The O.C. Gossip

In the wake of The OC finally going off the air, a former star of the show appears to take it in stride.

Seen here, Mischa Barton - who blamed the death of her awful character, Marissa Cooper, for the show's demise - doesn't seem bothered by very much at all. Unless you count where she can satisfy her case of the munchies.

It's hard to blame Barton for needing a puff or two. She probably hasn't recovered from seeing Cisco Adler naked. Lord knows we're yet to.

At least that hairball was good for something, as we have a pretty good idea where Mischa got the remedy in her hand from. We just hope the thin actress plays it safe this time.

After all, Barton hasn't had great luck in cars recently. Just ask Nicole Richie. If you have trouble finding her, that's just because she's really, really tiny.

Or under the mean-spirited foot of Brody Jenner somewhere.

Looks like Jack Bauer isn't the only person mystified by the death of Marissa Cooper.

Mischa Barton recently had the nerve to say that the death of her character was the reason why The OC has been canceled.

The 20-year-old star is really, really thin. She also played Marissa on the teen series and died in a car accident at the end of the last season.

When asked if she was surprised that the show had been axed she told Fox News: "No. They killed me off."

We hate to break it to Mischa, but The Hollywood Gossip staff - who were huge fans of the series before it started sucking - somehow doubt viewers cared about her character's demise.

Rachel Bilson is still on it, right? Then perhaps it was the quality of the writing, and not the death of a boring character, that actually led to cancellation.

 

The OC, the once-hot teenage soap opera that saw its ratings drop faster than Lindsay Lohan's pants after a couple of drinks, has been axed.

The final episode of the The OC will air Thursday, February 22, giving viewers a chance to say good riddance bye to the characters they've come to know and love.

"The finale will deliver real closure to the series, to the story we began telling four years ago," series creator Josh Schwartz said. "It will be fun and emotional and I think really satisfying. It is the finale we always planned to do."

THG NOTE: Sure thing, Josh. We're sure you planned on wasting terrific talent and letting the series decompose into a steaming pile of nonsense and unfulfilled potential before our eyes.

The OC caught fire in its first season, 2003-04, as the top-rated drama among young adults with a total audience of nearly 10 million. But like star Mischa Barton - who was unceremoniously killed off at the end of Season 3 - audiences really thinned out after that! Eh? Eh?

The show dropped to about 7 million viewers during 2004-05 and then to fewer than 6 million last season. This year, it has only drawn about 4 million, with Fox declining to order a full season.

Nevertheless, the show did turn us on to young stars such as Rachel Bilson and Adam Brody, the odd, adorable couple who won each other's hearts and dated in real life for a long time before recently breaking up.

Ben McKenzie is also alright.

Observers have pointed to a variety of possible reasons for the slump, including inconsistent quality, the fickleness of younger viewers, its time-slot change opposite Grey's Anatomy, and the show really sucking!

Fox has yet to name a replacement series. We're pushing for a hot new reality show featuring Mischa Barton and her boyfriend, Cisco Adler, where they fight constantly and see how long they can go without ingesting food.

It was a heartbreaking year in Hollywood. And, no, we're not just referring to recent troubles for that drug addicted Miss USA, Tara Conner.

On the small screen, main characters from some of our favorite shows were sent to the great big DVR in the sky.

Here's a recap of the most memorable:

• As if the trials and tribulations of Meredith and McDreamy were not enough, Grey's Anatomy made us fall in love with Denny Duquette. And then killed him off in the season finale. George Clooney didn't love his pig as much as we loved Denny.

• On Lost, meanwhile, fans were just getting to know Mr. Eko. Unfortunately, the smoke monster on the island was, as well. And the mysterious wanna-be priest didn't stand a chance against it.

• We can't say we felt the same sort of loss when The OC cut ties with Marissa, played emaciatedly Mischa Barton, however. That annoying drag on Ryan worn out her welcome months earlier.

Good riddance to her. But best of luck to former real-life couple, Rachel Bilson and Adam Brody!

