"Pilot" is the first episode of the first season of the American period drama television series Masters of Sex. It originally aired on September 29, 2013 in the United States on Showtime. The episode was written by series creator Michelle Ashford and directed by John Madden. The series is based on Thomas Maier's biography Masters of Sex: The Life and Times of William Masters and Virginia Johnson, the Couple Who Taught America How to Love.