MovieChat Forums > Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990) Discussion > Is it just me, or was David Silver and S...

Is it just me, or was David Silver and Scott Scanlan reminiscent of pervy duos in raunchy comedies?


If so, is that why Douglas Emerson (Scott) was demoted to recurring character at the beginning of the second season? It seems as if Scott and David were always joined at the hip, and that the writers didn't know what else to do with him. On top of that, David (with Scott tagging along) was always bugging the girls, particularly Kelly, with his video camera in the same fashion as the two boys in "Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers” and other raunchy comedies where two boys were strapped with a camera or binoculars. Scott was basically not a stand-out character, but instead just David's best friend. It's also said that Douglas retired from acting, thus Scott killing himself exactly halfway through the second season by accident with his father's gun. But I wonder if Douglas’s demotion was instrumental in his decision to retire, as he probably was bitter and said, “F*ck Hollywood.” With the way the 90210 theme song went from generic (1st season; Douglas a regular cast member) to rockstar-ish (2nd season; Douglas removed from the opening credits), that’s gotta sting.

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I think the first season the producers were trying for an afterschoolish vibe.....once they toned that done by eliminating the presence of Emerson and changing David's storyline (getting rid of the camera and making him the school DJ) they changed the instrumental. It wasn't 'wholesome' it was cool and hip

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Funny you mentioned that, because Brian Austin Green and Tori Spelling were 18 years old during filming of the second season, and Douglas Emerson was 17. So the instrumental change was actually perfect timing, since it gave off more of a "softcore porn" kind of vibe than the first season's instrumental. Everything from the audio (adrenaline-pumping guitar riff) to the video (puffy smoke around cast members as their names appeared on-screen) just screamed, "Put your kids to bed." Therefore, Douglas Emerson being demoted to recurring cast member who won't be in the adult-themed opening credits, was a smart move as well. In hindsight, the producers might not have received a lot of flack for having a minor featured in the theme song, since it was so easy for celebrities to hide their age back in those pre-internet days. But, better safe than sorry.

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