why did the character sharona leave the show monk
Sharona Fleming She has 'quit' her job as Monk's assistant at least twice; in the episode "Mr. Monk and the Candidate" and "Mr. Monk and the Billionaire Mugger" (this was due to a pay dispute (her paychecks had bounced regularly); she temporarily got a job at a lamp store). Sharona's 'quitting' became a running gag in the show, until she finally left in 2004 to remarry her ex-husband, Trevor Howe, following "Mr. Monk Takes His Medicine". This was because Bitty Schram quit the show over contract disputes. Subsequently, Traylor Howard was introduced as Natalie Teeger, Monk's new assistant, beginning in "Mr. Monk and the Red Herring".