Plot

The show centers upon Zack and Cody Martin, twin brothers who live in the Tipton Hotel where their mother, Carey, sings and performs in the hotel lounge.[2] Also residing at the hotel is the hotel owner's daughter, London Tipton, who is impolite and ditzy. Maddie, whose real name is Madeline Fitzpatrick, is the hotel's down-to-earth candy-counter girl.[5] Mr. Moseby, the strict, dutiful and serious manager is often a foil to Zack and Cody's schemes.[5] The show is often set at the Tipton Hotel, but various other settings like Zack and Cody's school, Cheevers High School,[6] and Maddie and London's private school, Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow Catholic School[7] are used.

Most episodes focus on two stories: The first one is commonly centered on Zack, Cody, and their mother Carey, while the other story centers on Maddie and London. Other staff of the Tipton sometimes appear in both of the stories. All of the stories involve both Zack and Cody.

[edit] Cast

[edit] Main

The following actors, with the exception of Ashley Tisdale and Brenda Song, have appeared in all episodes of the series.[8]

[edit] Actors with recurring roles

Main article: The Suite Life of Zack & Cody recurring characters

The following is a list of cast members who have appeared in significant roles as recurring characters throughout the series. Each of the cast members listed have appeared in between 6 and 45 episodes and the list is ordered according to the number of episodes credited (highest number first).[8] A complete list of all characters who have appeared multiple times is included at The Suite Life of Zack & Cody recurring characters.

