Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The neutrality of this article is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page.

Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County
The logo of Laguna Beach (from opening credits)
Genre	Reality TV/Documentary/Teen drama
Creator(s)	Liz Gateley
Starring	Kristin Cavallari (Season 1–2) Lauren Conrad (Season 1-2) Stephen Colletti (Season 1–2) Lauren Bosworth (Season 1) Christina Schuller (Season 1) Trey Phillips (Season 1) Morgan Olsen (Season 1) Talan Torriero (Season 1–2) Jessica Smith (Season 2–3) Jason Wahler (Season 2) Alex Murrel (Season 2) Taylor Cole (Season 2) Cameron Brinkman (Season 3) Breanna Conrad (Season 3) Lexie Contursi (Season 3) Rocky Donatelli(Season 3) Cami Edwards (Season 3) Kelan Hurley (Season 3) Chase Johnson (Season 3) Tessa Keller (Season 3) Kyndra Mayo (Season 3)
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	43 (to date) (List of episodes)
Production
Running time	21 minutes (30 min with commercials) /44 minutes (Season 2 Premiere)
Broadcast
Original channel	MTV
Original run	September 28, 2004 – present
Links
Official website
IMDb profile
TV.com summary

Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County (often referred to as Laguna Beach) is an American reality TV show on MTV documenting the lives of several teenagers living in Laguna Beach, a wealthy community located in Orange County, California. During the initial development stage, one of the ideas was to set this reality show in Beverly Hills mimicking the successful fictional '90s FOX television show Beverly Hills 90210. Producers scouted numerous wealthy Southern California towns such as San Marino, CA before finally deciding to base the show in city of Laguna Beach. During the process of filming the first season, the then popular teen-drama The O.C. had just began airing on television. To ride off The O.C.'s booming popularity, the tagline "The Real Orange County" was added to the show's moniker before airing to cable-television viewers on September 28, 2004.

It differs from the usual reality show genre in that the show is structured as a traditional narrative (seen more commonly in fictionalized television dramas or soap operas) than a straight forward observant documentary. The theme song is "Come Clean" by teenage star Hilary Duff.

Contents 1 Season 1 (Overview) 2 Season 1 Cast 3 Season 2 Cast (Overview) 4 Season 2 Cast 5 Supporting Cast Members (Seasons 1 & 2) 6 Season 3 (Overview) 7 Season 3 Cast 8 Supporting Cast Members (Season 3) 9 Criticism and Controversy 10 Season 4 Speculation 11 Episodes 12 US Premiere Dates 13 Official Show Websites 14 Virtual Laguna Beach 15 Music on the Show

[edit] Season 1 (Overview)

The show's debut season primarily featured the love triangle between Stephen, Lauren ("LC"), and Stephen's girlfriend, Kristin. Stephen and LC have been friends since childhood, and the show alluded to earlier romantic involvement between Stephen and LC, and to a previous love triangle between the same three people. Now, in LC and Stephen's senior year, the romantic conflict has intensified, as has the rivalry between the two girls. The rest of the cast served as supporting characters that helped to further or complicate this love triangle, and their own stories were discussed but were secondary to LC's life.

Secondary storylines included Christina's interest in a singing and musical theater career, Trey's charitable endeavors, and the relationship between Stephen's friend Dieter and Kristin's friend Jessica. Major events that transpired throughout the season included prom, graduation and college admissions, typical considering that many of the stars were seniors in high school at the time of the filming.

Season 1 finale ended with Kristin and Stephen staying together as a romantic couple, despite the fact that Stephen and LC were heading off to college together in San Francisco. Stephen went to San Francisco State University, while LC attended the Academy of Art University, also in San Francisco, to study fashion design.

Season 1 was filmed by MTV in the style similar to its other reality shows, such as "The Real World" and "Road Rules." According to MTV, cast members were not instructed to be in certain locations and were not filmed by multiple cameras. Season 1 was an extremely successful show for MTV, with outstanding viewer ratings.

Kristin Cavallari & Lauren Conrad emerged as break-through reality show celebrities, garnering media coverage beyond the Laguna Beach context.

