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The O.C.

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The O.C.
The title screen of The O.C.
Created byJosh Schwartz
StarringPeter Gallagher
Kelly Rowan
Benjamin McKenzie
Adam Brody
Melinda Clarke
Rachel Bilson
Autumn Reeser
Willa Holland
Country of originUnited States United States
No. of episodes76 (to date)
Production
Running timeapprox. 44 min (without adverts)
Original release
NetworkFOX
ReleaseAugust 5, 2003 –
present

The O.C. is an American television comedy-drama program broadcast on the FOX Network in the US and on various networks around the world. The show details the lives of young adults and their families growing up in the affluent Orange County, California. It was an immediate hit upon its release in 2003[1] and was the first teen drama to capture critics and audiences alike since Beverly Hills 90210 a decade earlier. The series, created by Josh Schwartz, debuted on August 5, 2003, with the tagline, "It's nothing like where you live, and nothing like you imagine." The series has been noted for its music selections, which have helped some previously little-known bands (such as alternative band Phantom Planet, who performed the theme song to the show, "California") gain exposure, so much that to date, the producers have released six compilation albums featuring highlighted performers.

To date, it has aired in more than 50 countries worldwide. Mixing comedy, drama, melodramatic soap conventions and tongue-in-cheek humor, The O.C. helped bring young viewers back to FOX and has launched its stars onto magazine covers around the globe.

Template:Spoilers

Cast and characters

The main cast

  • Kelly Rowan plays Kirsten Cohen, the linchpin of O.C. society. She is the wife of Sandy Cohen and the mother of Seth Cohen and was former CFO of her late father's (Caleb Nichol) real estate company, the Newport Group. She is also a recovering alcoholic.
  • Ben McKenzie plays Ryan Atwood, a troubled teenager from Chino who plunges headlong into the wealthy privileged community of Newport Beach, California, having being taken in by Sandy Cohen following his mother (Dawn Atwood) throwing him out of their family home. He had an on/off relationship with Marissa Cooper before she was killed.
  • Adam Brody plays Seth Cohen, the awkward adolescent son of Sandy and Kirsten Cohen. He is often known for his quick quips and popular culture references. He is also the love interest of Summer Roberts.
  • Rachel Bilson plays Summer Roberts, the socialite of the four main teen characters (Ryan, Seth, Marissa and Summer). She is the love interest of Seth, and best friend to Marissa. She is the daughter of Dr. Neil Roberts.
  • Autumn Reeser plays Taylor Townsend, a student who battled Marissa for full control of Harbor High School's social scene. Taylor was extremely lonely, and upon realizing this, Summer and Seth became friends with her. In the season three finale, Seth tells her she has become inner circle material, making her a part of the short-lived “Fab Five.” She is the daughter of Veronica Townsend.

Former regulars

File:The oc premiere poster.jpg
Promotional poster of the show's premiere.
  • Chris Carmack played Luke Ward, Marissa's jock ex-boyfriend and regular cast member episodes 2-24. He was the first main character to leave the show when he moved to Portland with his dad after the people of Newport discovered his father was gay.
  • Alan Dale played Caleb Nichol, Kirsten's businessman father and eventually Julie Cooper's husband. His character was recurring throughout the first season until he became a regular during the second season. Additionally, his is the first main character to be killed off when he had a heart attack. It was found out that he was broke at the reading of his will, leaving Julie with nothing.
  • Tate Donovan played Jimmy Cooper, Marissa's (and sister Kaitlin's) father (and Julie's husband). He was a regular cast member for episodes 1-34, but his character left the O.C. for Maui. He returned following Caleb's death at the end of the second season and almost remarried Julie. After running into financial troubles (and being attacked), he decided to leave Newport again early in the third season. He used to live on a boat. He is currently the captain of ship that is sailing in the Greek Islands.
  • Mischa Barton played Marissa Cooper, the first of the "core four" to leave the series at the end of season three (episodes 1-76). Marissa was arguably the most conflicted of the main characters, battling with drug and alcohol addiction due to tumultuous relationships with her parents, boyfriends and her fellow classmates. She was Summer's best friend and Ryan's on and off love interest. She was killed in a car accident after her last boyfriend, Kevin Volchok, ran her and Ryan off a cliff. She was on her way to the airport to catch a flight to Hawaii, where she would work on the boat her father is captain on. They would have been taking the boat to Greece.

