A Father for Charlie

A Father for Charlie (alternate title: High Lonesome[1]), is a television film that premiered on CBS on January 1, 1995. The film was directed by Jeff Bleckner and written by H. Haden Yelin.[2] It stars Louis Gossett Jr. as Walter Osgood, the only black farmer in the highly-prejudiced town of High Lonesome in the Ozarks, at the height of the Great Depression in 1932. Despite the racist abuse he endures from the townspeople and the Ku Klux Klan, Walter forms an unlikely friendship with Charlie, the 10-year-old son of his white tenant farmer.[3][4]

A Father for Charlie
GenreDrama
Written byH. Haden Yelin
Directed byJeff Bleckner
Starring
Music byDavid Shire
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producers
ProducerPatricia Finnegan
CinematographyAlan Caso
EditorAlan Shefland
Production companies
  • Jacobs/Gardner Productions
  • LoGo Entertainment
  • Finnegan Pinchuk
Release
Original networkCBS
Original releaseJanuary 1, 1995 (1995-01-01)

Cast

Production

A Father for Charlie was filmed in Southern California.[2]

Critical reception

Marion Garmel of The Indianapolis Star gave the film a favorable review, writing that it has "a wonderful spunkiness that makes you cheer for the human spirit."[3] Also giving the film a positive review in the Los Angeles Times, Ray Loynd praised Yelin's writing for "turn[ing] material that appears to be dangerously fraught with sentiment and giv[ing] it thrust and life."[5] Variety's Alan Rich found the film highly unoriginal, but noted that "[t]he very predictability lends the viewers a comforting caress."[2] John Voorhees of The Seattle Times praised Gossett Jr.'s performance which he felt made the film worth watching.[6] Chicago Tribune's Sid Smith thought the portrayal of racism was "heavy-handed," but found the film "ultimately irresistible."[4]

Ratings

A Father for Charlie earned a 14.8 national Nielsen rating, equalling 14.1 million households, making it the eighth highest-rated prime time program for the week of December 26, 1994 to January 1, 1995.[7] In terms of total viewers, the film was the sixth most-watched prime time program with an audience of 22.9 million.[8]

References
  1. "High Lonesome (1995)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on August 20, 2022. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
  2. Rich, Alan (December 29, 1994). "A Father for Charlie". Variety. Archived from the original on August 19, 2022. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
  3. Garmel, Marion (December 29, 1994). "Gossett shows spunkiness in 'A Father for Charlie'". The Indianapolis Star. p. C.5. ProQuest 240115270. Retrieved August 19, 2022 – via ProQuest.
  4. Smith, Sid (December 30, 1994). "Coming Together". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on August 19, 2022. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
  5. Loynd, Ray (December 31, 1994). "TV Review: 'Father for Charlie': Gritty and Touching". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on August 20, 2022. Retrieved August 20, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. Voorhees, John (December 29, 1994). "Two Worthwhile Movies Give New Year a Good Start". The Seattle Times. p. D8. ProQuest 384187355. Retrieved August 19, 2022 – via ProQuest.
  7. Associated Press (January 6, 1995). "Football Games Lead Nielsen List". Sun-Sentinel. p. 5.E. ProQuest 388706107. Retrieved August 20, 2022 – via ProQuest.
  8. Fretts, Bruce (January 20, 1995). "The week". Entertainment Weekly. No. 258. pp. 44–45. ISSN 1049-0434.
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