City Guys
| City Guys | |
|---|---|
| Created by |
Peter Engel Scott Spencer Gorden (credited as "Scott S. Gorden" in opening titles) |
| Starring |
Wesley Jonathan Scott Whyte Caitlin Mowrey Dion Basco Marissa Dyan Steven Daniel Marcella Lowery |
| Theme music composer |
Joey Schwartz Eric Swerdloff Michael Muta-Ali Muhammad |
| Opening theme | "Roll with the City Guys" |
| Composer(s) | Joey Schwartz |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 5 |
| No. of episodes | 105 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
Peter Engel Co-executive producers/showrunners: Scott Spencer Gorden (1997–2000) Barry "Berry" Douglas (2000) Todd J. Greenwald (2001) |
| Producer(s) | Matthew B. Morgan |
| Location(s) |
Sunset Gower Studios, Hollywood, California |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) |
Peter Engel Productions NBC Enterprises |
| Distributor |
Tribune Entertainment (2000–2002) NBCUniversal Television Distribution (2002–present) |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | NBC |
| Picture format | 480i (SDTV) |
| Original run | September 6, 1997 – December 15, 2001 |
City Guys is an American sitcom that aired for five seasons on NBC from September 6, 1997 to December 15, 2001. The series aired as part of the network's Saturday morning block, TNBC.
Premise
The series was very similar in style to Saved by the Bell, but with an urban setting and more diverse cast. City Guys was mainly centered on its two main characters, Jamal Grant (Wesley Jonathan) and Chris Anderson (Scott Whyte), two teenagers from different backgrounds – Chris coming from a wealthy family, and Jamal coming from a working-class family – who had to stay on the ball while attending Manhattan High School (which was nicknamed in the series as "Manny High") and avoid trouble, while their principal Karen Noble (Marcella Lowery) attempted to keep them in line. Jamal's and Chris's similar personalities caused friction between them in the beginning, but as the series went on, they became best friends. The boys and their friends – overachiever Dawn Tartikoff (Caitlin Mowrey), slick guy Al Ramos (Dion Basco), aspiring actress Cassidy Giuliani (Marissa Dyan) and dimwitted bully-turned-friend (who was held back six grades) Lionel "L-Train" Johnson (Steven Daniel) – dealt with the typical teen issues, such as cheating on tests, peer pressure and dealing with school violence.
Cast
- Wesley Jonathan – Jamal Abdul Grant
- Scott Whyte – Christopher Robert "Chris" Anderson
- Caitlin Mowrey – Dawn Tartikoff
- Dion Basco – Alberto "Al Rocket" Ramos
- Marissa Dyan – Cassidy Giuliani
- Steven Daniel – Lionel "L-Train" Johnson
- Marcella Lowery – Principal Karen Coretta Noble
Episodes
| Season | Episodes | First air date | Last air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 14 | September 6, 1997 | December 6, 1997 | |
| Season 2 | 14 | September 18, 1998 | December 12, 1998 | |
| Season 3 | 25 | September 11, 1999 | June 10, 2000 | |
| Season 4 | 26 | September 23, 2000 | February 24, 2001 | |
| Season 5 | 26 | September 8, 2001 | December 15, 2001 | |
Season 1: 1997
| Series # | Season # | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "New Kids" | Frank Bonner | Scott Spencer Gorden | September 6, 1997 |
| The series opens with the arrival of Jamal Grant and Chris Anderson to Manny High School. Both make different entrances with Jamal paying guys to walk him to school as his posse and Chris driving his Dad's car. L-Train warns Jamal that he's dead meat if he even thinks about painting over his graffiti. Chris learns about it and proceeds to paint over it. In the end they both get assigned to do a video year book for the school year. | |||||
| 2 | 2 | "For the Love of Mother" | Frank Bonner | Ilunga Adell | September 13, 1997 |
| When Chris' mom learns Manhattan High does not have a Music Department because of lack of money, she vows to throw a fundraiser at the Anderson home when she had already promised Chris that they would go to a concert on the same evening which makes Chris feel hurt and angry. He goes to great lengths to sabotage the event including ruining Jamal's musical act which results in a fallout with his mom. In the end both Chris and Mrs Anderson talk and she promises that nothing will ever get in the way of their relationship. | |||||
| 3 | 3 | "Knicks Tickets" | Frank Bonner | Scott Spencer Gorden | September 20, 1997 |
| Shakespeare in the Park is playing the same time as Chris's Knicks and Lakers game. Chris and Jamal are expected to tape the play, but they get Dawn to tape the play. Meanwhile Cassidy, Jamal and Chris got to the game and get caught when Ms. Noble sees them on the TV. Chris and Jamal let Cassidy take the blame until they decide to admit the truth. | |||||
| 4 | 4 | "The Package" | Frank Bonner | Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | September 27, 1997 |
| Alberto is delivering drugs for a drug dealer and doesn't know it. So the boys devise a plan to blackmail the dealer into leaving Alberto alone. | |||||
| 5 | 5 | "The Date" | Frank Bonner | Ilunga Adell | October 4, 1997 |
| The Spring Dance returns to Manny High. Chris tries to get Cassidy to go to the dance with him. She rejects him and Chris encounters Jamal's sister. He asks her to the dance without Jamal knowing about it. L-Train wants to go to the dance with Cassidy and gets the nerve to ask her. Al wants to DJ at the party, but Dawn refuses until Al gets rid of the competition. Jamal doesn't like his sister going to the dance with Chris. He tells Kaisha that Chris is no good for her and she responds to telling him to let her make her own choices. | |||||
| 6 | 6 | "The Communication Gap" | Frank Bonner | Tom Tenowich | October 12, 1997 |
| After getting into a fight with his father, Chris moves in with Jamal and his father. Chris soon realizes that not every father and son relationship is like his. Eventually Chris and his father settle their differences. Dawn and Cassidy ask Al if he has any "connections" on how to get tickets for an upcoming Jim Carrey movie. | |||||
| 7 | 7 | "Red Ferrari" | Frank Bonner | Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | October 18, 1997 |
| Jamal convinces Chris to have a party and drive his father's car after Chris reveals that his parents forgot his birthday. However it is the complete opposite when they return home with a birthday celebration on their mind. | |||||
| 8 | 8 | "Rock the Vote" | Frank Bonner | Teleplay by: Ilunga Adell & Tom Tenowich Story by: Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | October 25, 1997 |
