''Party of Five'' is an American television

teen Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the te ...

and

family 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. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms t ...

created by

Christopher Keyser Christopher Adam Keyser (born 1960) is an American producer and writer of primetime dramas. He is best known for creating the television series '' The Society'' and ''Party of Five''. Early life Keyser was born to a Jewish family on Long Islan ...

and

Amy Lippman Amy Lippman is an American television writer and producer. Biography In 1985, Lippman graduated from Harvard University. She is perhaps best known as the co-creator of ''Party of Five'' with her writing partner, Christopher Keyser. She is polit ...

that originally aired on

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

for six seasons from September 12, 1994, to May 3, 2000. The series featured an

ensemble cast In a dramatic production, an ensemble cast is one that is composed of multiple principal actors and performers who are typically assigned roughly equal amounts of screen time.Random House: ensemble acting Linked 2013-07-17 Structure In contrast to ...

led by

Scott Wolf Scott Richard Wolf (born June 4, 1968) is an American actor. He is known for his roles in the television series ''Party of Five'' as Bailey Salinger, as Jake Hartman in ''Everwood'', as Chad Decker in ''V (2009 TV series), V'' and as Carson Drew ...

as Bailey,

Matthew Fox Matthew Chandler Fox (born July 14, 1966) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Charlie Salinger on '' Party of Five'' (1994–2000) and Jack Shephard on the drama series ''Lost'' (2004–2010), the latter of which earned h ...

as Charlie,

Neve Campbell Neve Adrianne Campbell (born October 3, 1973; ) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her work in the drama and horror genres. She has appeared on ''People'' magazine's list of "50 Most Beautiful People" twice. Following a series of minor ...

as Julia, and

Lacey Chabert Lacey Nicole Chabert ( ; born September 30, 1982) is an American actress. One of her first roles was playing Erica Kane's daughter on ''All My Children''. She was the third actress to play Bianca Montgomery, playing the part from 1992 until 1993. ...

as Claudia Salinger, who with their baby brother Owen (played by several actors) constitute five siblings whom the series follows after the loss of their parents in a car accident. Notable co-stars included

Scott Grimes Scott Christopher Grimes (born July 9, 1971) is an American actor and singer. Some of his most prominent roles include appearances in the 1984 cult classic ''The Night They Saved Christmas'', '' ER'' as Dr. Archie Morris, ''Party of Five'' as Wil ...

, Paula Devicq,

Michael Goorjian Michael Andranik Goorjian (born February 4, 1971) is an American actor, filmmaker, and writer. Goorjian won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Special for his role as David Goodson in the television film ''David's ...

Jeremy London Jeremy Michael London (born November 7, 1972) is an American actor. He is best known for his regular roles on '' Party of Five'', '' 7th Heaven'', and ''I'll Fly Away'', a starring role in the 1995 comedy film '' Mallrats'', as well as a notable ...

, and Jennifer Love Hewitt. While categorized as a series aimed at teenagers and young adults, ''Party of Five'' explored several mature themes, including substance and domestic abuse, teen pregnancy, mental illness, cancer, and the long-term effects of parental loss. Despite receiving positive reviews from television critics after its debut, including ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

'' naming it "The Best Show You're Not Watching" in 1995, the series suffered from low ratings during its first and second seasons, during which speculation arose that it would soon be cancelled. In 1996, ''Party of Five'' won the

Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Drama The Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Drama is one of the annual Golden Globe Awards, given to the best drama television series. Documentary series and mini-series are also eligible for this award. From 1962 to 1968, the category wa ...

, after which ratings and popularity grew for the majority of the remainder of the series. A spin-off starring Hewitt debuted on the network in 1999, '' Time of Your Life'', which was cancelled after one season.

Synopsis

The show, set in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

, centered on the five Salinger siblings (the "party of five" of the show's title), who become orphans after their parents are killed in a car accident caused by a

drunk driver Drunk driving (or drink-driving in British English) is the act of driving under the influence of alcohol. A small increase in the blood alcohol content increases the relative risk of a motor vehicle crash. In the United States, alcohol is i ...

. The family is composed of 24-year-old Charlie (

), the eldest, a womanizing, immature manual laborer who struggles with the responsibility of being the new head of the family; 16-year-old Bailey (

), the once-rebellious teen forced into a role of responsible caretaker and later veering into alcoholism; 15-year-old Julia (

), a sensitive teen; 11-year-old Claudia (

), a precocious child prodigy musician; and baby Owen, age one. The siblings take over the running of their family's restaurant, Salinger's. Charlie initially serves as bartender and manager, and later Bailey takes over. Over the years, the Salingers face various struggles: the long-term effects of parental loss; in season 3, Bailey's attempt to recover from alcoholism; in season 4, Charlie's diagnosis with cancer; and in season 5, Julia's dealing with

domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...

in a relationship. As the series progressed, romantic relationships became plot points and new cast members joined the show, including Jennifer Love Hewitt as Sarah, Bailey's girlfriend;

as Griffin, Julia's "bad-boy" boyfriend and later husband; and Paula Devicq as Kirsten, Owen's nanny, who develops an on-again-off-again relationship with Charlie throughout the series, until they get married during the show's sixth and final season.

