Beverly Hills, 90210
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''Beverly Hills, 90210'' (often referred to as ''90210'') is an American
teen drama In film and television show, television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or docudrama, semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humour, humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional te ...
television series created by Darren Star and produced by Aaron Spelling via his production company Spelling Television. The series ran for 10 seasons on Fox from October 4, 1990, to May 17, 2000, and is the first of six television series in the ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' franchise. The series follows the lives of a group of friends living in
Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hills ...
, as they transition from high school to college and into the adult world. "90210" refers to one of the city's five ZIP codes. The initial premise of the show was based on the adjustment and culture shock that twins Brandon ( Jason Priestley) and Brenda Walsh (
Shannen Doherty Shannen Maria Doherty (; April 12, 1971 – July 13, 2024) was an American actress. During her career Shannen Doherty filmography, in film and television, Doherty played a number of notable characters, including Jenny Wilder in ''Little House o ...
) experienced when they and their parents, Jim ( James Eckhouse) and Cindy ( Carol Potter), moved from
Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...
,
Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
, to Beverly Hills, California. In addition to chronicling the characters' friendships and romantic relationships, the show addressed topical issues such as sex,
date rape Date rape is a form of acquaintance rape and dating violence. The two phrases are often used interchangeably, but date rape specifically refers to a rape in which there has been some sort of romantic or potentially sexual relationship between ...
,
homophobia Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who identify or are perceived as being lesbian, Gay men, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred, or ant ...
,
animal rights Animal rights is the philosophy according to which many or all Animal consciousness, sentient animals have Moral patienthood, moral worth independent of their Utilitarianism, utility to humans, and that their most basic interests—such as ...
,
alcoholism Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World He ...
,
drug abuse Substance misuse, also known as drug misuse or, in older vernacular, substance abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods that are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder, differing definitions ...
,
domestic violence Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes r ...
,
eating disorders An eating disorder is a mental disorder defined by abnormal eating behaviors that adversely affect a person's health, physical or mental health, mental health. These behaviors may include eating too much food or too little food. Types of eatin ...
,
racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race or ethnicity over another. It may also me ...
(including
antisemitism Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...
), teenage suicide, teenage pregnancy, and
AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...
. After poor ratings during its first season, the series gained popularity during the summer of 1991, when Fox aired a special "summer season" of the show while most other series were in reruns. Viewership increased dramatically, and ''90210'' became one of Fox's top shows when it returned that fall. The show became an international pop culture phenomenon with its cast members, particularly Jason Priestley and Luke Perry, who became
teen idol A teen idol is a celebrity with a large teenage fan base. Teen idols are generally young but are not necessarily teenagers themselves. An idol's popularity may be limited to teens, or may extend to all age groups. By region Asia Ea ...
s; the series also made actresses Shannen Doherty and Jennie Garth household names in the United States. The show is credited with creating or popularizing the teen soap genre that many other successful television shows followed in the years to come. The show had many cast changes; Jennie Garth,
Tori Spelling Victoria Davey Spelling (born May 16, 1973) is an American actress. Her first major role was Donna Martin (character), Donna Martin on ''Beverly Hills, 90210'', from 1990 to 2000. She has appeared in made-for-television films, including ''A Fri ...
, Brian Austin Green, and Ian Ziering were the only actors to appear during its entire run and appeared on the first episode of the spin-off '' Melrose Place''. On February 27, 2019, it was announced that a six-episode reboot had been ordered by Fox and that the show would simply be titled '' BH90210''. The revival premiered on Fox on August 7, 2019, and was cancelled on November 7, 2019.


Series overview

The series begins with the introduction of the Walsh family—Jim, Cindy, Brandon, and Brenda—who have recently moved from
Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...
, Minnesota, to
Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...
, California, as a result of Jim's job promotion. In the first episode, Brandon and Brenda begin attending West Beverly Hills High School, where they befriend several classmates: the self-centered and promiscuous Kelly Taylor, carefree and spoiled Steve Sanders, smart and driven Andrea Zuckerman, ditzy and virtuous Donna Martin, brooding loner Dylan McKay, and younger and naive students David Silver and Scott Scanlon. The show follows the siblings as they bear witness and take part in the dramatic lives that their wealthy and privileged peers lead.


