North and South (miniseries)

Last updated
North and South
North+South-Complete1-3.jpg
Complete Collection DVD cover
Genre Historical fiction
Created by David L. Wolper
Based on North and South (trilogy)
by John Jakes
Story byJohn Jakes
Starring
Theme music composer Bill Conti
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes
  • Book I: 6
  • Book II: 6
  • Book III: 3
Production
ProducerPaul Freeman
CinematographyStevan Larner, ASC
Running time90 minutes/episode
1,342 mins. total
Production companies David L. Wolper Productions
Warner Bros. Television
Original release
Network ABC
ReleaseNovember 3, 1985 (1985-11-03) 
March 2, 1994 (1994-03-02)

North and South is the title of three American television miniseries broadcast on the ABC network in 1985, 1986, and 1994. Set before, during, and immediately after the American Civil War, they are based on the 1980s trilogy of novels North and South by John Jakes. [1] The 1985 first installment, North and South, remains the seventh-highest rated miniseries in TV history. [2] [3] [4] North and South: Book II (1986) was met with similar success, while 1994's Heaven and Hell: North and South Book III was poorly received by both critics and audiences. [5] [6]

Contents

The saga tells the story of the enduring friendship between Orry Main of South Carolina (Patrick Swayze) and George Hazard of Pennsylvania (James Read), who become best friends while attending the United States Military Academy at West Point but later find themselves and their families on opposite sides of the war. [1] The slave-owning Mains are rural planters from outside Charleston, South Carolina, while the Hazards, who reside in a small Pennsylvania mill town, profit from ownership of iron manufacturing and industry capital, their differences reflecting the divisions between North and South that eventually led to the Civil War. [7]

Plot

Book I: North and South

Book II: Love and War

Book III: Heaven and Hell

Cast

The initial 1985 miniseries cast Patrick Swayze as Orry Main and James Read as George Hazard with Lesley-Anne Down as Orry's love interest Madeline and Wendy Kilbourne as George's future wife Constance. [8] Kirstie Alley played George's outspoken abolitionist sister Virgilia, with Genie Francis as Orry's "good" sister Brett and Terri Garber as his selfish and wicked sister Ashton, as well as Philip Casnoff as Elkanah Bent, George and Orry's nemesis. [8] All of these actors returned for the 1986 sequel, and the roles of George's brother Billy Hazard and sister-in-law Isabel Hazard were recast with Parker Stevenson and Mary Crosby. [9] [10]

North and South (1985) also featured many well-known actors as guest stars, including Elizabeth Taylor as bordello proprietor Madam Conti, David Carradine as the sadistic Justin LaMotte, Hal Holbrook as U.S. President Abraham Lincoln, Gene Kelly as Bent's father Senator Charles Edwards, Robert Mitchum as Colonel Patrick Flynn, M.D., Johnny Cash as abolitionist John Brown, Jean Simmons as Orry's mother Clarissa Main, Mitchell Ryan as Orry's father Tillet Main, John Anderson as George's father William Hazard, Jonathan Frakes as George's older brother Stanley Hazard, Inga Swenson as George's mother Maude Hazard, Robert Guillaume as abolitionist Frederick Douglass, Morgan Fairchild as Burdetta Halloran, David Ogden Stiers as Representative Sam Greene, and Olivia Cole as Madeline's devoted but doomed servant Maum Sally. [8] John Jakes' wife Rachel also made an appearance in Episode 6 as Lincoln's wife Mary. North and South: Book II (1986) saw the return of Carradine as LaMotte, Holbrook as Lincoln, and Stiers as Greene, as well as new guests Lloyd Bridges as Confederate President Jefferson Davis, Anthony Zerbe as Ulysses S. Grant, Nancy Marchand as Dorothea Dix, James Stewart as Miles Colbert, Wayne Newton as Captain Thomas Turner, and William Schallert as Robert E. Lee, [9] with Linda Evans as Rose Sinclair and Olivia de Havilland as Mrs. Neal. 1994's Heaven and Hell featured Peter O'Toole as "louche actor" Sam Trump [11] and Billy Dee Williams as Francis Cardozo.

