The O.C.

This article is about the Fox television series. For the location from which the series derives its name, see Orange County, California. For other uses, see OC (disambiguation).

The O.C.
Intertitle used in Seasons 3 and 4
Genre
Created byJosh Schwartz
Starring
Opening theme"California" by Phantom Planet
Composers
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons4
No. of episodes92 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
Producers
  • Loucas George
  • John Stephens
  • Mike Kelley
  • David Calloway
Production locationCalifornia
Running time42 minutes
Production companies
Original release
NetworkFox
ReleaseAugust 5, 2003 (2003-08-05) –
February 22, 2007 (2007-02-22)
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

The O.C. is an American teen drama television series created by Josh Schwartz that originally aired on Fox in the United States from August 5, 2003, to February 22, 2007, with a total of four seasons consisting of 92 episodes. The series title, "O.C.", is an initialism of Orange County, the location in Southern California in which the series is set.

The series centers on Ryan Atwood, a troubled and gifted young man from a broken home who is adopted by the wealthy and philanthropic Sandy and Kirsten Cohen. Ryan and his adoptive brother Seth, a socially awkward, quick-witted teenager, deal with life as outsiders in the high-class world of Newport Beach. Ryan and Seth spend much time navigating their relationships with girl-next-door Marissa Cooper, Seth's childhood crush Summer Roberts, and the fast-talking loner Taylor Townsend. Storylines deal with the culture clash between the idealistic Cohen family and the shallow, materialistic, and closed-minded community in which they reside. The series includes elements of postmodernism, and functions as a mixture of melodrama and comedy.[1][2]

The series premiered with high ratings and was one of the most popular new dramas of the 2003–2004 television season. It was widely referred to as a pop cultural phenomenon and received mostly positive reception from critics.[3] However, ratings declined as the show went on. The low ratings led to its cancellation in early 2007 over the objection of an online petition that gained over 700,000 signatures.[4]

The O.C. has been broadcast in more than 50 countries worldwide.[5] The series has also been released on DVD as well as on iTunes and streaming services Hulu and Max.[6]

  1. ^ Gumbel, Andrew (January 5, 2007). "It's so over for The OC". The Independent. Archived from the original on September 30, 2010. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
  2. ^ "Soapedy a prime-time hit". Chicago Tribune. April 21, 2004. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
  3. ^ "Ryan, Seth, and co. shine in pop culture phenomenon". The Observer. Archived from the original on November 3, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  4. ^ "Plagued by low ratings, The O.C. gets canceled". Today.com. Associated Press. January 4, 2007. Retrieved September 30, 2010.
  5. ^ "Fox's once hot The O.C. canceled". Regina Leader-Post. Associated Press. January 5, 2007. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved February 10, 2007.
  6. ^ "The O.C., Season 1 on iTunes". iTunes. Retrieved June 20, 2016.