[edit] Season 1 Cast

Photo	Information
	Lauren "Lo" Olivia Ogilvie- Bosworth (born 1 July 1986 in Laguna Beach, California) was a cast member of the first season of Laguna Beach. During Season 1, Lo was a senior and good friends with everyone on the cast but was closest to Lauren. Lo was seen on several dates throughout the season but had little interest in anyone. She did confess to hooking up with Talan at prom and though he pursued more, she was uninterested. LC said in an interview in 2006 that she and Lo sort of grew apart, but pictures recently seen online dated from winter break 2006/2007 and LC's 21st birthday show that they are friends again. LC was heard on a recent episode of "The Hills" saying that she and Lo didn't talk for a short time because of an alleged fight started by Jennifer Bunney. She attended the University of California, Santa Barbara majoring in Business Economics and was a member of the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. She lived in the Tropicana Gardens her freshman year. She transferred to University of California, Los Angeles her junior year and now resides in Los Angeles. She is currently majoring in Art History while learning the Italian language. Lo appeared in the Hills, ending growing speculation of a drift in the friendship between Lo and Lauren, it was revealed that because of Jenn, who appeard in both Laguna Beach and the Hills, that she was the reason that Lo and Lauren were not getting along for a period of time, and why Lo was not in the 1st season of the Hills.
	Stephen August Colletti (born 13 February 1986 in Laguna Beach, California) is a main character of the first two seasons and Kristin Cavallari's ex-boyfriend. Stephen had a short fling with cast mate Lauren. Kristin eventually ended the relationship for good at the beginning of Season Two, but Stephen spends plenty of time attempting to woo her back (a trip to San Francisco, dinner on Valentine's Day). Stephen is currently a MTV VJ on MTV's TRL. He is currently dating Hayden Panettiere who is starring on the show Heroes. It was rumored that Stephen was a member of Disney Channel's "Bug Juice", which is false. Colletti has never been featured on such show. Stephen has also had a part on One Tree Hill as 'Chase Adams'.
	Lauren "LC" Katherine Conrad (born 1 February 1986 in Newport Beach, California) was one of the principal characters of Seasons 1 & 2. On the show, she was the narrator and major character who nursed a crush on cast mate Stephen Colletti. After dating castmate Jason Wahler, she was used by Kristin Cavallari's discarded ex, Brody Jenner, and was rumored to have had a short rendezvous with Greg Carney of MTV's TwentyFourSeven. Her interest in fashion design began in the seventh grade, which led her to the Academy of Art University in San Francisco for one semester before trasferring. She earned an intern position for Teen Vogue Magazine in Los Angeles, and now lives in L.A. to attend FIDM where she majors in Product Development. One of her instructors is Nick Verreos of Project Runway season 2 fame. She now stars in her own reality show, The Hills, which is currently in its second season on MTV.
	Kristin Elizabeth Cavallari (born January 14, 1987 in Denver, Colorado). Kristin was a cast member for both the first and second seasons. Before moving to California, Kristin lived in Connecticut, Colorado, and Illinois. Once her parents divorced, her father moved to Laguna with her older brother Michael, while Kristin remained with her mother in Illinois. After having trouble with her stepfamily, she finally convinced her mother to let her move to Laguna Beach. Upon arriving, Kristin started school at a private Catholic high school, where Casey Reinhardt (Minor Season 2 Cast Member) also attended. Kristin reportedly disliked the school, and said in an interview, "I'm not even Catholic!". She met Alex M and Alex H during a driver's ed course, quickly became friends with them and convinced her dad to let her attend LBHS. Kristin was one of several teenagers who had their lives captured on the MTV reality show Laguna Beach and a fan favorite. Kristin met Stephen soon after starting school at LBHS and they were instantly an item and each other's first real love. Kristin ended the relationship at the beginning of her senior year because she wanted to be single, this led to her being pursued heavily by everyone from Talan Torriero to Matt Leinhart. She briefly attended school at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles but withdrew from college to pursue her acting/hosting career. She had a short run tv series, has been cast in several movies, appeared in a Teddy Geiger video, has guest starred on hit tv shows and often serves as a guest host for ET on MTV. Kristin dated Brody Jenner for little over a year, was linked to Nick Lachey, and is currently dating Nick Zano.
	Charles Trey Phillips (born 15 September 1986 in Los Angeles, California) was a senior and Season 1's "the thinking girl’s hunk." He has been friends with fellow cast member Stephen since they were both toddlers. He is passionate about politics and activism, and attended Bard College for two years after he had graduated from Laguna Beach High School. Season 1 showed Trey promoting his non-profit organization, Active Young America, and holding fashion shows to raise money for charity causes. He also appears in Season 2 of Laguna Beach a few times. Trey currently attends Parsons School of Design.[1]
	Morgan Olsen (born 1986) With her best-friend Christina Schuller, she was a cast member in Season 1, and appeared in a few episodes in Season 2. Morgan was imaged as the "good/innocent" girl. She often stood out from the rest of the cast because of her decision to abstain from pre-marital sex. Although she had no plans to audition for the show, she was influenced by a friend who encouraged her to participate. Morgan was rejected from the only college that she applied to, Brigham Young University. Her reaction was shown on camera. Despite that televised event, Morgan reportedly started attending classes at BYU in the Fall of 2004.
	Christina Michelle Schuller (born 8 September 1986 in Orange County, California) is the daughter of televangelist Dr. Robert A. Schuller who is the senior pastor of the Crystal Cathedral located in Garden Grove, California. During her stint in the first season of the show, Christina was usually seen with her best friend, Morgan. During one episode, the pair headed to New York where Christina aspired to become a professional Broadway singer. She now attends the University of Southern California.
	Talan Christopher Torriero (born 2 November 1986 in Orange County, California) was an original cast member in Season 1 as a high school junior. He briefly lived in Markham, Ontario for five years as a child. Talan hooked up with several members of the cast including LC, LO, and Kristin. In Season Two, he was often seen professing his love for Taylor Cole, but when she refused his affections he began pursuing Kristin. However, Talan and Taylor did attend Winter Formal together. Talan notably dropped out of high school near the end of the second season and got his [GED] Talan was engaged to Kimberly Stewart, only to break the engagement days later. He is currently dating Nicole from the Pussy Cat Dolls. He has subsequently appeared in a cameo on Kathy Griffin's Bravo TV reality show "My Life on the D-List".