| Dawn and Cassidy both run for Student Council President with Jamal and Chris as their individual advisors. Dirty politics arise and even Alberto and L-Train get tired of it and L-Train decides to run at the last minute. | |||||
| 9 | 9 | "The Movie" | Frank Bonner | Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | November 1, 1997 |
| Jamal and Chris decide to make a film using the school's video camera. Things gets hairy when Ms. Noble wants to see their progress on the yearbook video. | |||||
| 10 | 10 | "Future Shock" | Frank Bonner | Kenneth Nowling | November 8, 1997 |
| Jamal reconsiders the value of spending time studying after his new friend, Charlie, a straight-A Manhattan High student, is killed by a drunk driver. But with the PSATs coming up in a few days, everyone tries to cope with the loss. | |||||
| 11 | 11 | "Easy Money" | Frank Bonner | November 15, 1997 | |
| Chris uses Jamal's skills at guessing the results of games and gets them both into trouble. | |||||
| 12 | 12 | "The College Girl" | Frank Bonner | Scott Spencer Gorden | November 22, 1997 |
| Chris falls for an older woman. Afraid she'll dump him, Chris tells her that he's an under cover cop only to discover that she's his new student teacher. | |||||
| 13 | 13 | "Bye, Mom" | Frank Bonner | Tom Tenowich | November 29, 1997 |
| Karen goes to the hospital as a patient. While she is staying there, Jamal remembers the time of his mother's death and how Karen reminds him so much of his mother. | |||||
| 14 | 14 | "Old Friends" | Frank Bonner | Kenneth Nowling | December 6, 1997 |
| One of Jamal's friends finally gets out of juvenile Hall and returns. He then proceeds to continue doing the things that led him to the hall in the first place. Meanwhile Chris is trying to finish the school project that he and Jamal were assigned to in the first episode. | |||||
Season 2: 1998
| Series # | Season # | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | 1 | "Men Behind Bars" | Frank Bonner | Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | September 12, 1998 |
| Chris and Jamal end up in jail after getting caught with fake IDs. But the situation worsens when Al and El-Train (Steven Daniel) come to bail the guys out and end up behind bars as well. Meanwhile, Dawn and Cassidy offer their tutoring services at the school fundraising auction, but they're worried that Vinnie and Rocco have more than tutoring on their minds when they bid on the girls. | |||||
| 16 | 2 | "Shock Jock" | Frank Bonner | Scott Spencer Gorden | September 19, 1998 |
| Chris and Jamal uncover the school's old radio station. The station is restarted and quickly ended after an unapproved song gets played on the air. The boys now have to figure out how to get the station back on the air. Meanwhile, El-Train has a broken tooth but is afraid of going to the dentist. | |||||
| 17 | 3 | "The Roommate" | Frank Bonner | Robert Illes & Ilunga Adell | September 26, 1998 |
| El-Train has a fight with his mom and decides to move out of his home. But when Chris lets El-Train stay at his Park Avenue penthouse, he soon realizes that El-Train isn't interested in going back home anytime soon, so he has to come up with a plan to get El-Train back with his mother. Meanwhile, Al asks Cassidy and Dawn to be models for a photo shoot, but the girls become angered when they see where the photos end up. | |||||
| 18 | 4 | "Jamal Got His Gun" | Frank Bonner | Tom Tenowich | October 3, 1998 |
| After being robbed at gunpoint one night, Jamal buys a gun himself to feel safe. | |||||
| 19 | 5 | "The Divorce" | Frank Bonner | Robert Illes | October 10, 1998 |
| Chris finds out that his parents are getting a divorce, he becomes a recluse and blames himself for their breakup. But his friends help him realize that it was not his fault and that he should talk things out with his parents. | |||||
| 20 | 6 | "Bully, Bully" | Frank Bonner | Scott Spencer Gorden | October 17, 1998 |
| After El-Train beats up a local bully, he starts reverting to his own days of bullying people, and even begins to isolate his friends. But when Miss Noble gets a hold of him, she reminds him of how far he's come, forcing him to think twice about his attitude, and his next schoolyard fight. Meanwhile, Dawn is embarrassed after a terrible date with school quarterback Brent (guest star Scott Hamm), where she tried to pass herself off as a football expert and ended up looking like a fool. | |||||
| 21 | 7 | "Dance Fever" | Frank Bonner | Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | October 24, 1998 |
| Jamal asks Cassidy if she can get her new boyfriend, 98 singer Nick Lachey, to perform with the rest of the group at an 'unofficial' school dance on the roof of Manhattan High. Although the dance is supposed to be kept a secret from Miss Noble, the gang soon realizes the consequences of trying to fool the principal. | |||||
| 22 | 8 | "A Guy and a Goth" | Frank Bonner | Tom Tenowich | October 31, 1998 |
| Chris decides to go on a date with one of the callers to his radio show, but when he sees that she dresses like a Goth, he is unsure about whether or not to go out with her again, even though he likes her. Meanwhile, El-Train leads the gang in throwing a surprise party for Miss Noble's tenth anniversary at Manny High. | |||||
| 23 | 9 | "Big Brothers" | Frank Bonner | Ilunga Adell | November 7, 1998 |
| Miss Noble asks Jamal and Chris to become big brothers as part of a class project. But their little brother, Ernesto, turns out to be a handful of trouble, especially when he keeps disappearing on the guys. Meanwhile, Cassidy tries to pass Driver's Education again, but first she has to get by the very strict teacher's assistant, El-Train. | |||||
| 24 | 10 | "Over the Speed Limit" | Frank Bonner | Robert Illes & Ilunga Adell | November 14, 1998 |
| Cassidy starts taking pills when she is overworked. | |||||
| 25 | 11 | "A Noble Profession" | Frank Bonner | Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | November 21, 1998 |
| Ms. Noble quits after the students take her for granted one too many times. She returns when her replacement gets out of control. | |||||
| 26 | 12 | "Party of Three" | Frank Bonner | Paul Ciancarelli & David DiPietro | November 28, 1998 |
| During his radio show, Jamal advises an anonymous caller to drop her current boyfriend for the guy she has a crush on, but doesn't realize that Al is going to be the one cut loose. The situation worsens when Jamal finds out her crush is on him, so he concocts a plan to get her to stop liking him. Meanwhile, El-Train sees Dawn's comet viewing party as an opportunity to signal aliens and befriend them. | |||||
