There's Laguna, and Then There's MTV's 'Laguna'

Whenever he sees MTV crews in Laguna Beach, Derek Ostensen walks over and stands in front of a camera. He's not seeking stardom but rather to stop the filming -- for a few minutes at least. Ostensen, 24, who was born in Laguna the year MTV launched, believes the network is stealing his town's soul with its phenomenally popular teen reality soap, "Laguna Beach: The Real O.C."

"We are a community that has stood for solid, meaningful principles ... art, culture, the environment, quality of life, education," said Ostensen, an environmental consultant. "By contrast, MTV glorifies violence, drug abuse, the objectification of women as sexual objects, alcohol abuse, superficiality and a raft of other negative issues."

He and other critics had some initial success. After producers scouted for cast members at Laguna Beach High School in fall 2003, the school board, responding to parents' fears that the school would become more deeply involved with the show, refused to allow MTV to film on campus.

But city officials rolled out the red carpet, and "Laguna Beach," with its beautiful, rich, confused, confident, sexy, hurt and hurtful young cast members who cavort among lime-colored palms and tangerine sunsets, shop at Veronica M. and eat at Pomodoro's, now averages 3.1 million viewers nationwide, closing in on MTV's mainstay, "The Real World."

With season two ending on Nov. 14 and new faces for season three currently being cast, "Laguna Beach" has not only brought the city of 25,000 to the world, it has also brought the world to its shores, shops and schools. Shopkeepers are swamped with tourists and callers wanting to track down the stars. "I've spent the last two years saying 'Stephen doesn't work here,' " said Thalia Street Surf Shop owner Pam Cocores.

The tourist bureau has issued a self-guided tour of the show's locales. EBay is offering paraphernalia, including a real prom photo of cast members: asking price $400.

And while school officials say an increased enrollment had been expected, rumors are circulating that starry-eyed out-of-towners hoping to be cast in the show have caused a surge in the freshman class. This fall it numbers 300, the highest in a decade.

Some original cast members -- including Kristin Cavallari, Stephen Colletti, Lauren Conrad and Dieter Schmitz -- whose every searching look has been lovingly photographed in close-up and heightened with background music -- have moved to Los Angeles, where they are bona fide celebrities, some working on acting careers. "We've been hanging at clubs with Paris [Hilton]," Schmitz said. Many have their own publicists; they appear in national magazines and gossip columns.