The Bedford Diaries [TV Series]

An "ensemble drama" along the lines of The O.C. -- but with characters who wore more clothes and stayed indoors more often -- the WB network's weekly, hour-long Bedford Diaries was set at fictional Bedford college, a liberal-arts establishment somewhere in Manhattan (the series was lensed on-location at Barnard College).The focus of the drama was "Sex and the Human Condition," a... (read more) seminar presided over by Kinsey-like professor Jack Macklin. Heading the cast was onetime Gilmore Girls co-star Milo Ventimiglia as Richard Thorne III, a wealthy student and recovering alcoholic, who was rather sweet on straight-A student Sarah Gregory (Tiffany DuPont) -- who in turn was having an affair with one of the teachers. Owen Gregory (Penn Badgley), Sarah's brother, was dating the resident (and self-proclaimed) "nutcase," Natalie Dykstra (Corri English). Other enrollees included freshman Lee Rasmussen (Ernest Waddell), torn between his high-school sweetheart and classroom seductress Zoe Lopez (Victoria Cartagena); Macklin's assistant, Prof. Carla Bonatella (Audra McDonald); and Harold Harper (Peter Gerety), Bedford's dean. Originally slated to debut in February 2006, Bedford Diaries did not make its WB bow until March 29 of that year, due to its producers' trepidations over presenting such raw, uninhibited material in an era of heavy FCC fines (virtually all of the episodes dealt with a particularly lurid aspect of contemporary sexuality, albeit always stressing personal responsibility over the antiquated "if it feels good, do it" attitude). However, the series was telecast uncut in Canada, and was likewise uncensored on the WB's Internet web stream. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Cast:

• Matthew Modine
• Audra McDonald
• Peter Gerety
• Penn Badgley
• Milo Ventimiglia
• Corri English
• Tiffany DuPont
• Ernest Waddell
• Victoria Cartagena