[edit] Season 2 Cast (Overview)

With Season 1 seniors gone, Season 2 focused on Kristin and her "power clique." This clique included supporting cast members Alex H. and Jessica Smith, both of whom shared the camera last season (Jessica as Dieter’s girlfriend and Alex as Kristin’s best friend). This season followed the expected "Battle of the Cliques" and various love triangles experienced by the "power clique" members.

Another Season 2 storyline followed the love life of Season 1's LC. Having left college in Northern California, she returned to Laguna Beach and found a new love interest toward the end of the season in the form of Jason, playboy extraordinaire. Stephen made an appearance surprising LC with chocolate and flowers around Valentine's Day.

The love triangle from season 1(LC, Stephen and Kristin) continued into the new season, however the triangle became a web when Talan entered into a relationship with Kristin. A new love triangle for Season 2 also began involving Jason, Jessica and Alex M. When Alex and Jason decided they would be better off as friends, Lauren stepped in and it became a love triangle of Jason, LC and Jessica.

Season 2 marked the advent in the change of filming style that MTV used for this show. The show took on a narrative tone and was filmed with multiple cameras. Critics remarked that with the aforementioned changes and other notable departures from the traditional documentary genre, they were skeptical of the veracity of this MTV reality show. However, MTV still maintains that this show is about real people and real situations.

• Kristin, Stephen, LC, and Talan returned for a second season with the following new principal characters:

