The cast of Beverly Hills 90210.
The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
(c)1998-2002; (c)2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
All other sections in this Literature Study Guide are owned and copyrighted by BookRags, Inc.
Premiering in October 1990, television teen drama Beverly Hills 90210 became a cultural phenomenon, both in the United States and abroad, and was the precursor to the deluge of teen-based dramas that were to dominate prime-time television in the late 1990s. The show helped to establish the new Fox Television Network, and was the first network to challenge the traditional big three—ABC, CBS, and NBC—for the youth audience.
The title of the program refers to the location of its setting, the posh city of Beverly Hills, California (zip code 90210). Produced by Aaron Spelling, the program focused on a group of high school students. The ensemble cast, featured Jason Priestly (twice nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a TV Series—Drama in 1993 and 1995), Shannon Doherty, Jennie Garth, Luke Perry, Tori Spelling, Ian Ziering, and Gabrielle Carteris. They were catapulted into the realm of teen idols (despite the fact that most were in their twenties), and their images graced publications and commercial products. Because of the setting, the program presented glamorous lifestyles and paid great attention to fashion, an aspect which was not lost on its audience, who followed clothing, music, and hairstyle trends.
The cast of Beverly Hills 90210.
Much of the show's appeal has been attributed to the story lines, which presented issues and concerns relevant to its teenage audience: parental divorce, eating disorders, learning disabilities, sexuality, substance abuse, and date rape. As the actors aged, so did their characters, and by the sixth season several were attending the fictitious California University, encountering more adult problems and issues. Although the show was praised for tackling such important, and often controversial, teen issues in a serious manner, many found the program problematic because it upheld narrowly defined concepts of physical beauty, presented a luxurious world of upper-class materialism, rarely included people of color, and constructed the problems presented in unrealistic terms.
McKinley, E. Graham. Beverly Hills 90210: Television, Gender, and Identity. Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania, 1997.
Simonetti, Marie-Claire. "Teenage Truths and Tribulations across Cultures: Degrassi Junior High and Beverly Hills 90210." Journal of Popular Film and Television. Vol. 22, Spring 1994, 38-42.