The Kent Family Chronicles (also known as The American Bicentennial Series) is a series of eight novels by John Jakes written for Lyle Engel of Book Creations, Inc., to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence of the United States. [1] The books became best sellers, with no novel in the series selling fewer than 3.5 million copies. [2] With The Rebels , The Seekers , and The Furies , Jakes became the first author to have three books on the New York Times bestseller list in a single year, 1975. [3]
The books feature various members of the Kent family, connecting them with historical events at the time of the American Revolution. The first novel begins just before the American Revolution, with Frenchman Phillipe Charboneau, who travels to England and later to the New World, changing his name to Philip Kent along the way and meeting several key figures of the Revolution, including the Marquis de Lafayette, Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Adams, Paul Revere, Joseph Warren, and others. The saga ends some generations later in 1890, with the death of Gideon Kent in The Americans . The series was originally intended to continue until 1976, covering 200 years. [4]
The first two novels in the series were made into telefilms in 1978 and 1979, both starring Andrew Stevens as Philip Kent, with the third adapted as a 1979 telefilm starring Randolph Mantooth as the son, Abraham Kent. "Operation Prime Time" premiered in syndication with the first of these.
Kenneth Martin Follett, is a Welsh author of thrillers and historical novels who has sold more than 160 million copies of his works.
Marian Ruth Engel was a Canadian novelist and a founding member of the Writers' Union of Canada. Her most famous and controversial novel was Bear (1976), a tale of erotic love between an archivist and a bear.
John William Jakes was an American writer, best known for historical and speculative fiction. His American Civil War trilogy, North and South, has sold millions of copies worldwide. He was also the author of The Kent Family Chronicles. Jakes used the pen name Jay Scotland among others.
Andrew Stevens is an American executive, film producer, director and actor.
John Mervyn Addison was a British composer best known for his film scores.
Pamela Sargent is an American feminist, science fiction author, and editor. She has an MA in classical philosophy and has won a Nebula Award.
Jove Books, formerly known as Pyramid Books, is an American paperback and eBook publishing imprint, founded as an independent paperback house in 1949 by Almat Magazine Publishers. The company was sold to the Walter Reade Organization in the late 1960s. It was acquired in 1974 by Harcourt Brace which renamed it to Jove in 1977 and continued the line as an imprint. In 1979, they sold it to The Putnam Berkley Group, which is now part of the Penguin Group.
Ike Eisenmann is a former American actor, producer, and sound effects specialist who has been active in the entertainment industry since childhood.
Operation Prime Time (OPT) was a consortium of American independent television stations to develop prime time programming for independent stations. OPT and its spin-off syndication company, Television Program Enterprises (TPE), were formed by Al Masini. During its existence, OPT was considered the de facto fourth television network. OPT was also called an occasional television network and occasional program alternative.
John "Bud" Cardos was an American film director, actor, and stuntman. His father and uncle managed Graumann's Egyptian and Chinese theaters. He made television guest appearances on The Monroes, The High Chaparral and NBC's Daniel Boone starring Fess Parker.
The Bastard is a historical novel written by John Jakes and originally published in 1974. It is book one in a series known as The Kent Family Chronicles or the American Bicentennial Series. The novel mixes fictional characters with historical events or people, to tell the story of the United States of America in the time period leading up to the American Revolution. The novel was adapted into a four-hour television film in 1978, also called The Bastard.
The Seekers is a historical novel written by John Jakes and originally published in 1975. It is book three in a series known as The Kent Family Chronicles or the American Bicentennial Series. The novel mixes fictional characters with historical events and figures, as it narrates the story of the United States of America from 1794 through 1814. The novel was made into a television film by Operation Prime Time and premiered on HBO on July 8, 1979.
The Rebels is a historical novel written by John Jakes, originally published in 1975, the second in a series known as The Kent Family Chronicles or the American Bicentennial Series. The novel mixes fictional characters with historical events and figures, to narrate the story of the nascent United States of America during the time of the American Revolution. While the novel continues the story of Philip Kent, started in The Bastard, a large portion focuses on Judson Fletcher, a newly introduced character, as a different rebel. In 1979, the novel was made into a television film by Operation Prime Time.
The Mobil Showcase Network, also known as Mobil Showcase or Mobil Showcase Theatre, was an occasional television network from 1976 to 1984 with an ad hoc group of stations.
American Bicentennial Series may refer to:
Kenneth Charles Swofford was an American film and television actor. With his burly build and distinctive red hair he was often cast in villain, police officer or 'everyman' roles.
Noel Bertram Gerson (1913-1988) was an American author who wrote 325 books, including several best sellers, among them two screenplay novelizations penned under the pseudonym Samuel Edwards, The Naked Maja, and 55 Days at Peking.
Lyle Kenyon Engel was an American magazine publisher and book producer. Taking over the family business after his father's death, Engel made the company the largest publisher of lyric magazines in the country. He later founded Book Creations, Inc., which became one of the most successful "fiction factories" in the United States, hiring writers to write books to Engel's outlines which he sold to paperback publishers. Engel's most successful series was The Kent Family Chronicles by John Jakes.
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