But he doesn't seem very broken up about it, does it? Now that Mischa Barton (or her character, Marissa Cooper, we suppose) is dead, Benjamin McKenzie can walk around without an emaciated ball and chain holding him down.

Everyone on the set of The OC seems to be more relaxed now. Almost all cast members agree that this is probably the last season for the once hilarious and witty FOX program. So they can kick back and have fun with it.

Or entertain offers to play Wonder Woman, as Rachel Bilson is reportedly doing. Either way, the point remains the same: Marissa sucked.

Wanna smell like washed up teen spirit? This is your chance!

The OC - that played out, nonsensical, desperate former hit of a Fox television series - has spawned a fragrance line called, The O.C. for Her and The O.C. for Him. Those names are about as creative as any storylines from the drama's third season.

The O.C. for Her has a fruity, floral scent perfect for the anorexic girl next door who enjoys drunken benders in Tijuana or being driven over cliffs to her enjoyable demise.

With its aroma of amber and musk, The O.C. for Him is the idealcologne for the formerly funny, whiny geek who fakes their way into Brown or burns down a model home.

Both scents will be available in October for fans lame enough to purchase them. They'll be priced at under $25 each. But you can take a whiff of the sweet smell of Marissa's rotting corpse right now, for free!

Nice, isn't it?

Yesterday, Fox took part in the Television Critics' Association presentation, delivering numerous inside scoops on some of your favorite shows. The event featured writers, producers and a few actors, such as the delicious Wentworth Miller (pictured).

Let's get right into the action!

Peter Liguori, Fox's entertainment president, admitted that his network "does an outstanding job from January through August... the whole ball of wax is really about improving our fourth quarter.'' Sounds like he wants some hits until American Idol and 24 save the day in January.

The solution appears to be scheduling shows with periodic, longer-breaks; just how Prison Break premiered before baseball playoffs, came back strong after the World Series and then took a long hiatus while Jack Bauer saved the world again.

This explains the 16-episode order and November premiere of The O.C. (although nothing from the panel explained why the show has sucked a huge one for the last two years). Liguori said the drama will play continually through March - and if it manages to weather the Grey's Anatomy vs. CSI Thursday-night war, it may even get extended to 24 episodes. In other words: no chance.

Liguori also reiterated that So You Think You Can Dance? and Hell's Kitchen have both been picked up for another season. The Gossip was way ahead of him on that one!

Tidbits regarding Prison Break were then revealed. With the felons now fugitives, viewers shouldn't expect to see much of Stacy Keach's Warden Pope; production's moved from the Joliet, Ill., penitentiary to the wide open spaces of Dallas (which can double for the many different locations needed for the second season).

The inmates will be spreading out too, as they enter what creator Paul T. Scheuring called their ''respective endgames." Scheuring later said he had only planned on two seasons, but now sees the first two seasons as the first chapter of a trilogy. We assume that means more money will equate to more episode.

First, Mischa Barton was written out of The OC. (Her character, Marissa, now resides in Newport heaven hell.)

With free time suddenly on her hands, what's a rail thin, awful actress to do but attend acting classes in London?

The Gossip supposes it can give props to any thespian that takes a break from the LA and NY club scene in order to enroll at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

The lessons may even be paying off already. Barton has four feature films coming out, as she expands her resume beyond that of a spoiled California teen.

For the record, that's four more movies that Kevin Federline has in the works.

Marissa Cooper is dead. Might her friends and family be next?

As The O.C. limps into 2006-2007 on FOX, the network isn't showing very much faith in the drama. Only 16 new episodes have been ordered for the show's fourth season. The basis for this decrease in output?

It's largely the major competition that Seth, Summer and other Newport residents will be facing on Thursday nights. Aside from CSI returning to its 9 p.m. time slot, ABC has moved juggernaut, Grey's Anatomy, opposite The O.C., as well.

Combine these hits with the severe drop in ratings the FOX series faced last season - although it still averaged a respectable 5.7 million viewers a week - and there's little wonder why the show may soon be joining Marissa in entertainment heaven.

For those who still care, look for Adam Brody, Rachel Bilson and others to return on November 2, after FOX is finished airing The World Series.