Sex and the City

This article is about the TV series. For the book on which it is based, see Sex and the City (book). For its subsequent films, see Sex and the City (film) and Sex and the City 2.

Sex and the City
Genre	Comedy-drama Romance Blue comedy
Created by	Darren Star
Starring	Sarah Jessica Parker Kim Cattrall Kristin Davis Cynthia Nixon
Narrated by	Sarah Jessica Parker
Theme music composer	Douglas J. Cuomo Tom Findlay
Opening theme	"Sex and the City Theme"
Composer(s)	Bob Boykin Kenneth Burgomaster Bob Christianson Douglas J. Cuomo Alan Ari Lazar Didier Rachou
Country of origin	United States
Language(s)	English
No. of seasons	6
No. of episodes	94 (List of episodes)
Production
Location(s)	New York City
Camera setup	Single camera
Running time	30 minutes
Production company(s)	Darren Star Productions HBO Original Programming
Broadcast
Original channel	HBO
Picture format	480i SDTV
Audio format	Stereo
Original run	June 6, 1998 (1998-06-06) – February 22, 2004 (2004-02-22)
Chronology
Followed by	Sex and the City (2008) Sex and the City 2 (2010)
External links
[hbo.com/sex-and-the-city Website]

Sex and the City is an American television comedy-drama series created by Darren Star and produced by HBO. Broadcast from 1998 until 2004, the original run of the show had a total of ninety-four episodes. Throughout its six-year run, the show received contributions from various producers, writers and directors, perhaps most significantly from Michael Patrick King.

Set and filmed in New York City and based on the book of the same name by Candace Bushnell, the show follows the lives of a group of four New York women – three in their mid-thirties and one in her forties – who, throughout their different natures and ever-changing sex lives, remain inseparable and confide in each other. Starring Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis and Cynthia Nixon as these four women, the quirky series had multiple continuing storylines that tackled relevant and modern social issues like sexuality, sexually transmitted diseases, safe sex, promiscuity, femininity while exploring the difference between friendships and relationships.

Since its debut, the show has been well-received by viewers and critics alike. While its June 6, 1998 premiere was one of the highest-rated sitcoms of the season, Sex and the City has gone on to captivate a huge worldwide viewership and since its end on February 22, 2004, has, thus far, spawned two films: Sex and the City (2008) and its sequel Sex and the City 2 (2010). The show became a household name and accrued 7 of its 54 Emmy Award nominations, 8 of its 24 Golden Globe Award nominations, and 3 of its 11 Screen Actors Guild Award nominations.Sex and the City still airs in syndication worldwide and has been listed on Entertainment Weekly's end-of-the-decade "best of" list and as one of Time magazine's 100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME.^[1]

Origins

The show was based in part on writer Candace Bushnell's book of the same name, compiled from her column with the New York Observer. Bushnell has stated in several interviews that the Carrie Bradshaw in her columns is her alter ego; when she wrote the "Sex and the City" essays, she used her own name initially; for privacy reasons, however, she created the character of Carrie Bradshaw, played by Sarah Jessica Parker. Carrie Bradshaw was a writer living in New York City. Carrie also has the same initials, a flourish emphasizing her connection with Bushnell.^[2]

Cast and characters

Main article: Sex and the City characters

Carrie Bradshaw, played by Sarah Jessica Parker, is the narrator of each episode. Each episode is structured around her train of thought while writing her weekly column, "Sex and the City", for the fictitious newspaper the New York Star. A member of the New York glitterati, she is a club/bar/restaurant staple who is known for her unique fashion sense (particularly footwear: Manolo Blahniks). Carrie's one-room, rent-controlled apartment is in an Upper East Side brownstone. Stanford Blatch, a gay talent agent from an aristocratic family played by Willie Garson, is Carrie's best friend outside of the three women.