Filming of the miniseries resulted in four marriages among the cast and crew. Read and Kilbourne, who played opposite each other, married in 1988 and now have two children. Frakes and Francis, who had previously played opposite each other on the failed NBC soap Bare Essence , also married in 1988. Lesley-Anne Down married assistant cameraman Don E. FauntLeRoy in 1986. They met during filming of Book I when both were married to other people, and eventually obtained divorces. [12] Garber married screenwriter Chris Hager, whom she met in 1985 when he worked as a grip on the set of North and South: Book II. They had a daughter, Molly, in 1986, and later divorced. [13]

Color key
  Main cast ("Starring" in opening credits)
  Secondary cast ("Also starring" in opening credits)
  Guest cast ("Special guest star" in opening credits or co-starring)
RoleActor
Book IBook IIBook III
Starring
Virgilia Hazard Kirstie Alley
Garrison Grady Georg Stanford Brown
Justin LaMotte David Carradine
Major Elkanah Bent Philip Casnoff
Madeline Fabray LaMotte Main Lesley-Anne Down
Brett Main Hazard Genie Francis
Ashton Main Huntoon Fenway Terri Garber
Constance Flynn Hazard Wendy Kilbourne
James Huntoon Jim Metzler
George Hazard James Read
Charles Main Lewis Smith Kyle Chandler
Billy Hazard John Stockwell Parker Stevenson
Orry Main Patrick Swayze Stand-in
Isabel Truscott Hazard Wendy Fulton Mary Crosby Deborah Rush
Stanley Hazard Jonathan Frakes Jonathan Frakes
Augusty Barclay Kate McNeil
Judith Stafford Main Cathy Lee Crosby
Prudence Chaffee Mariette Hartley
Willa Parker Rya Kihlstedt
Will Fenway Tom Noonan
Isaac Stan Shaw
Adolphus Rip Torn
Cooper Main Robert Wagner
Francis Lewis Cardozo Billy Dee Williams
Magic Magee Steve Harris
Special guest stars
John Brown Johnny Cash
Maum Sally Olivia Cole
Burdetta Halloran Morgan Fairchild
Frederick Douglass Robert Guillaume
Abraham Lincoln Hal Holbrook
Sen. Charles Edwards Gene Kelly
Col. Patrick Flynn Robert Mitchum
Clarissa Gault Main Jean Simmons
Congressman Sam Greene David Ogden Stiers
Maude Hazard Inga Swenson
Madam Conti Elizabeth Taylor
Jefferson Davis Lloyd Bridges
Mrs. Neal Olivia de Havilland
Rose Sinclair Linda Evans
Rafe Beaudeen Lee Horsley
Dorothea Dix Nancy Marchand
Capt. Thomas Turner Wayne Newton
Miles Colbert James Stewart
Gen. Ulysses S. Grant Mark Moses Anthony Zerbe Rutherford Cravens
Sam Trump Peter O' Toole
Also starring
William Hazard John Anderson
Nicholas Fabray Lee Bergere
Priam David Harris
Tillet Main Mitchell Ryan
Cuffey Forest Whitaker
General's Wife Bonnie Bartlett
Lt. Rudy Bodford Michael Dudikoff
Cpl. Strock Burton Gilliam
Semiramis Erica Gimpel Erica Gimpel
Gen. Philip Henry Sheridan Clu Gulager
Lt. Stephen Kent Grant "Whip" Hubley
Gen. Robert E. Lee William Schallert
Gettys LaMotte Cliff DeYoung
Lt. Pickles Gary Grubbs
Captain Venable Keith Szarabajka
Jim Chris Burke
ScarGregory Zaragoza

Production

North and South (1985) was directed by Richard T. Heffron, from a script adaptation by Patricia Green, Douglas Heyes, Paul F. Edwards, and Kathleen A. Shelley. It was produced by David L. Wolper, Paul Freeman, Rob Harland, and Chuck McLain, with music by Bill Conti and Stevan Larner as cinematographer. Wolper also produced 1986's North and South: Book II with his son Mark Wolper, as well as Stephanie Austin and Robert Papazian. Conti returned as composer, with Kevin Connor directing, Jacques R. Marquette as cinematographer, and a script by Heyes and Richard Fielder. Heaven and Hell: North and South Book III (1994) was directed by Larry Peerce from a script by Suzanne Clauser. Hal Galli produced the miniseries, with music by David Bell and Don E. FauntLeRoy as cinematographer.

Awards and nominations

The North and South miniseries were nominated and/or awarded with many different awards around the world, among which the most significant are:

