21. The Children Were Saints
Reflecting the name of the show, there were seven children in the Camden family. Apparently, that was the definition of heaven? (Some would argue the opposite.) In any event, each child’s name in the Camden home reflected either a saint or Biblical figure. Thankfully for the kids, the Camdens steered away from the Bible’s tougher names like Ezekiel, Mash, Dodo, and Lot.
20. Welcome to Glen Oak
While producers filmed much of the show on sound stages, the setting for the show was the town of Glen Oak. While there may be a real Glen Oak out there, the town of Glen Oak, California was not a real place. It wasn’t meant to reflect a real town, that is. It’s meant to sound like a generalized town in Southern California, like a suburb. Choosing California made filming exterior shots like the Camden home and family church easy. We’ll come back to that house in a few slides.
19. Casting the Show
While it’s normal for the casting of a show to come late in the pre-production process, 7th Heaven ran right up to the end of the 11th hour before producers made final picks. Normally they want to hammer out any details of the concept before writing contracts for actors. That saves on paying actors for roles they wind up axing before filming starts. This show, however, really pushed it. The central character, Eric Camden, they cast only two days before the first filming began. Stephen Collins, the actor who played Eric, didn’t even have time to audition.