Carrie is entangled with Mr. Big (Chris Noth), whose name is eventually revealed to be John James Preston, in a complicated, on-and-off-again kind of relationship. He is the reason for many of Carrie's breakdowns as he never seemed ready to fully commit to Carrie. He is once divorced by the time the series opens, a big jazz fan and a heavy cigar smoker with plenty of money to burn. When they breakup, Manhattan furniture designer Aidan Shaw, played by John Corbett, is Carrie's next serious boyfriend in season three. Carrie met him when her friend Stanford Blatch noticed his photo in the newspaper, and insisted that they visit his store. Aidan is seen as being somewhat more traditional and patient about relationships than many of Carrie's other love interests. Referred to by Carrie occasionally as "The Russian," Aleksandr Petrovsky, played by Mikhail Baryshnikov is a famous artist who becomes Carrie's lover in the final season. He sweeps her off her feet with huge romantic gestures and shows her the foreign pockets of New York that she has never seen before. He has an ex-wife and 22-year-old daughter, both of whom live in Paris.

Samantha Jones, played by Kim Cattrall, is the oldest and most sexually confident of the foursome. Samantha is an independent businesswoman, with a career in public relations. She is confident, strong, outspoken, and calls herself a "try-sexual" (meaning she'll try anything once). Samantha has a number of extremely brief sexual relationships in the show. Jerry/Smith Jerrod, played by Jason Lewis, is a young waiter Samantha seduces from the final season, also a struggling actor whose career Samantha jumpstarts using her PR connections (including changing his name to "Smith Jerrod" from "Jerry Jerrod"). He mentions being a recovering alcoholic that attends AA. He also shows a fierce loyalty to Samantha throughout their relationship.

Charlotte York Goldenblatt, played by Kristin Davis, works in an art gallery and has had a conventional Connecticut upbringing. She is the most optimistic of the group, the one who places the most emphasis on emotional love as opposed to lust, and is a true romantic; always searching for her "knight in shining armor." Charlotte was a "straight A" student who attended Smith College where she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma (note that there are no sororities at the real Smith College) majoring in art history with a minor in finance. During the series, it is also revealed that Charlotte was voted homecoming queen, prom queen, "most popular," student body president, and track team captain, and was active as a cheerleader and teen model. Trey MacDougal, played by Kyle MacLachlan, is an attractive Park Avenue cardiologist with a pedigree and country house whom Charlotte meets in season three. Trey's large Scottish family is headed by his mother "Bunny," a manipulative, overbearing sort that complicates his relationship with Charlotte. Harry Goldenblatt, played by Evan Handler, is Charlotte's Jewish divorce lawyer who is incredibly attracted to her from the beginning of season five. She is not attracted to him initially but tries to pursue a sex-only relationship with him, which leads to an exclusive and loving relationship.

Miranda Hobbes, played by Cynthia Nixon, is a career-minded lawyer with sometimes cynical views on relationships and men. A Harvard Law School graduate from Philadelphia with two siblings, Miranda is often seen as the practical voice of reason in the group. In the early seasons, she is portrayed as a bit masculine and borderline misandric, but this image softens somewhat over the years, particularly after she becomes pregnant and gives birth. Her storyline then explores the difficulties she faces as a single woman juggling a beloved but demanding career along with motherhood, dating, and relationships. During the series, she purchases a condo in the city's Upper West Side and later a home in Brooklyn. Steve Brady, played by David Eigenberg, is Miranda's on-and-off boyfriend throughout the series since he was introduced in the second season. He is one of the few men on the show meant to counter-balance all the emotionally unstable men encountered throughout the series, as he is a constant and sensitive male character. His alcoholic mother, Mary Brady, played by Anne Meara, is also a prominent recurring character.

Episodes

Main article: List of Sex and the City episodes

The series was divided up into six seasons altogether. The first season was twelve episodes (two discs of 6), the second season was eighteen episodes (three discs of 6), and the third season was eighteen episodes (three discs of 6). Then the fourth season was eighteen episodes (three discs of 6), the fifth season was eight episodes (two discs of four), and the final season was twenty episodes. In total, there were 94 episodes of Sex and the City.

