| California Dreams | |
|---|---|
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| Genre | Teen sitcom |
| Created by |
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| Starring |
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| Theme music composer |
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| Opening theme | "California Dreams" |
| Ending theme | "California Dreams" (instrumental) |
| Composer | Steve Tyrell |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 5 |
| No. of episodes | 78(list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Peter Engel |
| Producers |
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| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 22–24 minutes |
| Production companies | |
| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | September 12, 1992 (1992-9-12) – December 14, 1996 (1996-12-14) |
California Dreams is an Americanteen sitcom that aired onNBC. It was part of the network's Saturday morning block,TNBC, premiering on September 12, 1992. Created by writers Brett Dewey and Ronald B. Solomon, and executive produced byPeter Engel, all known for their work onSaved by the Bell,[1] the series centers on the friendships of a group of teenagers (shifting toward amulti-ethnic makeup beginning with the show's second season) who form the fictional titular band. The series ran five seasons, airing its final episode on December 14, 1996.[2] The series featured 40 original songs performed by the band throughout the show's run, primarily written bySteve Tyrell.
| Season | Episodes | Originally released | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First released | Last released | |||
| 1 | 13 | September 12, 1992 (1992-9-12) | December 5, 1992 (1992-12-5) | |
| 2 | 18 | September 11, 1993 (1993-9-11) | February 5, 1994 (1994-2-5) | |
| 3 | 17 | September 10, 1994 (1994-9-10) | January 7, 1995 (1995-1-7) | |
| 4 | 15 | September 9, 1995 (1995-9-9) | April 6, 1996 (1996-4-6) | |
| 5 | 15 | September 7, 1996 (1996-9-7) | December 14, 1996 (1996-12-14) | |
Reruns ofCalifornia Dreams briefly aired onTBS in the late 1990s.
The show aired onThe Children's Channel and laterTrouble in the UK in the 1990s.
Shout! Factory released the first four seasons ofCalifornia Dreams onDVD inRegion 1 between 2009 and 2011. Seasons 3 and 4 were released as Shout! Factory Exclusives titles, available exclusively through their online store. As of 2016, Seasons 1-4 andThe Best of... DVDs can be purchased on Amazon. It is unknown if season 5 will be released.
On July 19, 2011, Mill Creek Entertainment released a ten-episode best-of set,The Best of California Dreams, a single-disc set that features episodes from the first three seasons.[4]
| DVD Name | Ep # | Release Date |
|---|---|---|
| Seasons 1 & 2 | 31 | March 31, 2009[5] |
| Season 3♦ | 17 | May 18, 2010[6] |
| Season 4♦ | 15 | January 18, 2011[7] |
♦ - Shout! Factory Exclusives title, sold exclusively through Shout's online store
California Dreams was not well received critically. Rebecca Ascher-Walsh ofEntertainment Weekly gave the series a grade of "F", and stated that "California Dreams can be accused of a lot of things, but originality isn’t one of them", and added that "California Dreams producer Franco E. Bario (who is also behindSaved by the Bell) may have good intentions, but it’s hard to imagine what they were."[8]Los Angeles Times reviewer Lynne Heffley considered the show nothing more than "aSaved by the Bell clone set in an upscale beach town".[9]
| Year | Award | Result | Category | Recipient |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Young Artist Awards | Nominated | Outstanding Young Ensemble Cast in a Youth Series or Variety Show | Michael Cade, Brent Gore, William James Jones, Heidi Lenhart and Kelly Packard |
| Best Young Actress in a New Television Series | Heidi Lenhart | |||
| Best Young Actor in an Off-Primetime Series | Ryan O'Neill | |||
| 1994 | Young Artist Awards | Nominated | Outstanding Youth Ensemble in a Cable or Off Primetime Series | Michael Cade, Jay Anthony Franke, Brent Gore, William James Jones, Kelly Packard, and Ryan O'Neill |
| 1996 | NCLR Bravo Awards | Nominated | Outstanding Program for Children or Youth | California Dreams |
The main cast members from the first two seasons ofCalifornia Dreams reunited onLate Night with Jimmy Fallon on March 4, 2010, and played the show's theme song. The version they sang was a unique mash-up that featured both Heidi Noelle Lenhart and Jennie Kwan, who replaced Lenhart in Season 2. While present, Jay Anthony Franke was not a featured vocalist in the performance, given that he did not perform the singing voice of Jake Sommers. Aaron Jackson and Diana Uribe were not present.[10]
