So you’re a fan of “That ’70s Show,” right?
You know the characters, you laugh at the jokes, and you love to groove to that retro vibe. But have you ever wondered about Point Place, the iconic Wisconsin hometown of our beloved band of friends?
The show’s creators never explicitly revealed where Point Place was based on, and this has led to some pretty wild theories among fans. One theory that keeps making the rounds?
Point Place could be Pleasant Prairie, a cozy little village on the Wisconsin/Illinois border.
A lot of the speculation arises from geographical clues in the show. Fans familiar with the area claim that every location our gang visits matches up perfectly with Pleasant Prairie. The time it takes to travel there and back also seems to align just right.
And when these fans talk about this theory, their friends tend to agree. That’s a bunch of votes for Pleasant Prairie!
Interestingly, the theory isn’t just based on the show’s content. It turns out that word of mouth in the real world supports this theory too.
As someone who has lived on the Wisconsin/Illinois border for most of my life, I have always been positive it’s Pleasant Prairie where they live. Every location that they went to jives perfectly with that town and how long it took to get there and back.
There are stories of college students in Carthage College who’ve heard locals say that Point Place was inspired by none other than Pleasant Prairie, thanks to the show’s numerous references to nearby Kenosha and Milwaukee.
And that’s not all. The physical characteristics of Pleasant Prairie lend some weight to the theory.
The layout of the neighborhood, with houses grouped close together like Donna’s and Eric’s, seems eerily familiar. There’s even a nearby water tower, a landmark we know holds a special place in the hearts of our favorite gang.
The final piece of the puzzle comes from an episode of “That ’90s Show.” In this episode, a zip code is briefly shown. Diehard fans noticed that this zip code belongs to Kenosha County. Guess which village happens to be located in Kenosha County? You guessed it—Pleasant Prairie!
While none of this provides a rock-solid confirmation, it sure makes a compelling case. But whether or not Point Place is actually Pleasant Prairie, the fun is in the guessing game.