Season	Episode #	First airdate	Last airdate
Season 1	12	June 6, 1998	August 23, 1998
Season 2	18	June 6, 1999	October 3, 1999
Season 3	18	June 4, 2000	October 15, 2000
Season 4	18	June 3, 2001	February 10, 2002
Season 5	8	July 21, 2002	September 8, 2002
Season 6	20	June 22, 2003	February 22, 2004

Series overview

Season One: 1998

Carrie Bradshaw lives in Manhattan and writes a column called "Sex and the City." At a birthday party for Miranda, Carrie and her friends decide to start having sex like men, meaning without all the emotional attachment, which sets the tone for the series.

Carrie has many chance encounters with a handsome businessman that Samantha refers to as "Mr. Big," which becomes the name by which he's known (or just "Big") throughout the series. They begin to date but Carrie is dismayed to find out he is still seeing other people and although he eventually agrees to exclusivity, he doesn't introduce Carrie to his mother and won't refer to her as "the one." Rather than go on a planned vacation with him, Carrie breaks it off.

Miranda gets set up with Skipper, a friend of Carrie's. They date on and off; he is more laid back while Miranda is more forceful, but after a breakup, Miranda sees him with another woman and she is compelled to begin again with him, but they again break up when he wants an exclusive relationship and she does not.

Charlotte dates a marriage-minded man but they clash over china patterns. She declines to have anal sex with another boyfriend yet consents to pose nude for a famous painter.

Samantha sleeps with an artist who likes to videotape his encounters, Charlotte's doorman, a married couple, and others. But when she meets James, a man who seems utterly perfect for her, she's heartbroken to discover that he has a small penis.

Season Two: 1999

Carrie dates a baseball player while on the rebound, but breaks it off when she realizes she's not over Big. She then dates a sell-out filmmaker, a shoplifter, and a nice guy she scares away by snooping, and then takes up with Big again, something she at first keeps from her friends. Their relationship is rocky, and when he announces that he might have to move to Paris for a year but doesn't clearly invite Carrie to come with him, they break up a second time. Carrie then tries without success to convert a friend with benefits to something more, dates a writer with a great family but who is always "early" in bed, then a recovering alcoholic who uses Carrie to replace his old addiction. She then runs into Big, returned from Paris, and his new 20-something fiancee, Natasha (played by Bridget Moynahan).

Miranda dates a dirty talker, fakes it with an ophthalmologist, and tries to adjust to a guy who likes to watch porn during sex. By the time she meets Steve, the bartender, she's definitely not willing to believe he is as nice as he seems. They start dating but the differences in their schedules and their finances lead to a break-up. She winds up back in bed with Steve, but not before dating a guy who wants to get caught, a Peeping Tom in the next building, and a divorced dad.

Charlotte encounters a legendary purveyor of cunnilingus, a handy actor next door, a widower on the make, a man who undergoes adult circumcision, a famous actor, a too-effeminate pastry chef, a shoe salesman with a foot fetish, and a 20-something guy who gives her crabs.

Despite a brief attempt at couples therapy, Samantha breaks up with James. She then sleeps with a litigator, a salsa dancer, her trainer, a sports fan who can only rally when his team does well, Charlotte's brother, and even a gay couple. She then meets a man whose penis is too big even for her.

The end of Season Two also marks the end of characters talking directly to the camera.

Season Three: 2000

Carrie starts off dating a politician, followed by a bi-sexual. Big marries Natasha, and Carrie meets Aidan, the furniture maker. They have a virtually flaw-free relationship until Carrie and Big begin an affair. When caught in Big's apartment by Natasha, their affair ends as does eventually both Big's marriage and Carrie's relationship with Aidan.

Miranda and Steve move in together; he tells Miranda that he'd like them to have a baby but a puppy purchase instead alerts Miranda to the fact that they're very different when it comes to maturity. Steve moves out and Miranda makes partner at her law firm. She also goes on to date a phone sex guy, a fake ER doctor, a guy who doesn't swallow his food, and a police detective.

Charlotte, looking for a husband, dates an I-banker with an anger management problem, a photog who gets her into menswear, a bad kisser, and a climax name caller. She then meets Trey McDougal; despite an awkward "proposal," the discovery of his low libido and inability to perform sexually the night before their marriage, and conflict with his domineering mother, the two marry. They begin their marriage with a sexless honeymoon, a continuing problem in their relationship, and the two eventually separate.

