History Main / HollywoodNewEngland

* New England is, together with neighboring [[UsefulNotes/NewYorkState upstate New York]], one of the [[WhereTheHellIsSpringfield most popular guesses]] as to the location of Riverdale, the [[EverytownAmerica all-American small town]] setting of ''ComicBook/ArchieComics''. Bob Montana, the initial artist for ''Archie'', based the high school on the one he attended in Haverhill, Massachusetts, complete with a replica of Auguste Rodin's statue The Thinker. The TV adaptation ''Series/{{Riverdale}}'' largely keeps to this, with the Blossom family's wealth shown to have been built on their maple syrup business (maple syrup being a big industry in northern New England).

* ''Film/TheShawshankRedemption'': The novella and the film are set in Maine but the film was filmed in Ohio.

* Amelia Atwater-Rhodes' books in her Nyeusigrube series take place around Massachusetts. ''In the Forests of the Night'' takes place specifically in Concord and the main character, Risika's, house is based on a real house where a friend of the author lived. In ''Persistence of Memory'', Erin is given a phone number with [[strike:Boston]] Suffolk County's 617 area code.

* Hyundai's 2020 UsefulNotes/SuperBowl [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=60&v=85iRQdjCzj0&feature=emb_title commercial]] for their new "smart park" car features Boston native Creator/JohnKrasinski showing off the feature to fellow Bostonians Creator/ChrisEvans and Creator/RachelDratch while they all speak in exaggerated versions of their natural dialects. David Ortiz even makes a cameo.
* For many years Pepperidge Farm bakery ran a series of TV commercials featuring a prim, straw-hatted salesman with a horse-drawn wagon and a heavy Downeast Maine accent. (“Pepperidge Faahm remembahs!”)

* For many years Pepperidge Farm a series of TV commercials featuring a prim, straw-hatted salesman with a horse-drawn wagon and a heavy Downeast Maine accent. (“Pepperidge Faahm remembahs!”)

* Pepperidge Farm remembers! (said in a New England accent)

* '''North Shore''': Fishermen, townies, and [[BreadEggsMilkSquick heroin]]. Also has some LovecraftCountry features, especially since Salem--yes, of the [[SalemIsWitchCountry witch trials]]--is located here. If you're venturing up here, you're probably either going to a large gathering at the Kowloon or passing through on your way to the New Hampshire Seacoast. If it's the month of October, you are ''not'' making it into Salem unless you get there at the very beginning of the day. If you live here, you're either a townie or you work in Boston or Cambridge but don't want to live there (or can't afford to) or don't want to commute from New Hampshire (or can't afford Portsmouth housing prices). Lynn and Revere used to be much worse than they are now and will certainly get you a lot of bang for your buck if you find a good living situation, but both still have areas that you don't want to go walking in too far after dark, and Lynn still has the stench from the wastewater plant and the horrific summer traffic from people trying to get to Nahant and Swampscott to contend with.

* '''Western Mass''': Farmland, woods, college kids, and more farmland. There's also quite a bit of suburban sprawl down in the southwestern corner, particularly in Agawam, Longmeadow, and Wilbraham. Stay out of Springfield, Holyoke, and Chicopee at all cost, and it may not be a bad idea to just stick to Amherst and Northampton if you're averse to rednecks as well. Depending on your delineation (Palmer, Ware, and Hardwick generally being the line between Western and Central), the Quabbin region (including Athol, see below) is sometimes put into this area... and the Quabbin itself being a reservoir built atop four dissolved townships (with some ruins still standing, explored by scuba divers) adds to the forlorn and isolated feel of the area. Your coffee most likely comes from Pride, Cumberland Farms, or a Big Y Express location, as Dunkin is comparatively rare out here compared to the rest of the state, and you also most likely do your grocery shopping at Big Y or Stop & Shop, as this is the only part of New England where none of the big three grocery outlets (Market Basket, Hannaford, and Price Chopper) operate.[[note]]Depending on where you are, the closest Market Basket is in Athol or Oxford (or Swanzey, NH if you're near the NH/VT border), the closest Hannaford is in Athol or North Brookfield, and the closest Price Chopper is in Pittsfield (if you're in the hilltowns), Windsor, CT (if you're in the Springfield area), Brattleboro, VT (if you're in the Greenfield area), or Spencer (if you're near Palmer or Belchertown). If you're in the Five College Area, none of these are anywhere close and you're going to Big Y or Stop & Shop.[[/note]]

* '''North Shore''': Fishermen, townies, and [[BreadEggsMilkSquick heroin]]. Also has some LovecraftCountry features, especially since Salem--yes, of the [[SalemIsWitchCountry witch trials]]--is located here. If you're venturing up here, you're probably either going to a large gathering at the Kowloon or passing through on your way to the New Hampshire Seacoast. If it's the month of October, you are ''not'' making it into Salem unless you get there at the very beginning of the day. If you live here, you're either a townie or you work in Boston or Cambridge but don't want to live there (or can't afford to) or don't want to commute from New Hampshire (or can't afford Portsmouth housing prices). Stay out of Lynn if you can.

