

Although her daughter has left the nest, Lorelai sees a bright new dream come true when she and fabulous chef Sookie St. James (Melissa McCarthy), her best friend, finally open their own inn, following the destruction of the Independence Inn in a fire. Now happily married and expecting her first child, Sookie must divide her time between her new business endeavor and baby planning. Meanwhile, Lorelai's longstanding friendship with Luke Danes (Scott Patterson, Little Big League), the gruffly charming owner of the local diner, only gets stronger after his failed brush with marriage.

Continuing to add to the unmistakable style of Stars Hollow is a colorful roster of town characters, including Miss Patty (Liz Torres, The John Larroquette Show), the local dance teacher and social commentator, haughty former Independence Inn concierge Michel Gerard (Yanic Truesdale) and Kirk (Sean Gunn, Pearl Harbor), the town's jack-of-all-trades and master of none.
Gilmore Girls was the first series to make it to air supported by the Family Friendly Forum's script development fund. An initiative between some of the nation's top advertisers and The WB, the program is intended to offer a greater array of compelling family programming on network television. The strong and loving mother-daughter relationship portrayed in Gilmore Girls reflects the growing reality of this new type of American family.

This heartfelt one-hour dramedy was created by Amy Sherman-Palladino (Roseanne), who serves as executive producer with Daniel Palladino (Roseanne), for Dorothy Parker Drank Here Productions and Hofflund/Polone in association with Warner Bros. Television. Also credited as an executive producer is Gavin Polone (Stir of Echoes, Drop Dead Gorgeous).