Samantha sleeps with a fireman, a short man, her assistant, a black guy with a disapproving sister, a recreational Viagra user, a guy who tastes bad, Trey's Scottish cousin, a dildo model, and a college-aged virgin. She also has a menopause scare, gets tested for HIV, and buys a new apartment in the Meatpacking District where she has to make peace with the transvestites on her street.

After her breakups with Big and Aidan, Carrie dates a guy who still lives at home, teaches a class at the Learning Annex on how to meet men, gets mugged, and tries to apologize to Natasha. She and Big also make an attempt at being friends.

Season Four: 2001–2002

After meeting Aidan at the opening of a bar he co-owns, Carrie convinces him to restart their relationship. He moves into her apartment after purchasing it when her building goes co-op and then proposes. Despite her misgivings, Carrie accepts the proposal and then eventually realizes she's not ready for marriage. Despite discussing her concerns and initially agreeing to give her more time, Aidan soon pushes Carrie for marriage and she realizes this is because he does not trust her, given her past affair with Big. They break up and he moves out, and Carrie purchases her apartment after being loaned the down payment money from Charlotte. At the end of Season Four, Carrie discovers that Big has sold his apartment and is moving to Napa.

Charlotte and Trey are living apart but continuing to have marital relations; they eventually reconcile and Charlotte moves back into their shared apartment. They decide to try for a baby but realize Charlotte is reproductively challenged; after fertility treatments and adoption discussion, their marriage breaks apart under the strain and they decide upon divorce.

Miranda supports Steve through testicular cancer and surgery. Later, when he feels emasculated due to surgery, they have sex and Miranda gets pregnant; she at first considers an abortion, which is particularly distressing to Charlotte as she deals with her struggles to get pregnant, but Miranda then decides to keep the baby.

Samantha flirts with a priest, has nude photos taken of herself, tries to have a relationship with a lesbian, sleeps with a baby talker, a wrestling coach, and a farmer. She then lands a big PR account with resolutely single hotel magnate Richard and begins a relationship with him that starts out as purely sex but becomes something more to both of them, and they attempt monogamy. However, she eventually catches him in infidelity and they break up.

Season Five: 2002

Carries spends time by herself in Season Five; she fears this means she will be fired from writing her sex column but instead a publisher wants to turn the columns into a book. A book tour lands her in San Francisco where she reunites briefly with Big, and in New York she meets Jack Berger, another author with whom she feels sparks but who is attached.

Samantha tries again with Richard but finds her lack of trust in him too much and she breaks it off for good.

Miranda is now mother to son Brady and finds it difficult to work, date, and carry on her previous life as such; Steve is supportive and she falls into bed with him one afternoon, making her question her feelings for him.

Charlotte has a run-in with her former mother-in-law over the legalities of the apartment she shared with Trey, and hires Harry Goldenblatt as her divorce attorney. Despite his physical shortcomings she finds herself attracted to him and they begin a sexual relationship, but then soon finds that she is developing real feelings for him. Harry however reveals that he must marry within his Jewish faith, causing Charlotte to actually consider conversion.

Season Six: 2003–2004

Carrie begins dating Jack Berger but his struggles as an author and her success with her upcoming book cause too much conflict between them and they break up. Big returns to New York for angioplasty and Carrie realizes she still has feelings for him but also realizes he still cannot fully commit. After he returns to Napa, she meets Aleksandr, a famous Russian artist. Aleksandr seems to be attentive to her in a way that Big never was, and asks her to come to Paris with him. She does, briefly, but realizes how inattentive he is when working and she breaks it off with him just as Big arrives in Paris, looking for her, ready to finally commit to her being "the one."

Charlotte decides that life with Harry, someone accepting of her fertility issues, would be worth conversion to the Jewish faith. After this process, she presses Harry to "set the date" in such a way that is insulting to him and he breaks it off with her. However, they run into each other at a mixer and, after her tearful apology, start their relationship again, eventually marrying. After fertility treatments fail, they decide to adopt and receive eventual news that they have been approved to adopt a child from China.

