Season 1 Episode 1

Season 1, Murder House

Episode 1, Pilot:  Begins in 1978, at a large 1920's Victorian house in L.A., and moves to present day, 2011.  The Harmon family, Ben, a psychiatrist, Vivian, who plays the cello, Violet, a troubled cutter and Hayley , the dog,  are moving in.  Marcy, the realtor, tells them the previous 2 owners, a gay couple, died in a murder-suicide in the house.  6 months prior to the move, Vivian caught Ben in the act of cheating on her, after previously suffering a miscarriage.  Constance Langdon, a kleptomaniac, and her daughter Adelaide, who has Downs Syndrome, live next door.  Constance runs a kennel and doggy daycare.  Adelaide, we later learn, has a habit of sneaking into the Murder house uninvited.  Violet has trouble fitting in at her new school.  Vivian finds a strange black rubber hooded bodysuit in the attic.  Tate, a young male patient of Ben's, tells him of dreams he has about killing his classmates.  Ben will later attempt to report him to the authorities, believing he could be dangerous.   Ben begins to walk in his sleep.  Moira O'Hara, an older woman who looks to be in her 50s, is the housekeeper who had worked for previous tenants.  She approaches Vivian for a job as she is hanging clothes and is hired.  When Moira is introduced to Ben, it is revealed that to men only Moira appears as a beautiful young woman who dresses inappropriately and is sexually aggressive.
Tate and Violet meet, find out they have a lot in common and become infatuated with each other.  Tate reveals he went to Westbrook but was kicked out.  This is that same school attended by Violet.  Ben catches them in Violet's bedroom and asks Tate to leave, forbidding Violet from seeing him.  Moira comes onto Ben repeatedly.  Ben meets a strange man with severe burns on half on his face who warns him of danger.  Ben and Vivian continue to argue about his infidelity and have sex for the first time in over a year.  Tate comes up with a plan to scareoff the girl bullying Violet at school.  While Ben is sleepwalking again, Vivian has sex with a man wearing the rubber suit, thinking it's Ben.  Violet tricks her bully into coming down into her basement by telling her she has drugs. Tate is waiting and accosts the bully, shouting and pushing her to the floor while the lights flicker on and when a ghostly being with dark eyes and sharp  teeth appears, the bully runs out frightened and Violet is hysterical.  Tate tells her he didn't see anything.  Ben is followed by the burnt man while jogging and confronts him.  The man, Larry Harvey, warns him he is in danger again.  Ben balks at this.  Larry says he is terminally ill and was recently released from prison for killing his wife and two daughters by setting his house on fire.  He tells Ben he heard voices telling him to do so.  Larry tells Ben it's the same house his family now occupies.  Ben ignores the warning and threatens to have him committed if he doesn't leave his family alone.  Moira catches Constance in the Harmon's bedroom going through Vivian's jewellery box and confronts her.  They have a heated exchange and Constance insults Moira, telling her cryptically , "don't make me kill you again".  Vivian tells Ben she's pregnant.

The house was sold earlier this year for 3.2 million.

It was used as a Catholic Convent for 65 years.  (1932-1997)

There actually is a Westfield High School in L.A.

The man responsible for killing 32 people at Virginia Tech in 2007 went to Westfield High School in Virginia.  Given Tate's crime, this is an eerie coincidence.  Or is it?

Larry Harvey is the burnt man in this episode as played by Denis O'Hare.  Larry Harvey is also the real name of one of the main founders of the Burning Man festival.  This one HAS to be intentional.

The body count for this episode is 2.