Characters

;Cast notes


Casting

Torand Productions was used by the production company for several seasons on the show. "Torand" is derived from the first several letters of Aaron Spelling's first and second children, Tori and Randy. The original name for the show, used during shooting of the original pilot in March and April 1990, was ''Doing Time in Beverly Hills''; later, the tentative title for the show changed to ''Class of Beverly Hills''. The show's episodes were issue-based until the producers decided it should become a teen soap opera. In the first season, the teenage characters (aside from David Silver and Scott Scanlon) were said to be in the eleventh grade, but due to the success of the show, their ages were
retconned Retroactive continuity, or retcon for short, is a literary device in fictional story telling whereby facts and events established through the narrative itself are adjusted, ignored, supplemented, or contradicted by a subsequently published work ...
to be one year younger in the second season, making them tenth graders in the first. Jennie Garth had to audition five times for the role of Kelly Taylor and was the first to be cast on the show. Gabrielle Carteris felt that she was too old to play a high school student. She first auditioned for Brenda because she thought that being a real-life twin would help her chances, but the producers felt that she would be better for the part of Andrea. When
Tori Spelling Victoria Davey Spelling (born May 16, 1973) is an American actress. Her first major role was Donna Martin (character), Donna Martin on ''Beverly Hills, 90210'', from 1990 to 2000. She has appeared in made-for-television films, including ''A Fri ...
( Aaron Spelling's daughter) auditioned for the show, she used the name Tori Mitchell and auditioned for the role of Kelly Taylor, but she was eventually recognized and was instead cast as Donna Martin. Tori Spelling brought
Shannen Doherty Shannen Maria Doherty (; April 12, 1971 – July 13, 2024) was an American actress. During her career Shannen Doherty filmography, in film and television, Doherty played a number of notable characters, including Jenny Wilder in ''Little House o ...
to her father's attention after seeing Doherty's movie '' Heathers'' and being impressed with her performance. Lyman Ward was originally cast as Jim Walsh in the pilot but was replaced by James Eckhouse, and Ward's scenes were cut and re-shot with Eckhouse. Kristin Dattilo was also up for the role of Brenda Walsh, but she turned it down. She later guest starred as Melissa Coolidge in an episode of the first season. Additionally, Luke Perry had auditioned for the role of Steve Sanders, but the role eventually went to Ian Ziering before Perry was cast as Dylan McKay. Perry's character was not an original cast member of the show, and he was first featured in the show's second episode. He was originally intended to only appear in one story arc, for one or two episodes. Fox was initially reluctant to have him included as a regular, but Aaron Spelling felt differently and gave Perry a bigger role during the first two years until the network was won over. In the first season, when Donna tries out for school D.J., she is referred to as Donna Morgan. Throughout the rest of the show, her name is Donna Martin. In addition, in the first season Donna's mother was named Nancy Martin and played by actress Jordana Capra. When she was reintroduced in season two, she was named Felice Martin and was played by actress Katherine Cannon. In the pilot episode, the role of Jackie Taylor was played by Pamela Galloway and by Ann Gillespie for the rest of the series. Terence Ford and Arthur Brooks portrayed Dylan's father, Jack McKay, in two episodes before Josh Taylor assumed the role.


Departures

The departure of Shannen Doherty at the end of season 4 came after a period of strife between Doherty, the other cast members, and the show's producers. Executive producer Charles Rosin commented in 2000 that Doherty "had habitual lateness, her lateness was appalling, and she had a callous attitude and an indifference." Trouble between Doherty and her co-stars, Jennie Garth in particular, was also widely reported in the media. Doherty, who was struggling in her personal life with her father's illness, came to an agreement with the producers to phase her out of the show at the beginning of season 4, when Brenda returns to Minnesota for college. It was planned to reduce her appearances from that point, but Doherty had a change of heart and requested to remain as a main cast member. However, as the fourth season wore on Doherty's attitude deteriorated and her friction with the other cast members intensified. When she caused continuity problems by cutting her hair halfway through filming an episode, the producers and cast requested from Aaron Spelling that she be fired. In season 5, the production accommodated Gabrielle Carteris' pregnancy by reluctantly writing a pregnancy storyline for Andrea. The producers were unhappy with the more adult direction of the character, and Carteris was written off the show at the end of the season. Also in season 5, Jamie Walters was introduced as Donna's boyfriend Ray, who later begins abusing her. The writers intended to "rehabilitate" the character in season 6, and Walters signed a $1 million contract. However, the show received such a flood of negative mail from fans complaining about Donna being "stupid" for staying with her abuser, that an angry Aaron Spelling ordered that Walters should be fired. Producer Larry Mollin said of the incident that "he altersgot to walk away with his money. But it was still devastating for him. We left him as being a beater, which stayed with him, unfortunately. People thought he was a beater. It was just terrible." In Season 9 Jason Priestley left the show after starring in 4 episodes.


