Ivan Dixon was entering his 4th season as a supporting player on Hogan's Heroes. Greg Morris was in his 3rd on Mission: Impossible, both shows airing on CBS. Don Mitchell was in his 2nd season on Ironside. Those three would soon have some company.
ABC had a trifecta of African-Americans in freshman series. Don Marshall on Land of The Giants. Otis Young in the 1-season Western, The Outcasts. Clarence Williams III began a 5 year run on The Mod Squad, and it can be argued that Williams was actually a co-lead with Michael Cole & Peggy Lipton.
I think it was around that time that Barbara McNair was headlining a syndicated variety show. Anyway, Diahann Carroll became the first African-American female lead since Beah Richards in Beaulah when she landed the lead in Julia, which, like Ironside, aired on NBC.
Carroll was cast as nurse Julia Baker, a single mom raising a young son (Marc Copage) while trying to find Mr. Right. Series creator Hal Kanter had misfired four years earlier with Anthony Franciosa & Jack Soo in Valentine's Day, but he finally had the hit series he was hoping for. Julia lasted three seasons (1968-71), and should've lasted longer than it did, but viewers' tastes tend to change when network executives least expect it.
Let's take a look at the opener. Guest star Lloyd Haynes would front his own series the very next season, beginning a 5 season run in Room 222.
Rating: A.
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