History Series / MelrosePlace

* EasterEgg: A highly unusual one that Aaron Spelling and the producers did not even know about. The GALA Committee, essentially a subversive, left-wing Los Angeles art community, infiltrated the set of ''Melrose Place'' and began putting subversive works of art on the show. So, when Alison is dealing with an unplanned pregnancy, she is also sometimes seen under a blanket that shows the chemical structure of the RU-486 abortion pill. Peter Burns's bedspread has a pattern of unwrapped condoms. A boyfriend of Sydney's uses a pillow as HandOrObjectUnderwear when he is [[NakedPeopleTrappedOutside trapped outside]]; the logo on the pillow is a drawing of the AIDS virus. A mock advertising poster for alcohol is actually a picture of the Oklahoma City federal building bombed by Timothy [=McVeigh=]. This went on for two years, 1995-97, until Aaron Spelling finally found out. See the GALA Committee website []https://mpart.carseywolf.ucsb.edu/about/about_frames.html here]], and other stories about the project [[https://slate.com/culture/2023/12/melrose-place-abortion-art-gala-committee-mel-chin.html here]] and [[https://www.dezeen.com/2016/11/17/total-proof-subversive-conceptual-art-exhibition-melrose-place-gala-committee-new-york/ here]].

The original cast included Creator/CourtneyThorneSmith, Creator/AndrewShue, Creator/GrantShow, Creator/JosieBissett, and Creator/DougSavant, the lattermost of which played Matt Fielding, one of the first openly gay regular characters on primetime television. Creator/MarciaCross later joined the cast, and Creator/HeatherLocklear was brought in as a guest star. Locklear quickly became [[BreakoutCharacter the main character]], but was billed as a "Special Guest Star" for the rest of the series' run. Via her character, the series (itself a spin-off) got its own spin-off in the form of ''Series/ModelsInc''.

PrimeTimeSoap which ran on Fox from 1992 to 1999.

''Melrose Place'' was originally an ensemble drama [[SpinOff spun off]] from ''Series/{{Beverly Hills 90210}}''. The series, produced by Creator/AaronSpelling, focused on a set of attractive twentysomethings living in an apartment complex. The ratings were tepid, but as the storylines became more sensational and over-the-top, the show found a dedicated audience.

The original cast included Creator/CourtneyThorneSmith, Creator/AndrewShue, Creator/GrantShow, Creator/JosieBissett, and Creator/DougSavant (Savant played Matt, one of prime time's first regular characters to be openly gay). Creator/MarciaCross later joined the cast, and Creator/HeatherLocklear was brought in as a guest star. Locklear quickly became [[BreakoutCharacter the main character]], but was billed as a "Special Guest Star" for the rest of the series' run. Via her character, the series (itself spun off from ''Beverly Hills 90210'') got a spin-off series in the form of ''Series/ModelsInc''.

''Melrose Place'' may be the quintessential GuiltyPleasure. A ''Series/{{Seinfeld}}'' episode saw Jerry repeatedly denying he watched it, until his policewoman girlfriend made him take a polygraph exam, under which he snapped and admitted his addiction.

* WhamShot: Seasons three through six used these frequently in the bumpers to commercial break, showcasing a cricial or poignant scene from the episode.

* HospitalHottie: Kimberly, Michael and Peter were pretty hot for doctors.

* HollywoodHeartAttack: Subverted with Amanda towards the end of season five. It later turned out to be a panic attack.

* CoitusEnsues: Almost the TropeCodifier, most episodes on the show after season 1 had some sort of sexual tension or actual sex ensuing in the process.

* BareYourMidriff: It was the 90s, of course this show was a frequent practitioner of this.

* MiniDressOfPower: ''Any'' woman who worked at D&D Advertising was required to sport one (if not a business suit of such), [[ShesGotLegs sans pantyhose, of course.]]

The original cast included Creator/GrantShow, Courtney Thorne-Smith, Andrew Shue, Creator/JosieBissett, and Doug Savant (Savant played Matt, one of prime time's first regular characters to be openly gay). Creator/MarciaCross later joined the cast, and Heather Locklear was brought in as a guest star. Locklear quickly became [[BreakoutCharacter the main character]], but was billed as a "Special Guest Star" for the rest of the series' run. Via her character, the series (itself spun off from ''Beverly Hills 90210'') got a spin-off series in the form of ''Series/ModelsInc''.

* LoveDodecahedron: Yep. Too many examples to list but almost everyone has dated each other at some point or another. For example, Michael married a grand total of ''four'' times during the original series and was engaged to be married a fifth time until she break it off. Additionally, Amanda has been with nearly every main male character on ''MP'' with the exceptions of Matt (who's gay; incidentally, the only one who stayed beyond season 1 who is largely uninvolved in this dodecahedron), Coop, and Ryan.

* SerialSpouse: Michael, all the way. Married to Jane (divorced), her sister Sydney (divorced), Kimberly (divorced), Megan (divorced), Jane again (divorced), and Vanessa (widowed).

** Tony Marlin. He insisted that Amanda finance a million dollar commercial on her own and get her friend Eve to sleep with him to win his business. He deliberately told Eve an incorrect shuttle return time so Peter would miss the boat and be stuck on an island with Amanda so he could have time to seduce Eve, and then after Eve rebuffed him, he lied and said Amanda told him to do it. He then tried to sleep with Lexi to seal their business deal but [[LaserGuidedKarma died of a heart attack due to taking too many sexual performance pills]].

* {{Flatline}}: [[spoiler: Jack Parezi]], who was brought back via a MagicalDefibrillator. [[spoiler: When it happened again, however, when he was trying to kill Amanda, he flatlined for good.]]

* PositiveDiscrimination: Matt, the most altruistic character, is gay.

* ShoutOut: Billy Campbell was named after actor Bill Campbell.

* GenreShift: The series began life as a light drama similar in tone to its parent series, ''Series/BeverlyHills90210''. The change to PrimeTimeSoap was sudden and early, being mostly complete by the end of the first season, with the characters least suited to heavier plots being [[ShooOutTheClowns jettisoned entirely]] or [[CharacterizationMarchesOn retooled to suit the needs of the show's new format]], along with the addition of a potent [[KnightOfCerebus agent of drama]] in Amanda.

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