Locations

The series was produced in
Van Nuys Van Nuys ( ) is a neighborhood in the central San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Home to Van Nuys Airport and the Valley Municipal Building, it is the most populous neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley. History In 1 ...
,
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, California. During the 10 years the series was in production it was filmed in a warehouse complex in Van Nuys, the interiors of the series as well as the exteriors of the Peach Pit parking lot and P.P.A.D. club entrance were all located off the 15000 block of Calvert Street. An unmarked gated studio entrance now stands at this address, but the exterior brick facing of the P.P.A.D. is still visible down the alley, on the side of the building. The studio building complex has since been the home to various projects including the 2006 CBS series ''
Jericho Jericho ( ; , ) is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, and the capital of the Jericho Governorate. Jericho is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It had a population of 20,907 in 2017. F ...
'', which guest starred James Eckhouse in one episode. Until February 2010,
the CW The CW Network, LLC (commonly referred to as The CW or simply CW) is an American commercial broadcast television network which is controlled by Nexstar Media Group through a 75% ownership interest. The network's name is derived from the firs ...
series ''Melrose Place'' was also produced at the original ''90210'' Calvert studios.
Post-production Post-production, also known simply as post, is part of the process of filmmaking, video production, audio production, and photography. Post-production includes all stages of production occurring after principal photography or recording indivi ...
services for ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' were provided by LaserPacific for all seasons. Many changes were made after the pilot episode. The producers first used a location that was used only once during the pilot episode for the Walsh house, that was located in a gated community of Brentwood. After the pilot episode the Walsh house was moved to
Altadena, California Altadena () is an unincorporated area, and census-designated place in the San Gabriel Valley and the Verdugos regions of Los Angeles County, California. Directly north of Pasadena, California, Pasadena, it is located approximately from Downtow ...
. The house used for Dylan's home in the show is located in the same Altadena neighborhood. Three locations were used for the frontage of The Peach Pit during the show's ten-year history. The original location, on Pico Boulevard in Los Angeles, was used in only the first few episodes of season one and was changed to a different location for the rest of that season. When the Peach Pit was fictionally remodeled during season two, the producers used Rose City Diner in Pasadena, California, to film the exterior of the gang's hangout, and it remained the same throughout the rest of the show's run. Most of the filming during the second season of the summer season at the Beverly Hills Beach Club took place in
Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
, at the old Sand and Sea Beach Club. The beach club used in the show was the very same beach club that was used during one summer season of ''
Saved by the Bell ''Saved by the Bell'' is an American television teen sitcom created by Sam Bobrick for NBC. The series premiered, in prime time, on August 20, 1989, a Sunday night. Targeted at kids and teens, ''Saved by the Bell'' was broadcast in the United ...
''. The filming location for West Beverly High School was in the middle class community of Torrance at Torrance High School, located in the 90501 zip code. Torrance High can also be seen in other shows such as ''
Buffy the Vampire Slayer ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' is an American supernatural fiction, supernatural drama television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon. The concept is based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film), 1992 film, also written by Whedon, a ...
''. When the ''90210'' characters began attending the then-fictitious California University in the show's fourth season, the scenes around campus were actually filmed at Occidental College in Eagle Rock. Kelly and Donna's beach house used in the show is located in
Hermosa Beach Hermosa Beach (, Spanish language, Spanish for "Beautiful") is a beachfront city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Its population was 19,728 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census. The city is located in the South Ba ...
. The Golden Oak Ranch, outside Santa Clarita, was also used for filming.


