Oz (TV series)

Oz
The cast of Oz
Created by	Tom Fontana
Starring	Harold Perrineau Jr. Lee Tergesen J.K. Simmons Eamonn Walker Dean Winters Kirk Acevedo Christopher Meloni Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje Ernie Hudson Terry Kinney Rita Moreno B.D. Wong Lauren Vélez Kristin Rohde
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	56 (list of episodes)
Production
Running time	approximately 1:00 (commercial-free)
Original release
Network	HBO
Release	July 12, 1997 – February 23, 2003

Oz was the first one-hour dramatic television series to be produced by HBO. The show, which aired for six seasons (1997-2003), was created by Tom Fontana and produced by Barry Levinson.

Oz is the nickname for the Oswald State Correctional Facility, a maximum-security prison of undisclosed location. Many of the plot arcs are set in Emerald City ("Em City"), an experimental unit of the prison, where the unit manager tries to emphasize rehabilitation and learning responsibility during incarceration. Emerald City is a controlled environment. There are a limited number of members of each racial and social group. The microcosm of Emerald City mirrors the racial and economic tensions in the then present-day United States.

Oz avoids any easy answers as to the origin of violence and criminality. Even the worst offenders are shown to have moments of humanity, while the supposedly "normal" characters come to commit their own atrocities. One of the perspectives shown by Oz is that the rehabilitation of the prisoners is impossible when the system is largely corrupt. The show also focused largely on the abuse of the prisoners' rights and on the large increase of the incarcerated population on the U.S of the late 1990s. Whenever possible, the show presented a major negative perspective over the death penalty.

The large ensemble cast included many famous actors including Rita Moreno, Ernie Hudson and Betty Buckley, as well as Law & Order stars Kathryn Erbe, Christopher Meloni, B. D. Wong, J. K. Simmons, Dean Winters and Kirk Acevedo, Lost stars Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje and Harold Perrineau Jr., and Dexter stars Erik King, David Zayas, and Lauren Vélez. Many of the actors from Oz have appeared as guest stars or stars in the various Law & Order series, The Wire, Homicide: Life on the Street and The Black Donnellys.

Style

Oz is narrated by Augustus Hill, a wheelchair-bound prisoner played by Perrineau, in surreal segments that usually relate to an overall theme of the episode. When necessary, usually when a character is introduced, Hill, in an omniscient fashion, narrates said character's prison number, their crime, and their sentence. Hill, a former drug dealer and ex-junkie, appeared as a recurring character in the show's storylines until the sixth season, in which narrating duties were taken up by various deceased characters as well as Hill. The narrations by Hill are thus a form of breaking the fourth wall, although he did not address the camera during scenes where he was interacting with the other characters in the story. Only once in the show does Hill appear to address another character with one of his narrations, in the season 3 episode Unnatural Disasters Adebisi turns on a computer to see Hill dressed as a pharaoh speak to him.

Cast and Characters

Main article: Characters of Oz

Sponsers

Due to Emerald City's unconventional configuration and routine, each new inmate is given a sponser to help them get accustommed to Em City. Sponser pairing seems to be random however, specific requests have been occasionally made. Below is a list of inmmates and sponsers.

Inmate	Sponser
Tobias Beecher	Dino Ortolani
Donald Groves	Bob Rebadow
Jackson Vahue	Augustus Hill
Chris Keller	Tobias Beecher
Raoul 'El Cid' Hernandez	Miguel Alvarez
Jiggy Walker	Bob Rebadow

Prison Groups

There are ten main groups of prisoners on Oz, all divided by ethnicity, religion or other characteristics. The prison is 78% black and racial problems constantly arise throughout the series. The groups were denoted in the second episode of Season 2, when Tim McManus formed an inmate council consisting of one member of each group. He determined that four prisoners from each description would be in Em City at all times; no more, no less. This system was scrapped when Querns briefly took over and started removing whites from the unit in favor of black inmates, but was (apparently) reinstituted when McManus took over. On occasion, new inmates would be inserted directly into Em City; in this case, someone would have to leave for Unit B.

Each of the groups are described below:

• Muslims: The Black Muslims are an African-American group of prisoners who read the Qur'an and look to improve life and conditions for blacks in general. They wish to expose what they perceive is racism, brutality, and injustice in the prison system whenever an opportunity arises. Led mainly by Kareem Said, the Muslims are against drugs and homosexuality. They for the most part get along with various gangs, until a fight breaks out with the Aryans. However, the Muslims are often left alone and not harassed due to their solidarity and numbers. They avoid contact with the Homeboys. In contrast to other gang leaders in Oz, Said himself is not feared as much as he is respected for proving himself to be smart, tough, and charismatic. Everybody knows that the Muslims will leave them alone if nothing is done to provoke them. The wiser gang leaders in Oz avoid conflict with them, and the not-so-wise ones who start conflict with them usually come to regret it. Said was however briefly deposed as leader after becoming emotionally involved with a (white) woman and allowing Tobias Beecher to join the group.

