25 Mind-Blowing Facts About The West Wing

8. Janel Moloney, Who Played Donna Moss, Kept Waitressing At An Italian Restaurant During The First Few Episodes Of Season One

Donna Moss appears throughout the entirety of the programme as Deputy White House Chief of Staff Josh Lyman's loyal assistant - yet originally the character was not meant to be a regular.

Janel Moloney, who played Donna, auditioned originally for the role of White House Press Secretary CJ Cregg - but Sorkin decided to cast her as an assistant instead. Her on-screen chemistry with Bradley Whitford who played Josh ensured she eventually became a regular - even though for the entire first series she was only credited as having made a "guest appearance" in each episode.

In fact, Moloney retained her part-time job as a waitress at a Beverley Hills Italian restaurant for the first-half of the first series because she didn't think she would become a regular character.