Broadcast

''Beverly Hills, 90210'' originally aired from October 4, 1990, to May 17, 2000, on Fox in the United States. The show aired Thursday at 9:00 pm for the first two seasons and Wednesday at 8:00 pm for the rest of its run. Prior to the premiere of ''Beverly Hills, 90210'', '' Glory Days'' was airing on Thursdays at 9:00 pm. After the show had moved to Wednesday, where Fox did not have regular programming, '' The Heights'' took over the timeslot. After ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' left Fox in 2000, it went to air reruns on syndication and was replaced by ''
Malcolm in the Middle ''Malcolm in the Middle'' is an American television sitcom created by Linwood Boomer for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series premiered on January 9, 2000, and ended on May 14, 2006, after seven seasons consisting of 151 episodes. The ...
'' and '' Normal, Ohio''. Seasons 2 and 3 featured all new summer episodes that aired during July and August before the regular fall episodes started in September. At the beginning of the third season, in July and August 1992, all new summer episodes of ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' were playing during the series new time slot of Wednesdays at 8pm but viewers could see repeats from ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' first season in the original time slot of Thursdays at 9pm. The Fox Network was heavily promoting the new time slot so viewers could find the show. The seventh season started earlier than usual because of the
1996 Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...
and the MLB Playoffs on Fox during the month of October. At various times since 1998, reruns of the show have aired in syndication, on FX until 2005. Later SoapNet aired reruns of the show seven days a week until 2013. The syndicated episodes featured the show's original music, unlike the DVD and
Hulu Hulu (, ) is an American Subscription business model, subscription streaming media service owned by Disney Streaming, a subsidiary of the Disney Entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company. It was launched on October 29, 2007, initially as ...
releases. Since 2014, Pop airs reruns of the show with two back-to-back episodes, sometimes three or four. The syndicated episodes that are featured on this network however, do not use the show's original music with the content mostly taken from the DVD releases.


Specials

A number of specials were produced during and after the show's run.


Reception


U.S. ratings

After poor ratings in the first season, the episodes' average ratings per season increased, constantly maintained above 11% from season two until season five, despite
Shannen Doherty Shannen Maria Doherty (; April 12, 1971 – July 13, 2024) was an American actress. During her career Shannen Doherty filmography, in film and television, Doherty played a number of notable characters, including Jenny Wilder in ''Little House o ...
's departure at the end of season four. From season six until the end of the series the average rating gradually decreased, and the final blow to the show was the early ninth season's departures of Jason Priestley and
Tiffani Thiessen Tiffani Amber Thiessen (born January 23, 1974) is an American actress. Her roles as List of Saved by the Bell characters#Kelly Kapowski, Kelly Kapowski on NBC's ''Saved by the Bell'' (1989–1993) and its Saved by the Bell#Spin-offs, spin-off me ...
(both season peaks at 8.1%). Since then no episode reached 8% again in ratings until the series finale, despite Luke Perry's return, with average ratings falling to 6.9% in season nine and 5.9% in the last season. During the entire series, the episodes with the highest ratings peaked at 14.1%, and included the closing episodes of seasons two and three, and the opening episode of season five. * Debut: Class of Beverly Hills/Pilot – 7.2 rating *
Series finale A series finale is the final installment of an episodic entertainment series, most often a television series. It may also refer to a final theatrical sequel, the last part of a television miniseries, the last installment of a literary series, ...
: 16.8 million viewers; 9.6 rating (8 pm – 10 pm) * Specials: ** Behind the Scenes (Season 3): 8.2 rating ** Best Moments of 90210 (Season 6): 8.4 rating ** Our Favorite Moments of 90210 (Season 9): 5.3 rating ** Final Goodbye (Season 10): 6.8 rating ** 10-Year High School Reunion (7 million viewers, 4.5 rating) (repeat on August 7, 2003: 3.3 million; 2.1 rating)


Series finale

Ratings for the tenth season declined to an average of 10 million viewers per episode (according to a May 2000 issue of ''
Us Weekly ''Us Weekly'' is an American weekly celebrity and entertainment magazine based in New York City. ''Us Weekly'' was founded in 1977 by The New York Times Company, which sold it in 1980. It was acquired by Wenner Media in 1986, and sold to Ameri ...
''). The ratings were low compared to previous seasons. The lower ratings, along with the high costs associated with any television show in its later seasons, led Fox to end the series in January 2000. Though there were many cast changes, over 25 million people tuned in to watch the final episode, which aired in May 2000. Tiffani Thiessen returned in the series finale.


