Friday, January 25, 2019

Forgotten TV: The Paper Chase (1978)

After the 70's started with a pair of failed legal dramas, CBS went back to the well in 1978 with an adaptation of the 1973 film, The Paper Chase, which itself had been adapted from a best selling novel.

John Houseman reprised his film role as Professor Charles Kingsfield. However, the focus was on his students, and their lives away from the classroom. Hart (James Stephens), for example, worked nights as a bartender to make ends meet.

The theme song, "The First Years", composed by Charles Fox and the late Norman Gimbel, was performed by folk-rockers Seals & Crofts, and could've easily been released as a single if needed.

So what went wrong? CBS put Chase on Tuesdays, opposite ABC's 1-2 punch of Happy Days & Laverne & Shirley. Ballgame over. However, PBS acquired rerun rights to the series, a rare occurrence in those days, which reignited interest. Showtime acquired the rights to the series, and production resumed in 1983 for three more seasons. Unfortunately, no one's willing to try this series on cable today.

Following is a sample episode:



James Stephens would later move on to The Father Dowling Mysteries with Tom Bosley (Happy Days) and Tracy Nelson. Robert Ginty came over from Black Sheep Squadron, then returned to Universal to co-star in another CBS series, Magnum, P. I..

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