In reality, New England is one of the oldest regions of the United States: six separate states,[[note]]Writers have an annoying tendency of treating New England as a single legal entity rather than six states that handle their affairs every bit as separately as the other 44--sorry, ''Series/OnceUponATime'', but orphans from Maine would not be sent to foster care in Massachusetts.[[/note]] with a mountain range[[note]]Technically the northern end of the Appalachians, although the region is located well outside of what most of us think of as UsefulNotes/{{Appalachia}}.[[/note]] running up the middle and the Gulf Stream just offshore, meaning the climate and geography are all a lot more variable than that found in most other regions of the country. (Don't like the weather? Wait five minutes.) Seacoast Massachusetts is a very different place from the suburbs of Connecticut's Fairfield County, the Lakes Region of New Hampshire, the "Northern Plantations" of Maine or the Green Mountains of Vermont[[note]]which actually means "Green Mountain"[[/note]], and each region has its own variations of culture, accent and traditions. All of which is pretty much lost on Hollywood.

Ah, New England: Connecticut, UsefulNotes/RhodeIsland, UsefulNotes/{{Massachusetts}}, UsefulNotes/{{Vermont}}, New Hampshire, and UsefulNotes/{{Maine}}. Cradle of UsefulNotes/TheAmericanRevolution. Home of Plymouth Rock, Walden Pond, Harvard, Yale, Ben and Jerry's, the Red Sox, the Patriots, the Celtics, the Bruins. And chock full of fish.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheMightyB'', one time character Sissy Sullivan has a stereotypical Boston accent.
-->'''Sissy:''' Pahk tha cah in Hahvahd Yahd.
** But also subverted in the sense that Bessie's knowledge of Boston is based on hilarious CriticalResearchFailure: She's uncertain if Boston is even part of the United States and if they speak English there, and takes it for granted that they don't have Chinese restaurants.

* ''Film/TheSocialNetwork'' - set at Harvard

* ''Film/ASummerPlace'' is set primarily at the titular locale, an upscale Maine island resort.

* ''WesternAnimation/Epic2013'' takes place in the deciduous forests of either Connecticut or New York, Blue Sky Studios' then-current and former base of headquarters. During the end credits, we see memorabilia from both those states, as well as a few others in New England, like Vermont.

Their ubiquitousness on the cultural scene, meanwhile, has resulted in 95% of Hollywood having no idea how to use a Boston accent, thus bolstering the careers of Creator/MattDamon, Creator/BenAffleck, and brothers [[Creator/MarkWahlberg Mark]] and Donnie Wahlberg. For that matter, non-New Englanders generally don't realize that there are in fact four versions of the "Boston" accent, only one of which is the stereotypical version -- and in real life, it's hardly as exaggerated as depicted.

* '''North Shore''': Fishermen, townies, and [[BreadEggsMilkSquick heroin]]. Also has some LovecraftCountry features, especially since Salem--yes, of the [[SalemIsWitchCountry witch trials]]--is located here. If you're venturing up here, you're probably either going to a large gathering at the Kowloon or passing through on your way to the New Hampshire Seacoast. If you live here, you're either a townie or you work in Boston but don't want to live in Greater Boston (or can't afford to) or don't want to commute from New Hampshire (or can't afford Portsmouth housing prices). Stay out of Lynn if you can.

* '''Western Mass''': Farmland, woods, college kids, and more farmland. There's also quite a bit of suburban sprawl down in the southwestern corner, particularly in Agawam, Longmeadow, and Wilbraham. Stay out of Springfield, Holyoke, and Chicopee at all cost, and it may not be a bad idea to just stick to Amherst and Northampton if you're averse to rednecks as well. Depending on your delineation (Palmer, Ware, and Hardwick generally being the line between Western and Central), the Quabbin region (including Athol, see below) is sometimes put into this area... and the Quabbin itself being a reservoir built atop four dissolved townships (with some ruins still standing, explored by scuba divers) adds to the forlorn and isolated feel of the area. Your coffee most likely comes from Pride, Cumberland Farms, or a Big Y Express location, as Dunkin is comparatively rare out here compared to the rest of the state, and you also most likely do your grocery shopping at Big Y or Stop & Shop, as this is the only part of New England where none of the big three grocery outlets (Market Basket, Hannaford, and Price Chopper) operate.[[note]]Depending on where you are, the closest Market Basket is in Athol or Oxford, the closest Hannaford is in Athol or North Brookfield, and the closest Price Chopper is in Pittsfield (if you're in the hilltowns), Windsor, CT (if you're in the Springfield area), Brattleboro, VT (if you're in the Greenfield area), or Spencer (if you're near Palmer or Belchertown). If you're in the Five College Area, none of these are anywhere close and you're going to Big Y or Stop & Shop.[[/note]]

