The Suite Life of Zack & Cody


The Suite Life of Zack & Cody is an American teen sitcom created by Danny Kallis and Jim Geoghan. The series aired on Disney Channel from March 18, 2005, to September 1, 2008 with 4 million viewers, making it the most successful premiere for Disney Channel. The series was nominated for an Emmy Award three times and was also nominated for a Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Award three times.
The series is set in the Tipton Hotel in Boston and centers on Zack Martin and Cody Martin, troublesome twins who live at the Tipton Hotel. The series' other main characters include the Tipton hotel's ditzy heiress London Tipton, the hotel's candy counter girl Maddie Fitzpatrick, the manager, Mr. Marion Moseby, and the boys' single mother who is also the Hotel's lounge singer, Carey Martin. The series is the third Disney Channel Original to have more than 65 episodes, after That's So Raven and Kim Possible. Reruns aired on Disney XD until 2014. Reruns of the show aired on Disney Channel until April 14, 2017.
The Suite Life spawned a sequel series, also starring the Sprouse twins in their respective roles as Zack and Cody, called The Suite Life on Deck, which aired on the Disney Channel from 2008 to 2011. A TV movie based on both series, The Suite Life Movie, premiered on Disney Channel on March 25, 2011.

Plot

The show centers upon Zack and Cody Martin, twin brothers who live in the Tipton Hotel in Boston, where their mother, Carey, sings and performs in the hotel lounge. However, it also centers upon the hotel owner's teenage daughter, London Tipton, who is very wealthy and ditzy, the hotel's down-to-earth candy-counter girl, Maddie Fitzpatrick, and Mr. Moseby, the strict, dutiful, and serious manager, who is often the foil to Zack and Cody's schemes and has a liking to the piano, pocket hankies and ballet.
The show is often set at the Tipton Hotel, but has other settings such as Zack and Cody's school, Cheevers High, and Maddie and London's private school, Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow Catholic. Zack and Cody often get in trouble and come up with witty ideas to get out of it.

Cast and characters

Main

Throughout the series' run, Brenda Song was absent for two episodes while Ashley Tisdale was absent from twelve episodes. All other main cast members appeared in all 87 episodes.

Recurring

Below is a list of cast members who have appeared in significant roles as recurring characters throughout the series. Each of the cast members listed has appeared in between 6 and 45 episodes and the list is ordered according to the number of episodes credited. A complete list of all characters who have appeared more than once is included at list of recurring characters in The Suite Life of Zack & Cody.

Notable appearances

ActorAppearing asSeasonEpisode
Moises AriasRandall2Day Care
Cheryl BurkeShannon2Loosely Ballroom
The Cheetah GirlsThemselves3Doin' Time in Suite 2330
Chris BrownHimself3Doin' Time in Suite 2330
Miley CyrusHannah Montana2That's So Suite Life of Hannah Montana
Michael Clarke DuncanCoach Little3Benchwarmers
Daniella MonetDana3Benchwarmers
Zac EfronTrevor2Odd Couples
Selena GomezGwen2A Midsummer's Nightmare
Tony HawkHimself3Foiled Again
Mark IndelicatoAntonio3Lip Synchin' in the Rain
Kathryn JoostenGrandma Marilyn2Not So Suite 16
Victoria JusticeRebecca1The Fairest of Them All
Nathan KressJamie2Back in the Game
Meaghan Jette MartinStacey3Sleepover Suite
Jesse McCartneyHimself1Rock Star in the House
Daryl MitchellDaryl2Back in the Game
Tahj MowryBrandon2Scary Movie
Kathy NajimyPrincipal Milletidge3First Day of High School
Kay PanabakerAmber3First Day of High School
Tom PostonMerle2Ah! Wilderness
Raven-SymonéRaven Baxter2That's So Suite Life of Hannah Montana
Drew SeeleyGeoffrey3Romancing the Phone
Jaden SmithTravis3Romancing the Phone
Mindy SterlingSister Rose2Volley Dad
The VeronicasThemselves2The Suite Life Goes Hollywood Part 2
D. C. DouglasSnooty Interviewer2Books & Birdhouses
Justin BaldoniDiego3Foiled Again

Episodes

The 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike resulted in the series being on hiatus. When the strike ended, new episodes began airing on April 19, 2008. The show eventually ended for good with its series finale, a total of three seasons and 87 episodes on September 1, 2008.