[edit] Special Appearances

[edit] Characters

See also: The Suite Life of Zack & Cody recurring characters
  • Cody Martin (Cole Sprouse) – Cody is the calm, mature, and smarter twin. He is a "straight A" student, making him better, academically, than his brother Zack, who gets "D"s. However, he is not as strong as Zack in wood shop, where Zack excels. In one episode, he moves into the coat closet because he is not happy with his brother's sloppiness. Janice and Jessica seem to like Cody more. Cody has an on-again, off-again girlfriend named Barbara. Cody has attended a Week in Washington program and math camp. Cody is the more gentle twin compared to his brother and somehow always gets talked into going along with Zack's schemes. In "The Fairest of Them All," he dressed as a girl to win money.
  • Zack Martin (Dylan Sprouse) – Zack is typically the unstudious, outgoing, immature twin, who usually dresses in skater clothes. At school, he is a straight "D" student, mentioned in the episode First Day of High School. Besides not doing well in school, Zack loves wood shop (which he is the best in class). In the episode Team Tipton it has shown that he has a fear of bugs. In the first season of the show it was revealed that Zack is 10 minutes older than Cody, which he has used against Cody, normally telling him, since he's older, to do some sort of job that he doesn't want to do. Or in some cases, give him "brotherly" advice because, "I'm the older twin." He has also taken advantage of teachers and has faked conditions like dyslexia (in "Smart and Smarterer").
  • London Tipton (Brenda Song) – She is the daughter of Wilfred Tipton, the owner of the Tipton Hotel. She is an obvious parody of Paris Hilton, down to the ditsy demeanor and frivolous spending and name of the character (London/Paris and Tipton/Hilton). Although you never see Mr. Tipton fully (usually hiding behind his security force, which stands on all sides.... in the tradition of Wilson from Home Improvement), he is frequently mentioned. London is a dim-witted, spoiled, rich teenager with her own private suite at the Tipton Hotel in Boston, complete with a large closet with several divisions (each with their own talking mirror) and a kitchen. London loves fashion; she only wears designer clothes and hates plaid. She does not have a nanny, or some other adult, to help her but relies on the Tipton Hotel Staff for any assistance and/or guidance. She transferred to the same private school, "Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow," as Maddie in the episode Forever Plaid, due to poor attendance at her old school. In the episode First Day of High School, London transfers to Zack and Cody's public school, "Cheevers High," due to being expelled from all of the private schools she had previously attended. She dislikes her step-moms (previous and current) and talks to Mr. Moseby and Maddie about her problems. When happy she usually claps her hands repeatedly while saying her catchphrase, "Yay me!" She also has her own web show called "Yay Me! Starring London Tipton" that exists both within the program and in the real world.[9] London often refuses to go to school and even skipped detention twice. Though it seems like London may lead the ultimate rich-girl life, her childhood was not perfect. In the episode Arwinstein, she states she is allergic to lobster, although in one episode she asked Maddie for a lobster dinner. However, it is possible that she developed an allergy to lobster after the earlier episodes and before the later ones. It is also revealed in one episode that she must think about what she does before doing it. For example, she was walking through the lobby while thinking "left, right, blink, breathe" (although this may be Zack's dream) in the episode Super Twins.
  • Maddie Fitzpatrick (Ashley Tisdale) – She is the teenage candy-counter girl at the Tipton Hotel, who throughout the series holds several other jobs/positions including a cashier at the Cluck Bucket, manager on the Camp Tipton Daycare Center, and counselor for her school's summer camp program - Camp Heaven on Earth. She also visits Antarctica during the series to help save the penguins. While she comes from a lower class family, Maddie is very hard-working, outspoken, and intelligent. But in several episodes she is shown as being very selfish and a bigger opportunist than London, though she always loses out when this side of her personality is shown. Like Esteban, it is shown she has an incredibly long name; in the episode "Pilot Your Own Life," it is revealed to be Madeline Margaret Genevieve Miranda Catherine Fitzpatrick.[10] She attends private school at "Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow" and later attends "Cheevers High." Maddie is London's closest friend, though London often treats her like a servant, as in the episode Footloser, usually bribing her with money. Maddie also babysat Zack and Cody throughout season one. Zack has a huge crush on her in Season One, however the crush isn't shown as much during Seasons 2-3. She is a strong supporter of environmental causes. She is left-handed. It is revealed that she has asthma. She appeared sporadically throughout Season 3.
  • Mr. Marion Moseby (Phill Lewis) – The uptight manager of the Tipton Hotel, who speaks with a wide vocabulary and an urbane vernacular, and is often annoyed by Zack and Cody's schemes. His repeated catch phrases, "Good luck with that" or "Pish posh" have become his trademark. Though he acts as though he does not care about the boys, he actually has a great deal of affection for them. For example, when Mr. Moseby took the boys to a baseball game, he caught a ball for Cody, ultimately making Mr. Moseby "the most hated man in Boston." In the episode "The Ghost of 613," it is revealed that he started out at the Tipton as a bellhop back in the 1970s, and had a "voluminous 'fro," Mr. Moseby is more of a father to London than her own, because Mr. Tipton is seldom around. Moseby was always a fatherly figure to London. Moseby even taught London how to walk, her ABCs, and tried to teach her how to drive. He cares for London and treats her like his own. He also helps London with any problems she is having. He was also known as the "Meanager." Has an older brother named Spencer, who is a little person (played by Dana Michael Woods), who is very wealthy and lactose intolerant. His Mothers' name is Beulah Moseby, who favors Spencer, but still likes Marion. Grandmother is Rose Moseby (who is played by Phill Lewis) who visits him in the episode "Nugget of History." Has a 16 year-old niece named Nia Moseby (played by Giovonnie Samuels) who comes to stay with him during the third season and temporarily replaces Maddie as candy counter girl, while she is in Antarctica. A running gag of the series is that Mr. Moseby often makes a fool of himself in front of people (eg: hitting a baby doll that wouldn't stop crying against a chair when a woman with a baby walked by), or making a sarcastic comment about himself (that the customers think is true, and not sarcastic). Another running joke is that he often just barely catches a vase on the center table of the lobby from falling, although he fails to do that in the series' finale. In his schooling he was captain of the cheerleading squad; his experience with cheering coming in useful in a cheer-off. He also was a junior putt putt champion and taught Zack how to play mini golf. Mr. Moseby also took ballet lessons and is a very good dancer. When he practiced and participated in Esteban's dance school, he was temporarily partnered with Carey, but found it hard to dance with her since she is much taller than him. He also takes advantage of Zack and Cody in some cases, like in the episode "Heck's Kitchen" he treats them with room service so they will find a food critic.
  • Carey Martin (Kim Rhodes) – The single working mother of Zack and Cody is the hotel's lounge singer. She and her sons traveled to several cities before arriving at the Boston Tipton, which she called the "best gig we've ever had." She was married to Kurt Martin but they divorced after the twins were born for unstated reasons. The character of Arwin has made it known on several occasions that he has a crush on her. Whenever Carey kisses Arwin he faints. When Zack and Cody have an argument, she tells them stories about her ex-boyfriends, much to their dismay.