Fox quietly beaches "The O.C." after its fourth season

[Emma]

The end was in sight for "The O.C." by at least last summer, according to Josh Schwartz, the wunderkind creator of the show that, with its glamorous locations, beautiful actors and hip soundtrack, defined new trends for music, fashion, celebrity and, of course, television.

After a stunning debut on Fox in 2003, in which the series drew nearly 10 million viewers each week and a particularly high number of adults between the ages of 18 and 34, according to Nielsen Media Research, the show's ratings fell in each of the past two seasons.

It entered the fourth season without its most recognizable face, the pouty rich girl played by Mischa Barton, who was killed off at the end of the previous season. Fox, meanwhile, demonstrated its lack of confidence by leaving "The O.C." in its 8 p.m. (in Denver) Thursday time slot to face off against "Grey's Anatomy" and "CSI." Fox ordered only 16 episodes, down from more than 20 in each of the first three seasons, and its budget for promoting the show's return, Schwartz said, made clear that hopes for the series this year were not high.

"We tried to be realistic about it," Schwartz said. "Few shows get to have their last season be their best. So if this was going to be the last season, we wanted to write the show we wanted to do and the show the fans wanted to see. It was creatively liberating." Fox, for its part, declined to address its reasons for ending "The O.C."

When "The O.C." had its premiere, it was quickly compared to "Beverly Hills 90210," "Dawson's Creek" and other series that drew raves for their chronicles of teenage angst. But while "90210" lasted 10 seasons, "The O.C." will not even make it to the 100-episode milestone, considered a benchmark for profitable syndication.

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