Impact

In 2008, ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...
'' named the show #20 on its list of top 100 TV shows in the past 25 years. The magazine also named the theme music #15 on its list of top 25 TV themes in the past 25 years, and the "90210 Sideburns" #50 on its list of Pop Culture Moments that Rocked Fashion. The show was named one of the Best School Shows of All Time by AOL TV. The first-season episode "Spring Dance" caused outrage from many parents after the character of Brenda loses her
virginity Virginity is a social construct that denotes the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. As it is not an objective term with an operational definition, social definitions of what constitutes virginity, or the lack thereo ...
to Dylan. Parents were offended by the fact that Brenda suffers no consequences and shows no remorse for having had sex, something unusual for network television in 1991. After a slew of angry phone calls to the network, Fox decided to placate upset viewers by featuring a pregnancy scare for Brenda and Dylan in the second season, as a means of "punishing" the teenagers for their decision. Executive Producer Charles Rosin criticized this decision, saying "Someday I will write a long article about the censorship that occurred after Brenda lost her virginity at the Spring Dance to her boyfriend (who had been AIDS tested) because she was happy and not full of remorse." In February 1992, at the height of the show's popularity, the three main stars Jason Priestley,
Shannen Doherty Shannen Maria Doherty (; April 12, 1971 – July 13, 2024) was an American actress. During her career Shannen Doherty filmography, in film and television, Doherty played a number of notable characters, including Jenny Wilder in ''Little House o ...
and Luke Perry were featured on the cover of ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
''.