Cast and characters

Main

as Bailey Salinger (ages 16–21); the second-born sibling who is forced to grow up fast after growing up as a rebellious teenager and deal with life after his parents' deaths. *

as Charlie Salinger (ages 24–30); the eldest sibling who struggles to live his own life in the reluctant role of legal guardian to his brothers and sisters. Immature and insecure, he dropped out of college his senior year to "find himself" and was planning to re-enroll when his parents' deaths made him his siblings' legal guardian. *

as Julia Salinger (ages 15–20); a highly intelligent, emotionally sensitive teen who struggles to adjust to being an orphan and having more family responsibilities. *

as Claudia Salinger (ages 11–17); a gifted violinist struggling to build a life for herself and also deal with being an orphan. * Paula Devicq as Kirsten Bennett Salinger (seasons 1–2, 5–6, recurring seasons 2–4); a graduate student who is hired as Owen Salinger's

nanny A nanny is a person who provides child care. Typically, this care is given within the children's family setting. Throughout history, nannies were usually servants in large households and reported directly to the lady of the house. Today, modern ...

and becomes romantically involved with Charlie off-and-on during the series, eventually marrying by season six and being pregnant with their first child by the end of series. *

as Will McCorkle (seasons 1–2, 6, recurring seasons 3–5); Bailey's best friend from high school. *

as Justin Thompson (season 2, recurring seasons 1, 3–6); Julia's friend, and later off-and-on boyfriend, during the series. * Jennifer Love Hewitt as Sarah Reeves Merrin (seasons 2–6); Bailey's sensitive, off-and-on girlfriend from high school who struggles to "find herself" after she finds out that she was adopted. *

Alexondra Lee Alexondra Lee (born February 8, 1975) is an American actress, dancer and producer. She is a television producer of such shows as A&E's ''Marcia Clark Investigates'', ''Jo Frost: Nanny on Tour'' and ''Alien Highway'', and History Channel's ''Legend ...

as Callie Martel (season 3); Bailey's roommate and girlfriend during his freshman year at college. *

as Griffin Chase Holbrook (seasons 4–6, recurring seasons 2–3); A moody and troubled teenager whom Julia dates, and later marries and divorces. Older brother of Jill Holbrook. The character was originally portrayed by

James Marsden James Paul Marsden (born September 18, 1973) is an American actor, singer, and former model. Marsden began his acting career guest starring in the television shows '' Saved by the Bell: The New Class'' (1993), '' Touched by an Angel'' (1995), ' ...

in the first-season finale episode. *

Jennifer Aspen Jennifer Aspen (born October 9, 1973) is an American actress, best known for her roles as Daphne Jablonsky in Fox teen drama series ''Party of Five'' (1998–2000), as Trina Hamilton in ABC family sitcom '' Rodney'' (2004–2006), as Kendra Gia ...

as Daphne Jablonsky (season 6, recurring seasons 4–5); a part-time

stripper A stripper or exotic dancer is a person whose occupation involves performing striptease in a public adult entertainment venue such as a strip club. At times, a stripper may be hired to perform at a bachelor party or other private event. M ...

who becomes briefly romantically involved with Charlie and later has his baby.

Recurring

The following lists all actors who appeared in five or more episodes during the run of the show.

Production

Fox Entertainment Group Fox Entertainment Group was an American entertainment company specialised in filmed entertainment owned by 21st Century Fox. Following the acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney, the group's assets were folded into various Disney units. Th ...

chairman

Sandy Grushow Sandy Grushow (born April 3, 1960) is an American businessman, and the CEO of Phase 2 Media, a board member for The Weather Company (parent company of The Weather Channel) and works with MediaLink in the role of senior media advisor. He is the f ...

commissioned the show as a possible replacement for ''

Beverly Hills, 90210 ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' (often referred to by its short title, ''90210'') is an American teen drama television series created by Darren Star and produced by Aaron Spelling under his production company Spelling Television. The series ran for ...

'', which was then in its fourth season. Grushow stated that "I wanted a show that would possess many of the same values that '90210' had in the beginning. A show about teenagers and for teenagers. I pitched the notion of a group of kids who lost their parents in a tragic accident and therefore were forced to raise themselves." When

and

came on board to create the show, they disliked the more lighthearted premise the network had come up with, essentially of a bunch of teens without parents left to go wild, which Keyser called a "''

Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead ''Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead'' is a 1991 American coming-of-age black comedy film directed by Stephen Herek, written by Neil Landau and Tara Ison, and starring Christina Applegate, Joanna Cassidy, Keith Coogan, John Getz and Josh Char ...

'' kind of thing." They decided to take the show in a more dramatic direction, where the characters have to deal with the serious repercussions of being orphaned and growing up.

