Kirsten Cohen

Kirsten Cohen (maiden name Nichol) is a fictional character on the FOX television series The O.C., portrayed by Kelly Rowan. Kirsten is the wife of Sandy Cohen, mother to Seth Cohen, and the adoptive mother of Ryan Atwood. Originally portrayed as being unwelcoming towards Ryan in the Cohen household, she began to develop feelings for the brooding teenager, going on to accept him as a central member of her family. 2Characterization 3Background Kirsten Nichol was born in Newport Beach in Orange County, California. She is the eldest daughter of Caleb and Rose Nichol, elder sister of Hailey Nichol, and elder half-sister to Lindsay Gardner. She comes from a very wealthy background: her father is a real estate developer who founded The Newport Group, one of the most powerful companies in California. Kirsten was raised Presbyterian. She is presumably Scottish American. In "The Best Chrismukkah Ever", Seth described her background as "Waspy McWasp". Although the Nichols appear to be the envy of Newport, Kirsten has stated multiple times that she was unhappy with her family life due to her distant and domineering father, alcoholic mother, and rebellious sister.She is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley with a degree in art histor