We met Mary Alice Young in the very first scene of the very first episode of "Desperate Housewives," but she was always a character that was nothing like the others. You see, Mary Alice was dead before the show began. Her voice has lived on through the show's run, and we've even caught a few glimpses along the way.
"Desperate Housewives" began in September 2004 with the voice of Mary Alice Young introducing herself and acknowledging that she had just killed herself. It would be that suicide that would provide mystery for the next decade. Even though the suicide was explained at the end of the first season, there would be more we would find out about the circumstances as the years went on. Mary Alice would continue to tell us her secrets and the hidden information behind all of those on Wisteria Lane.
Mary Alice Young had come to Wisteria Lane with husband Paul and son Zach. She had befriended other housewives Gabrielle, Lynette, Bree and Susan, but they did not know the deep, dark secret she was hiding. Mary Alice was actually a woman named Angela and Zach (originally called Dana) was not her son. She had taken him from his mother Deidre, a drug addict whom she killed in a struggle. It was a secret she had difficulty living with and, when someone on Wisteria Lane discovered it, Mary Alice could not handle the guilt so she took her own life.
Through the years we would learn that Mike Delfino was Zach's biological father, though he had never known he had a son. We would also learn more about Mary Alice, the friend to all of the housewives in the neighborhood. All of the women would forever mourn the loss of their friend. Whenever anyone felt that someone was in trouble, they would go right to them, remembering that they hadn't done that enough with Mary Alice. The voice would remind us all that she never thought her friends hadn't been there for her.
Only a few episodes over the years did not contain the voice of Mary Alice Young. They did, however, include another dead character. Rex Van de Kamp would speak in Season 3 after his death, and Edie Britt would be a narrator in the episode of her death in Season 5.
Brenda Strong has done the voice and the cameos for Mary Alice Young since the character first appeared in episode one. She was born and raised in Oregon and has appeared in numerous television shows. She also had a recurring role on "Twin Peaks," where former "Housewives" actor Kyle MacLachlan starred. She is also a certified yoga instructor who has written a book on the discipline.
We may never see Mary Alice Young in a "Desperate Housewives" scene that isn't a flashback, but her voice will forever remain one of the most important elements of the ABC show.
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