Parodies

The rap duo
Insane Clown Posse Insane Clown Posse, often abbreviated as ICP, is an American hip hop duo. Formed in Detroit in 1989, ICP's best-known lineup consists of rappers Violent J (Joseph Bruce) and Shaggy 2 Dope (originally 2 Dope; Joseph Utsler). Insan ...
released an EP titled '' Beverly Kills 50187'' which featured a song titled "Beverly Kills" describing member Violent J killing the series' characters for being rich and prejudiced toward the "lower class". The short-lived '' The Ben Stiller Show'' did a parody of this show, '' The Heights'' and '' Melrose Place'' called ''Melrose Heights 90210-2420'' that portrayed the cast as superficial, self-absorbed, and self-pitying, as well as introducing each of the stereotypical cast along with "Akeem, the black guy". A typical episode's "issue" was a character getting a headache, which affected all the other characters. Each episode would end with the same upbeat song (resembling ''The Heights'' hit single "How Do You Talk to an Angel") performed by the whole cast with new lyrics for each episode. When Jason Priestley guest-hosted ''
Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...
'' in 1992, one of that episode's sketches, which parodied ''Beverly Hills 90210'', involved that town's zip code being changed to 90218 due to the 1990 Census redistricting. Several of the characters take offense to the fact that Beverly Hills will be absorbed into poorer communities and convene at the Peach Pit, where a Hispanic busboy expresses pride that his native community of Reseda now shares the same zip code as the ''90210'' cast. The gang lashes out in different ways, with Dylan getting drunk and Donna and Kelly going impulse shopping. Priestley, in his role of Brandon, confiscates all their keys and puts them in a lockbox and gives them a tag to reclaim them when they regain self-control. The sketch ends with the zip code "Beverly Hills, 90210" retained as their rich and powerful parents lobbied the US government not to redistrict. The Fox sketch show ''
The Edge David Howell Evans (born 8 August 1961), better known as the Edge or simply Edge,McCormick (2006), pp. 21, 23–24 is a British-Irish musician, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the lead guitarist, keyboardist, and backing vocalist o ...
'' did a parody of ''90210'' that mocked Tori Spelling. During the sketch, the character of Tori constantly says, "I can do whatever I want because this is my Daddy's show." Aaron Spelling took offense to this, and asked for an apology from the producers of the show. ''Saturday Night Live'' also did a Tori Spelling parody as well, where Melanie Hutsell spoofed Spelling, which was met with less protest. ''
The Mickey Mouse Club ''The Mickey Mouse Club'' is an American variety television show that aired intermittently from 1955 to 1996 and briefly returned to social media in 2017. Created by Walt Disney and produced by Walt Disney Productions, the program was first te ...
'' did a parody sketch called ''Beverly Hillbillies 90210'', combining the characters of both ''90210'' and ''
The Beverly Hillbillies ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on CBS from 1962 to 1971. It had an ensemble cast featuring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer Jr. as the Clampetts, a poor backwoods family ...
''. In 1999,
Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera ( , ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter, actress and television personality. Recognized as Cultural impact of Christina Aguilera, an influential figure in music and having received Public imag ...
from the Mickey Mouse Club made a cameo performance on ''Beverly Hills 90210'' as herself performing at the PPAD for David Silver's surprise birthday party, season 10 episode 2: "Let's Eat Cake". Music from former MMC members
Justin Timberlake Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, record producer, and dancer. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Prince of Pop", ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' honored him as the b ...
and
JC Chasez Joshua Scott "JC" Chasez (; born August 8, 1976) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, dancer, and record producer. He started his career as a singer, actor, and dancer on '' The All-New Mickey Mouse Club'' before rising to prominence as a ...
of 'N Sync also was originally used during several opening title sequences during the mid-to-late seasons of ''90210''. ''
MADtv ''Mad TV'' (stylized as ''MADtv'') is an American sketch comedy television series created by David Salzman, Fax Bahr, and Adam Small. Loosely based on the humor magazine '' Mad'', ''Mad TVs pre-taped satirical sketches were primarily parodie ...
'' made its own parodies of the show as ''Beverly Hills, 90210 B.C.'' set in
prehistoric Prehistory, also called pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the first known use of stone tools by hominins  million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use o ...
Beverly Hills. When Luke Perry made his high-profile return to the series, MADtv did a second parody titled ''Beverly Hills 9021-H20'' which had the characters being stalked and killed off by Luke Perry ( Pat Kilbane), who had rejoined the cast as a masked killer who was a parody of Michael Myers of the ''
Halloween Halloween, or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve), is a celebration geography of Halloween, observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christianity, Western Christian f ...
'' film series. The Czech TV Nova parody show ''Tele Tele'' made a parody of the show known as ''Heverly Debils''. Three mini-episodes (about 10 minutes each) were filmed.
GZA Gary Eldridge Grice (born August 22, 1966), better known by his stage names GZA ( ) and the Genius, is an American rapper. A founding member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, GZA is the group's "spiritual head", being both the first member in ...
of the Wu-Tang Clan released a song called " Killah Hills 10304", a reference to the show's title in a song about crime and a rough neighborhood. A
VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...
promo for '' I Love the 90s'' featured
Hal Sparks Hal Harry Magee Sparks III (born September 25, 1969) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, musician, political commentator, television and radio host and television personality. He made contributions to VH1, hosting E!'s ''Talk Soup'', and pl ...
and Michael Ian Black sitting in the Peach Pit, with ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' theme music playing. Joe E. Tata also appears in the promo as Nat. In 2009, ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...
'' aired an episode called " Waverly Hills, 9-0-2-1-D'oh", which features Lisa wanting to go to a better school and finding it in the very posh town of Waverly Hills.


In pop culture

In 2021, ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' was one of the shows featured on season 1, episode 3 of
Vice Media Vice Media Group LLC is a Canadian-American digital media and broadcasting company. Vice Media encompasses four main business areas: Vice Studios Group (film and TV production); Vice TV (a joint venture with A&E Networks, also known as Vicelan ...
's '' Dark Side of the 90's'' entitled "TV for Teens."


Soundtracks releases

Three
soundtrack album A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television show. The first such album to be commercially released was Walt Disney's ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs ( ...
s were released: * Beverly Hills, 90210: The Soundtrack * Beverly Hills 90210: The College Years * Beverly Hills 90210: Songs from the Peach Pit.