** '''Northampton''': [[{{Gayborhood}} The Provincetown of Western Mass]] - while traditionally viewed as the domain of women (primarily due to Smith College and the nearby Mount Holyoke College in Hadley), the whole LGBTQ+ spectrum has a presence there these days and you will find about as many gay and queer men and nonbinaries there. Also generally known as Western Mass's countercultural hub, rivaled only by Amherst and possibly Brattleboro, Vermont (about forty minutes to the north - while not in Western Mass, it is close enough to the border to have a fair bit of cultural overlap), with numerous independent art spaces and music venues (though any self-respecting Northamptonite will ''not'' include Pearl Street or anything else owned by Iron Horse Entertainment Group in that assessment).

* '''Central Mass''': 50/50 split between rednecks and bedroom communities for Boston, Worcester, and (as you head south) Hartford. Also LovecraftCountry, particularly [[DyingTown Athol]] (which formed the basis for Dunwich, and Route 2 for the Aylesbury Pike), and you also want to avoid Fitchburg and Leominster like the plague. (Personally, as a local, I’d argue that Fitchburg is the one you want to avoid.) Might also be one of the few places in Mass where Dunkin' Donuts (or just Dunkin' nowadays) and/or Honey Dew aren't necessarily what's occupying the cupholders in your car on your way to work, as Gourmet Donuts has managed to work its way up into being a fairly common part of Central Mass life.
** '''Worcester''': Gangs, a labyrinthine and endlessly confusing highway layout, even ''more'' confusing and frustrating road layouts (particularly Kelley Square, which anyone from Worcester will agree is an absolute nightmare on a good day), a staggering amount of unbelievably steep and lengthy hills (one of which famously caused a [[http://www.wcvb.com/article/runaway-truck-rolls-down-worcester-hill-leaves-path-of-destruction/8234385 delivery truck to roll down a hill and wipe out a parked car]]), and a notoriously terrible public transit system. If you're from here, you're probably of French-Canadian, Italian, Syrian, Lebanese, or Armenian descent. If you're here, you're probably attending something at the DCU Center or the Palladium. Avoid the [[TheCityNarrows area]] near the [[DenOfIniquity Midtown Mall]] after dark. If you're from the Boston area, anything west of here may as well be marked "here there be dragons".

* '''Central Mass''': 50/50 split between rednecks and bedroom communities for Boston, Worcester, and (as you head south) Hartford. Also LovecraftCountry, particularly [[DyingTown Athol]] (which formed the basis for Dunwich, and Route 2 for the Aylesbury Pike), and you also want to avoid Fitchburg and Leominster like the plague. (Personally, I’d argue that Fitchburg is the one you want to avoid.) Might also be one of the few places in Mass where Dunkin' Donuts (or just Dunkin' nowadays) and/or Honey Dew aren't necessarily what's occupying the cupholders in your car on your way to work, as Gourmet Donuts has managed to work its way up into being a fairly common part of Central Mass life.

* '''Central Mass''': 50/50 split between rednecks and bedroom communities for Boston, Worcester, and (as you head south) Hartford. Also LovecraftCountry, particularly [[DyingTown Athol]] (which formed the basis for Dunwich, and Route 2 for the Aylesbury Pike), and you also want to avoid Fitchburg and Leominster like the plague. Might also be one of the few places in Mass where Dunkin' Donuts (or just Dunkin' nowadays) and/or Honey Dew aren't necessarily what's occupying the cupholders in your car on your way to work, as Gourmet Donuts has managed to work its way up into being a fairly common part of Central Mass life.

* When made man Nicky Cavella first appears in ''Comicbook/ThePunisherMAX'', he and his partners arrive in New York from Boston. The first thing his liaison to the local mob families asks him is, "So you guys are from Boston too, huh? Did ya leave ya cahh inna pahkin' laht?"
* While the Comicbook/{{Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles|Mirage}} originated in New York, after getting chased out by the Shredder they spent a while in and around Northampton, Massachusetts, which is where their creators hail from.

* Comicbook/CarolDanvers is from Boston, and the miniseries ''The Life of Captain Marvel'' is largely set in Harpswell, Maine, where her family spent their summers.