YearAwardResultCategory/People
1986 Golden Globe Awards Nominated David Carradine for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV (N&S1)
Nominated Lesley-Anne Down for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV (N&S1)
Primetime Emmy Awards WonCostuming team for Outstanding Achievement in Costuming for a Miniseries or a Special (N&S1, ep. 4)
NominatedVirginia Darcy for Outstanding Achievement in Hairstyling for a Miniseries or a Special (N&S1, ep. 1)
NominatedMakeup team for Outstanding Achievement in Makeup for a Miniseries or a Special (N&S1, ep. 6)
Nominated Bill Conti for Outstanding Achievement in Music Composition for a Miniseries or a Special (Dramatic Underscore) (N&S1, ep. 1)
NominatedStevan Larner for Outstanding Cinematography for a Miniseries or a Special (N&S1, ep. 6)
NominatedEditing team for Outstanding Editing for a Miniseries or a Special – Single Camera Production (N&S1, ep. 4)
NominatedSound editing team for Outstanding Sound Editing for a Miniseries or a Special (N&S1, ep. 2)
NominatedHairstyling team for Outstanding Achievement in Hairstyling for a Miniseries or a Special (N&S2, ep. 1)
NominatedRobert Fletcher for Outstanding Costume Design for a Miniseries or a Special (N&S2, ep. 1)
NominatedSound editing team for Outstanding Sound Editing for a Miniseries or a Special (N&S2, ep. 6)
1995 ASC Award NominatedDon E. FauntLeRoy for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Mini-Series (N&S3, ep. 3)

Media

VHS and DVD releases

North and South Books I and II were released on NTSC VHS in the United States. Book III was never released on VHS in the United States. Books I, II and III were released on PAL VHS in Europe.

All three Books were released on Region 1 DVD in October 2004. This release also included a bonus featurette with John Jakes and David Wolper talking about the books and the miniseries; James Read, Lesley-Anne Down, and Patrick Swayze discussing their characters; general thoughts of other cast and crew members; plus information about the historical background and trials of its reconstruction for the miniseries.

The Region 2 DVD release contained only Books I and II at first, but eventually Book III also became available, with the bonus featurette included. All volumes were sold as separate boxes, but later on they were also available in one box.

Streaming

All three North and South miniseries are available on multiple streaming platforms, including iTunes, Prime Video and Google Play. [14]

Soundtrack

A soundtrack CD published by Varèse Sarabande in 1985 (VCD47250) contains tracks from the Bill Conti scores to North and South and The Right Stuff . It includes the following tracks from North and South: [15]

  1. Main Title 3:45
  2. Southern Life 1:38
  3. Love In The Chapel 4:04
  4. A Close Call 2:00
  5. Returning Home 2:13
  6. Last Embrace 2:57
  7. Final Meeting 2:28

The Varèse Sarabande Soundtrack Club released the entire score to North and South (1985) in a four-CD box set on February 25, 2008. [16] The tracks in this set are the original recordings used in the production of the series, with three discs devoted to Conti's score and a fourth to the source music from the series. The entire score to North and South: Book II (1986) was released on October 3, 2008, and includes three CDs. [17] On December 4, 2015, North and South: Highlights, a 76-minute disc featuring selections from the first miniseries score, was released. [18] David Bell scored Heaven and Hell: North and South Book III using Conti's thematic material.

See also

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References

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  2. Bennett, Mark (August 11, 2007). "John Jakes' journey to New York Times bestseller list included boyhood years in Terre Haute". Tribune-Star . Terre Haute, Ind. Archived from the original on 2019-09-04. Retrieved 2021-10-25.
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  4. Jones, Mary Ellen (November 30, 1996). "The People's Author: The Life of John Jakes". John Jakes: A Critical Companion. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 3. ISBN   978-0-3132-9530-0 . Retrieved January 7, 2010.
  5. "DVD Review: North and South: Book III - Heaven and Hell". Review Graveyard. Archived from the original on 2011-07-15. Retrieved 2009-11-20.
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  8. 1 2 3 Leonard, John (November 4, 1985). "Slavs, Slaves, and Shoulders (Review: North and South)". New York : 58–61. Retrieved January 7, 2010.
  9. 1 2 Leonard, John (May 5, 1986). "The Blue, The Gray, and the Déshabille (Review: North and South: Book II)". New York: 85. Retrieved January 7, 2010.
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  12. Allis, Tim (February 28, 1994). "The Spoils of War". People . 41 (8). Archived from the original on March 12, 2009. Retrieved January 16, 2010.
  13. "The Fall and Rise of Terri Garber". TV Guide (1797). September 5, 1987.
  14. "North and South". WarnerBros.com. Archived from the original on June 6, 2022. Retrieved February 15, 2024.
  15. It may be noted that the VCD47250 tracks are re-recordings, as the CD notes state that the tracks were recorded November 25, 1985, which was after North and South had originally aired. The tracks were re-recorded by Conti and the London Symphony Orchestra because at the time it was less expensive than licensing the original tracks.
  16. "North and South by Bill Conti". Varèse Sarabande. Archived from the original on 2010-07-03. Retrieved 2021-10-25.
  17. "North And South: Book II By Bill Conti". Varèse Sarabande. Archived from the original on 2010-07-03. Retrieved 2021-10-25.
  18. "North And South: Highlights". Varèse Sarabande. Archived from the original on 2016-04-10. Retrieved 2015-12-07.