Once Miranda realizes she's still in love with Steve, he begins a serious relationship with someone else, and so she does the same. However, at son Brady's first birthday, they reveal their feelings for each other and begin their relationship again. Miranda proposes to Steve and they marry in a public park. Needing more room for their growing family, she consents to moving to Brooklyn where they buy a home.

Samantha begins a relationship with a much younger waiter, Jerry Jerrod, who turns out to also be a struggling actor. She uses her PR skills to help his career, even changing his name to Smith Jerrod. Despite trying to keep their relationship as casual as all others, she develops true feelings for him. Smith supports her after she is diagnosed with breast cancer, shaving his own head in sympathy after catching her doing the same to herself when her hair starts falling out due to chemotherapy, and insistng on waiting for her when her sex drive also wanes during treatment. When he flies home from his movie shoot just to tell her that he loves her, she replies, "You have meant more to me than any man I've ever known."

The season and the series concludes with the four girls reunited in New York, and with Carrie receiving a phone call from Big (which finally reveals his first name, John), telling her that his Napa house is up for sale and he was headed back to New York, and with Carrie's final voiceover, "The most exciting, challenging and significant relationship of all is the one you have with yourself. And if you find someone to love the you you love, well, that's just fabulous."

Reception

Sex and the City premiered on HBO, June 6, 1998, and was one of the highest-rated sitcoms of the season. The last original episode aired on February 22, 2004.

Awards and recognition

Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Sex and the City

Over its course of six seasons, "Sex and the City" was nominated for over 50 Emmy Awards, winning seven times. Among the Emmys the show won were two for Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series (Jennifer McNamara), one for its Costumes, a trophy for Outstanding Comedy Series for its third season in 2001 (the first time ever a cable channel wins Outstanding Comedy Series), Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series in 2002 for the episode "The Real Me", and for its final season in 2004, Emmys for Sarah Jessica Parker (Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for the episode "An American Girl in Paris, Part Deux"), and Cynthia Nixon (Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for the episodes "One" and "Ick Factor").

It has also been nominated for 24 Golden Globe Awards, and won 8. Its wins included Best TV Series — Musical or Comedy, and Best Actress in a TV Series — Musical or Comedy, (Sarah Jessica Parker) for three consecutive years from 2000–2002, Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Mini-Series, or Movie for Kim Cattrall, and another one for Parker.

In 2007 it was listed as one of Time magazine's "100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME."^[1]

Entertainment Weekly put it on its end-of-the-decade, "best-of" list, saying, "The clothes from SATC raise your cosmos! A toast to the wonderful wardrobe from Sex and the City, which taught us that no flower is too big, no skirt too short, and no shoe too expensive."^[3]

Criticism

Concern has been expressed about the influence the show has on adolescents. Sex and the City, along with the sitcom Friends, were specifically recognized for "glamori[zing] sex while hardly mentioning its downsides, such as pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases" by a 2008 study published in the American Journal of Paediatrics. The study found that females 12–17 who watched these, and similarly "sexually charged" shows were about twice as likely to get pregnant as those who did not, and teenage male viewers were more likely to impregnate someone. The Daily Mail article noted that similar studies have also found an association between viewing sexual content and earlier sex and higher disease risk.^[4]

Tanya Gold of The Telegraph (UK) stated, "Sex and the City is to feminism what sugar is to dental care. The first clue is in the opening credits of the television show. Carrie is standing in a New York street in a ballet skirt, the sort that toddlers wear. She is dressed, unmistakably, as a child. And, because she is sex columnist on a newspaper, a bus wearing a huge photo of her in a tiny dress trundles past. 'Carrie Bradshaw knows good sex,' says the bus. And there, before any dialogue hits your ears, you have the two woeful female archetypes that Sex and the City loves — woman as sex object and woman as child ... In another [episode], Carrie realizes she is homeless because she has spent $40,000 on shoes and does not have a deposit for an apartment. (In this crisis, she cries and borrows the money for the deposit — what child would do anything else?)."^[5]

