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Christy (TV series)
Encyclopedia
Christy is an American drama series
which aired on CBS
from April 1994
to August 1995
, for twenty episodes.
Christy was based on the novel Christy
by Catherine Marshall
, the widow of Senate chaplain Peter Marshall
. The novel had been a bestseller in 1968
, and the week following the debut of the TV-movie and program saw the novel jump from #120 up to #15 on the USA Today
bestseller
list. Series regular Tyne Daly
won an Emmy Award
for her work on the series.
as Christy Huddleston, a new teacher arriving to the fictional Appalachia
n village of Cutter Gap, Tennessee
, in 1912. The villagers have old-fashioned ways. For example, they maintain rules and vengeances similar to the Highland clans of old Scotland. They also have a strong belief in folk medicine
. At the same time many of their ways are portrayed in an idealized fashion as well. The show emphasized their culture by making Christy, and most of the main cast, outsiders in one fashion or the other. These "outsiders" included a minister, David Grantland (played by Randall Batinkoff
); and Quaker missionary woman Alice Henderson, played by Tyne Daly
. The television show maintained the book's romance novel
element by showing Christy drawn both to the minister and the doctor.
The show's last episode was a cliffhanger concerning Christy's fate in the town and with the two rival male love interests. Later TV movies resolved the love triangle according the ending of the novel.
or Road to Avonlea
(a period piece
about a young female teacher in a rural community), Christy was not as successful in ratings
as either of those shows and ended after just two seasons.
, ION Television (previously PAX) produced three made-for-TV movies based on the series in response to demand from loyal fans. On November 19, 2000, PAX aired Christy: Return to Cutter Gap
. The second and third films aired in 2001
as a two part mini-series entitled Christy, Choices of the Heart. Part 1, entitled Christy: A Change of Seasons
aired on May 13, 2001 and Part 2, entitled Christy: A New Beginning aired on May 14, 2001. Stewart Finlay-McLennan
(who played Doctor MacNeill), Bruce McKinnon (Jeb Spencer), Mike Hickman (Birds-Eye Taylor), Andy Stahl (Tom McHone), and Dale Dickey (Opal McHone) were the only original TV-series cast members to appear in these telemovies.
in June 2009.
20th Century Fox
released the complete series on DVD in Region 1 on March 20, 2007.
Dramatic programming
Dramatic programming in the UK, or television drama and television drama series in the US, is television program content that is scripted and fictional along the lines of √a traditional drama. This excludes, for example, sports television, television news, reality show and game shows, stand-up...
which aired on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
from April 1994
1994 in television
The year 1994 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1994.For the American TV schedule, see: 1994-95 United States network television schedule.-Events:-Debuts:-Miniseries:...
to August 1995
1995 in television
The year 1995 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1995.For the American TV schedule, see: 1995-96 United States network television schedule.-Events:-Debuts:-1950s:...
, for twenty episodes.
Christy was based on the novel Christy
Christy (novel)
Christy is a historical fiction novel by Christian author Catherine Marshall set in the fictional Appalachian village of Cutter Gap, Tennessee, in 1912. The novel was inspired by the story of the journey made by her own mother, Leonora Whitaker, to teach the impoverished children in the...
by Catherine Marshall
Catherine Marshall
Catherine Wood Marshall was an American author of nonfiction, inspirational, and fiction works. She was the wife of well-known minister Peter Marshall.-Biography:...
, the widow of Senate chaplain Peter Marshall
Peter Marshall (preacher)
Dr. Peter Marshall was a Scottish-American preacher, former pastor of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, and twice served as Chaplain of the United States Senate...
. The novel had been a bestseller in 1968
1968 in literature
The year 1968 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* Dean R. Koontz's first novel, Star Quest is published....