[edit] Season 2 Cast

Photo	Information
	Taylor Lauren Cole (born 12 February 1987 in Orange County, California) was featured in Season 2 as the best friend of fellow cast member Alex M.. At the beginning of the season, she and Kristin could not stand to be in the same room, but by the end of the year they appear to have, at the least, called a truce. She currently attends the University of Arizona and is still pursuing her degree. She is a member of the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority.
	Alexandra "Alex" Leah Murrel (born 27 January 1987 in Orange County, California) was featured on Season 2. She was best friends with Taylor Cole. Alex M. played a part in this season's love triangle, which included Jessica Smith, Jason Wahler, and herself. Jason was still dating Jessica when Alex asked him to Winter Formal, and he and Jessica broke up soon after the dance. However, after Alex discovers that Jason cheated on her with Jessica, they decide it would be best if they go back to being just friends. Alex M. currently shares an apartment in West Hollywood with fellow cast member Alex H. and close friend Britt Delano. She also modeled for a Bongo campaign with fellow cast members Kristin, LC, Stephen, Jason, and Talan. She is trying to make her mark in music. She is currently recording her debut album, which is said to be released September 26, 2006. However her Album was put on hold then soon canceled by her label "Eyecon Enterprises" This has been confirmed by Eyecon themselves; however, not confirmed on Alex's music page. The Album was canceled due to a scandal involving Alex's co-manager Brad White, employing a group of hackers known as "The Wraith" to make DDoS attacks against Eyecon Enterprises. The Wraith, however, turned in the logs of Brad and Alex collaborating to attack their own label.
	Jessica Renee Smith (born 15 September 1987 in Phoenix, Arizona) was a minor character as Kristin's friend and Dieter Schmitz's girlfriend in Season 1. However, during Season 2, her airtime increased and she became a principal cast member. During this season, Jessica briefly dated Jason, but the two broke up after she could no longer handle his wandering eyes. Despite their breakup, Jason could not stay away from Jessica and ended up kissing her both while he was dating Alex Murrell and while he was dating Lauren Conrad. Jessica later appeared on Season Three dating Cameron Brinkman. She and Alex H.are the only people to appear on all three seasons of Laguna Beach as a primary or secondary cast member. Let’s Go Travel Guides has hired the Laguna Beach star to be a spokesperson. She will travel to London, Paris, Amsterdam, and Berlin from March 10-20, 2006, and post daily entries and photos on her blog at http://www.letsgojessica.com. Jessica attends college in Orange County and wants to be a school teacher upon graduating. Jessica used to live in Arizona, but had a house in Laguna Beach,CA and they moved into that house as her permanent house. On March 27, 2007 it was reported that Jessica was arrested in Orange County for felony driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs. On March 26 she was driving a friend's Volkswagon Beetle on the Santa Ana Freeway and slammed into the back of an Acura causing "slight bodily injury" to people in both cars. The CHP stated that her level of intoxication and rate of speed at which she was driving, as well as wet road conditions all contributed to accident. She was held in an Orange County jail with bail set at $100,000.00. She appeared in court on March 28, 2007 and was bailed out of jail at $5,000.00.
	Jason Daniel Wahler (born January 11, 1987 in Orange County, California) was portrayed as the resident Don Juan of Season 2. Although he was officially in a relationship with Jessica at the start of Season 2,but they break up and Jason dates Alex M. Their relationship doesn't last long because Jason and Jessica hooked up and Alex M. found out. Near the end of Season 2, Jason dates Lauren (LC) but Jason was caught by Lauren kissing Jessica and they broke up. Jason appeared as LC's boyfriend on her MTV spinoff show The Hills. In August 2006, it was reported that LC and Jason had broken up yet again and that this time their break-up was violent. LC and her best friend and roommate Heidi notified their apartment management that they would be moving out and if Jason appeared he should be removed from the premises.[citation needed] However, this event occurred between filming seasons for The Hills. He appeared in Episode 6 of Season 3 where he was shown as friends with Kyndra's on-again and off-again boyfriend, Tyler. Jason has dated several people since his breakup with Lauren, including Season Three secondary cast member Nikki Dowers. On September 1, 2006, Wahler was arrested in New York City and charged with drug possession, resisting arrest, and bribery. On March 3, 2007, he was arrested and charged with underage drinking and resisting a police officer in Greenville, North Carolina. On March 6, 2007 he was sentenced to 60 days in the Los Angeles County Jail for punching a tow truck driver while intoxicated in 2006.[1]

[edit] Supporting Cast Members (Seasons 1 & 2)

• In addition to the principal cast members, there have been significant secondary characters, as follows:

Photo	Information
	Dieter Blair Schmitz (born December 21, 1986 in Orange County, California) appeared in the first two seasons as the best friend of Stephen and LC. He had briefly dated Jessica, some of which was filmed during Season 1. Dieter has started a charity called "Running Home 4 Teens". He attends Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, California.
	Cedric George Channels (born 26 November 1986 in Orange County, California) was shown as Jason Wahler's best friend and a close friend of Alex Murrell. Cedric was a date to both Candace Seigmund and Tara Springer of Season Three. He currently attends school at the University of Arizona alongside Taylor Cole.
	Lauren Alexandria "Alex H." Hooser (born 14 November 1986 in San Diego County, California) was shown as one of Kristin's two best friends. Despite her supposed snub in the opening credits she appeared at the start of almost every Season 2, clocking-up more air time that cast members such Stephen Colleti and Lauren 'LC' Conrad. She was often seen watching Kristin pack for various events, like visiting Stephen or the Cabo trip. During season 2 she hooked up with Jeff B. during Winter Formal. Alex H. mentioned her plans to attend college in Santa Monica, California during Season 2. She currently lives with Alex M. in L.A. and has appeared in a few episodes of Season 3. She, LC and Jessica are the only people to appear in all three seasons of Laguna Beach.
	Casey Beau Reinhardt (born 1 July 1986 in Los Angeles County, California) [2] appeared in Season 2. On the show she was referred to as "The New Girl" with an awesome house. She has competed in numerous beauty pageants, such as the Miss California Teen USA, the Miss Orange County Teen USA, and the Hawaiian Tropic Teen Miss. She is currently studying at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California to be a child-care technician, and is a member of the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. She is also an aspiring model and actress.
	Morgan Nicole Souders (born 14 April 1987 in Orange County, California). Morgan served as the link between the two cliques: Taylor & Alex M. and Alex H, Kristin & Jessica. During Season 1 her loyalty lay with Kristin et. al., but in Season 2 she was seen more frequently with Alex M. and Taylor. Morgan currently attends San Diego State University and is a member of the sorority Kappa Alpha Theta.

