Sunset Beach is an American television soap opera that aired on NBC from January 6, 1997, to December 31, 1999. The show follows the loves and lives of the people living in the Orange County coastal area named Sunset Beach, on the coast of California. Although there is a real community named Sunset Beach (now part of the city of Huntington Beach), the show's beach scenes were shot in nearby Seal Beach, California. The show was co-produced by NBC and Spelling Television.
Sunset Beach won two Daytime Emmy Awards and was nominated another eleven times. The show also received 22 nominations for various other awards.
Conception and development Developed as a co-production between its NBC Studios unit and Spelling Television (which formed a standalone daytime production subsidiary specifically for the program), Sunset Beach was ordered to series by NBC in 1996, in an attempt to both rebuild the network's daytime lineup and target younger audiences. Charles Pratt Jr. (who would also serve as an executive consultant), Robert Guza Jr. and Josh Griffith were hired to develop the concept for the new series. Pratt, Guza and Griffith had met in 1988 when the latter two joined series veteran Pratt as writers for the NBC soap opera Santa Barbara; Pratt and Guza first met Spelling in 1992, when the two became part of the original writing staff of Melrose Place, and went on to work on its short-lived spinoff Models Inc.
Sunset Beach was the first (and only) daytime soap opera produced by Aaron Spelling, and NBC's first new serial since the 1991 cancellation of Generations (which was also produced by the network's production division). Spelling had experience in the genre producing several primetime soap operas (most notably Dynasty, Melrose Place and Beverly Hills, 90210), and was also the executive producer of the 1991 film Soapdish, a satirical look at daytime soap operas.
Jonathan Levin, one of the show's consulting producers, commented on the change that a new soap opera brings to the lineup, and the tough process of a viewer getting to know a new soap: "It is very difficult to change the loyalty of the daytime viewer, and we’re talking about shows that have been on for 30 years. That's one of the reasons we’re targeting young viewers — they’re the most available and the most flexible in their viewing habits."Levin comment
In the process of making the show, Spelling liked the idea of naming it Never Say Goodbye, as suggested by Viacom chairman Sumner Redstone during a dinner with Spelling, but later tests proved that the viewers were more drawn to the title Sunset Beach. The soap opera debuted on January 6, 1997.
Cast and crew
When the show began, it had 21 contract actors, including Lesley-Anne Down (Olivia Richards), Sam Behrens (Gregory Richards), Leigh Taylor-Young (Elaine Stevens), Peter Barton (Eddie Connors), Laura Harring (Paula Stevens), Hank Cheyne (Ricardo Torres) and Kathleen Noone (Bette Katzenkazrahi). In its first year and a half on air, seven actors left the show. Adrienne Frantz was the first to be let go from her role of Tiffany Thorne. The character was recast to Jennifer Banko-Stewart, but this was not successful and she was eventually written out. Kelly Hu left the show in June 1997, due to her character not mixing well with the others. By the end of the year, when Meg Bennett took over as a new head writer, Taylor-Young and Harring also left the series, followed by the exit of Nick Stabile, whose character Mark Wolper was written out in a serial killer storyline. Elizabeth Alley had a short stint playing the role of Melinda Fall. The final original character to be written out was Eddie Connors (Barton), who exited in May 1998.
Shortly after the show premiered, Dominique Jennings, V. P. Oliver, and Russell Curry joined the cast as Virginia Harrison, Jimmy Harrison, and Tyus Robinson respectively. Oliver was let go in December 1997, and his character was recast with a younger actor, Jeffery Wood. Both Jennings and Wood were written out by March 1999, exactly two years after the introduction of their characters. The remaining 14 original characters stayed on the show until its end, and three of those characters were recast during the three-year run. The first recast happened soon after the show started airing. The role of Cole Deschanel a male jewel thief, initially played by Ashley Hamilton, was recast to Eddie Cibrian. In mid-1998, Vanessa Dorman vacated the role of Cole's partner Caitlin Deschanel due to a change in storyline direction, and Kam Heskin was cast. The final recast was a temporary one. When Susan Ward left to film a movie, Sydney Penny stepped in to replace her, with Ward later returning to play the character for the show's final few weeks.
