NBC

"The Office" regulars include (from left) Rainn Wilson as Dwight Schrute, John Krasinski as Jim Halpert and Jenna Fischer as Pam Beesly.

'Office' Spaces

Members of "The Office" convention planning committee gave us an informal tour of some of the sites associated with the show. Use this as a guide to create your own Scranton experience, but remember that the program just borrows the names of these spots and generally films elsewhere.

• The Radisson at Lackawanna Station (700 Lackawanna Ave., 570-342-8300, radisson.com/scrantonpa) was Jan's preferred spot for entertaining a client in a Season 2 episode. But Michael ruled in favor of Chili's, which, in reality, has no locations in Scranton. This upscale but hardly snooty hotel has rates from $109.
• AFA or Artists for Art (514 Lackawanna Ave., 570-969-1040, artistsforart.com) is a charmingly sparse gallery that highlights local artists. It also happens to be the place where receptionist Pam displayed her drawings during Season 3's "Business School."
• The menu at Farley's (300 Adams Ave., 570-346-3000), especially popular when natives come home for the holidays, features burgers, beer and American fare. During a Season 1 basketball game, losers were required to buy the winners dinner at this cozy pub.
• Lake Scranton (Pennsylv ania 307) is surrounded by a 31/2-mile jogging and walking trail. But contrary to last season's "Beach Games" — you know, the episode with Pam walking over hot coals — there's no beach here.
• The main reason to visit The Mall at Steamtown (300 Lackawanna Ave., 570-343-3 400, themallatsteamto wn.com), which was spotlighted last season when Michael spearheaded a female-bonding shopping trip, is to see the original "Welcome to Scranton" sign visible in the show's opening credits. Since being replaced on the Central Scranton Expressway, the marker is on display in the food court, near a Taco Bell Express.
• Poor Richard's (125 Beech St., 570-344-4555) is the Dunder Mifflin gang's favorite happy hour spot, but the real place is a dimly lit bar inside a bowling alley. Still, management is savvy enough to host "Office" nights every Thursday, with free pizza until 9 p.m. and post-episode karaoke.
• The Anthracite Heritage Museum (McDade Park, 570-963 -4804, anthracitemu seum.org) documents the experience of coal miners with exhibits that have a homegrown feel. Michael and Dwight saluted it in "Lazy Scranton," their version of the "Saturday Night Live" YouTube hit "Lazy Sunday": "You like coal mines and you wanna see 'em / Well, check it out, yo, the Anthracite Museum!"

There is no Chili's in Scranton, Pa.

You won't find a Hooters there either. And if you plan to hit Poor Richard's for happy hour, be prepared to enter a bowling alley before you get there.

In other words, not every detail on "The Office" -- the NBC comedy about a group of disgruntled Scranton paper company employees and the unhinged manager who thinks "That's what she said" is the funniest phrase ever invented -- is accurate when it comes to this former coal-mining mecca.

Hey, it's television, people.

But while some creative liberties have been taken so characters could, say, down a few "Nagasakis" during the Benihana Christmas episode (no, there isn't a Benihana there, either), that hasn't stopped Scranton from playing a crucial role on the show, whose fourth season premiered Sept. 27. The writers often pepper their plotlines with references to real restaurants, shops and other sites around town, which has transformed the perception of this city as a weird, vaguely scary Dwight Schrute-type of place into one with an affable, cool Jim Halpert-like vibe.

The area's visitors bureau regularly fields calls from fans hoping to see "Office" hot spots; officials are exploring the possibility of creating a tour. And an event next month could further cement Scranton's status as a pop culture touchstone: Tickets went on sale this week for the first "Office" convention, which will bring together writers and actors, fans obsessed with every move Michael Scott makes and Scrantonians dumbfounded by the hoopla.

Of course, this is hardly the first time a TV program has capitalized on a city's haunts (see "Seinfeld" and "Sex and the City"), or that a sitcom's popularity has created a tourist attraction (hello, gang at Boston's "Cheers"). What makes the Scranton/"Office" connection unusual is that it has raised public awareness of a city much smaller than the New Yorks and L.A.s typically featured on TV -- and it does so by mentioning places only a true Scrantonian would know.

"It's a mock reality show, so sometimes these details that are true are better than what you would have made up," said Greg Daniels, the executive producer of "The Office" who adapted the BBC hit for American television.

After selecting Scranton as the show's setting -- a decision based on several factors, including its proximity to New York, where the fictional Dunder Mifflin paper company is based -- the writers started sneaking in the names of businesses and attractions plucked from the Scranton Yellow Pages. It's a trend Daniels says will continue.

"Sometimes the names are even slightly worse [than what we come up with], maybe because the words are more awkward or have too many syllables," he conceded. "But then we keep thinking about how delighted the locals will be."

The "Office" buzz comes at a particularly fortunate time for downtown Scranton, which is in the midst of a major revitalization, including multimillion-dollar upgrades to streetscapes and the arrival of upscale boutiques.

While one is walking the streets, the clash between old and the start of something new is strikingly evident. Within a few blocks, some gorgeous 100-year-old office buildings and churches -- all turrets and spires and lovely aged brick -- stand near simpler structures in the process of being gutted and redeveloped. The city hasn't quite shaken its case of the drearys (on a recent Friday night, downtown wasn't exactly bustling), but twinkles of potential, from a funky gift shop called Outrageous to the gorgeously verdant Nay Aug Park, are there.

Mayor Chris Doherty, who was elected six years ago, admits he was a little nervous when he first heard about plans to locate "The Office" in his city. But the scads of free publicity and the relationship that has developed between locals and the show's staff quickly assuaged his concerns.

"As a mayor, I am always concerned about how we're depicted as a city. And they always depict us favorably," said Doherty, who notes that after "The Office" won the Emmy for best comedy series last year, he received a call from Daniels and from the executive producer's father.

It also helps that Doherty and other folks there have a sense of humor. That explains a sign in front of City Hall sponsored by, yes, Dunder Mifflin. The mayor says officials put the Dunder Mifflin mark on the banner to signify their approval of the show.