<P> Numerous supporting characters have been given expansive and recurring appearances in the progressive storyline . Danielle Rousseau (Mira Furlan)--a French member of an earlier scientific expedition to the island, first encountered as a voice recording in the pilot episode--appears throughout the series . She is searching for her daughter, who later turns up in the form of Alex Rousseau (Tania Raymonde). Alex has been kidnapped by Ben Linus and brought to the Others where she was raised . Cindy (Kimberley Joseph), an Oceanic flight attendant who first appeared in the pilot, survived the crash and, subsequently, became one of the Others . In the second season, married couple Rose Henderson (L. Scott Caldwell) and Bernard Nadler (Sam Anderson), separated on opposite sides of the island (she with the main characters, he with the tail section survivors), were featured in a flashback episode after being reunited . The second season also introduces Dr. Pierre Chang (Francois Chau), a member of the mysterious Dharma Initiative who appears in the orientation films for its numerous stations located throughout the island . Corporate magnate Charles Widmore (Alan Dale) has connections to both Ben and Desmond . Desmond is in love with Widmore's daughter Penelope "Penny" Widmore (Sonya Walger). Eloise Hawking (Fionnula Flanagan), introduced in the third season, is Daniel Faraday's mother and also has connections with Desmond . The introduction of the Others featured Tom, a.k.a. Mr. Friendly (M.C. Gainey), and Ethan Rom (William Mapother), all of whom have been shown in both flashbacks and the ongoing story . Jack's father Christian Shephard (John Terry) has appeared in multiple flashbacks of various characters . In the third season, Naomi Dorrit (Marsha Thomason), the team leader of a group hired by Widmore to find Ben Linus, parachutes onto the island . One member of her team includes the ruthless mercenary Martin Keamy (Kevin Durand). In the finale episode "The End", recurring guest stars Sam Anderson; L. Scott Caldwell; Francois Chau; Fionnula Flanagan; Sonya Walger; and John Terry were credited under the "starring" rubric alongside the principal cast . The mysterious black smoke cloud - like entity, known as "the Monster", appeared in human form during season five and six as a middle - aged man dressed in black robes, who was played by Titus Welliver, and in season six, it appears in the form of John Locke played by O'Quinn in a dual role . His rival, Jacob, was played by Mark Pellegrino . </P> <P> Lost was produced by ABC Studios, Bad Robot Productions, and Grass Skirt Productions . Throughout its run, the executive producers of the series were Damon Lindelof, J.J. Abrams, Bryan Burk, Carlton Cuse, Jack Bender, Jeff Pinkner, Edward Kitsis, Adam Horowitz, Jean Higgins, and Elizabeth Sarnoff, with Lindelof and Cuse serving as showrunners . </P> <P> The series was conceived by Lloyd Braun, head of ABC at the time, while he was on vacation in Hawaii during 2003 and thought of a cross between the movie Cast Away and the popular reality show Survivor . Braun later pitched his ideas at the network's gathering of executives at the Grand Californian Hotel in Anaheim, describing the concept as "parts Cast Away, Survivor, and Gilligan's Island, with a Lord of the Flies element ." Many found the idea laughable, but senior vice president Thom Sherman saw potential and decided to order an initial script from Spelling Television . Spelling producer Ted Gold turned to writer Jeffrey Lieber, who presented a pitch to ABC in September 2003 titled Nowhere, which Sherman approved . Unhappy with the eventual script by Lieber and a subsequent rewrite, in January 2004, Braun contacted J.J. Abrams, who had developed the TV series Alias for ABC, to write a new pilot script . Lieber would later receive a story credit for the Lost pilot and, subsequently, shared the "created by" credit with Abrams and Lindelof, after a request for arbitration at the Writers Guild of America . The one inviolable edict Braun made to Abrams was that the show's title must be Lost, having conceived of the title and being angry at its change to Nowhere by Lieber . </P> <P> Although initially hesitant, Abrams warmed to the idea on the condition that the series would have a supernatural angle to it and if he had a writing partner . ABC executive Heather Kadin sent him Damon Lindelof, who had long intended to meet Abrams as he wished to write for Alias . Together, Abrams and Lindelof created the series' style and characters and also wrote a series bible that conceived and detailed the major mythological ideas and plot points for an ideal four - to - five - season run for the show . The novel idea of a story arc spanning several years was inspired by Babylon 5 . Because ABC felt that Alias was too serialized, Lindelof and Abrams assured the network in the bible that the show would be self - contained: "We promise...that (each episode) requires NO knowledge of the episode (s) that preceded it...there is no' Ultimate Mystery' which requires solving ." While such statements contradicted their true plans, the ruse succeeded in persuading ABC to purchase the show . The game Myst, also set in a tropical island, was noted as an influence by Lindelof, as in its narrative, "No one told you what the rules were . You just had to walk around and explore these environments and gradually a story was told ." </P>

Where did the idea for lost come from
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