|- | [] | Jennifer Bunney (born December 5, 1985 in Orange County, California). She was Lauren Conrad's friend in Season 1 and Season 2 including several episode of 'The Hills.' Jen currently attends University of Southern California. |}

[edit] Season 3 (Overview)

Critics dubbed Season 3 as "Laguna Beach: The Next Generation" as its cast was formed with all new teenagers. Seasons 1 and 2 cast members, such as LC and Kristin Cavallari, have all graduated and this season followed an entirely new group of kids. Most of the cast members were in their junior year during the shooting of Season 3 and born in the year of 1989.

This season's storylines illustrated and intertwined the dynamics of the new cast's different cliques. The plot battles between Season 3 cliques resembled the same conflicts that occurred during Season 2 with Kristin et. al. versus Alex M. and Taylor. Season 3 pitted Tessa and Raquel/"Rocky" (dubbed the "good girls") against Kyndra and Cami (dubbed the "mean popular girls"). Another storyline dramatized the love triangle between Kyndra, her boyfriend Tyler, and flirty "single-ish" Cameron. Season 3 also followed Laguna Beach's homegrown rock band, "Open Air Stereo," with cast members Chase as lead vocal and Kelan in lead guitar.

MTV took a ratings risk in casting all this season's principals with unfamiliar cast members. However, certain featured alumni from Seasons 1 & 2 appeared in Season 3, such as Jessica Smith (Season 2 cast member and Cameron's girlfriend), Breanna (who is the younger sister of LC) and Cami as Kyndra’s sidekick. MTV acknowledged that Season 3 ratings declined over Seasons 1 & 2, but qualified that the ratings dip was expected because of the casting overhaul. MTV stated that they are committed to continuing this series with a full 15 episodes for Season 3 and will keep the core cast through Season 4. In that sense, Laguna Beach is being treated as a "franchise" show similar to MTV's Real World and Road Rules programming.

