Television Shows that Gave Orange County a Bad Reputation

Orange County, California has been the location for several television shows in recent years. But did they present an accurate depiction of the area? In a word, no. If you talk to those living outside of the area, they believe Orange County residents to be obsessed with money, snobby, materialistic, and the negative list goes on. The following television shows took place in Orange County. Find out why they hurt, instead of helped, Orange County's reputation.

The OC
Premiering in 2003, The OC aired on the Fox Television network. The show starred Mischa Barton, Ryan Atwood, Peter Gallagher, Ben McKenzie and Rachel Bilson. The show followed the life of a Chino (considered a crime-ridden area of San Bernadino county on the show) teen who finds himself living amongst the wealthy residents of Orange County, Newport Beach in particular. The OC was more soap opera then anything, with Orange County residents portrayed as wealthy, conniving individuals. The worse thing about this television show is everyone began calling Orange County, "the OC."

Laguna Beach, The Real Orange County
First airing in 2004, Laguna Beach followed the lives of eight teens from Laguna Beach, California that all attended high school together, many in the midst of their senior year. Cast members were depicted as spoiled children with fancy cars and designer clothes who partied, gossiped, and maligned each other. This show was a train wreck and many wondered how parents could allow their children to do what these teens did. It showed Orange County teens as promiscuous, underage drinkers that had no respect for their parents or peers. Worse yet, the show inspired spin-offs including Newport Harbor and The Hills.

Newport Harbor, The Real Orange County
The ugly stepsister of Laguna Beach, Newport Harbor never reached the popularity level that followed Laguna Beach. Try as they might, the show presented several scenes that were reflective of those seen in Laguna Beach including the parties, prom, high school drama and more. The cast members were forgettable and shown with the same careless attitude towards money. Much like Laguna Beach, the televison show presented Orange County teens in an unfavorable light.

The Real Housewives of Orange County
The worst culprit of all the television shows is Bravo's The Real Housewives of Orange County. I'm embarrassed that these people are the poster children for Orange County. Yes, there actually are people like this living in Orange County, but they are the minority. Created by Orange County resident, Scott Dunlop, The Real Housewives of Orange County was the first of the "Housewives" shows on Bravo. A knock off of the popular ABC show, Desperate Housewives, The Real Housewives of Orange County follows the lives of five wealthy women and their families as they go about their daily lives of shopping, bickering, flaunting and getting Botox. Even this season, with several of the housewives having money issues, I still find them all quite annoying. Orange County residents were portrayed as self-absorbed, snotty and superficial. Many people have asked me if everyone living in "the OC" are like these women. Fortunately, I can tell them no.

Sources:
www.imdb.com