Episodes

Main article: List of The O.C. episodes

Notable guest stars

Main article: List of Recurring Characters in The O.C.

Season 1

File:OCcastS1.jpg
The O.C. Season 1 Cast

Season 2

File:OCcastS2.jpg
The O.C. Season 2 Cast
  • Michael Cassidy played Zach Stevens, who had an on-again/off-again relationship with Summer after Seth ran away at the end of Season One. He eventually decided to let the two be together after realizing that they still loved one another. Creator Josh Schwartz said, "He's (Zach) off in Marin County working for Lucasfilm."
  • Nicholas Gonzalez played D.J., the Nichol's gardener and one of Marissa's love interests at the beginning of the season.
  • Shannon Lucio played Lindsay Gardner, a fellow student, Ryan's love interest, Kirsten's half-sister and Caleb's illegitimate daughter, who now lives with her mother, Renee Wheeler, in Chicago, Illinois.
  • Kathleen York played Renee Wheeler, Lindsay's mother, who had an affair with Caleb Nichol.
  • Olivia Wilde played Alex Kelly, who worked at the Bait Shop, who was Seth's, and later Marissa's, love interest.
  • Kim Delaney played Rebecca Bloom, an old flame of Sandy's who started to come between his marriage with Kirsten.
  • Billy Campbell played Carter Buckley, the former editor of Newport Living Magazine. He left Newport Beach after he got a new job, and came close to having a relationship with Kirsten.
  • Johnny Messner played Lance Baldwin, an opportunistic man from Julie Cooper's past.
  • Logan Marshall-Green played Trey Atwood, Ryan's older brother who was released from jail. At the end of Season Two, Marissa shot Trey after he tried to murder his own brother. He survived the gunshot and eventually left the hospital and headed for Las Vegas.
  • Marguerite Moreau played Reed Carlson, the executive of the graphic novel company for which Seth and Zach pitched their graphic novel. ‘‘Note:’’ The character of Tanyon Carlson, the brother of Reed, was credited in but one episode, Season Two's The O.C. Confidential. The character's lone appearance was portrayed by actor Steve Termath.
  • Nikki Griffin played Jess Sathers, the troublemaking love interest of Trey Atwood.