• Homeboys: The second African-American group, these prisoners look to control the drug trade within Oz. Having the most soldiers of any group, they often have leadership and discipline conflicts; the vast majority of their members not only sell drugs, but heavily use them. Mainly led by Jefferson Keane, Simon Adebisi and Burr Redding, the Homeboys commit several murders and look to guarantee a spot in the drug trade by any means possible. They are feared by most inmates and are mainly in conflict with the Italian and Latino gangs.

• Aryans: The Aryan Brotherhood, led by Vernon Schillinger, are a white supremacist gang which hates blacks, Jews, and anyone who isn't purely white. They are one of the most sadistic gangs in Oz, raping and killing several inmates. They are against drug use and remain allied with the Bikers throughout the series.

• Bikers: The Bikers are a white gang which loves two things - "Tits and Tattoos." Not involved in the drug dealing business, several of their members are heavy users. They also have the most tattoos of any group in Oz. Their key members are Scott Ross, followed by Jaz Hoyt. They are allied with the Aryan Brotherhood mainly so that they have back up in case the black inmates attack them.

• Italians: Willing to work with other gangs for dealing drugs, the Italians are often confronted by the Homeboys in order to dominate the drug trade. They are first led by Nino Schibetta, whose son Peter later takes over the group. They are then led by Antonio Nappa and Chucky Pancamo. They often have influence within the prison staff as well, managing to pay off and hire several members to allow them to conduct their business. They are also the most connected gang outside of Oz and set up several murders (most notably Tobias Beecher's hit on Schillinger's son, Hank) and drug trades for a negotiable price. Most if not all of the Italian inmates' ancestors come from Sicily.

• The Latinos: The Hispanic gang on Oz, called El Norte, are mostly drug dealers. The Latinos in Oz are mostly of Puerto Rican ancestry. This gang is extremely ruthless, especially under the leadership of Raoul "El Cid" Hernandez. They work with the Italians more often when Enrique Morales runs the group. Throughout the series, inmate Miguel Alvarez often has his loyalty to the gang questioned due to an ongoing feud with Latino inmate Carmen Guerra.

• The Irish: The Irish are a smaller white gang, composed mainly of street hoodlums who wish to work with the drug dealing powers in Oz. The main focus of this gang is Ryan O'Reily, a cunning sociopath who works with and around the most dangerous inmates in Oz, often unharmed. They are not on good terms with the Aryans, ever since Schillinger raped O'Reily's younger brother, Cyril O'Reily. Other Irish inmates are Timmy Kirk, Liam Meaney, and Seamus O'Reily (Ryan and Cyril's father).

• The Christians: The Christians are a background gang in Oz that is predominantly white and use their religion to provide sanction for their members. Not a potential danger to any other gang, they get along with everyone and are more known when Reverend Jeremiah Cloutier comes to Oz for embezzlement.

• The Gays: The gay inmates are a combination of feminine and crossdressing inmates. However, this group does not include all of the inmates involved in homosexual activity (most notably Beecher and Keller, who are in a homosexual relationship) rather only the ones who seem most effiminate and flamboyant. Notable characters from this otherwise backgrounded group include Tony Masters, Fiona, Nat Ginzburg, Billie Keane, Jason Cramer, Alonzo Torquemada. Due to their lack of control of anything illegal and the homophobic views of the other inmates, the Gays are often viewed at the lower end of the inmate power structure. Because of their sexual orientation, they are also frequent sexual targets of various gangs such as the Aryans, Homeboys and Latinos.

• Others: The others are an outcast group in Oz. Most provide little disciplinary problems to both the staff and other inmates. Robert Rebadow, Chris Keller, Omar White, Augustus Hill, Agamemnon Busmalis, Donald Groves,Jackson Vahue and Tobias Beecher have all been in this group.

