Lucas Tanner is an American drama series aired on NBC during the 1974–75 season. The title character, played by David Hartman, is a former baseball player and sportswriter who becomes an English teacher at the fictional Harry S Truman Memorial High School in Webster Groves, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis. He changed professions following the death of his wife and child. Episodes often deal with the resistance of traditional teachers to Tanner's unorthodox teaching style.
Regular co-stars included Rosemary Murphy, Kimberly Beck, John Randolph, and ten-year-old Robbie Rist. Unusually, the show was actually filmed in Webster Groves, rather than on a Hollywood backlot. That gave it a somewhat unusual "look" for a prime-time TV series.
A 90-minute pilot film of the series aired on NBC the week of May 4, 1974; the pilot also starred Kathleen Quinlan and Joe Garagiola.
This series was Hartman's last work as an actor. In November 1975, he began as co-host of ABC's Good Morning America. To date, he has not returned to acting.
Episodes
| Nº | Title | Directed by | Written by | Air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | "Lucas Tanner" | Richard Donner | Jerry McNeely | May 8, 1974 (1974-05-08) | |
| 90-minute pilot. | |||||
| 1 | "A Matter of Love" | Gordon Hessler | John McGreevey | September 11, 1974 (1974-09-11) | |
| 2 | "Instant Replay" | Gordon Hessler | Robert Van Scoyk | September 18, 1974 (1974-09-18) | |
| 3 | "Thirteen Going on Twenty" | Walter Doniger | Jerry McNeely | October 2, 1974 (1974-10-02) | |
| 4 | "Winners and Losers" | Leo Penn | Eugene Price | October 9, 1974 (1974-10-09) | |
| 5 | "A Question of Privacy" | Jerry McNeely | Jerry McNeely | October 16, 1974 (1974-10-16) | |
| 6 | "Three Letter Word" | Walter Doniger | Leonard & Arlene Stadd | October 23, 1974 (1974-10-23) | |
| 7 | "By the Numbers" | William Asher | Sue Milburn | November 6, 1974 (1974-11-06) | |
| 8 | "Echoes" | Walter Doniger | Arthur Heinemann | November 13, 1974 (1974-11-13) | |
| 9 | "Look the Other Way" | Jerry London | S : Gene ThompsonS/T : Arthur Heinemann | November 20, 1974 (1974-11-20) | |
| 10 | "Cheers" | Paul Kransky | William Froug | December 4, 1974 (1974-12-04) | |
| 11 | "Merry Gentlemen" | Walter Doniger | Robert Van Scoyk | December 25, 1974 (1974-12-25) | |
| 12 | "Bonus Baby" | Randal Kleiser | Bruce Shelly & David Ketchum | January 8, 1975 (1975-01-08) | |
| 13 | "Pay the Two Dollars" | Allen Baron | Robert Van Scoyk | January 15, 1975 (1975-01-15) | |
| 14 | "Those Who Cannot, Teach" | Robert Scheerer | S : Lila GarrettT : Judy Burns & Robert Van Scoyk | January 22, 1975 (1975-01-22) | |
| 15 | "What's Wrong with Bobbie?" | Walter Doniger | Booker T. Bradshaw & David P. Lewis | January 29, 1975 (1975-01-29) | |
| 16 | "Collision" | Alexander Singer | T : Robert Van ScoykS/T : Max Hodge | February 5, 1975 (1975-02-05) | |
| 17 | "Why Not a Happy Ending?" | Charles S. Dubin | T : Judy BurnsS/T : Claire Whitaker | February 12, 1975 (1975-02-12) | |
| 18 | "Shattered" | Richard Bennett | T : Robert Van ScoykS/T : Ann Beckett | February 19, 1975 (1975-02-19) | |
| 19 | "The Noise of a Quiet Weekend" | Leo Penn | S : Joel ClarkT : Robert Van Scoyk | February 26, 1975 (1975-02-26) | |
| 20 | "Requiem for a Son" | Robert Scheerer | David P. Lewis & Booker T. Bradshaw | March 12, 1975 (1975-03-12) | |
| 21 | "A Touch of Bribery" | Paul Kransky | Eugene Price | April 2, 1975 (1975-04-02) | |
| 22 | "One to One" | Charles S. Dubin | T : Robert Van ScoykS/T : Norman Hudis | April 9, 1975 (1975-04-09) | |
- Tim Brooks & Earle Marsh, The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows (7th ed. 1999), p. 601.
External links
- Lucas Tanner at IMDb
References
Morrison, Bill. "Bland Television Menu Could Give You Ulcers," The News & Observer (Raleigh, NC), Sunday, September 22, 1974. Retrieved January 17, 2023. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/81786320/little-house-on-the-prairie-season-one/ ↩
NBC TV Guide ad for week of May 4, 1974, at Vintage Toledo TV. http://vintagetoledotv.squarespace.com/print-ads-nbc/nbc-print-ads/3662365 ↩