Season 3

File:OCcastS3.jpg
The O.C. Season 3 Cast
  • Jeri Ryan played Charlotte Morgan, a con artist Kirsten Cohen met in rehab. She seemed to share a lot of the same traits of Kirsten, but used this to try and manipulate the latter. She tried to get Julie to scam people out of their money with a fake charity, but Julie had the cheques made out to a real substance abuse organization instead of the fake one. Charlotte fled.
  • Ryan Donowho played Johnny Harper, a 17-year-old student at Newport Union who was into the beach and surfing. Johnny loved Marissa, and Ryan and Marissa had (often unspoken) arguments about whether Marissa returned this love, although Marissa always maintained it was not true. In Episode 65, Johnny died by falling from a cliff while he was intoxicated.
  • Kayla Ewell played Casey, Johnny's ex-girlfriend who cheated on him with Kevin Volchok.
  • Johnny Lewis played Dennis "Chili" Childress, a surfer, skateboarder and , best friend of Johnny.
  • Richard Voll played Glen Morgan, the husband of Charlotte and co-conspirator in her scams.
  • Eric Mabius played Jack Hess, the devious new Dean of Discipline at the Harbor High School who was ultimately thrown out of the school by Sandy's bluff (he was caught making out with Taylor Townsend).
  • Blake Robbins played Don, a mafia soldier, who badgered Jimmy for money. When he failed to pay back the money, Jimmy was severely beaten and left Newport on a boat to Maui.
  • Paula Trickey plays Veronica Townsend, Taylor's mother who continuously hounds her daughter about her appearance and the fact that she doesn't have much of a social life.
  • Jeff Hephner played Matt Ramsey, the former Vice-President under Sandy Cohen at the Newport Group. Sandy fired him at the behest of the Henry Griffin, chair of the hospital board, partially because of his past relationship with Griffin's daughter and his wild social life. He left for Chicago to start his own business.
  • Lisa Rotondi played Gwen Harper, Johnny's mother.
  • Cam Gigandet played Kevin Volchok, a surfer and drug abuser who decided to try and make Ryan's life a living hell after picking on Johnny. He had a relationship with Sadie some years before, but the nature is unclear. Formerly dated Marissa and ultimately caused her death [1][2]
  • Nikki Reed played Sadie Campbell, a cousin of Johnny Harper, whom Ryan became very interested in and developed a relationship with. However, she left Newport Beach to develop her jewelry-making business.
  • Nicole Garza played Chloe, a co-worker of Ryan's mom in Albuquerque. She and Ryan had a one-night stand.
  • Matt Barr played Wes Seifer, Ryan's college orientation buddy who developed an attraction for Marissa.
  • Shaun Duke played Henry Griffin, chair of the hospital board.
  • Autumn Reeser plays Taylor Townsend, a student who battled Summer for full control of Harbor High School's social scene. Taylor was extremely lonely, and upon realizing this, Summer and Seth became friends with her. In the season three finale, Seth tells her she has become inner circle material, making her a part of the short-lived “Fab Five.” She is the daughter of Veronica Townsend. She will become a season regular during season four.
  • Jackson Rathbone played Justin, Kaitlin's ex-boyfriend from boarding school.
  • Lucy Hale played Hadley Hawthorne, a friend of Kaitlin's.
  • Willa Holland plays Kaitlin Cooper, Marissa's younger sister who returned from boarding school in the middle of season three. Jimmy Cooper and Julie Cooper are her parents and her personality is more like her mother's than father's. In the Season three finale, she tells her mother that she's moving back to Newport permanently, becoming a regular in season four.
  • Lisa Tucker played herself, an American Idol singer who lives in Orange County.
  • Erin Foster played Heather, a public school-enemy of Marissa's. It's revealed she has a relationship with Volchok and was also saved from Marissa in a dangerous rape situation.


Season 4 information

Template:Future television series

File:TheOC - Season 4 cast promo.jpg
The O.C. Season 4 Cast

The network (FOX) has initially ordered only 16 episodes, well below the current average of 25 per season. The fourth season premiere has been set for November 2Cite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page)., starting the season after coverage of Major League Baseball's World Series. Dependent on ratings performance, additional episodes could potentially be ordered. Entering the new season, The O.C.'s timeslot is also expected to face increased challenges for ratings both from current competitor CSI: Crime Scene Investigation on CBS, and a relocated Grey's Anatomy. But the network states they "have faith in the shows fans to follow the show" even with the increased challenges.

New faces will be seen in this season including American R&B artist Chris Brown and Everwood's Chris Pratt.

The Cohens struggle to keep Ryan focused on the future after the death of Marissa, fighting forces that threaten to pull him back into his old life. With Julie struggling Sandy and Kirsten reach out to Kaitlin.[2]

Fox has also placed a special viewing of the entire first episode on MySpace. The entire episode is viewable with no commercial interruption.[citation needed]

Music from The O.C.

See also: List of songs in The O.C.

The series is also known for its music, specifically indie rock and other non-mainstream bands.

The Beastie Boys single Ch-Check It Out debuted on the show in the episode The Strip that aired April 28 2004.[3] U2 debuted their song Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own on the show before it was released as a single, as did Coldplay with their song Fix You, Gwen Stefani with her single Cool and former member of Frou Frou, Imogen Heap and her single Hide And Seek. The song was featured twice in the episode The Dearly Beloved. During the first season series co-producer McG organised a video of the cast singing the 1979 old school punk classic "California" (not the Phantom Planet song), originally released on the "Beach Blvd." album released on Posh Boy Records. Intended as a secret bonus feature for the first of "The O.C." music compilations, this recording was pulled at the last minute and remains shelved.

Guest Artists

Many popular indie artists have also guest-starred on the show, the majority playing at the venue, the 'Bait Shop' that was introduced in the first season and started becoming a regular hangout in the second season, purposely to showcase indie rock bands on the show, following the success of Rooney in the first season.