| 27 | 13 | "Saving Private Johnson" | Frank Bonner | Brett Dewey | December 5, 1998 |
| When El-Train continues having problems with his test scores in school, he decides to drop out and join the Marines. He becomes even more distraught when he fails the Marines' admission test, until someone discovers that El-Train may be suffering from dyslexia. | |||||
| 28 | 14 | "A Gift of Friendship" | Frank Bonner | Tom Tenowich | December 12, 1998 |
| The gang help Al and his family during the holidays after Al's father loses his job. | |||||
Season 3: 1999-2000
| Series # | Season # | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 | 1 | "Greece Is the Word" | Frank Bonner | Tom Tenowich | September 11, 1999 |
| Chris finds himself in the middle of a love triangle when the girl he dated during summer vacation in Greece makes a surprise visit to Manny High just as he starts a new, romantic relationship with Cassidy. Meanwhile, Al and El-Train pull pranks on unsuspecting freshmen. | |||||
| 30 | 2 | "Mr. Baseball" | Frank Bonner | Robert Illes | September 11, 1999 |
| Jamal lets being the hero of a baseball game go to his head. When he fails to lead the team to victory, he wants to quit the team. | |||||
| 31 | 3 | "Alley Oops" | Frank Bonner | Scott Spencer Gorden | September 18, 1999 |
| Chris, Jamal, Al and Dawn prepare to face their bowling league rivals in a tournament, but the guys consider dropping Dawn so they have a better chance of winning. When Dawn overhears their plan, she fakes an injury to her wrist to avoid embarrassment, but Cassidy forces her to confront the guys about their selfishness. Meanwhile, Ms. Noble develops a crush on the new substitute teacher, Mr. Washington. | |||||
| 32 | 4 | "Face the Music" | Frank Bonner | September 18, 1999 | |
| El-Train sings the blues when his musical hero Slick Willy Bill steals a song he wrote. Meanwhile, Al publishes unflattering photos of Cassidy and Dawn on the cover of his magazine. | |||||
| 33 | 5 | "The Players" | Frank Bonner | Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | October 2, 1999 |
| After seeing Cassidy perform in a student film, Jamal and Chris decide to make their own movie and enter it in a film festival. But when their ideas clash, they end up competing with each other to see who can make a better movie on their own. Meanwhile, Dawn, Al and El-Train volunteer for a psychology experiment and Dawn becomes frustrated when she can't do as well as the two guys. | |||||
| 34 | 6 | "Raise the Roofies" | Frank Bonner | Leslie Eberhard | October 2, 1999 |
| Cassidy is tricked into drinking a date rape drug by a college guy. | |||||
| 35 | 7 | "Ebony & Ivory" | Frank Bonner | Teleplay by: Paul Ciancarelli & David DiPietro Story by: Tom Tenowich | October 9, 1999 |
| Chris and Jamal each like the deputy mayor's daughter. She tells her father that she is going out with Chris while Jamal, her real date, doesn't understand why she lied to him until she tells Jamal that her father is racist. | |||||
| 36 | 8 | "Reluctant Hero" | Frank Bonner | Teleplay by: Paul Ciancarelli & David DiPietro Story by: Tom Tenowich | October 9, 1999 |
| It's "Crime Prevention Week" at Manny High and the students are given self-defense classes. Jamal uses his newly developed skills to stop a mugging, but makes Chris take the credit, and reap the rewards, because he was supposed to be home grounded at the time. Meanwhile, Al, El-Train, Cassidy and Dawn are enlisted by Ms. Noble to patrol the halls as "Manny Monitors." | |||||
| 37 | 9 | "In this Corner" | Frank Bonner | Ilunga Adell | October 16, 1999 |
| Jamal decides to become a boxer and compete in a local tournament, even though his father warns him not to. But when Mr. Grant finds out that Jamal disobeyed him, Jamal leaves home, until Miss Noble has a chance to help iron things out. | |||||
| 38 | 10 | "El-Trainmania IV" | Frank Bonner | Todd J. Greenwald | October 16, 1999 |
| El-Train is offered the opportunity to work as a professional wrestler. When his wrestling practice interferes with his volunteer work with underprivileged kids, Dawn and Cassidy demand that he choose one or the other. Meanwhile, Jamal and Chris start accepting bribes from local merchants in exchange for endorsements on the school radio station, until Ms. Noble forces them to eat at a particularly filthy restaurant they claimed to have liked. | |||||
| 39 | 11 | "Marriage Go Round" | Frank Bonner | Teleplay by: Robert Illes & Ilunga Adell Story by: Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | October 23, 1999 |
| Jamal is jealous that Ranya is spending too much time with Chris after the two are paired up in Ms. Noble's marriage project. Meanwhile Jamal's partner is having to do the project alone and El-Train is getting bossed around by his partner-Tasha. | |||||
| 40 | 12 | "Movin' on Up" | Frank Bonner | David DiPietro & Paul Ciancarelli | October 30, 1999 |
| The gang from Manny High move in together as part of a reality TV show. When Chris and Jamal hear the producers talk about cancelling the show, they try to create conflict among the roommates to make the show better. Things get out of hand and threaten to break up the whole group. Meanwhile, Miss Noble is frustrated when she is forced to work with an incompetent assistant who also happens to be her boss's daughter. | |||||
| 41 | 13 | "Down and Out in Soho" | Frank Bonner | Scott Spencer Gorden | October 30, 1999 |
| Dawn gets the group involved with helping foreigners adjust to life in America. One of the foreigners decides to take advantage of his new friends and steal from them. Meanwhile El-Train and Chris have to figure out how to tell Cassidy that she can't sing. | |||||
| 42 | 14 | "When Al Met Dawn" | Frank Bonner | November 6, 1999 | |
| Al and Dawn are getting along really well working together on a science project. They kiss. Dawn wants to keep their relationship a secret because of the Reality House cameras. Al agrees. Later, El-Train wants to go on a double date with Al. He is hesitant, but Dawn urges him to go. On the date, Dawn spies and sees the girl kiss Al. Dawn gets upset. She storms out on Al at the Science Fair. Ms. Noble talks with Dawn and helps her realize that she said "yes" but really meant "no." Dawn gets on the radio to apologize to Al for wanting him to be a mind reader. Al forgives her and they decide to have their relationship go public. | |||||
