Characters / California Dreams

Matt Garrison

Matthew "Matt" Garrison

Portrayed By: Brent Gore

• Brother–Sister Team: He and his sister Jenny are in the same band.
• Decoy Protagonist: He was the main focus of the show and lead vocalist of the band, but is Put on a Bus along with his family after season 2.
• Put on a Bus: Starting in season 3, since it's mentioned his family moved away.
• Standardized Leader: He's a good leader and a Cool Big Bro to Jenny, but is pretty much an everyman character who is mostly defined by his interest in music.

Jenny Garrison

Jenny Garrison

Portrayed By: Heidi Noelle Lenhart

• Brother–Sister Team: She and her brother Matt are in the same band.
• Deadpan Snarker: One of the most prolific snarkers in the cast, often prone to making snide remarks, especially towards Sly.
• Put on a Bus: After the third episode of season 2, "Ciao, Jenny". She's the first major character to leave the show.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: She's the more practical Blue Oni to Tiffani's perky Red Oni.

Sly Winkle

Sylvester Leslie "Sly" Winkle

Portrayed By: Michael Cade

• Abhorrent Admirer: He attempts to win the affections of Jenny initially, but she turns down his advances every time.
• Breakout Character: He is easily the most recognizable character, for better or worse.
• Casanova Wannabe: His attempts to get girls (both in the main cast and guest characters) often fail, though he ends up with Lorena at the end.
• Catchphrase: His loud and bombastic "Ba-BOOM!" It was even on his graduation cap.
• Everyone Has Standards: He may be snobbish and money-grubbing, but as shown in the Season 1 episode "Guess Who's Coming To Brunch" he is as outraged by racism as are his friends.
• Handsome Lech: He's fairly good-looking but often rejected by girls because of his obnoxious personality.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Tony. Although the two are close, there are times even Tony gets sick of his greed and jerk qualities.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: As obnoxious as he is, he also can be a decent guy and a good friend.
• Lonely Rich Kid: Implied: his wealth is obvious, but among his Freudian Excuses is how he apparently didn't have any real friends growing up since they only liked him for his family's money.
• Meaningful Name: His nickname is "Sly" and he is a very wily and even duplicitous character at his worst.
• Money Fetish: He's obsessed with money, always ready for a Get-Rich-Quick Scheme, despite being already wealthy.
• Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: The money-grubbing Manly Man to his shy and naive cousin Mark.
• Token Evil Teammate: Being a schemer, he's the most manipulative and jerky of the group.
• Unresolved Sexual Tension: With Lorena. They eventually become a couple within the last few episodes of the series.

Tiffani Smith

Tiffani Anne Smith

Portrayed By: Kelly Packard

• Female Rockers Play Bass: Tiffani plays bass guitar for the Dreams.
• Gasshole: She's seen belching loudly on several occasions.
• Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: Tiffani is quite kind-hearted and her hair is blonde.
• Missing Mom: Her mother walked out on her and her father when she was a little girl. They briefly reunite in one episode.
• Official Couple: With Jake. Before getting back together and giving their relationship a second go, they were exes working together for a while in season 3 and part of season 4.
• Passionate Sports Girl: Besides music, she also loves surfing.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: She's the more perky Red Oni to Jenny's practical Blue Oni.
• Wide-Eyed Idealist: She's innocent, The Heart of the group, and sees the best in people.

Tony Wicks

Antoine Bethesda "Tony" Wicks

Portrayed By: William James Jones

• Heroic Build: Tony's one of the most stand up and levelheaded people on the show and is seen to have a nice body whenever he wears a vest for a shirt, especially if it's unbuttoned.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Sly. Although the two are close, there are times even he gets sick of his greed and jerk qualities.
• Large Ham: At times his overall mannerisms are quite bombastic (but nearly as much as Sly's).
• Maligned Mixed Marriage: Or relationship, rather in an early episode where he was dating a White girl whose father disapproved of them together. In spite of how much they cared about each other, they broke up by the episode's ending.
• Morality Pet: To Sly. Like the other guys in the band, he's capable of reeling in his more outlandish behavior, but unlike Jake he doesn't usually resort to threats of violence or name-calling.
• Official Couple: He and Sam are in a relationship in seasons 3-5.
• What You Are in the Dark: In "Guns R' Us", an infuriated Tony nearly shoots the men who beat his friend into a coma and left him paralyzed for refusing to participate in a robbery. Even though he and the young man's brother tried to get revenge, eventually their own consciences and being talked down by Jake stops them.