Joan Swirsky, a New York–based journalist and author, wrote in 2003: "Another example that feminism is dead is the popularity of Sex and the City, the HBO show that features 30- and 40-something woman sending out the unmistakable messages to females both younger and older that careers, money, looks and, ostensibly, intelligence are nothing compared to doing anything to get a man, including endlessly obsessing about the subject, engaging in loveless or even like-less sexual encounters."^[6]

Broadcast and distribution

Season one of Sex and the City aired on HBO from June to August 1998. Season two was broadcast from June until October,1999. Season three aired from June until October 2000. Season four was broadcast in two parts: from June until August 2001, and then in January and February 2002. Season five, truncated due to Parker's pregnancy, aired on HBO during the summer of 2002. The twenty episodes of the final season, season six, aired in two parts: from June until September 2003 and during January and February 2004.

Sex and the City is currently syndicated in the US by HBO corporate sibling (under Time Warner) Warner Bros. Television Distribution. CBS Television Studios (successors to Rysher Entertainment and Paramount Television) and their distribution arm own international rights.

The United States cable channel HBO was the original broadcaster. TBS and WGN began showing edited reruns of the series. The series then went into international syndication.

In Australia, the Nine Network aired the first run of the show Every Monday Between 9:30 pm and 11:00 pm. After 2004 the Cable Channel W. Channel aired it until summer 2008 when Arena TV started airing it in a block with Will & Grace with promos stating "all the good guys are gay".

In the Republic of Ireland, TV3 premiered Sex and the City in February in 1999. Since 2006 repeats of the series aired on 3e.

Channel 4 originally aired the series in the UK with the first episode shown in early 1999. As of August 2009 a double bill of the show airs each weeknight at 10:30pm on Comedy Central (UK) and a double bill airs on Wednesdays from 9pm on Fiver.

Country	TV network(s)	Date of premiere
Albania	Klan TV	2010–
Argentina	Canal 9	2009–
Armenia	ATV[disambiguation needed ]	2011–
Austria	ORF 1
Australia	Nine Network Network Ten Eleven Fox8 W Channel Arena 111 Hits	September 6, 1999 – June 2004 2005 – 2010 February 4, 2011 – 2000 - 2004 2005 – 2007 January 2008 – March 2011 March 7, 2011 –
Belgium	VIJFtv
Brazil	Rede 21 Fox Life Multishow HBO	2004–2006 2006– 2002– 1999–2005
Bosnia and Herzegovina	RTVFBIH Hayat TV	2002- 2010
Bulgaria	Nova Television Fox Life HBO Comedy	2002–2006 2009– 2010–
Canada	Bravo!	1999–2004
Croatia	Nova TV Doma TV	2010 2011
Cyprus	Sigma	2006–
Czech Republic	Prima Prima Love	2008-2010 2011–
Estonia	TV3
Finland	MTV3	June 1, 1999 – November 23, 2004
France	Téva M6	August 28, 1999–2004 October 18, 2000–2005
Georgia	Rustavi 2	2000–2004 2010–
Germany	ProSieben Comedy Central sixx	2001–2006 2009–2010 2010–
Greece	Alter Alpha TV	2002–2008 2009–
Hungary	HBO Hungary Viasat 3 HBO Comedy	2003–2007 2006– 2010–
Iceland	Stöð 2	1999–
Ireland	TV3 3e Comedy Central	February 1999–2004 2006– 2009–
Israel	Channel 2 (Reshet) HOT V.O.D.	1999– 2007–
Italy	TMC La Sette FoxLife SKY	2000–2006 2006– 2010–
Latvia	TV3 Latvia TV3+ Latvia SET
Lithuania	TV3 Lithuania Lietuvos ryto TV	2010–
Mexico	TV Azteca Cosmopolitan Fox Life HBO
Norway	TV Norge
Macedonia	MRT Alfa TV	2003–2004 2005, 2010
Romania	HBO Romania PRO TV Acasă TV Prima TV HBO Comedy	1998–2004 1999–2000 (moved to sister channel, Acasă TV) 2000–2006 2007 (only the first seasons) 2009–
Russia	НТВ MTV Russia	~2000–2004 March 8, 2010–
South Africa	SABC 3	1999–2006
Serbia	B92 Fox Televizija HBO Comedy Prva FOX Life Serbia	2004–2008, 2009, 2011 2010 2009–2010 2010 2011-
Slovenia	POP TV TV Pika	2002–2008, 2009–
Slovakia	STV1 TV Markiza TV Doma	2001–2004, 2010
Sweden	TV3	1999–2004, 2009
Spain	Cosmopolitan TV	1998–
South Korea	OnStyle	2008–
The Middle East	Showtime Arabia Showseries
Turkey	Cine5 ComedyMax MyMax	2000–2004 2006–2008 2008–
Ukraine	1+1 TET	~2000–2004 2009–
United Kingdom	Channel 4 Comedy Central E4 Fiver	1999–2004 2004– 2004–2006, 2008–2009 2008–
United States	HBO TBS E!	June 6, 1998 – February 22, 2004 2004–2010 2011–