Episodes and broadcast history

Main article: List of Oz episodes

Oz took advantage of the freedoms of premium cable to show material that would be too extreme for traditional American broadcast television: coarse language, drug use, violence, male frontal nudity, homosexuality, rape, ethnic and religious conflict. Interestingly, in Australia, Oz was screened on the free-to-air channel SBS. This was also the case in Israel, where Oz was displayed on the free-to-air, commercial Channel 2, in Italy where it was aired on the free-to-air Italia 1, in the United Kingdom where Channel 4 aired the show late night, in Ireland on TG4 where it was shown at 11pm, and in Brazil, where it was aired by SBT network corporation also late at night.In The Netherlands, Oz aired on the commercial Channel RTL 5 and in Sweden and Norway Oz aired on the commercial channels TV3 at 8pm and ZTV, and in Finland, on the free-to-air channel Nelonen (TV4). In Canada, Oz aired on the Showcase Channel at 10pm est. In Denmark, Oz appeared late night on the non-commercial public service channel DR1. In Spain the show is aired on Canal+, a premium channel. In Estonia, as well as Croatia, the show was aired late night on public non-commercial state-owned channels, ETV and HRT respectively. In Portugal Oz is aired, late at night, on SIC Radical, one of the SIC channels in the cable network. In France the show is aired on a commercial cable channel 'Serie Club', also late at night. In Turkey, Oz was aired on Cine5.

The program's seasonal length (eight episodes, Seasons 1, 2, 3, 5, 6; sixteen episodes, Season 4) is an example of a trend for cable network programming to feature shorter seasons than American free-to-air channels, which typically feature more than twenty episodes per season.

Many critics suggested the series should not have lasted beyond four seasons, as some storylines were never fully developed and others strained suspension of disbelief. The series was also criticized for killing off main characters with no other characters to fill the void, as character development was only given to a few cast members.

Slang and Terms

In the commentary it is stated that, to avoid becoming dated, much of the slang used was made up specifically for the show.

• Oz - Shortened term of Oswald. The main abbreviation that the prisoners use.
• Emerald City - Also called Em City. An experimental wing of the prison where most of Oz takes place. In the first episode it was referred to as "Cell Block 5". So chances are it could have been known as "Unit E" at one time.
• Gen Pop - Nickname for a general population prison unit. Unit B is the main Gen Pop unit shown in Oz.
• Tits - Drugs, most often heroin or cocaine. Discussion of drugs sometimes plays off of this slang. For example "squeeze my tits" for "share drugs".
• Babies - Drug users, plays off the term tits, as babies breastfeed.
• Get healthy - Receiving a new shipment of drugs
• Prag - An inmate who has been made the sexual slave of another inmate. More generally, it may be used as an insult for a submissive or homosexual inmate. In the episode commentary, it is said that the origin is not remembered, but it is thought to be a portmanteau of prison and fag.
• Jizz - Term used amongst inmates to recognize credibility inside of prison walls; comes from "jism", an American slang term for semen.
• Shank - Improvised dagger.
• Air-hole - Kill, generally by stabbing.
• Hack - a corrections officer.
• CO - Correctional Officer
• Looney Bin - Nickname for Psychiatric Unit at Oswald. It is seen when Peter Schibetta and Simon Adebisi are sent there briefly.
• Bug - insane. For example, Schillinger says of Beecher "He's a bug."

Location

The state that Oz is set in is never named. However through most of the viewing, it is assumed to be in the Northeast and is most likely modeled on New York. Robert Rebadow survived the electric chair by the Great Northeast Blackout, and the fact that the heroin traded in the prison is white also leans towards their location being in the Northeast; white heroin is more popular in the East while black tar heroin is more common in the midwest. The show was filmed in New York City for the first four seasons, then Bayonne, New Jersey for the last two seasons. Both times the exterior of Oz is shown, it was filmed at the Sing Sing Correctional Facility in Ossining, New York and the New York state flag is visible. There is also evidence that it is set in New York as in Season 1 when a new correctional officer arrives he says he gets lost after turning off Route 7A. Route 7A is located in upstate New York. Tim McManus also brings his dates to the diner that his father used to own which is implied to be next to the Attica Correctional Facility.

However, there is evidence that the show may be set in Illinois, especially in references by the banker and more white collar criminals. Also, when the terrorist from Ireland is sent to Oz, the Illinois Court system is mentioned; later, the character played by Christopher Meloni is shipped to Massachusetts, implied to be a long ways away (thus discounting New York as a locale, as the two states border one another). Finally, the prison gang name of the Latino's, El Norte, references Mexican/Central American, and not Puerto Rican lineage (El Norte being a slang term for the U.S. for Mexican immmigrants). While Puerto Rican influence is by far the largest Latino influence in New York, Mexican influence on Latino culture is stronger in Midwestern and Western states, such as Illinois.