| 43 | 15 | "Funny Business" | Frank Bonner | November 6, 1999 | |
| It's career week at school and Chris and Jamal pick architect, but soon their boss Rebecca starts making seductive advances toward Chris. Chris is not sure if he can handle it, especially when she threatens to give him a poor grade if he doesn't accept her advances. | |||||
| 44 | 16 | "Get Your Vote On" | Frank Bonner | Kurt Taylor | November 13, 1999 |
| El-Train challenges Jamal by running against him in the school elections. | |||||
| 45 | 17 | "Angels of Harlem" | Frank Bonner | David DiPietro & Paul Ciancarelli | November 20, 1999 |
| Ms. Noble's church is celebrating its 100th Anniversary, and Chris, Dawn and El-Train help out. They grow to love the church but are devastated when Noble tells them that the church is going to be torn down by Chris's dad's construction company, in order to build a mall. When Chris's attempts to reason with his dad fail, the gang joins in and creates a radio-a-thon to raise money to save the church. After this fails, Noble says there's nothing more to do, but Chris and Dawn chain themselves to the church. Chris's dad sees his dedication and decides to build the mall around the church. Noble learns tenacity and determination from the kids. | |||||
| 46 | 18 | "Rollin' With the Homies" | Frank Bonner | Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | November 20, 1999 |
| The gang start working at a toy store and the owner wants Jamal and Chris to be friends with his son. His son, Tommy, is in a wheelchair don't like it when Jamal treats him different because of his disability. | |||||
| 47 | 19 | "El-Train in the Sky with Geena" | Frank Bonner | Todd J. Greenwald | November 27, 1999 |
| El-Train's girlfriend has a secret addiction...she steals from people to continue her drug habit. | |||||
| 48 | 20 | "Miracle on 134th Street and Lexington Avenue" | Frank Bonner | Ilunga Adell | November 27, 1999 |
| The gang is working at the NY Toy Co. for the Christmas holiday. Dawn and Chris go to deliver toys to the community center and meet Alison. They have a great time playing together, but realize that Alison and her mom need help. They decide to throw a Christmas party for Alison, her mom, and the rest of the center. At the party, Alison is sad and Chris and Dawn realize that Alison wants her dad back in her life. They find her father and convince him to come back to spend some time with Alison and her mother. | |||||
| 49 | 21 | "Yoko Oh-No" | Frank Bonner | Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | December 3, 1999 |
| Jamal is getting too close to his new girlfriend and does whatever she wants to do. | |||||
| 50 | 22 | "Party Like It's 1999" | Frank Bonner | Scott Spencer Gorden | December 3, 1999 |
| In this clip show episode, the gang from Manhattan High prepares to celebrate New Year's Eve in Times Square. When they find out it has been closed off because of too many people, Chris and Al convince Dawn to use her spare keys and let them into the school so they can watch from the roof. While on the roof, the whole gang reminisces about the times they've spent together, until Miss Noble shows up, wanting to know why they broke into the school. | |||||
| 51 | 23 | "Fast Time at Manny High" | Frank Bonner | David DiPietro & Paul Ciancarelli | February 12, 2000 |
| Manny High is entered in a charity event. If the kids fast for one night, the Keeny company will donate $500 to feed the homeless, and $500 to Manny High. Everybody agrees to try the fast, but their commitment doesn't last long. El-train is caught smuggling in food, Al and Dawn are caught sneaking off to celebrate their anniversary, Cassidy is caught trying to turn in a re-written term paper, and Chris and Jamal are caught with food stains on their clothing, which indicates they sneaked out on a date. Noble is upset because the kids broke their commitment, and all the kids who fasted lost out on the $500. The gang apologizes, makes the rest of the student's breakfast, and arranges to fulfill the school's charitable obligation themselves. | |||||
| 52 | 24 | "Harlem Honey" | Frank Bonner | Paul Ciancarelli & David DiPietro | March 11, 2000 |
| Jamal creates an internet woman for his father. The problems start when his father wants to meet her. Jamal convinces Ms. Noble to pretend to be Harlem Honey. Mr. Grant and Ms. Noble fool Jamal into thinking that they really like each other. | |||||
| 53 | 25 | "Mom on the Rocks" | Frank Bonner | Teleplay by: Robert Illes & Scott Spencer Gorden Story by: Ilunga Adell | June 10, 2000 |
| Dawn is embarrassed by her mom's drinking problem. | |||||
Season 4: 2000-2001
| Series # | Season # | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 54 | 1 | "Kickin' It" | Frank Bonner | James Dutcher | September 23, 2000 |
| When Al gets special treatment because he is a star athlete, Dawn tries to tell him he still needs to do his homework. Not taking her advice, he and El-Train work on a paper together, with poor results. Meanwhile, Cassidy and the rest of the gang help get Ms. Noble in shape for her class reunion. Ms. Noble meets a very special friend from high school. | |||||
| 55 | 2 | "The Users" | Frank Bonner | Todd J. Greenwald | September 23, 2000 |
| Chris and Jamal are in need of tutoring for midterms, and find an unlikely study buddy in the irritating studio technician Jasper. When Chris and Jamal get the opportunity to meet famous deejay "Jo-Jo On The Radio" for an internship interview, they are afraid Jasper will ruin their chances so they lie to him about the meeting time. When Jasper finds out he is hurt and the guys feel guilty, until they come up with a plan to make it up to Jasper. Meanwhile, Ms. Noble is having man trouble and her bad mood is scaring all the students so Al, El-Train, Cassidy and Dawn plot to get Ms. Noble and her boyfriend Billy back together again at what turns out to be quite an engaging dinner date. | |||||
| 56 | 3 | "Cheat Happens" | Frank Bonner | David DiPietro & Paul Ciancarelli | September 30, 2000 |
| When Jamal and Chris don't study for their chemistry final and are faced with the prospect of summer school they decide to make cheat sheets. Just before the test the sheets are accidentally switched and end up in El-Train's book. When Ms. Noble discovers the cheat sheets she decides to make the entire class re-take the test. The students are all mad at El-Train but Chris and Jamal do not confess until they understand the consequences of their actions on their friend. Ultimately they decide that it is better to tell the truth and save their friendship. Meanwhile, Dawn and Cassidy decide that if the guys can have their own radio show that the girls can too. | |||||
