mitting himself to a new role as chaplain to the sick.
While personally ministering to people suffering
from cancer and other diseases, he became an activ-
ist lobbying for strong public policies against assisted
suicide. Bernardin insisted that life was a gift from
God, who alone should decide when it should be
taken away. Unfortunately, while he was working on
this new initiative, the cancer returned, and Bernar-
din died less than two years after the disease had
been discovered.
Impact Bernardin’s leadership on social justice is-
sues and his efforts to highlight the plight of the sick
and to emphasize the sanctity of human life helped
bring about a revision in Catholic thinking on those
matters. His aggressive pursuit of sexual offenders
among the priesthood temporarily quelled con-
cerns about this issue. Later revelations of abuse,
however, indicated that problems were more wide-
spread and proved that the Church’s initial response
had been inadequate.
Further Reading
Berry, Jason, and Gerald Renner.Vows of Silence: The
Abuse of Power in the Papacy of John Paul II. New
York: Free Press, 2004.
Kennedy, Eugene.This Man Bernardin. Chicago:
Loyola Press, 1996.
Laurence W. Mazzeno
See also Religion and spirituality in Canada; Reli-
gion and spirituality in the United States; Scandals.
Beverly Hills, 90210
Identification Television drama series
Producer Aaron Spelling (1923-2006)
Date Aired from October 4, 1990, to May 17,
2000
Originally intended to focus on twin teenagers who moved
to Beverly Hills from Minnesota and are desperate to fit in,
the show evolved into an ensemble series, following the
twins and their friends from adolescence into adulthood.
The seriesBeverly Hills, 90210dealt with such social
issues as race relations, AIDS, eating disorders, and
rape. Although the show was set in Beverly Hills, an
icon of extreme wealth and glamour, its mostly
young viewers found that even the “beautiful peo-
ple” have problems. Viewers could identify with the
characters, while vicariously sharing in their privi-
leged lifestyles. The show also began the trend of
dramatic series centered on the lives of young
adults, inspiring such new shows asDawson’s Creek,
The O.C., andOne Tree Hill.
Beverly Hills, 90210helped the fledgling Fox net-
work survive by offering first-run summer episodes,
captivating viewers who sought alternatives to repeat
programming and winning fans to such attractive
stars as Jason Priestley (who played Brandon Walsh),
Shannen Doherty (Brenda Walsh), Luke Perry
(Dylan McKay) and Jennie Garth (Kelly Taylor). By
focusing on the children of millionaires rather than
on the millionaires themselves, the series was a de-
parture for producer Aaron Spelling, who had previ-
ously targeted older viewers in such series asDynasty
andFantasy Island.
Centered on a popular high school clique, the
show struck a chord with young adults who did not
necessarily fit such a profile themselves. To realize
that these privileged teenagers did not lead charmed
lives but rather had to cope with common troubles
engendered a sense of unity among viewers who be-
came invested in the characters’ lives. Young peo-
ple—and their parents—tuned in to learn how their
fictitious counterparts handled problems that they
themselves were facing. The show neither shied
away from such formerly taboo subjects as teenage
sexuality and alcoholism nor offered pat solutions.
Typical 1980’s sitcoms had featured peripheral char-
acters plagued by problems they resolved in single
episodes, never to be discussed again.Beverly Hills,
90210 , however, created story arcs in which main
characters dealt with such issues in a realistic man-
ner and time frame. Furthermore, these issues—
from drug addiction to cult membership—molded
characters’ lives and actions long after the issues
were resolved. As viewers may have identified with
the characters’ problems, so may they have shared
in their struggles to move beyond them.
Spanning the entire decade, the show exhibited
the fashions, technology, and music of its period.
The rich are often the earliest adopters of the latest
trends, and so it was inBeverly Hills, 90210. As soon as
Steve Madden shoes and baby-doll dresses appeared
in magazines, the show’s characters were wearing
them. No sooner did cellular phones appear than
did the characters own them. Long before the Inter-
net was mainstream, characters were using it to do e-
mail, meet people, and do research. Hit musical actsThe Nineties in America Beverly Hills, 90210 99