Trivia

• Tom Fontana researched the show over two years, writing different drafts of the script and deciding what type of prison Oswald would be. The presentation for the network was only about Ortolani's story, and shot on a different stage from the Emerald City stage (which had not yet been built).
• The show was originally conceived as being set in a medium security prison with the tentative title "Club Fed".
• The opening credits include footage of a person getting a tattoo of the series logo. This person is Tom Fontana, the series creator. According to commentary, nobody else would submit to getting a tattoo.
• When the Season 4 finale was being filmed, it was unclear whether the show would be renewed. Two endings were filmed, one of which would be used if the show was canceled, the other if it were renewed. The show was renewed, but Tom Fontana liked the other ending so much that it was included as a dream sequence.
• The prison is named for Russel G. Oswald, warden of Attica Prison when the riot occurred there.
• In a fourth season episode where the character of Keller is shown urinating while in solitary confinement, actor Christopher Meloni actually urinated on camera. [1]
• In the commentary track for the first season DVD, Tom Fontana stated that actor Akinnuoye-Agbaje would display his penis in scenes where it was not required by the script but would refuse to do so when it was written in the script.
• For the boxing tournament featured in season three, producer Tom Fontana asked all the prospective contestants if they could box. All assured him that they could. In reality, however, only Chuck Zito had boxed previously.
• According to Rita Moreno, muMs da Schemer, who played Arnold "Poet" Jackson was absent for rehearsal one day because he was actually in prison.
• Granville Adams, who played Zahir Arif, was recently arrested for killing a man by shoving him down an elevator shaft.

References in other media

• In an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Johnathan and Andrew are locked up in the local Sunnydale jailhouse. Johnathan is paranoid about jail, but Andrew scathingly reminds him, "This isn't Oz; this is Mayberry."
• An episode of NBC's Saturday Night Live hosted by Jerry Seinfeld featured an "episode" of Oz (using the actual set and actors) where Jerry, as the character who was sent to prison during the final episode of Seinfeld and the actor, is transferred to Em City; the short film combines and parodies memorable moments in both series.
• Saturday Night Live's rival sketch show MADtv did two Oz parodies: one with Bill Cosby (Aries Spears) in jail (called Coz) and another where Martha Stewart (played by Mo Collins) is sent to the Oswald Correctional Facility and uses her recipes and home decorating ideas to kill the other prisoners.
• The episode Fast Times at Buddy Cianci Jr. High of FOX's Family Guy featured Lois Griffin believing her son Chris to have killed a man, whereas it was actually the man's wife who did the deed. Lois briefly contemplates calling the police but forgets it, stating "I can't call the police. I have to get rid of this body or Chris will go to prison, and we all know what happens in prison showers! I've seen Oz!"' It then cuts to a group of naked inmates scrubbing each others backs in the shower singing a song to the tune to Merry Old Land Of Oz from The Wizard of Oz.
• The Arrested Development episode "Visiting Ours" featured a young, traumatized George Michael Bluth watching an episode of Oz, mistaking the show for the film The Wizard of Oz; as a result, George Michael spends the entire series petrified of prisons.
• In an episode of the Adult Swim series Robot Chicken a segment parodies Oz starring the Scarecrow from "The Wizard of Oz" who gets shanked with a shiv in the cafeteria.
• The South Park episode "Cartman's Silly Hate Crime 2000," in which character Eric Cartman is sent to juvenile hall, is a clear parody of Oz, even featuring the show's theme song.
• The Simpsons episode "The Seven-Beer Snitch" features Homer Simpson becoming a snitch and receiving a series of gifts and privileges, one of which being an "adorable little hat" identical to the one worn by Simon Adebisi in Oz.
• The Venture Bros. episode "Powerless in the Face of Death" features music similar to the Oz opening theme during a prison scene.
• On HBO Series Six Feet Under, characters David Fisher and Keith Charles are seen watching Oz and talking about the show on occasion.
• On a Season 3 episode of another HBO Series "The Wire", Omar Little and Dante are seen watching an intimate scene from a Season 6 episode of Oz between Tobias Beecher and Chris Keller. The Oz-created slang phrase "gen-pop" is also used occasionally.
• On one episode of "Queer as Folk", Brian's nephew says he hopes Brian is sent to jail and anally raped by a black man. Justin comments that his parents must have HBO.
• On an episode of "The O.C.", when Seth is picking out a comic to give to Ryan's brother in jail, Ryan suggests a different one and Seth says "The guy's in prison man, have you seen Oz? I'm sure that'll be fine..."

Rights

The series was co-produced by HBO and Rysher Entertainment, and the underlying US rights lie with HBO, which has released the entire series on DVD in North America. The international rights were owned originally by Rysher, then Paramount Pictures/Television after that company acquired Rysher. CBS Paramount International Television currently owns the international TV rights, and Paramount Home Entertainment owns the international DVD rights (the first season has been released outside the US).

See also

• List of Oz Deaths
• List of Oz episodes

Books

• OZ -- Behind These Walls: The Journal of Augustus Hill, (ISBN 0-06-052133-3)

Sources

• Season 1, Episode 2, DVD Commentary on "Oz: The Complete First Season."

External links

• Oz's transcripts
• OZ at IMDb