| 57 | 4 | "Presumed Innocent" | Frank Bonner | Ilunga Adell | September 30, 2000 |
| Tempers flare between Jamal and a gangbanger classmate until they decide to settle their differences in student court, and the gang discovers through trial and error that looks can be deceiving. Meanwhile, Al and El-Train face the challenge of auditioning as slang-free radio deejays. | |||||
| 58 | 5 | "The Third Wheel" | Frank Bonner | Scott Spencer Gorden | October 7, 2000 |
| While Dawn and Al seek some time together, El-Train seems to spoil every opportunity for them to be alone. With Dawn's urging, Al sets El-Train up for a date in order to distract him. Meanwhile, Chris, Jamal, Ms. Noble and Cassidy create a horror radio play. | |||||
| 59 | 6 | "Students of the Bride" | Frank Bonner | Teleplay by: Ilunga Adell & Todd J. Greenwald Story by: Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | October 7, 2000 |
| Ms. Noble is getting married. Ms. Noble cancels the wedding after discovering Billy's bachelor party with Hula girls. She regrets the choice as Billy decides to leave town, so it's a race to the airport to prevent him from leaving. Jamal and Cassidy develop feelings for each other as the wedding is being planned. They soon find out the feelings are just from the wedding and not themselves. | |||||
| 60 | 7 | "Mo, Money, Mo Problems" | Frank Bonner | Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | October 14, 2000 |
| When El-Train arrives at the dinner with a bruised nose, he complains about the lack of lights at the basketball court. He comes up with an idea for a glow in the dark basketball. El-Train, Al, Chris, and Jamal decide to go into business together after El-Train's invention turns out to be lucrative. When Al starts to take over, Chris and Jamal decide to start a rival company. Al discovers it's hard to run a business with only one employee-himself. Cassidy becomes jealous after Dawn gets the part in a famous director's movie. | |||||
| 61 | 8 | "Kodak Moment" | Frank Bonner | October 14, 2000 | |
| Chris gets involved with Sarah, an international star and soon realizes her life is harder than he thinks. Meanwhile Jamal helps Cassidy and Dawn with their project on the rumor ghosts of Manny High. | |||||
| 62 | 9 | "Meet Mr. History" | Frank Bonner | October 21, 2000 | |
| Chris and Jamal are assigned to write a paper about someone who has witnessed an important historical event but when they can't find anyone to interview, they make one up. Ms. Noble is so impressed that she books "Great Uncle Jesse" on a local television show and El-Train attempts to assume the role. Meanwhile, Dawn and Cassidy decide to go into business selling the fruit tarts they created in home economics class. | |||||
| 63 | 10 | "Keep on the Download" | Frank Bonner | Teleplay by: Scott Spencer Gorden Story by: David DiPietro & Paul Ciancarelli | October 21, 2000 |
| No one is laughing when Chris and Jamal's rivalry with the deejays from another school escalates from spirited pranks to costly property damages. They destroy the other deejay's equipment and end up losing their radio show until repairs are done on the other. Meanwhile, Manny High's Quiz Team captain Dawn is obsessed with winning the city finals trophy. | |||||
| 64 | 11 | "Havoc" | Frank Bonner | Teleplay by: Ilunga Adell & Todd J. Greenwald Story by: Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh | October 28, 2000 |
| Chris quits the jazz group to play with a popular band that just lost it guitar player. Cassidy and Dawn try to learn more about El-Train's troll doll. | |||||
| 65 | 12 | "Makin' Up Is Hard to Do" | Frank Bonner | Teleplay by: Ilunga Adell & Scott Spencer Gorden Story by: David DiPietro & Paul Ciancarelli | October 28, 2000 |
| Jamal battles Malcolm in a dance contest during the school dance. Meanwhile Al and Dawn break up after arguing. | |||||
| 66 | 13 | "Living in America" | Frank Bonner | Scott Spencer Gorden | November 4, 2000 |
| In this clip show, the gang once again reflects on events from the past year. Ms. Noble informs the gang that their international penpals in Japan, had just suffered from an earthquake. The gang e-mail their friends about the times they have had during the year. | |||||
| 67 | 14 | "Shock Treatment" | Frank Bonner | Barry "Berry" Douglas | November 4, 2000 |
| When "Mean Dean," New York's morning shock jock, can't make it to his live broadcast from Manny High, Chris and Jamal are offered the chance to fill in for him. The guys do such a great job making their friends the butt of jokes that they are offered a permanent show—and must decide if they want to achieve success by hurting the people they care about. In the meantime, Cassidy, Dawn, Al and El-Train try out for cheerleading, all for different reasons, with surprising results. | |||||
| 68 | 15 | "Frisky Business" | Frank Bonner | Todd J. Greenwald | November 11, 2000 |
| The gang returns from summer vacation to find Manny High resembling a prison after the school board installs new security measures. When Ms. Noble encourages the unhappy students to find a constructive way to voice their objections, they go on strike and are suspended and nothing is solved until the gang learn to compromise with the school board. In the meantime, Dawn and Cassidy's friendship is tested when they promise to be honest with each other, no matter what. | |||||
| 69 | 16 | "Jamal X" | Frank Bonner | Al Sonja L. Rice | November 11, 2000 |
| Jamal's uncle comes to the school to speak to his class and sparks something in Jamal to be more active in African American affairs. He starts a club for the Black students and excludes Chris from joining. | |||||
| 70 | 17 | "Subway Confessions" | Frank Bonner | David DiPietro & Paul Ciancarelli | November 18, 2000 |
| Ms. Noble has to figure out the truth as the gang must account for their whereabouts after sneaking into school. The stories all occur on subway train and range from a clown giving birth, Al and El-Train battling Russian spies, and an emergency make over of a homeless woman. | |||||
| 71 | 18 | "Who Da Man" | Frank Bonner | Al Sonja L. Rice | November 18, 2000 |
| Dawn saves Al and Cassidy from robbers on the train and the school newspaper soon learns of Dawn's heroic actions. | |||||