DVD releases

All six seasons of Sex and the City have been released commercially on DVD, with season six being split into two parts. They have been released officially on region 1 (Americas), region 2 (Europe & Middle East), region 3 (Korea) and region 4 (Oceania & South Pacific) formats. In addition to their region encoding, releases vary depending on the region in which they were released.

In addition to standard single season DVD box sets of the show, limited edition collectors' editions have also been released that include all six seasons in one complete set. Even these vary between region 1, 2 and 4. While Europe got a complete set that came with special 'shoebox' packaging (a reference to Sarah Jessica Parker's character's love for shoes in the show), the USA and Canada version came packaged in a more traditional fold-out suede case and with an additional bonus DVD including many special features. Mexico's and Oceania's edition come packaged in a beauty case.

As well as missing out on some special features, many in Europe had trouble with the region 2 edition of the season 1 DVD. Unfortunately, the show was not converted into a PAL video signal, and remained in its original American NTSC format. This caused some compatibility problems with some European television sets and DVD players. All subsequent Region 2 DVD releases of the program were appropriately transferred to PAL video using the original film prints, and season 1 has since been re-released in PAL format.

Outside the US, Sex and the City boxed sets were released through Paramount Pictures. American and Canadian DVDs were released through the program's original broadcasters, HBO. In Australia, single editions have been released, where each disc is sold separately. In South Korea, a complete, six-season, special DVD shoebox sets were released. In Brazil, the first and fifth season were released on DVD Dual, but all other seasons were released the DVD box set, had its launch in the Brazilian market in 2006, and only with subtitles in Portuguese.

Selected episodes are also available as part of the Sex and the City Essentials DVD collection. These are four separately-packaged discs containing three selected episodes that fit a common theme.

• The Best of Lust: Contains the episodes "The Fuck Buddy", "Running with Scissors", and "The Turtle and the Hare".
• The Best of Mr. Big – Contains the episodes "Sex and the City", "Ex and the City", and "I Heart NY".
• The Best of Romance: Contains the episodes "Baby, Talk is Cheap", "Hop, Skip and a Week", and "An American Girl in Paris (Part Deux)".
• The Best of Breakups – Contains the episodes "Don't Ask, Don't Tell", "I Love a Charade", and "The Post-it Always Sticks Twice".
• The Best of Fashion: Contains the episodes "Secret Sex", "The Real Me", and "Luck Be An Old Lady" This DVD was only released to Target stores in the US and was the only DVD of the "Essentials" collection to have a colored cover instead of black and white like the other four.

Soundtrack releases

There have been several CDs released to accompany the series Sex and the City, two of which (the albums from Irma Records) contain tracks used in the show's actual soundtrack.

• Sex and the City – Soundtrack [Import]

2000/2001/2002

Sire Records

Includes the main theme from the show, written by Douglas J. Cuomo and features Mark Berman on keyboards

• Sex and the City – Official Soundtrack (two disc set)

March 1, 2004

Sony TV

36 Hits, including the likes of Kylie Minogue, Justin Timberlake, Beyoncé, Cyndi Lauper, Jamiroquai and Aretha Franklin, among others.