Jerry O'Connell Jerry O'Connell (born February 17, 1974) is an American actor and television host. He is known for his roles as Quinn Mallory in the television series '' Sliders'', Andrew Clements in ''My Secret Identity'', Vern Tessio in the film '' Stand by ...

was initially offered the role of Bailey, but he chose to sign with the series ''

Sliders Slider or Sliders may refer to: Arts * K.K. Slider, a fictional character within the ''Animal Crossing'' franchise * '' The Slider'', a 1972 album by T. Rex * ''Sliders'' (TV series), an American science fiction and fantasy television series * ...

'' instead. Scott Wolf auditioned and was cast the very same day, the first of the actors to be cast. Neve Campbell, who was still living in Canada at the time, auditioned for ''Party of Five'' while she was in Los Angeles interviewing with different talent agencies to represent her. She auditioned along with her then-roommate

Tara Strong Tara Lyn Strong (née Charendoff; born February 12, 1973) is a Canadian-American actress. She is known for her voice work in animation, websites, and video games. Strong's voice roles include animated series such as ''The New Batman Adventures ...

, and ended up winning the role of Julia and moving to LA for the show, after it was picked up by Fox for a full series. The show was produced by

Columbia Pictures Television Columbia Pictures Television, Inc. (abbreviated as CPT) was launched on May 6, 1974, by Columbia Pictures as an American television production and distribution studio. It is the second name of the Columbia Pictures television division Screen Gem ...

(CPT) and High Productions. CPT would later be folded into Columbia TriStar Domestic Television, which soon afterward became

Sony Pictures Television Sony Pictures Television Inc. (abbreviated as SPT) is an American television production and distribution studio. Based at the Sony Pictures Studios complex in Culver City, it is a division of Sony Entertainment's unit Sony Pictures Entertainme ...

Nielsen ratings

Episodes

Home media

On April 27, 1999,

Columbia TriStar Home Video Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (abbreviated as SPHE) is the home video distribution division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. Background SPHE is responsible for the distribution of the Sony Pictures li ...

released the season 2 episode "The Wedding", the season 3 episode "Intervention", and the season 4 episode "Richer, Poorer, Sickness, and Health" on VHS. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment released all six seasons of ''Party of Five'' on DVD in Region 1 between 2004 and 2013. In August 2013, it was announced that Mill Creek Entertainment had acquired the rights to various television series from the Sony Pictures library including ''Party of Five''. They subsequently re-released season 1 on DVD on June 24, 2014, followed by season 2 on January 6, 2015. On January 5, 2016, Mill Creek released a complete series set featuring all six seasons of the series, available together for the first time. In January 2016, it was announced that

Hulu Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television serie ...

had acquired the rights to every episode of the series. ♦ - Manufacture-on-Demand (MOD) release.

Awards and nominations

Reboot

In January 2018, Freeform ordered a pilot for a reboot of ''Party of Five'', featuring five children who must take care of themselves after their parents are deported back to

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. In April 2020, the reboot was canceled after one season.

In popular culture

''Party of Five'' is credited with "

oving Oving may refer to: *Oving, Buckinghamshire *Oving, West Sussex Oving is a small village, and civil and ecclesiastical parish in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England. The village lies about east of the city of Chichester. The civil p ...

televised stories about and targeted at young adults away from the

soap-opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored b ...

genre and elping tomake the medium safer for the more realistic teenagers we’d meet later on ''

Dawson’s Creek ''Dawson's Creek'' is an American teen drama television series about the lives of a close-knit group of friends in the fictional town of Capeside, Massachusetts, beginning in high school and continuing into college that ran from 1998 to 2003. T ...

'', ''

Freaks and Geeks ''Freaks and Geeks'' is an American teen drama, teen comedy-drama television series created by Paul Feig and executive producer, executive-produced by Judd Apatow that aired on NBC during the 1999–2000 United States network television schedul ...

'', '' Friday Night Lights'', and ''

Gilmore Girls ''Gilmore Girls'' is an American Comedy drama, comedy-drama television series created by Amy Sherman-Palladino and starring Lauren Graham (Lorelai Gilmore) and Alexis Bledel (Rory Gilmore). The show debuted on October 5, 2000, on The WB and beca ...

''." In 2021, ''Party of Five'' was one of the shows featured in the third episode of season 1 of

Vice Media Vice Media Group LLC is an American-Canadian digital media and broadcasting company. , the Vice Media Group included five main business areas: VICE.com (digital content); VICE STUDIOS (film and TV production) VICE TV (also known as VICELAND); V ...

's '' Dark Side of the 90's'' entitled "TV for Teens."

References

External links

*
The Original Party of Five Was a Surprisingly Important Series
on ''Esquire''
Clip from pilot episode
{{Party of Five 1990s American teen drama television series 1994 American television series debuts 2000 American television series endings 2000s American teen drama television series Best Drama Series Golden Globe winners English-language television shows Fox Broadcasting Company original programming Serial drama television series Fictional quintets Television series about children Television series about families Television series about orphans Television series about teenagers Television series by Sony Pictures Television Television shows set in San Francisco Television series about siblings Coming-of-age television shows