Home media

The following is a list of all home video releases for ''Beverly Hills, 90210'':


VHS


DVD

CBS DVD (distributed by
Paramount Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to: Entertainment and music companies * Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS. **Paramount Picture ...
) has released all ten seasons on DVD in Regions 1, 2 & 4. Due to music licensing issues, most of the original music has been replaced on these DVD releases. Deleted songs include " Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover", " Losing My Religion", and "In the Mood". Starting with Season 2, some episodes are edited from their original broadcast versions. For reasons that were never made clear, the first three-season releases used promotional pictures from their succeeding seasons instead of the actual promotional pictures that were taken while the seasons aired. Due to the group pictures from the fourth season being used on the third season DVD and the absence of
Shannen Doherty Shannen Maria Doherty (; April 12, 1971 – July 13, 2024) was an American actress. During her career Shannen Doherty filmography, in film and television, Doherty played a number of notable characters, including Jenny Wilder in ''Little House o ...
in later seasons, a collage of still photos was used on the fourth season. Jamie Walters was not featured on the covers of any of the seasons that he regularly appeared in (although he did appear in some of the DVD menu still shots for seasons 5 and 6). Kathleen Robertson was only featured on the cover of the seventh season, even though she had been a regular since season 6, recurring in the entirety of season 5 and made her first appearance towards the end of season 4 (her photo was, however, used in one of the inner cases for the season 6 release). Hilary Swank, who was cast as a main star in the eighth season, is featured on the cover of the DVD, even though she left halfway through her only season on the show, while Vincent Young, who joined the cast that same year, is not on the cover at all, or on the cover of the ninth season (he is, however, featured on the tenth season cover), but
Lindsay Price Lindsay Jaylyn Price Stone (born December 6, 1976) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her roles as Janet Sosna on '' Beverly Hills, 90210'' and as Victory Ford on '' Lipstick Jungle''. She is also known for her work on soap ...
, Vanessa Marcil and Luke Perry were all featured on the cover, as were Jason Priestley and Tiffani-Amber Thiessen who both departed the series after a few episodes. Daniel Cosgrove was not featured on the Season 9 cover either even though he was a regular also (he is featured on the season 10 cover). For seasons 1–8, the DVDs were packaged in individual slim plastic cases which were then housed in a large outer cardboard box. Beginning with season 9, the discs were fitted into a singular standard-sized DVD case. Initial copies came with an outer cardboard slipcase. The ninety-minute pilot episode was released separately on June 15, 2004. On November 5, 2013, Paramount (
CBS Home Entertainment CBS Home Entertainment (formerly CBS Video Enterprises, Inc., MGM/CBS Home Video, CBS/Fox Video and CBS Video, currently branded as CBS DVD for DVD releases and CBS Blu-ray for Blu-ray releases) is an American home video company that distribut ...
) released ''Beverly Hills, 90210 – The Complete Series'' on DVD in Region 1, with extra bonuses not available on the season sets. On May 18, 2021, Paramount (CBS Home Entertainment) released ''Beverly Hills, 90210 – The Ultimate Collection'' on DVD in Region 1, which includes the 2019 reboot '' BH90210'' along with the season sets and bonus extras from the previous release.


Spin-offs and other media


''Melrose Place''

The series ''Melrose Place'' was a spin-off from the show, as actor Grant Show (who played Jake on ''Melrose Place'') appeared for a multi-episode run at the end of the series second season as Kelly's love interest, and a friend of Dylan's. Jennie Garth, Tori Spelling, Brian Austin Green and Ian Ziering made appearances as their ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' characters in the first few episodes of ''Melrose Place''.


''Models Inc''

''Models Inc.'', a series about the personal and professional struggles of several young models, spin-off from ''Melrose Place''. The series was introduced via the characters Hillary Michaels, the mother of ''Melrose Place'' Amanda Woodward, and model Sarah Owens—both of whom had appeared in a multi-episode run on ''MP''. In addition to his role in ''Melrose Place'', Jake Hanson was the only character to appear in both ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' and ''Models Inc''.


''90210''

A third spin-off premiered on
The CW The CW Network, LLC (commonly referred to as The CW or simply CW) is an American commercial broadcast television network which is controlled by Nexstar Media Group through a 75% ownership interest. The network's name is derived from the firs ...
Network on September 2, 2008, focusing on a family from Kansas who move to Beverly Hills when the children's grandmother has an alcohol addiction. In guest appearances, Jennie Garth,
Shannen Doherty Shannen Maria Doherty (; April 12, 1971 – July 13, 2024) was an American actress. During her career Shannen Doherty filmography, in film and television, Doherty played a number of notable characters, including Jenny Wilder in ''Little House o ...
and
Tori Spelling Victoria Davey Spelling (born May 16, 1973) is an American actress. Her first major role was Donna Martin (character), Donna Martin on ''Beverly Hills, 90210'', from 1990 to 2000. She has appeared in made-for-television films, including ''A Fri ...
reprised their roles as Kelly Taylor, Brenda Walsh and Donna Martin, respectively. Joe E. Tata also reprised his role as Nat, owner of the Peach Pit, diner turned coffee house, for a couple of episodes at the beginning of the show's first season. Ann Gillespie also reprised her role as Jackie Taylor, Kelly's mom, in the first 2 seasons. Jackie dies of cancer early in season 2. The series was canceled by The CW on February 28, 2013, after five seasons.