• Irma at Sex and the City – Part 1 – Daylight Session (two disc set)

April 19, 2004

Irma Records

Ambient and chilled sounds from the show's soundtrack

• Irma at Sex and the City – Part 2 – Nightlife Session (two disc set)

April 19, 2004

Irma Records

House and electronica sounds from the show's soundtrack

Films

Sex and the City (2008)

Main article: Sex and the City (film)

A feature film based on Sex and the City, written, produced and directed by Michael Patrick King, was released in 2008. The four lead actresses returned to reprise their roles, as did Chris Noth, Evan Handler, David Eigenberg, Jason Lewis, and Willie Garson. In addition, Oscar-winner Jennifer Hudson appears in the film as Carrie's assistant. The plot of the film revolves around the lives of the four main characters, four years after the time frame of the finale of the HBO series.^[7]

Sex and the City 2 (2010)

Main article: Sex and the City 2

Sex and the City 2 was released in May of 2010. Again, the film stars Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon, Kristin Davis, Kim Cattrall and Chris Noth, who reprised their roles from the previous film and TV series, as well as Evan Handler, David Eigenberg, Jason Lewis, and Willie Garson. It also features cameos from Liza Minnelli, Miley Cyrus and Penélope Cruz. The film is set two years after the events of the first movie.

Future

In September 2011, it was announced that The CW network is moving forward with a television series as a prequel to the original series, based on The Carrie Diaries.^[8]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Poniewozik, James (September 6, 2007). "The 100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME". Time (Time.com). http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1651341_1659196_1652655,00.html. Retrieved March 4, 2010. 
2. ^ Victoria Degtyareva (1 March 2005). "Bushnell Speaks on Sex, City, and Shoes". Stanford Daily Online. Archived from the original on 2007-10-28. http://web.archive.org/web/20071028120658/http://daily.stanford.edu/article/2005/3/1/bushnellSpeaksOnSexCityAndShoes. Retrieved 2008-04-23. 
3. ^ Geier, Thom; Jensen, Jeff; Jordan, Tina; Lyons, Margaret; Markovitz, Adam; Nashawaty, Chris; Pastorek, Whitney; Rice, Lynette; Rottenberg, Josh; Schwartz, Missy; Slezak, Michael; Snierson, Dan; Stack, Tim; Stroup, Kate; Tucker, Ken; Vary, Adam B.; Vozick-Levinson, Simon; Ward, Kate (December 11, 2009), "THE 100 Greatest MOVIES, TV SHOWS, ALBUMS, BOOKS, CHARACTERS, SCENES, EPISODES, SONGS, DRESSES, MUSIC VIDEOS, AND TRENDS THAT ENTERTAINED US OVER THE PAST 10 YEARS". Entertainment Weekly. (1079/1080):74-84
4. ^ Wigmore, Barry, "Sexually charged shows such as Sex And The City and Friends to blame for rise in teenage pregnancy" 11/4/08 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1082571/Sexually-charged-shows-Sex-And-The-City-Friends-blame-rise-teenage-pregnancy.html Access date 9/22/10
5. ^ Gold, Tanya (May 21, 2010). "Sorry Sisters But I Hate "Sex and the City"". The Telegraph (UK). http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/7746119/Sorry-sisters-but-I-hate-Sex-and-the-City.html. Retrieved February 2, 2011. 
6. ^ Swirsky, Joan (July 24, 2003). "The Death of Feminism II: "Sex and the City"". Newsmax.com. http://archive.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2003/7/23/131352.shtml. Retrieved February 2, 2011. 
7. ^ McNary, Dave (September 10, 2007). "Jennifer Hudson moves to 'City'". Variety. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117971735.html?categoryid=1743&cs=1. 
8. ^ "Sex and the City" Prequel Set for the CW!, US Magazine, September 12, 2011

External links

• Official UK Website
• Sex and the City at EOnline.com
• Archive of the original Sex and the City columns in The New York Observer
• Sex and the City Timeline
• Sex and the City at the Internet Movie Database
• Sex and the City at TV.com
• Sex and the City Ultimate Trivia Game
• Sex and the City on Comedy Central UK