'DTF' ... Los Angeles? Inside the making, and future, of a surprise Emmy darling

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Set us as preferred Linda Cardellini knew something was up when a random stranger would shout “Strawberry Breeze!” as she was crossing the street.For David Harbour, it was the messages pouring in from friends — not the usual “great job!” an actor receives when a program is airing, but long blocks of text, paragraphs dripping with emotion.

Jason Bateman was hearing from pals too, reporting the conversations they were overhearing at restaurants and bars.And for “DTF St.

Louis” writer-director Steven Conrad, it was his favorite bartender in Chicago telling a couple of patrons about how much she didn’t like this new show on HBO, the one with the acronym you wouldn’t repeat in polite company.“At least she was watching,” Conrad says, laughing.

“And it sounded like she was watching based on a recommendation, which meant somebody else was watching too.I took that as a good sign.”“DTF St.

Louis” was indeed watched, gaining viewers week to week as it aired in the spring.On the surface, it looked like a limited series straight out of the HBO playbook, a murder mystery driven by sex and midlife ennui.

Floyd (Harbour) joins a hookup app looking for sex and winds up dead.His wife, Carol (Cardellini), has been having a kinky affair with weatherman Clark (Bateman).

Meanwhile, Clark and Floyd strike up a deep friendship, easing their suburban loneliness.But it turns out that these are not bad people.

They just make bad decisions.And by the end we feel for all of them.Nominated for 13 Emmys — including series; writing and directing for Conrad; and acting nods for Bateman, Cardellini, Harbour and Richard Jenkins and Joy Sunday, who play detectives investigating Floyd’s death — “DTF St.

Louis” became one of the year’s most talked-about limited series.Like the events in the show, it could have gone terribly wrong.

How did they get it so right? We spoke to the principals.Grab one of ...