Crossover with ''That's So Raven'' and ''Hannah Montana''

The episode "That's So Suite Life of Hannah Montana" is the second part of a three-way crossover that begins on That's So Raven and concludes on Hannah Montana. Raven Baxter meets Zack and Cody as she visits the Tipton Hotel to do a photo shoot promoting a new fashion line for boys, only to have a troubling psychic vision of Cody. In the meantime, London refuses to wear one of Raven's original designs until Hannah Montana stops by and shows an interest in the fashions.

Settings

;Tipton Hotel
The Tipton Hotel is where Zack, Cody, Carey, and London all live, and where the majority of the other characters in the series work. It is the main setting for the series. The Tipton Hotel is located in Boston, Massachusetts. Hotel Vancouver is used for the exterior of the hotel.
;The SS Tipton
In the episode "Let Us Entertain You", Zack, Cody, and Carey spent a week vacationing on board the SS Tipton. It is also the setting of the sequel series, The Suite Life on Deck. The first time the SS Tipton is referenced is in the episode, "To Catch a Thief". While Maddie talks to London on the phone a life preserver with the words "S.S. Tipton" can be seen in the background.
;Buckner Middle School
The twins' Middle School. The school's mascot is a badger.
In the scene outside of the school where a few students are walking between two buildings shows "The Mall" area that's located in Lincoln Park High School, in Chicago, Illinois. Some of the students that attend Buckner were Max, Bob, and Agnes. Carey would come sit outside of the detention area while Zack was being punished. She said when she was outside the principal's office at Cheevers High that, "Thanks to Zack, I knitted 32 sweaters and an afghan."
The name comes from former-Boston Red Sox first baseman Bill Buckner.
;Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow Catholic School
Maddie and Mary Margaret attended this private school in season one. Later in season two, Corrie and Leslie were added to the minor cast, with London also attending the school in season two. In season three, London, Maddie, and Leslie no longer attend Our Lady. External shots of Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow Catholic School are of University College at the University of Toronto in Canada.
;Paul Revere Mini Mart
Zack and Cody work at the Paul Revere mini mart for the manager, Wayne Wormser. The mini mart's motto is, "The savings are coming! The savings are coming!" It is across the street from another mini mart with a patriotic name and theme, The Betsy Ross Stop and Shop, which is run by Wormser's business enemy and fierce rival.
;Camp Heaven on Earth
The summer camp where Maddie works over the summer. The only part of the camp shown is the cabin in which Maddie and the young girls stay.
;Cheevers High School
Where Zack, Cody, London, Maddie, and Nia attend along with other students including Barbara, Bob, and Mark. This setting was used in "Lip Synchin' in the Rain," "First Day of High School," "Orchestra," and "Benchwarmers." John Marshall High School is shown in a snapshot as Cheevers High School.
;Other places in Boston
Scenes also take place in several other places in Boston, including Fenway Park, a movie theater, Maddie's apartment, the local shopping mall, a bowling alley, a miniature golf course, Kurt's apartment, Mr. Moseby's condo, the Goose Lodge, Liberty Park, an apartment where Maddie and her friends painted for a poor family for community service, Arwin's apartment, camp Knock-a-Number, the forest that has Merele's cabin, Kurt's tour bus, the shop where Maddie demanded London give her inhaler, an art museum, a dance club, an alley with a garbage container, a pizza restaurant, Theo's home, the "Risk It All" studio, the Cluck Bucket, an aptitude company, and the restaurant where Wayne "dates" London. There are even two episodes that take place in Hollywood, which includes a movie studio, LAX, a beach, Sunset Blvd, Hollywood Blvd, and the Tipton Los Angeles.

Theme song and opening sequence

The show's theme song, "Here I Am," was written by John Adair and Steve Hampton, with music composed by Gary Scott, and is performed by Loren Ellis and the Drew Davis Band. The theme was remixed for the ending credits of "Rock Star in the House" in a form similar to "Beautiful Soul" to accompany the episode's guest appearance of Jesse McCartney.