The exits of many characters opened the doors to the introduction of new ones. Carol Potter and John H. Martin, who had been recurring during the show's first year, were promoted to contract status, and the expansion of Meg's family also included the arrival of her sister Sara Cummings. The role was first played by then-unknown actress Lauren Woodland, but she was fired two weeks later and replaced by Shawn Batten, who played the role for the remainder of the series. Aside from Meg's family, Ricardo Torres got his family expanded, including the introduction of his mother Carmen (Margarita Cordova), brother Antonio (Nick Kiriazis), and the sudden reappearance of his sister Maria (Christina Chambers), Ben Evans' presumed dead wife.
The teen scene was revived in 1998, when Bette's daughter Emily Davis (Cristi Harris) arrived in town and fell in love with Sean, prompting Amy (Krissy Carlson) and Brad (Michael Strickland) to intervene. The final teen cast was Leo Deschanel, Cole's brother (David Mathiessen), but he was quickly written out. A long-time legend and Cole's father, A.J. Deschanel, was also cast in the form of Gordon Thomson, and a female jewel thief named Francesca (Lisa Guerrero) was added to the cast in mid-1998. However, Guerrero was written out in early 1999 since her character was killed by Gregory.
In 1999, the show cast only three contract roles, the first two being in March, when Tracy Lindsey Melchior and Chasen Parker stunned the soap with their sudden arrival in town. The final role to be cast on the show was the one played by Sean Kanan in late August. Things changed at the end of the year, when Cibrian left the show to pursue a career in primetime. Several other cast members, including a few original ones, considered leaving, but the show's cancellation came before they could make a decision.
During its three-year run, Sunset Beach was executive produced by Aaron Spelling, E. Duke Vincent, and Gary Tomlin. However, the head writing history was much different. Robert Guza Jr. was the first head writer (and also a co-creator), but he exited the show on October 21, 1997, when Meg Bennett, who had been serving as Associate Head Writer, was promoted as head writer as of October 22. Four months after being the sole head writer, Bennett received a co-head writer in the form of Christopher Whitesell, with a one-year deal as external consultant of Ryan Carrassi, from Days of Our Lives on January 8, 1998. Carrassi, after the show cancellation, was involved in the pilot of Passions. Bennett was dismissed during the summer of 1998, and her final episode aired October 5, 1998. She was replaced by Margaret DePriest, who stayed with the show until its cancellation.
Main cast In first opening credits order Character Actor Year(s) Episodes Olivia Richards Lesley-Anne Down 1997–99 1―755Gregory Richards Sam Behrens 1997–99 1―755Ricardo Torres Hank Cheyne 1997–99 1―755Paula Stevens Laura Harring 1997 1―236Gabi Martinez Torres Priscilla Garita 1997–99 30―755Casey Mitchum Timothy Adams 1997–99 1―755Rae Chang Kelly Hu 1997 2―108Elaine Stevens Leigh Taylor-Young 1997 1―236Eddie Connors Peter Barton 1997–99 1―342Michael Bourne Jason Winston George 1997–99 1―755Vanessa Hart Sherri Saum 1997–99 4―755Bette Katzenkazrahi Kathleen Noone 1997–99 1―755Annie Douglas Richards Sarah Buxton 1997–99 1―755 Ben