| 72 | 19 | "Get to Preppin'" | Frank Bonner | Bernie Ancheta | November 25, 2000 |
| Everyone is obsessed with making the grade during midterms at Manny High. When Jamal and Chris fail their first midterm, Chris' father pulls strings to put Chris back in prep school. At the same time, Dawn feel like she is losing her brainpower after Cassidy scores higher on a test than she did. While Jamal and the rest of the gang begin to take study group more seriously, Chris discovers that no matter how much he goofs off, he will not fail at prep school thanks to special arrangements made by his father. After midterms, the gang celebrates passing grades and discover it feels good when they apply themselves to school, while Chris is left feeling like a spoiled loser. Ms. Noble convinces Chris to talk to his dad about the important lesson he has learned and about returning to Manny High where he belongs. Meanwhile, Al (Dion Basco) and El-Train discover that they can big bucks selling old items from the school basement on an internet auction. They accidentally sell the school basketball trophy from 1957. They latter discover that Ms. Noble had bought it from them. | |||||
| 73 | 20 | "Unhappy Hour" | Frank Bonner | David DiPietro & Paul Ciancarelli | December 2, 2000 |
| The gang are invited to appear on a teen show to talk about their friendship. The night before the show they all get drunk and fight with each other. Ms. Noble and Billy discover them and attempt to knock some sense into them. The gang go on the show and realize what true friendship is really about. | |||||
| 74 | 21 | "Compromising Principal" | Frank Bonner | December 2, 2000 | |
| When Ms. Noble decides to loosen up and be more cool in order to win a most popular principal contest, the school turns into an undisciplined zoo. In the midst of the chaos, the gang try their hand at after school elective classes. | |||||
| 75 | 22 | "Dating Games" | Frank Bonner | Todd J. Greenwald | December 9, 2000 |
| Love is in the air at Manny High as the gang prepares for the Valentine Dance. Cassidy decides to play a "dating game" to get the school's resident hottie to go with her, only to realize that she has feelings for Chris. Meanwhile, Jamal, Ell-Train, Al and Dawn participate in Ms. Noble's meditation class only to cause Ms. Noble to become stressed herself. | |||||
| 76 | 23 | "Wager Money Go" | Frank Bonner | Barry "Berry" Douglas | December 9, 2000 |
| Jamal develops a gambling addiction that strains his friendship with Chris, Al and El-Train. | |||||
| 77 | 24 | "El-Brain" | Frank Bonner | December 16, 2000 | |
| El-Train enters the Science Fair to prove that he's smarter than everyone, including Jamal, who thinks he isn't. | |||||
| 78 | 25 | "Pier Pressure" | Frank Bonner | Bernie Ancheta | December 16, 2000 |
| The gang's holiday weekend at the Andersons' place in the Hamptons goes adrift when Chris, Cassidy, Dawn and Al run out of gas while yachting. Meanwhile, on shore, Jamal and El-Train's attempts to score with two honeys are interrupted by an unexpected visit from Ms. Noble and Billy. | |||||
| 79 | 26 | "Blast from the Past" | Frank Bonner | Al Sonja L. Rice | February 24, 2001 |
| Chris tries to make surprise anniversary dinner plans for Cassidy, but his sneaking around leads her to think he's cheating on her. She thinks that he has another girlfriend besides her. Meanwhile, Dawn and Al challenge Ms. Noble and Billy to a "Best Couple" contest. | |||||
Season 5: 2001
| Series # | Season # | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80 | 1 | "This Old Nerd" | Frank Bonner | Jay J. Demopoulos | September 8, 2001 |
| Jamal runs into one of his old friends and discovers that his friend is a nerd. So Jamal attempts to change his image and soon creates an egotistical jerk. Meanwhile, El-Train buys Ms. Noble a brand-new watch for her birthday that the gang all pooled with their money, but it turns out that the watch that El-Train purchased from a mysterious bearded woman was actually the same exact watch that was reported stolen. | |||||
| 81 | 2 | "E-Breakup" | Frank Bonner | Al Sonja L. Rice | September 8, 2001 |
| By spending all her time designing the Manny High School website, Dawn becomes distant from Al and that puts a strain on their relationship. She becomes involved with another student whom she had been chatting and e-mailing to on the internet. Then she has the shock of her life when she finds out that it was El-Train whom she was communicating with. This situation forces Al and Dawn to realize that even though they care about each other, they really do not have anything in common to sustain their relationship so they decide to break up. Also, Jamal feels alone and unlucky with the ladies, so he spends all his time interrupting Chris and Cassidy when they want to be alone together. | |||||
| 82 | 3 | "Chicken Run" | Frank Bonner | Scott Spencer Gorden | September 22, 2001 |
| Jamal is labeled a chicken when he refuses to fight a gang member. Wanting to get rid of his reputation, he fights the gang member. The gang member pulls out a knife and stabs Chris, who was trying to save Jamal. | |||||
| 83 | 4 | "Papa Please" | Frank Bonner | David DiPietro & Paul Ciancarelli | September 22, 2001 |
| Chris meets Cassidy's father for the first time. Also, Dawn vows with the help of Al to rid Ms. Noble of her addictive smoking habit. | |||||
| 84 | 5 | "Red Dawn" | Frank Bonner | Todd J. Greenwald | September 29, 2001 |
| Dawn has trouble accepting that Al has started dating a new girl so soon after their break up. Meanwhile, Chris, Jamal and El-Train hold a survivor type competition in the park with Noble overseeing. | |||||
| 85 | 6 | "Dances with Malcolm" | Frank Bonner | Bernie Ancheta | September 29, 2001 |
| Jamal teams up with Malcolm, his dance nemesis to audition as backup dancers for a group called six-street. Dawn and Cassidy ask Al and El-Train to secretly take over their advice column for women temporarily. So they can attend a taping of Late Night with Conan O'Brien. The column becomes a bigger success, but it proves to be an unfavorable double-edged sword for the two when Al and El-Train decide to manipulate the column for their own purposes. | |||||
| 86 | 7 | "Just for the Record" | Frank Bonner | Jeffrey J. Sachs | October 6, 2001 |
| The gang gets involved with a music group trying to make it big. | |||||
| 87 | 8 | "Skips, Lies and Radiotapes" | Frank Bonner | Jesse Collins | October 6, 2001 |