International distribution

Production information

Casting

Adam Brody originally wanted the part of Ryan Atwood. Chad Michael Murray was originally offered a role on the series as Luke Ward's good friend, but declined so he could be on One Tree Hill instead. The role of Luke Ward's friend was dropped.

Filming

Due to labor union salary rules about filming outside of Los Angeles County, The O.C. is actually filmed in several southern California Beach Cities (40 miles away from the actual Newport Beach) to reduce costs. Most interior shots of homes and offices are shot at Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach[4], while most exterior shots (e.g. the pier, diner, and "the Bait Shop") are filmed in neighboring Redondo Beach[5] and Hermosa Beach[6].

Another important place, The Newport Group HQ is also the same building used for the Miami-Dade Police HQ in CSI: Miami.[7]

A recent episode brought O.C. characters Ryan, Marissa, Seth, and Summer to Cal and Brown respectively on college tours. These scenes were really shot on two Los Angeles universities: USC was used for Brown and UCLA for Cal.

Impact of the show on society

U.S. television ratings

Seasonal rankings (based on average total viewers per episode) of The O.C. on FOX.

Note: Each American network television season starts in late September and ends in late May, which coincides with the completion of May sweeps.

Season Timeslot Season Premiere Season Finale TV Season Rank Viewers
(in millions)
1st Tuesday 9:00PM
(from August 5, 2003 to September 16, 2003)

Wednesday 9:00PM
(from October 29, 2003 to
May 5, 2004) 		August 5, 2003 May 5, 2004 2003-2004 #53 9.7 [8]
2nd Thursday 8:00PM November 4, 2004 May 19, 2005 2004-2005 #85 7.0 [9]
3rd Thursday 8:00PM
(from September 8, 2005 to December 15, 2005)

Thursday 9:00PM
(from January 12, 2006 to
May 18, 2006) 		September 8, 2005 May 18, 2006 2005-2006 #105 5.6 [10]

According to The Futon Critic, "for its seven-week summer [of 2003] run, The O.C. averaged 8.43 million viewers and increased its viewership by more than 17% from its premiere by the end of the summer."[11] However, its viewership numbers from the summer were not factored into their 2003-2004 season average because it aired before the start of the 2003-2004 U.S. television season.

The FOX soap's audience perked up, starting from February 2004, when it started airing directly after episodes of the third season of the mega-hit American Idol.

The FOX network gave the show a vote of confidence when it moved The O.C. to Thursdays 8:00pm for the fall of 2004 to boost their dismal Thursday nights. The move resulted in some moderate success by improving the 8:00-9:00 (Eastern & Pacific time) timeslot yet the network was unable to find a program in the 9:00-10:00 (Eastern & Pacific time) timeslot to hold on to the O.C.'s audience numbers.

Although the show's targeted audience of female teens remain somewhat large, its overall audience declined sharply in its third season. An example of this decline was shown when it attracted 7.36 million viewers[12] for the March 9, 2006 episode, which aired after a special Thursday night results show during the fifth season of American Idol. Although these numbers were a small improvement of its third season average, it retained just 28% of Idol's audience,[13] which is well below the rate earned by most programs that air following hit shows and especially well below its post-Idol retention rate in the spring of 2004.

In Orange County

Before the show aired, Orange County residents referred to their county by its full name, or just 'O.C.'. The abbreviation 'O.C.' was also used by local radio and television stations, but without 'The'. At first, the name of the show was met with scorn, but since then, some people call it 'The O.C.' as a joke, and Orange County Supervisor Chris Norby went as far as to propose changing the name of Orange County's John Wayne Airport to The O.C. Airport, John Wayne Field but backed down the next day after his office received negative phone calls and emails from angry county residents. This somewhat negative sentiment toward the moniker is reflected in the running gag featured in the former Fox television show Arrested Development, which also takes place in Orange County: a number of the characters use the name "The O.C." (in various settings), to which Michael consistently responds, "Don't call it that."