Evans Clive Robertson 1997–99 1―755 Meg Cummings Susan Ward 1997–99 1―669, 726―755 Sydney Penny 1999 673―723Tim Truman Dax Griffin 1997–99 1―722, 755Sean Richards Randy Spelling 1997–99 5―755 Tiffany Thorne Adrienne Frantz 1997 1―93Jennifer Banko-Stewart199796―159Mark Wolper Nick Stabile 1997–98 1―258 Cole Deschanel Ashley Hamilton 1997 11―32Eddie Cibrian 1997–99 34―700, 755 Caitlin Richards Deschanel Vanessa Dorman 1997–98 7―364 Kam Heskin 1998–99 368―755 Virginia Harrison Dominique Jennings 1997–99 50―542Jimmy Harrison V.P. Oliver 1997 52―242 Jeffery Wood 1998–99 261―555 Tyus Robinson Russell Curry 1997–99 118―580, recurring 587―755 Derek Evans Clive Robertson 1998–99 256―374, 467, 673―744Hank Cummings John Martin 1997–99 270―755, recurring 175―196Joan Cummings Carol Potter 1997–99 270―755, recurring 1―232 Sara CummingsLauren Woodland 1998328―336 Shawn Batten 1998–99 337―755Antonio Torres Nick Kiriazis 1998–99 271―755 A.J. Deschanel Gordon Thomson 1998–99 337―755 Emily Davis Cristi Harris 1998–99 347―755Maria Torres-Evans Christina Chambers 1998–99 373―755 Francesca Vargas Lisa Guerrero 1998–99 382―579, recurring 592―610 Leo Deschanel David Matthiessen 1998–99 386―556 Amy Nielsen Krissy Carlson 1997–99 425―755, recurring 242―416Brad Niklaus Michael Strickland 1998–99 425―755, recurring 359―416Tess Marin Tracy Melchior 1999 541―755Benjy Evans Chase Parker 1999 545―755 Jude Cavanaugh Sean Kanan 1999 664―755
Secondary and guest cast Character Actor Year(s) Lena Hart Mariann Aalda 1998–99 Sister Beatrice Denise Alexander 1997–98 Melinda Fall Elizabeth Alley 1998Officer Sam Spencer David Andriole 1997–99Dr. Luisa Estrada Ana Auther 1998–99Chief Harris Fran Bennett 1997Sister Bertrille Rebecca Brooks 1998–99Carl Brock Gerard Christopher 1997–99Carmen Torres Margarita Cordova 1997–99 Quint Keene Curtis 1997–98 Hillary Nichols Terry Davis 1998 Jade Sheridan Sandra Dee Robinson 1997–98 Passenger David Doyle 1997 Wayne Landry Henry Gibson 1999 Mrs Moreau Joyce Guy 1998–99 Selita Jones Lynn Hamilton 1997–98 Margaret Raynor Estelle Harris 1999 Officer Oscar Ruiz Andre Khabbazi 1997–99 Captain James Nelson Bernie Kopell 1998 Lena Hart Lillian Lehman 1997–98 Alex Mitchum Barbara Mandrell 1997–98 Nurse Ronnie Cyndi Martino 1998 Summons Server Eddie Mekka 1998 Doug Steve Nave 1998 Mrs. Alton Myrna Niles 1999 Charles Dunwoody John O'Leary 1997 Benjy Evans Chasen Parker 1999 Del Douglas John Reilly 1997–99 Bernie Nielsen Mark Ritter 1998 Philip Vargas Michael Sabatino 1998 Kendall Moon Sam Scarber 1998 Bruce Rick Scarry 1998 Mr. Talley Mik Scriba 1998 Patricia Steele Susan Seaforth Hayes 1999 Vincent Duke Aaron Spelling 1998Jerry Feller Jerry Springer 1999 Priest Charles C. Stevenson Jr. 1999Jada J. Karen Thomas 1998–99Julianna Deschanel Constance Towers 1997Wei-Lee Young Steven Vincent Leigh 1997 Joseph Wapner Himself 1999
Storylines Storylines in its nearly three-year run ranged from the traditional to the supernatural. One of the first storylines concerned an Internet romance. Kansas farm girl Meg Cummings discovered her fiancé, Tim Truman, cheating on her on their wedding day. Meg had been talking online with SB, a man who lived in Sunset Beach, California. And after catching Tim with her maid of honor, Meg fled to Sunset Beach in search of SB, who turned out to be wealthy, widowed businessman Ben Evans.