[edit] Season 3 Cast

Photo	Information
	Tessa Nicole Keller (born 20 March 1989 in Orange County, California). Tessa is of German, Irish, Filipino, and Chinese descent. Tessa served as the narrator for Season 3 and is also a model for the surf wear companies Hurley International and Lucy Love. Tessa enjoys designing her own clothes, which includes the dress she wore to prom. In her sophomore year, Tessa had a serious illness that landed her at the hospital in a medically-induced coma. Eating disorder rumors arose as the cause of her hospitalization, however it was confirmed she suffered from Stevens-Johnson syndrome catalyzed by an allergic reaction to an antibiotic prescribed by her dermatologist for acne (Source: Daly, Melissa. "My Friend Ditched Me!" Seventeen Magazine Dec. 2006: 102.). During her stay at the hospital Tessa allowed only a few people to visit her one of them being her lifelong friend Chase. Prior to her illness, Tessa had been close friends with Kyndra but claims Kyndra was one of the friends that did not support her during "the time she needed her the most". It has been revealed that Tara was the best friend who ditched Tessa but because of her refusal to be a main part of the cast, MTV decided to focus on the drama between Kyndra and Tessa. Cami mentioned in an interview that Tessa lied about the girls ditching her because she was sick and that the girls stopped being friends with her prior to her sickness. During the filming of Season 3, Tessa lived with Rocky's family in the Laguna Beach community as her permanent residence is in San Clemente. After her junior year, Tessa transferred to San Clemente High School. Since the end of filming season 3, Tessa and Rocky are still friends but it is still unknown whether or not Tessa will be cast in season 4. Tessa also enjoys eating pizza and fried chicken in her free time. [3]
	Raquel "Rocky" Nicole Donatelli (born 25 April 1989) [4] is of Italian American descent. She enjoys cooking and dancing in her spare time. Prior to this season, Rocky was best friends with LC's younger sister, Breanna. In Season 3, they were no longer best friends because of an unexplained rift (which was most likely caused because of Rocky's friendship with Tessa, who Breanna dislikes). Rocky became best friends with Tessa. The two of them were the "nice girls" of Season 3 and had a bit of a rivalry with the popular clique. Season 3 also showed Rocky's relationship with a guy named Alex who was from another school. Currently, Raquel and Breanna are friends again. She is still dating Alex and recently appeared on the cover of Teen Style.
	Kyndra Alyse Mayo (born 29 June 1989 in Orange County, California) is of Hispanic and White American descent. During filming for season 3 Kyndra did not attend Laguna Beach High School (the only major cast member who hasn't); instead, she was home schooled due to a learning disorder. It is unknown rather or not she currently attends LBHS. Unlike Cami, Kyndra has publicly stated that she is not bothered by the way that she was portrayed in Season 3. In an interview, she said "If everyone played the little nice girl, then no one's gonna watch the show. So I'd rather draw people into watching the show." In keeping with this sentiment, she has acted so uncooperatively since the end of filming Season 3 that MTV publicity executives and the show’s executive producer issued apologies to Kyndra’s interviewers. [5]
	Cameron "Cami" Michelle Edwards (born 24 March 1989 in Orange County, California) is of African American and White American descent. She has stated that she considers herself "a quarter black and three quarters white." Cami had a cameo appearance last season as Jason's prom date, as well as participant in Morgan Soulder's poker party, thus serving as a bridge character, albeit minor, from Season 2 to Season 3. Cami filled the role of Kyndra's sidekick this season. She and Kyndra formed the core of the "mean popular girls" clique that rivaled Tessa and Rocky. As the narrator of Season 3, Tessa dubbed Cami the "Queen of Mean," because of Cami's tendency to be sarcastic. After Season 3 aired Cami gave an interview [6] objecting to the way that she and Kyndra were portrayed. Cami stated that she looked forward to Season 4 because she intended to "clean things up," implying that she was not a "mean girl" and that other cast members were not as positive as they were portrayed.Cami got into Pepperdine University.
	Cameron Warren Brinkman (born 30 January 1989) is of White American and Lithuanian descent. He is a member of Laguna Beach High School's waterpolo team. Cameron is your typical high school "player" who hooked up with Tessa, Kyndra and Jessica. He no longer speaks to Kyndra or Tessa, but still considers Jessica a close friend. Cameron had a hard time during the Senior Graduation during Season 3 as most of his friends were seniors, and they have all now left Laguna Beach for college.
	Chase Kenneth Johnson (born 17 July 1988 in Orange County, California) [7] [8] is of White American descent. He is the lead singer of local rock band Open Air Stereo, currently signed with Sony/Epic Records. It was rare to see Chase in Season 3 outside from band performances, band meetings, and band rehearsals. He appeared to socialize with all the other male cast members. The few times Chase appeared in non-band related episodes was to comfort and counsel Tessa. Yet, he remained a principal cast member because of the episodic time devoted to Open Air Stereo.
	Breanna Christine Conrad (born August 23, 1989 in Laguna Beach, California). She is a native of Laguna Beach. She is the middle child in her family. She has an older sister, Lauren (who was in the main cast in seasons one and two) and a younger brother, Brandon. She is a member of the Laguna Beach High School tennis and soccer teams. In her spare time she enjoys gymnastics and dancing.
	Kelan Obrian Hurley [9] (born 28 July 1987 in Orange County, California) is of White American descent. He is the lead guitarist of local rock band "Open Air Stereo" with fellow cast member Chase. One of Season 3's storylines sporadically followed the musical and professional growth of his band. Kelan's band publicly stated that he and his bandmates did not care about the accuracy or honesty of the show's storylines. However, once the band realized the potential media exposure the show presented, they "knew it would be stupid to pass up an opportunity to reach out to more people and have them hear our music, and we're going to make it work." During season 3, Kelan is particularly noted for his crush on Lexie, but all attempts to hold her attention failed. Kelan now attends San Diego State University alongside Morgan Souders and is currently part of the fraternity Sigma Chi.
	Alexandra "Lexie" Brianne Contursi (born 18 September 1989) is of Italian American and White American descent. The show's production labelled Lexie as the resident "Ice Princess" because of her icy, stand-offish demeanor. She enjoys dancing and has a career goal of becoming a professional dancer. She is a member of Kyndra's clique and was only shown peripherally in Season 3 as a minor supporting character. She is known as Breanna's best friend. During the entire season Lexie steered clear of all Laguna boys but went to Winter Formal with Kelan and Prom with Derek.