Sequel series and film

The Suite Life on Deck is a sequel to The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, that debuted on Disney Channel on September 26, 2008, set on a cruise ship with Zack, Cody, and London attending a semester-at-sea program, while Mr. Moseby manages the ship. Debby Ryan joins the cast as Bailey Pickett, who becomes Zack and Cody's friend and London's friend and roommate. The series also introduces Doc Shaw as Marcus Little, a former superstar who lost his fame after his voice changed. While an attempted spin-off, Arwin!, which was to star Selena Gomez and Brian Stepanek, was not picked up by Disney Channel, The Suite Life on Deck skipped the pilot process and went straight to the series.
On September 20, 2010, Disney Channel announced that production has begun for a Disney Channel Original Movie based on The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and The Suite Life on Deck.
The Suite Life Movie premiered on the Disney Channel in the United States and Canada on March 25, 2011. The Suite Life on Deck eventually ended on May 6, 2011.

Awards and nominations

Indian adaptation

An Indian adaptation of the show, titled The Suite Life of Karan & Kabir, premiered on Disney Channel India on April 8, 2012. It ran for two seasons and ended on January 19, 2014.

Syndication

In 2005, ABC's Saturday morning programming block, ABC Kids, added The Suite Life of Zack & Cody to their lineup until the block's closing in 2011. Then in 2008, it was added to Toon Disney's programming lineup, becoming their first live-action comedy program. After Toon Disney's closing, reruns were shown on Disney XD from 2009 to 2014. From 2013 to 2015, the series was rerun on Disney Channel.

Broadcast

The Suite Life of Zack & Cody is broadcast on the following stations around the world:
Country / regionNetworkSeries premiereSource
Australia, New ZealandDisney Channel Australia & New ZealandApril 15, 2005
CanadaFamily ChannelSeptember 3, 2005
CanadaDisney XD June 1, 2011
United StatesDisney ChannelMarch 18, 2005N/A
United StatesABC KidsSeptember 17, 2005N/A
United StatesToon DisneySeptember 1, 2008N/A
United StatesDisney XDFebruary 13, 2009N/A

DVD releases

All episodes of the show are available on iTunes and Zune.
The Complete First Season was released to Germany and Brazil on November 13, 2008. Turkey on December 30, 2009 by Disney DVD. and Greece on September 9, 2010 by Sony Pictures.
According to Amazon.com, all three seasons of the show will be released, however no release dates have been announced.

Other media

Novels

Like many Disney Channel Original Series, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody had a number of novels based on episodes of the series, as well as original books. The following list of novels is based on information from the Barnes & Noble website and List of The Suite Life of Zack & Cody episodes. An inspired stories book set, based on the show was released in 2007.
#Novel titlePublishedBased on episode
1Hotel HangoutMay 2006Hotel Hangout
2Double TroubleMay 2006Maddie Checks In
3The Room of DoomAugust 2006The Ghost of Suite 613
4Zack AttackNovember 2006Footloser
5Check It OutFebruary 2007Hotel Inspector
6Star CrazyNovember 2007Rock Star in the House

Merchandise

The series has spawned three video games entitled The Suite Life of Zack & Cody: Tipton Caper for the Game Boy Advance, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody: Tipton Trouble, and The Suite Life of Zack & Cody: Circle of Spies for the Nintendo DS. They were developed by Artificial Mind and Movement and published by Buena Vista Games, with the exception of Circle of Spies, which was published by Disney Interactive Studios.
Disney Press has released several books based on the shows including The Suite Life of Zack & Cody: Tipton Caper, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody: Tipton Trouble, and The Suite Life of Zack & Cody: Circle of Spies novels based on the television episode and the video game. A calendar for the show, Disney The Suite Life of Zack and Cody 2008 Calendar has been released. Merchandise based on the series are sold exclusively at Amazon.com, Wal-Mart, Sears, Macy's, and several other retailers. They include clothing, bags, bedding collection, and toys.

Soundtrack

A soundtrack for the show was announced to be released around Summer 2008. It would have featured songs from and inspired from the show, including songs from Ashley Tisdale, Brenda Song, Jesse McCartney, and Raven-Symoné. This idea was scrapped as of 2017.