''Melrose Place'' (2009)

A fifth series was officially picked up by The CW on May 21, 2009. The show is an updated version of ''Melrose Place'', featuring a group of young adults living in a West Hollywood apartment complex. ''
Smallville ''Smallville'' is an American superhero fiction, superhero television series developed by writer-producers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, based on the DC Comics character Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The series was produce ...
'' producers Todd Slavkin and Darren Swimmer wrote the pilot script and became the executive producers on the series. The series was canceled on May 20, 2010.


Novelizations

Several books based on the scripts were written by Mel Gilden.


''Unauthorized Story''

On October 3, 2015, a television movie called '' The Unauthorized Beverly Hills, 90210 Story'' was aired on the Lifetime network. The film purports to dramatize the behind-the-scenes making of the series.


Reboot

In December 2018 it was reported on ''
Deadline Hollywood ''Deadline Hollywood'', commonly known as ''Deadline'' and also referred to as ''Deadline.com'', is an online news site founded as the news blog ''Deadline Hollywood Daily'' by Nikki Finke in 2006. It is updated several times a day, with en ...
'' that a reboot of ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' was being shopped around to different networks. The project was initially developed by
Tori Spelling Victoria Davey Spelling (born May 16, 1973) is an American actress. Her first major role was Donna Martin (character), Donna Martin on ''Beverly Hills, 90210'', from 1990 to 2000. She has appeared in made-for-television films, including ''A Fri ...
and Jennie Garth in conjunction with
CBS Television Studios CBS Studios, Inc. is an American television production company which is a subsidiary of the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global. It was formed on January 17, 2006, by CBS Corporation as CBS Paramount (Network) Television, as a re ...
, and was first hinted at by Spelling on her
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page the previous March. The bulk of the original cast is attached, including Garth, Spelling, Shannen Doherty, Jason Priestley, Ian Ziering, Brian Austin Green and Gabrielle Carteris. CBS confirmed on December 18 that the project was in "early development", adding "We aren't confirming much detail except that it is an untraditional take on a reboot with some of the original cast". On February 1, 2019, Spelling confirmed that a reboot of the show was underway, stating, She added that "almost everybody" from the original cast was set to return, with Luke Perry's participation initially presumed to be limited because of his work on '' Riverdale'' until his death on March 4. Following Perry's death, CBS Television executive David Stapf said the new series would honor him in some way. Stapf also confirmed Spelling pitched the idea of a new TV show reuniting the original cast. On February 27, 2019, it was announced that a six-episode reboot had been ordered by Fox. According to a press release on April 26, 2019, the revival — retitled as BH90210 — would feature the cast playing "heightened versions of themselves" in an irreverent drama "inspired by their real lives and relationships with each other." On May 8, 2019, it was announced that the reboot would premiere on August 7, 2019, at 9/8c on Fox. It was announced on November 7, 2019, that there would not be a season 2 of the reboot.


Awards and nominations


References


External links

* * * from CBS.com
90210 locations

BH90210 on IMDb
{{Authority control 1990 American television series debuts 2000 American television series endings 1990s American college television series 2000s American college television series 1990s American high school television series 2000s American high school television series 1990s American teen drama television series 2000s American teen drama television series American television series revived after cancellation American television soap operas American primetime television soap operas Beverly Hills, 90210 (franchise) Fiction about dyslexia American English-language television shows Serial drama television series Television shows about teenage pregnancy Television shows about drugs American television series about teenagers Television series about twins Television series by CBS Studios Television series created by Darren Star Television series by Spelling Television Television shows filmed in Santa Clarita, California Television shows filmed in Los Angeles Television shows set in Beverly Hills, California Television shows set in California Fox Broadcasting Company soap operas