[edit] Supporting Cast Members (Season 3)

Photo	Information
	Derek Maits LeBon (born December 30, 1987, in Laguna Beach, California). Although Derek is one of the "popular boys", we are first introduced to him when he asks Tessa on a date, to the annoyance of good friends Kyndra and Cami. Eventually the romance dies out and he is then shown as a good friend of Cameron's and close friend of Kelan. Derek was also seen as Lexie's prom date. He graduated high school in 2006, ninth in his class for scholarships. He now attends UC Davis majoring in Economics and plays soccer for the UC Davis Aggies. Derek remains close friends with all main cast members and during school holidays/some weekends is often spotted at MOSUN'S on Coast Hwy in Laguna Beach with cast members and family (one older brother Joe, two younger brothers Philip and Zack). [10].
	Alex Atkinson Alex is Rocky's on-again-off-again boyfriend (but they are mostly on). His first appearance on the show was before Rocky's Christmas party. He was a senior at San Clemente High School and Rocky said she liked him because "he goes to another school, but he's friends with EJ, so he's still 'plugged in.'" He attended Laguna Beach's Winter Formal with Rocky. He later broke up with her at a bonfire and attempted to start something with Lexie, who he asked to the Open Air Stereo concert. However, he claimed to have "realized his mistake" and got back together with Rocky in time for prom. They stayed together after his graduation (which Rocky attended). Both Rocky and Alex stated that after the season finale they are still dating.
	Tyler Dana Dowers (born 29 December 1985 in Orange County, California) Tyler is Kyndra's on-again-off-again boyfriend and Nikki's older brother. He made a very brief appearance in Season 2 alongside Jason Wahler. Tyler is shown as being extremely jealous of Kyndra's crush on Cameron and often acts in immature ways to try and make her feel guilty.
	Nicole "Nikki" Demming Dowers (born 1 July 1989 in Orange County, California Nikki is Tyler's younger sister. On Laguna Beach, she was seen with Kyndra and Cami, her good friends on the show. Cami has stated on Laguna Beach Canada after show that Nikki has been known to be a drama queen and has tried countless times to come between Cami and Tyler and Kyndra and Tyler as well. She has recently been spotted with former Season 2 cast member, Jason Wahler.
	Candace Suzanne Siegmund (born August 7, 1989) Originally asked to be a main cast member, Candace declined due to an older boyfriend that wanted nothing to do with the show. She was "cast" as a friend of Kyndra but appeared with her only momentarily. Since filming has ended, it came out that she is actually closer to Lexie, Rachel, and Tara.
	Tara Kathleen Springer Tara is best friends with Lexie and is popular amongst the boys of Laguna Beach, serving as both Cameron's prom date and Matt's winter formal date. She was often seen making fun of Kyndra. According to an article in Seventeen's December 2006 issue, she is the best friend that ditched Tessa during her illness. Tara has spoken up since then, claiming that Tessa's story is a lie.
	Nicholas "Nick" John Walker Friend of Cameron's. It was noted in one of the episodes that Nick showed interest in Rocky and asked her out on a date. He is known as Cameron's "wingman" and often gives him inappropriate advice about females.
	Nicholas "Nick" William Gross Nick is the drummer for Open Air Stereo. He was involved in a long-term relationship with supermodel Alana Bunte during high school and was seen several times on S3 with his bandmates. There were brief rumors of a romance between him and Tessa upon his breakup with Alana but those rumors have passed. He is currently attending University of Southern California.

[edit] Criticism and Controversy

Starting with Season 2, there has been a lot of debate over how "real" and "true" the show actually is due to the quality and quantity of the camera angles and the alleged public discovery that many of the show's scenes are manipulated by the show's producers. Critics who allege that the show's events are manipulated cite Season 2's "Peace Bonfire". It is reported that the MTV production crew staged and lit the bonfire before allowing the cast to interact with one another and also instructed Jason on his entrance and dialog. Another cited event from Season 2, in which Alex M confronts Jessica about her activities with Jason, was filmed in Cabo San Lucas. It has been reported that MTV producers stopped Alex M. before the confrontation in order to advantageously set up the cameras to fully capture the scene.