, and the week following the debut of the TV-movie and program saw the novel jump from #120 up to #15 on the USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
bestseller
Bestseller
A bestseller is a book that is identified as extremely popular by its inclusion on lists of currently top selling titles that are based on publishing industry and book trade figures and published by newspapers, magazines, or bookstore chains. Some lists are broken down into classifications and...
list. Series regular Tyne Daly
Tyne Daly
Tyne Daly is an American stage and screen actress, widely known for her work as Detective Mary Beth Lacey in the television series Cagney & Lacey and as Maxine Gray in the television series Judging Amy. She is also known for her role as Alice Henderson in television series Christy...
won an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
for her work on the series.
Cast
- Kellie MartinKellie MartinKellie Noelle Martin is an American television actress who is known for her roles as Rebecca Thacher on Life Goes On, Christy Huddleston on Christy, Lucy Knight on ER, and Samantha Kinsey on Mystery Woman.-Early life:...
as Christy Huddleston - Randall BatinkoffRandall BatinkoffRandall Matthew Batinkoff is an American actor.Batinkoff was born in Monticello, New York and was raised on an egg farm near Ferndale, New York...
as Rev. David Grantland - Stewart Finlay-McLennanStewart Finlay-McLennanStewart Finlay-McLennan is Australian actor. He is also credited as actor under the names of Stewart McLennan and Stuart McLennan....
as Dr. Neil MacNeill - Tyne DalyTyne DalyTyne Daly is an American stage and screen actress, widely known for her work as Detective Mary Beth Lacey in the television series Cagney & Lacey and as Maxine Gray in the television series Judging Amy. She is also known for her role as Alice Henderson in television series Christy...
as Alice Henderson - Emily SchulmanEmily SchulmanEmily Hope Schulman is a former child actress and commercial agent, and current acting instructor...
as Ruby Mae Morrison - Tess HarperTess HarperTess Harper is an American actress.-Early life:Born Tessie Jean Washam on August 15, 1950 in Mammoth Spring, Arkansas. Her parents' names are Ed and Rosemary Washam. She grew up around lots of quilts and quilt makers. On her own time, she liked to sit on the porch-swing and read...
as Fairlight Spencer - LeVar BurtonLeVar BurtonLevardis Robert Martyn Burton, Jr. , professionally known as LeVar Burton, is an American actor, director, producer and author who first came to prominence portraying Kunta Kinte in the 1977 award-winning ABC television miniseries Roots, based on the novel by Alex Haley...
as Daniel Scott (Season 2) - Sally SmithwickSally JayeSally Jaye is an American folk singer-songwriter who has recorded one major solo album, "Amarillo," but has also appeared on several other albums as a member of a group...
as Bessie Coburn
Storyline and characters
The show starred Kellie MartinKellie Martin
Kellie Noelle Martin is an American television actress who is known for her roles as Rebecca Thacher on Life Goes On, Christy Huddleston on Christy, Lucy Knight on ER, and Samantha Kinsey on Mystery Woman.-Early life:...
as Christy Huddleston, a new teacher arriving to the fictional Appalachia
Appalachia
Appalachia is a term used to describe a cultural region in the eastern United States that stretches from the Southern Tier of New York state to northern Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia. While the Appalachian Mountains stretch from Belle Isle in Canada to Cheaha Mountain in the U.S...
n village of Cutter Gap, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, in 1912. The villagers have old-fashioned ways. For example, they maintain rules and vengeances similar to the Highland clans of old Scotland. They also have a strong belief in folk medicine
Folk medicine
-Description:Refers to healing practices and ideas of body physiology and health preservation known to a limited segment of the population in a culture, transmitted informally as general knowledge, and practiced or applied by anyone in the culture having prior experience.All cultures and societies...
. At the same time many of their ways are portrayed in an idealized fashion as well. The show emphasized their culture by making Christy, and most of the main cast, outsiders in one fashion or the other. These "outsiders" included a minister, David Grantland (played by Randall Batinkoff
Randall Batinkoff
Randall Matthew Batinkoff is an American actor.Batinkoff was born in Monticello, New York and was raised on an egg farm near Ferndale, New York...
); and Quaker missionary woman Alice Henderson, played by Tyne Daly
Tyne Daly
Tyne Daly is an American stage and screen actress, widely known for her work as Detective Mary Beth Lacey in the television series Cagney & Lacey and as Maxine Gray in the television series Judging Amy. She is also known for her role as Alice Henderson in television series Christy...