Jake Summers

Jacob "Jake" Summers

Portrayed By: Jay Anthony Franke

• Chick Magnet: He has dated three of the girls in the main cast: Jenny, Tiffani (his most important girlfriend), and Lorena.
• Death Glare: He tends to do this to someone who annoys him enough, with Sly and Mark being his most frequent targets.
• Hell-Bent for Leather: The local bad boy who always wears a leather jacket.
• Official Couple: With Tiffani. Before getting back together and giving their relationship a second go, they were exes working together for a while in season 3 and part of season 4.
• Troubled, but Cute: Appears to be a tough guy with leather jacket, but deep down he's sensitive and likable.

Samantha Woo

Samantha "Sam" Woo

Portrayed By: Jennie Kwan

• Asian and Nerdy: Downplayed, but she's from Hong Kong and was smart enough to graduate as class valedictorian.
• Ditzy Genius: She's Book Smart, but also eccentric, talkative, and boy-crazy.
• Foreign Exchange Student: She moved to America as a foreign exchange student, initially living with the Garrison family, and later with Lorena's family.
• Motor Mouth: When she first joined The Dreams, she talked way too much, to her friend's annoyance. It later came out that she did this out of nervousness in a new school/country.
• Official Couple: She and Tony are in a relationship in seasons 3-5.

Lorena Costa

Lorena Marina Costa

Portrayed By: Diana Uribe

• Defrosting Ice Queen: She became less snooty and pretentious and more compassionate and loving especially to Sly as time went on.
• Hollywood Tone-Deaf: The episode where she attempts to join the band (and only kept on thanks to Jake) is called "Yoko Oh No!"
• Sixth Ranger: She made her debut, along with Mark, at the start of season 3, but she is not a member of the band.
• Spoiled Brat: Due to her family's weath, she has a tendency to act vain, spoiled, and pretentious, though she Took a Level in Kindness later on.
• Third-Person Person: Lorena has a habit of referring to herself in the third person (using her full name) on occasion.
• Unresolved Sexual Tension: With Sly. They eventually become a couple within the last few episodes of the series.

Mark Winkle

Mark Edward Winkle

Portrayed By: Aaron Jackson

• Country Cousin: Downplayed; while he didn't grow up in an actual "country" setting, his upbringing was less flashy than his seemingly more sophisticated cousin.
• Drunk Driver: He drives drunk on night and ends up injuring a girl he was interested in so badly, she wound up hospitalized and missing their graduation.
• Flanderization: As time went on, his naiveté was flanderized to the point that he became a something of an airhead.
• Hopeless Suitor: One episode has his develop a crush on Lorena. Needless to say, her-then boyfriend Jake, being Jake, doesn't take it too well. This actually became something of a Running Gag for Mark's; he would develop a crush on a girl, but it was either never reciprocated or if it did, ended badly.
• Nice Guy: Usually one of the sweetest people on the show, and the friendliest of the guys.
• Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: The shy and naive Sensitive Guy to his money-grubbing cousin Sly.
• Shrinking Violet: A rare male example. His initial inability to play the piano/keyboard in public was due to Sly once embarrassing him at an important audition for a music school years earlier. He eventually forgives him and was able to play again.
• Sixth Ranger: He made his debut at the start of season 3 as a new member of the band.
• Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Mark was originally introduced as a clean cut Richie Cunningham-type (much like Matt) after the latter left the show.