-->'''Katie(Glenn Close):''' Ok, now that's straight on route 84, but you're gonna want to avoid the tourist traps up there, now, if you go up Manhill Road,you'll see a pretty Bed and Breakfast in Bradford - but that's a little out of your way, but it's very reasonable. And there's a farm (fahm) down the hill where you can get fresh Maine blueberries, of course, but that's only in the summer -

-->'''Donny(Affleck):''' The best part of my day is when I'm at Dunkin. Do you think that's sad?\\

* The Commonwealth, mentioned in passing in ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}}'' and the setting for ''{{VideoGame/Fallout 4}}''. Much attention is paid to the areas around Fenway Park and Scollay Square[[note]]Which in our universe eventually became Government Center.[[/note]], which host the two major in-game settlements, Diamond City and Goodneighbor. Vault 111, where the game begins, is northwest of Boston in the fictional town of Sanctuary Hill, near Concord. The upper class stereotype is represented in Diamond City by the wealthy upper-stand residents; one of the families there is actually named "Codman." And Lovecraft references abound, including a location called the [[StealthPun Dunwich Borers.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/UltimateSpiderMan'': The episode "Spidah-Man!". Spider-Man is offered a place as Boston's resident superhero. Cue Boston accents out the wazoo and supervillains that embody New England stereotypes (Plymouth Rocker, the Salem Witch, and Slam Adams)

* '''Western Mass''': Farmland, woods, college kids, and more farmland. There's also quite a bit of suburban sprawl down in the southwestern corner, particularly in Agawam, Longmeadow, and Wilbraham. Stay out of Springfield, Holyoke, and Chicopee at all cost, and it may not be a bad idea to just stick to Amherst and Northampton if you're averse to rednecks as well. Depending on your delineation (Palmer, Belchertown, and Ware generally being the line between Western and Central), the Quabbin region (including Athol, see below) is sometimes put into this area... and the Quabbin itself being a reservoir built atop four dissolved townships (with some ruins still standing, explored by scuba divers) adds to the forlorn and isolated feel of the area. Your coffee most likely comes from Pride, Cumberland Farms, or a Big Y Express location, as Dunkin is comparatively rare out here compared to the rest of the state, and you also most likely do your grocery shopping at Big Y or Stop & Shop, as this is the only part of New England where none of the big three grocery outlets (Market Basket, Hannaford, and Price Chopper) operate.[[note]]Depending on where you are, the closest Market Basket is in Athol or Oxford, the closest Hannaford is in Athol or North Brookfield, and the closest Price Chopper is in Pittsfield (if you're in the hilltowns), Windsor, CT (if you're in the Springfield area), Brattleboro, Vermont (if you're in the Greenfield area), or Spencer (if you're near Palmer or Belchertown). If you're in the Five College Area, none of these are anywhere close and you're going to Big Y or Stop & Shop.[[/note]]

In reality, New England is one of the oldest regions of the United States: six separate states,[[note]]Writers have an annoying tendency of treating New England as a single legal entity rather than six states that handle their affairs every bit as separately as the other 44--sorry, ''Series/OnceUponATime'', but orphans from Maine would not be sent to foster care in Massachusetts.[[/note]] with a mountain range[[note]]Technically the northern end of the Appalachians, although the region is located well outside of what most of us think of as UsefulNotes/{{Appalachia}}.[[/note]] running up the middle and the Gulf Stream just offshore, meaning the climate and geography are all a lot more variable than that found in most other regions of the country. (Don't like the weather? Wait five minutes.) Seacoast Massachusetts is a very different place from the suburbs of Connecticut's Fairfield County, the Lakes Region of New Hampshire, the "Northern Plantations" of Maine or the Green Mountains of Vermont, and each region has its own variations of culture, accent and traditions. All of which is pretty much lost on Hollywood.

** '''Nashua''': Maze-like, absolutely nonsensical urban design and some of the most egregious suburban sprawl in central New England. Good luck navigating South Nashua and its endless labyrinth of one-ways without a GPS. If you're here, you're probably either mall-hopping or on your way to Manchester, Salem (for Canobie Lake Park), or Merrimack (for the outlets).

* The '90s drama series ''Providence'' was set in that Rhode Island city, and most of outside filming was shot there during its first season. Naturally, the local Creator/{{NBC}} television station ''would not shut up'' about the show for months. By the time of the second season, only establishing exterior shots were shot in Providence and the rest in [[CaliforniaDoubling California]].

* Since Emma and Lizzie Borden both lived in Fall River Massachusetts that is where ''The Lizzie Borden Chronicles'' are set.