Aside from the physical manipulations of the show, it has been reported by an ex-editor that the producers edit the footage to produce friendships and relationships that do not actually occur in real life.

The show has given the city of Laguna Beach a decieving reputation as a city with spoiled, very shallow and superficial teenagers and neglects the city's famed bohemian enclave of art galleries and culture. Still, the official websites of cast members Casey Reinhardt and Raquel Donatelli both claim the show depicts their real lives and emotions.

MTV maintains that this is a reality show. Before each episode, a frame is run that states the people, the locations and the drama are real. Satirically, these allegations of the show's authenticity were explored on Comedy Central's late-night comical news/talk show The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. On February 1 [11] and February 6 [12], 2007, the Daily Show ran a two-part segment parodying the series covered by correspondent Jason Jones, satirically investigating the "true" nature of the series. The segments were structured very similarly to the average Laguna Beach episode, with the first part of the segment even opened with the Laguna Beach theme song, "Come Clean" by Hilary Duff and scenes of the beach with Daily Show cast members including Jones. Interestingly, both Comedy Central and MTV are cable television networks owned by the Viacom company.

The Parents Television Council has noted that the sexually explicit and profane content in the series make this show not appropriate for its intended teenage target audience. The series was included in a November 2004 study [13] on profanity, violence, and sexual content on cable television, among other MTV-produced reality shows including The Real World and Wildboyz. Although a majority of profanity in the series is bleeped out to meet guidelines for a "TV-14" rating, which indicates the show is appropriate for audiences over 14, the PTC pointed out that the context in which the bleeped word was used makes the word discernible, thus rendering the bleep useless. The organization also criticized MTV for not including content indicators such as "L" (language) or "S" (sexual content") in addition to its regular television ratings such as "TV-14" (unsuitable for children 14 and under), in its airings of Laguna Beach and other such programming, as a V-chip device cannot block the programming if no content indicators are included. As MTV airs such allegedly offensive programming several times during the daytime in addition to their regular timeslots around 10:00 PM (ET), the PTC has claimed that the adolescents whom MTV is targeting are being exposed to excessive sexual and profane content through inaccurately rated programs targeted toward them. [14]

In March of 2007 Kristin Cavallari spoke to GQ Magazine and stated that the producers manipulated the show by asking her to say lines to other cast members she admittedly would not have said on her own accord. “I don’t see Laguna Beach as a reality show,” Cavallari said. “I remember saying to the producer, ‘I would never really say this.’ I’m not a bitch. They said, ‘Well, Kristin, you’re playing a character, so just try it.’” Source

MTV originally wanted to film the show at Desert Mountain High School in Scottsdale, Arizona. After the show was turned down at both Desert Mountain and Chaparral of Scottsdale Arizona, the show moved to Laguna Beach.

[edit] Season 4 Speculation

There has been speculation about the continuation of the show; there were initial rumours that filming would begin in December of 2006, but now it has been suggested that the MTV cameras have not been seen around the town, and on Breanna's myspace, she mentions how she has not started filming, and that MTV may start filming with a new cast.It has been announced that MTV is doing a season 4 and will also be doing a spin off called Newport Beach

[edit] Episodes

Main article: List of Laguna Beach episodes

[edit] US Premiere Dates

• Season 1 - 28 September 2004
• Season 2 - 25 July 2005
• Season 3 - 16 August 2006
• Season 4 - August 2007

[edit] Official Show Websites

• MTV's Laguna Beach
• Virtual Laguna Beach

[edit] Virtual Laguna Beach

In August 2006, MTV started the Alpha test of Virtual Laguna Beach VLB Site In September 2006, the program went into Beta.

The platform, created by Makena Technologies, also the creator of There.com Ex1. Many guests have appeared in Virtual Laguna Beach, including, Vanessa Anne Hudgens of Disney's High School Musical, MTV VJ Vanessa Minnillo, the bands Cartel, Open Air Stereo and Augustana, Jessica Smith and Alex Hooser (a.k.a Alex H.) of Laguna beach season 2, and "Rocky" Donatelli, Breanna Conrad, "Lexie" Contursi, Kyndra Mayo, "Cami" Edwards and Cameron Brinkman of Laguna Beach Season 3.

[edit] Music on the Show

• Laguna Beach Music Guide by Episodes