The O.C. has been mentioned on other T.V shows; In House, Hugh Laurie's character, Gregory House shows a keen interest in the show, Lisa Simpson from The Simpsons, Larry Gold from The War at Home, Roger from American Dad and Stewie from Family Guy are all fans of the show. Michael on the British sitcom My Family is also asked by his mother if he wants the show recording while he is on an army training course. In the Australian soap opera Neighbours, some of the characters (particularly the Timmins family, and Summer Hoyland) are avid fans of the O.C. Jack McFarland on Will & Grace made a remark about "25 year old children and 35 year old parents" in the episode Christmas Break written by Bill Wrubel. In The Blaze Of Glory, Carter Buckley criticises Julie Cooper as being amongst Newport's "fifty five year old women with twenty five years old breasts".

Specials

The O.C. has had two television specials, detailing behind-the-scenes information, interviews, and bloopers.

  • The O.C. - Obsessed Completely (First Aired 9-16-04)
  • Welcome to The O.C. - A Day In The Life (First Aired 9-23-04)

DVD releases

The Complete First Season
File:OC 1.jpg Set Details Special Features
  • 27 Episodes
  • 7-Disc Set
  • 4:3 Aspect Ratio
  • Available Subtitles:
    • English, Spanish and French
  • Available Audio Tracks:
    • English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
  • Commentary on "Pilot"
  • On-screen Music Track Guide Viewing Mode on Six Episodes
  • Unaired Scenes
  • Featurettes:
    • Casting the O.C.
    • The Music of the O.C.
  • Inside the Real O.C. with Executive Producer McG
  • Season 2 Sneek Peak


Release Dates
 United States  United Kingdom  Australia
October 26 2004 October 18 2004 February 2 2005
The Complete Second Season
File:OC 2.jpg Set Details Special Features
  • 24 Episodes
  • 7-Disc Set
  • 16:9 Aspect Ratio
  • Available Subtitles:
    • English, Spanish and French
  • Available Audio Tracks:
    • English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)

Region 1

  • Commentary on "The Chrismukkah That Almost Wasn't"
  • Beachy Couture: How O.C. Fashion Is Made
  • The O.C. - Obsess Completely: Retrospective TV Special
  • Gag and Goofs from Seasons 1 and 2

All Regions

  • Commentary on "The Rainy Day Women"
  • Extended creator's cut of The Rainy Day Women


Release Dates
 United States  United Kingdom  Australia
August 23 2005 August 5 2005 September 7 2005
The Complete Third Season
File:OCSEAS3.jpg Set Details Special Features
  • 25 Episodes
  • 7-Disc Set
  • 16:9 Aspect Ratio
  • Available Subtitles:
    • English, Spanish and French
  • Available Audio Tracks:
    • English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)

Region 1

  • "The Party Favor: From Script to Screen" featurette
  • Pass the Remote: Selected Scene-Surfing Commentary
  • Gag and Goofs Reel

All Regions

  • "What's in a Name?" Featurette
  • "Making Of The Subways Music Video" Featurette



Release Dates
 United States  United Kingdom  Australia
October 24 2006 September 4 2006 September 6 2006

References

  1. ^ Cynthia Littleton, "Fox living high life with 'Seth and Summer'," Hollywood Reporter, 28 August 2003, 6-7.
  2. ^ The O.C. official information from FOX.
  3. ^ Yahoo Launch News Story
  4. ^ Seeing Stars: The O.C. -> Studio
  5. ^ Seeing Stars: The O.C. -> Redondo Beach
  6. ^ Seeing Stars: The O.C. -> Hermosa Pier
  7. ^ Seeing Stars: The O.C. -> Newport Group
  8. ^ Viewership numbers of primetime programs in the 2003-04 television season
  9. ^ "Hollywood Reporter: Final audience and ratings figures for 2004-05". May 27, 2005. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |source= ignored (help)
  10. ^ "Hollywood Reporter: 2005-06 primetime wrap". May 26, 2006. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |source= ignored (help)
  11. ^ FOX Extends 'The O.C.' to 27 Episodes
  12. ^ Viewer numbers for the week of March 6-12, 2006
  13. ^ Sorry, 'Sopranos': 'Housewives' Still Rule the Roost
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