The Young Pioneers was a trial-run ABC Western television series about young newlyweds who settle in the Dakota Territory during the 1870s. If the first three episodes had received good ratings the series may have found a place on the network’s fall lineup.[1]
| The Young Pioneers | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Western/family/drama |
| Based on | Young Pioneers by Rose Wilder Lane |
| Developed by | Blanche Hanalis (developed for television by) |
| Directed by | |
| Starring |
|
| Opening theme | Dominic Frontiere (instrumental) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 3 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | |
| Producers |
|
| Running time | varied – 97 and 47 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC |
| Release | April 2 – April 16, 1978 |
The series was based on the plot of Rose Wilder Lane’s 1933 novel Let the Hurricane Roar, which was reissued as Young Pioneers[2] though the main characters names came from her novel Free Land.[3]
In March 1975 the television film Young Pioneers was watched by 40 million viewers,[4] so in December 1975 a second film Young Pioneers' Christmas continued the story of homesteaders Molly and David Beaton, and served as a pilot for a planned ABC series.[5] The Young Pioneers series aired on Sundays at 7 p.m.[6] The first episode was a two-hour movie, followed by two sixty-minute episodes.[7]
Cast
edit- Linda Purl as Molly Beaton, newly married homesteader
- Roger Kern as David Beaton, newly married homesteader
- Robert Hays as Dan Gray, neighboring homesteader
- Robert Donner as Mr. Peters, neighboring homesteader
- Mare Winningham as Nettie Peters, daughter of Mr. Peters
- Michelle Stacy as Flora Peters, daughter of Mr. Peters
- Jeff Cotler as Charlie Peters, son of Mr. Peters[8]
Production
editThe series’ exterior scenes were filmed on the Empire Ranch, near Sonoita, Arizona,[4] with interior shots filmed at the 20th Century-Fox studios in Hollywood. Four sod structures were built for the series, with a house and a barn in both Arizona and California.[9]
Ed Friendly, who had earlier produced the two-hour pilot film for NBCs Little House on the Prairie, was The Young Pioneers producer.[4] Earl Hamner, creator of The Waltons, was brought in to help with the project. He wanted the series to progress like a novel, with each episode to be a single chapter, and the audience seeing the progression of the nearest town of Wildrose.[10]
Episodes
edit| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Sky in the Window" | Irving J. Moore | Blanche Hanalis, Robert Pirosh, Katharyn Powers | April 2, 1978 | |
|
Molly and David are held hostage in their barn by Native Americans. Will the wounded brave allow Molly to help him?[11] | |||||
| 2 | "A Kite for Charlie" | Irving J. Moore | Blanche Hanalis | April 9, 1978 | |
|
Neighbor boy Charlie may die unless the town’s young inexperienced doctor performs surgery on him.[12] | |||||
| 3 | "A Promise for Spring" | Irving J. Moore | Blanche Hanalis | April 16, 1978 | |
|
Molly is seriously injured during a prairie storm.[13] | |||||
References
edit- ^ Lee Margulies, Trial Run for Young Pioneers, The Los Angeles Times, April 1, 1978, page 32
- ^ Rose Wilder Lane, Young Pioneers, Bantam Book, 1976
- ^ Rose Wilder Lane, Free Land, pages 1, 13, The World Publishing Company, 1945
- ^ a b c Spend Christmas with 'Young Pioneers' Dec. 19, Lebanon Daily News (Lebanon, PA), December 11, 1976, page 26
- ^ "Young Pioneers", The Reporter-Times (Martinsville, Indiana), December 6, 1975, page 16
- ^ 'Young Pioneers' new family western, News-Journal (Mansfield, Ohio), April 2, 1978, page 78
- ^ Earl Hamner’s new series, The Salt Lake Tribune, April 2, 1978, page 48
- ^ [Terry Rowan, The American Western A Complete Film Guide, page 453, Lulu, 2013]
- ^ Grass Houses, The Herald-Sun (Durham, NC), January 9, 1977, page 68
- ^ Earl Hamner’s new series, The Salt Lake Tribune, April 2, 1978, page 48
- ^ Pioneers Held By Indians, The Tennessean (Nashville, Tennessee), April 2, 1978, page 108
- ^ Television Today, News-Journal (Mansfield, Ohio), April 9, 1978, page 50
- ^ 'Holocaust' opens with genocide (TV listing), News-Journal (Mansfield, Ohio), April 16, 1978, page 33