<Table> <Tr> <Th> No . overall </Th> <Th> No. in season </Th> <Th> Title </Th> <Th> Directed by </Th> <Th> Written by </Th> <Th> Original air date </Th> <Th> U.S. viewers ( millions ) </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> </Th> <Td> </Td> <Td> `` Pilot '' </Td> <Td> Greg Daniels </Td> <Td> Greg Daniels & Michael Schur </Td> <Td> April 9 , 2009 ( 2009 - 04 - 09 ) </Td> <Td> 6.77 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td colspan="7"> Ann Perkins ( Rashida Jones ) attends a town meeting to ask that a construction pit be filled in after her boyfriend , Andy ( Chris Pratt ) , fell into it and broke his legs . Leslie Knope ( Amy Poehler ) , a mid-level bureaucrat in the Pawnee parks and recreation department , promises to help turn the pit into a beautiful park . She is helped by Tom Haverford ( Aziz Ansari ) and her former lover , city planner Mark Brendanawicz ( Paul Schneider ) . Her boss , Ron Swanson ( Nick Offerman ) , who believes in as little government interference as possible , initially refuses to greenlight the project . But Mark , impressed with Leslie 's optimism , convinces Ron to approve it by calling in a favor . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> </Th> <Td> </Td> <Td> `` Canvassing '' </Td> <Td> Seth Gordon </Td> <Td> Rachel Axler </Td> <Td> April 16 , 2009 ( 2009 - 04 - 16 ) </Td> <Td> 5.92 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td colspan="7"> Leslie and the pit subcommittee canvas neighborhood houses to generate support for her park project and enroll attendees for an upcoming town meeting . The plan does not go as expected , especially when Tom detaches from the group and starts using questionable tactics , such as seeking favors from developers in return for preferential treatment . Leslie hopes the public meeting will impress her mother , local school official Marlene Griggs - Knope ( Pamela Reed ) . However , the park 's supporters do not attend and opponents turn out in large numbers to voice their disapproval . The project is nearly voted down , but Leslie resorts to a filibuster to save it . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> </Th> <Td> </Td> <Td> `` The Reporter '' </Td> <Td> Jeffrey Blitz </Td> <Td> Dan Goor </Td> <Td> April 23 , 2009 ( 2009 - 04 - 23 ) </Td> <Td> 5.24 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td colspan="7"> Leslie invites a local reporter ( Alison Becker ) to write a story about the pit , but the interviews go badly . Fearful of a negative story , Leslie asks Mark to talk to the reporter , but is jealous after Mark sleeps with her . When Leslie confronts Mark , he angrily quits the pit subcommittee . Ann convinces Mark to make up with Leslie and dissuade the reporter from using much of her negative material . Although the story is still largely unfavorable , Leslie remains optimistic . Meanwhile , Tom tries to advance his career by purposely losing online Scrabble games to his boss , Ron . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> </Th> <Td> </Td> <Td> `` Boys ' Club '' </Td> <Td> Michael McCullers </Td> <Td> Alan Yang </Td> <Td> April 30 , 2009 ( 2009 - 04 - 30 ) </Td> <Td> 5.29 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td colspan="7"> As Andy cleans up the house to surprise Ann , Leslie tries to infiltrate the boys ' club of politics by crashing an after - work gathering at Pawnee Town Hall . Trying to fit in , she opens a gift basket worth more than $25 , breaking the local government ethics laws . She apologetically refers Pawnee officials to a website about the pit to highlight her accomplishments , but gets in more trouble when underage intern April Ludgate ( Aubrey Plaza ) posts a video of herself drinking on the site . Leslie is called before an ethics committee , but is let off with a warning after Ron , who despises the town 's disciplinary process , defends her . Leslie is pleased when Mark tells her the warning officially makes her a member of the boys ' club . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> 5 </Th> <Td> 5 </Td> <Td> `` The Banquet '' </Td> <Td> Beth McCarthy - Miller </Td> <Td> Tucker Cawley </Td> <Td> May 7 , 2009 ( 2009 - 05 - 07 ) </Td> <Td> 4.64 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td colspan="7"> During a banquet honoring her mother 's public service , Leslie tries to convince a local zoning official to support her proposed park project . The official resists the idea , so Leslie 's mother suggests Leslie blackmail her with information about her husband 's drinking problem
when did the first season of parks and rec come out
2009