. The television show maintained the book's romance novel
Romance novel
The romance novel is a literary genre developed in Western culture, mainly in English-speaking countries. Novels in this genre place their primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and must have an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Through the late...
element by showing Christy drawn both to the minister and the doctor.
The show's last episode was a cliffhanger concerning Christy's fate in the town and with the two rival male love interests. Later TV movies resolved the love triangle according the ending of the novel.
Reception and cancellation
Although similar to Little House on the PrairieLittle House on the Prairie (TV series)
Little House on the Prairie is an American Western drama television series, starring Michael Landon and Melissa Gilbert, about a family living on a farm in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, in the 1870s and 1880s. The show was an adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder's best-selling series of Little House books...
or Road to Avonlea
Road to Avonlea
Road to Avonlea was a television series which was first broadcast in Canada and the United States between 1990 and 1996. It was created by Kevin Sullivan and produced by Sullivan Films in association with CBC and the Disney Channel, with additional funding from Telefilm Canada.It was adapted from...
(a period piece
Period piece
-Setting:In the performing arts, a period piece is a work set in a particular era. This informal term covers all countries, all periods and all genres...
about a young female teacher in a rural community), Christy was not as successful in ratings
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
as either of those shows and ended after just two seasons.
TV-movies
In 20002000 in television
The year 2000 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 2000.For the American TV schedule, see: 2000-01 United States network television schedule.-Event:-Debuts:-1940s:...
, ION Television (previously PAX) produced three made-for-TV movies based on the series in response to demand from loyal fans. On November 19, 2000, PAX aired Christy: Return to Cutter Gap
Christy: Return to Cutter Gap
Christy: Return to Cutter Gap is a 2000 made-for-tv movie starring Lauren Lee Smith, Stewart Finlay-McLennan, James Waterston and Diane Ladd.- Summary outline :...
. The second and third films aired in 2001
2001 in television
The year 2001 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 2001.-Events:-Debuts:-1940s:*Meet the Press .*Candid Camera .*CBS Evening News ....
as a two part mini-series entitled Christy, Choices of the Heart. Part 1, entitled Christy: A Change of Seasons
Christy: A Change of Seasons
Christy: A Change of Seasons is a 2001 two part made-for-tv movie starring Lauren Lee Smith, Stewart Finlay-McLennan, James Waterston and Diane Ladd.-External links:*...
aired on May 13, 2001 and Part 2, entitled Christy: A New Beginning aired on May 14, 2001. Stewart Finlay-McLennan
Stewart Finlay-McLennan
Stewart Finlay-McLennan is Australian actor. He is also credited as actor under the names of Stewart McLennan and Stuart McLennan....
(who played Doctor MacNeill), Bruce McKinnon (Jeb Spencer), Mike Hickman (Birds-Eye Taylor), Andy Stahl (Tom McHone), and Dale Dickey (Opal McHone) were the only original TV-series cast members to appear in these telemovies.
Syndication and DVD release
The show began airing on Gospel Music ChannelGospel Music Channel
gmc is an American satellite and cable television channel, known from its 2004 launch until February 1, 2010 as Gospel Music Channel. It is also available in high-definition as a separate channel called gmcHD ....
in June 2009.
20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment is the home video distribution arm of the 20th Century Fox film studio. It was established in 1976 as Magnetic Video Corporation, and later as 20th Century Fox Video, CBS/Fox Video and FoxVideo, Inc....
released the complete series on DVD in Region 1 on March 20, 2007.
Festival
There is an annual festival dedicated to Christy, the novel, TV Series and movies held every year in Townsend, TN. It's held each summer and is a gathering of those dedicated to the preservation of "Christy" and Southern Applachian culture. It is called "ChristyFest".External links
- Christy at TVGuide.comTV GuideTV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
- Fan Site for Christy and McNeill
- A Christy Fan Site
- Catherine Marshall's Masterpiece: Christy
- ChristyFest Information Site