| It is senior ditch day at Manny High. Jamal and Chris want to spend this special day bungee jumping with Cassidy, Al, and El-Train. Ms. Noble tells them they can't go because they have to have a radio-thon to raise money for children. Jamal and Chris decide to skip this and rig their radio booth with pre-taped reel-to-reels of their show. Meanwhile, Dawn fights against a student named Kitty Collins for the attention of Ms. Noble and the title of valedictorian. | |||||
| 88 | 9 | "Dawn Don't Know Jack" | Frank Bonner | David DiPietro & Paul Ciancarelli | October 13, 2001 |
| Dawn falls for and starts dating Chris's old friend, Jack from his former prep school and she tells Cassidy that he might be the one. Chris finds out that Jack is still with his old girlfriend and Cassidy tries to tell Dawn, but she doesn't believe her. Dawn confronts Jack who tells her that it is over between him and his old girlfriend, but later finds out that she had been lied to. El-Train hits the road with Al and Jamal in his fixed up van to go attend a DMX concert. On the way, they pick up a hitchhiker who robs them and leaves the three tied up on the side of the road. | |||||
| 89 | 10 | "Rosie O'Diner" | Frank Bonner | October 13, 2001 | |
| Jamal falls for and after some mistakes in introducing himself, he hooks up with and starts dating one of the waitresses at the Manhattan diner named Rosie. She is very independent and not afraid to speak her mind, which proves to be trouble when she begins to offend customers who get on her nerves at the diner. After numerous complaints, Mr. Grant gives his son the uncomfortable job of firing her. | |||||
| 90 | 11 | "Cassidy Couch" | Frank Bonner | Todd J. Greenwald & Jeffrey J. Sachs | October 20, 2001 |
| Cassidy auditions for a play with a prominent Broadway director. She manages to get a small role but is thrilled just being in the play. Later, Chris sees the lead actress quit because the director is hitting on her. The director then gives Cassidy the lead role. Cassidy is thrilled until Chris tells her what happened to the other actress. Instead of believing him, she thinks he's just jealous that she's spending so much time with the director. But when the director comes on to Cassidy, she realizes Chris was right. The gang then sets up as sting operation on the radio to trap the director into admitting what he did. Meanwhile, El-Train falls out of bed and hits his head. After a few coincidences, El-Train believes he now has premonitions of the future and even goes so far as to predict that Death will be visiting Ms. Noble. | |||||
| 91 | 12 | "Brother from Another Mother" | Frank Bonner | Jeffrey Sachs & Todd J. Greenwald | October 20, 2001 |
| There is a heat wave going through New York, Dawn convinces Ms. Noble to allow a small waiting pool on the roof of Manny High. Instead Al and Chris secretly set up a large swimming pool for the whole school to enjoy and relax. Ms. Noble later finds out about the pool when one of the many interruptions preventing her from having a peaceful lunch break is leaking water coming from the ceiling. She tells Al to get rid of the pool. Before he does this, Al attempts to conquer his fear of the pool and learn how to swim, but in the process he almost drowns. Ms. Noble comes in the nick of time to rescue him and decides to teach Al how to swim before she gets rid of the pool. Meanwhile, Jamal's father and El-Train's mother develop an attraction for each other while attending a parent-principal conference. They set up a date and have the time of their lives. Jamal freaks out and doesn't know what to think of this blossoming relationship, the possibility of someone else being his mother, and the future of a new family. While El-Train is ecstatic that his mother is finding some happiness in her life and he is looking forward to a possible future of Jamal becoming his brother and Mr. Grant his father. | |||||
| 92 | 13 | "Weight on Jamal" | Frank Bonner | Todd J. Greenwald | October 27, 2001 |
| Jamal wants to get into USC, but his coach tells him that he isn't in shape enough to be considered for the team. He starts working out and is offered steroids at the health club. Meanwhile Dawn, Cassidy, Chris and Al have to deal with a cruel pottery teacher. Ms. Hotz scares the students and they eventually fight back. She reveals that she is only mean because most people take her class due to her sexy looks. | |||||
| 93 | 14 | "Basket Case" | Frank Bonner | Teleplay by: Jeffrey J. Sachs & Bernie Ancheta Story by: David DiPietro & Paul Ciancarelli | October 27, 2001 |
| El-Train believes that by participating in any form of sports competition against his new girlfriend, Kianna will result in conflict which will lead to the disintegration of their relationship. He comes to the conclusion of this by witnessing Kianna become riled up during Chris and Jamal's radio show over wanting to beat El-Train in the basketball shoot out competition at the recreation center. Meanwhile Jamal, Chris, and Cassidy work extremely hard to appease a newspaper food critic who has given a bad review to the Manhattan Diner. Also, Dawn develops a crush on Chip, the head of the rec. center. | |||||
| 94 | 15 | "An SAT Carol" | Frank Bonner | Josh Goldstein | November 3, 2001 |
| Overwhelmed by all the test prep, El-Train decides not to take the SATs. | |||||
| 95 | 16 | "Mock the Vote" | Frank Bonner | Jeffrey J. Sachs | November 3, 2001 |
| Dawn is running for Senior Class President against a pompous and overconfident student named Thane Watkins. Jamal and Chris contribute to Dawn losing out on the position when they make a mockery of the whole election on their radio show which affects the voter turnout. In turn making Thane win by a landslide and unwittingly giving him the power to mess with many Manny High programs and to act on his distaste of their radio show by canceling it and dismantling the radio booth. Now Chris, Jamal, Al, and El-Train must work with Dawn to veto this decision. Meanwhile, Cassidy receives letters from a fan who has seen her in a commercial and he writes that he is flying to New York to visit her. She becomes a paranoid and nervous wreck when she believes that this fan and a crazed stalker that has escaped who are both from the same town is one in the same person. | |||||
| 96 | 17 | "Prose and Cons" | Frank Bonner | Al Sonja L. Rice | November 3, 2001 |
| El-Train becomes popular among the ladies during the reciting and singing of his poetry which causes him to pay less attention to his girlfriend, Kianna. Meanwhile Al, Chris, and Jamal attempt be the first students to prank Ms. Noble during her tenure as the Principal of Manny High. | |||||
| 97 | 18 | "Why Y'all Clippin'" | Frank Bonner | Paul Ciancarelli & David DiPietro | November 10, 2001 |
| In this clip show, the whole gang is having problems over a yearbook picture and are giving each other the silent treatment. So Ms. Noble calls everybody to Manny High on Saturday to work things out by reflecting on memories of the good, the bad, and the ugly that they had over the span of their time as friends. | |||||
| 98 | 19 | "Model Behavior" | Frank Bonner | Bernie Ancheta | November 17, 2001 |
| The whole gang is having problems over a yearbook picture and are giving each other the silent treatment. So Ms. Noble calls everybody to Manny High on Saturday to work things out by reflecting on memories of the good, the bad, and the ugly that they had over the span of their time as friends. | |||||
| 99 | 20 | "Almost Fatal" | Frank Bonner | Paul Ciancarelli & David DiPietro | November 17, 2001 |
| After Chris, Jamal, and El-Train survive a car crash, they start going through some changes as they now view life in a whole new perspective. The three friends begin live to their lives on the edge by doing certain activities to the extreme. | |||||
| 100 | 21 | "Anchors Away" | Frank Bonner | Al Sonja L. Rice & Todd J. Greenwald | November 24, 2001 |
| The time for Ms. Noble's retirement and the gang's graduation is drawing near and everybody is excited, except for Dawn. Witnessing the preparation for next year and the new changes being made at the school makes Dawn uneasy. She begins to become anxious about moving on from Manny High and the thought of being apart from her friends when they all go their separate ways in the fall. | |||||
| 101 | 22 | "Video Killed the Radio Star" | Frank Bonner | Bernie Ancheta | November 24, 2001 |
| The students of Manny High have a statue made of Ms. Noble in honor of her tenure as principal of Manny High placed near the front of the school. At the tribute, Ms. Noble tells the gang that there is an opening to produce a television show for Manny High. Chris and Jamal turn it down because they are already busy working on their radio show. Dawn, Cassidy, El-Train, and Al take on the job by creating and producing a spoof of the show, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" called "Muffy the Werewolf Slapper." Jamal and Chris find out that their radio show will be competing with the TV show during lunch time and decide to work extremely hard to maintain their listening audience. They are shocked to find that the rest of the gang's TV show is a success among the students of Manny High. So they decide to sabotage the show by tampering with the audio during editing. Resulting in the whole student body turning on Dawn, Cassidy, El-Train, and Al because they believe that this audio mistake was due to lazy and hack writing. Meanwhile, Ms. Noble attempts to find out who has been defacing her tribute statue. | |||||
| 102 | 23 | "Prom-Lems" | Frank Bonner | Jeffrey J. Sachs | December 1, 2001 |
| The gang all prepare for the Manny High Prom. Chris prepares to give a ring to Cassidy for this special occasion and to highlight their relationship. He also wants her to visit him at Duke University from Cal Art. Cassidy and Dawn misinterpret his message about the ring as a marriage proposal and the Duke brochures as Chris wanting Cassidy to go with him to Duke. Meanwhile, Al asks Dawn to the prom and she accepts. At the prom, the two fondly reflect on the memories of their time together when they were dating. Ms. Noble worries that by Billy being away, this will be another prom that she will have to attend alone. Also, Jamal and El-Train want to set up something special for Rosie and Kianna before they go to the special dance, but things don't seem to go right. | |||||
| 103 | 24 | "Goodbye Manny High" | Frank Bonner | Scott Spencer Gorden | December 8, 2001 |
| The whole gang is getting ready for graduation, but they are sent the wrong diplomas. There is another problem when El-Train might not be able to graduate. Things all work out in the end when they receive their correct diplomas and El-Train receives the credit he needs to graduate by performing in a play. Chris and Jamal have to find a way to end their radio show. A bizarre twist of fate hooks them up with the perfect goodbye. They attend graduation. | |||||
| 104 | 25 | "And Then There Were None" | Frank Bonner | Todd J. Greenwald | December 8, 2001 |
| In the show's final clip show episode, a few months have passed since Ms. Noble has retired as Principal and Jamal, Chris, Cassidy, El-Train, Dawn, and Al have graduated from Manny High. Ms. Noble and the gang decide to have a final farewell meal at the Manhattan diner before they head off to the beginning of a new chapter in each of their lives. They fondly look back at the memories of the good times, as each member of the gang departs and says their goodbyes. | |||||
| 105 | 26 | "Al's in Toyland" | Frank Bonner | Al Sonja L. Rice | December 15, 2001 |
| At his new job, Al attempts to advertise a toy gun without violence and gore, which is against his boss's wishes. Meanwhile, Ms. Noble has signed up Chris, Jamal, El-Train, Dawn, and Cassidy to the Manny High marching band against their will to fulfill their Arts elective credit for graduation. | |||||
Theme song
The theme song for "City Guys" was written by Joey Schwartz, Eric Swerdloff and Michael Muta-Ali Muhammad and composed by Joey Schwartz (who also composed the incidental music used to denote scene changes and breaks in the program). The rap and R&B-infused theme included a chorus, "C-I-T-Y you can see why, these guys, the neat guys, smart and streetwise," which repeating twice consecutively during the beginning, middle and near the end of the song.
Syndication
City Guys ran in syndication on local television stations throughout the United States from September 2000 to September 2002; Tribune Entertainment, which distributed the series(its corporate sister at the time, Tribune Broadcasting, incidentally, was the primary station group carrying the series), sold the series as a syndication package – alongside fellow TNBC sitcom California Dreams – for stations to count towards educational programming guidelines set by the Federal Communications Commission. The series later briefly aired on BET for three weeks from October 2 to October 16, 2010.
External links
- City Guys at the Internet Movie Database
- City Guys at TV.com
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