Movin' On is an American drama series

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...

 that ran for two seasons (and a total of forty-six episodes), between 1974 and 1976. It originally appeared on the NBC

NBC

The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...

 television network. The pilot episode for the series was known as In Tandem.

Synopsis

Movin' On stars Claude Akins

Claude Akins

Claude Marion Akins was an American actor with a long career on stage, screen and television.Powerful in appearance and voice, Akins could be counted on to play the clever tough guy, on the side of good or bad, in movies and television. He is best remembered as Sheriff Lobo in the 1970s TV series...

 as old-time independent "big-rig" trucker Sonny Pruitt, and Frank Converse

Frank Converse

Frank Converse is an American actor. In 1962, he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in drama at Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...

 as his college-educated co-driver Will Chandler. The theme song, "Movin' On

Movin' On (Merle Haggard song)

"Movin' On" is a song made famous by country music singer Merle Haggard, who also wrote it. Originally, it was the theme song to the 1974-1976 NBC-TV series of the same name...

", was written and performed by Merle Haggard

Merle Haggard

Merle Ronald Haggard is an American country music singer, guitarist, fiddler, instrumentalist, and songwriter. Along with Buck Owens, Haggard and his band The Strangers helped create the Bakersfield sound, which is characterized by the unique twang of Fender Telecaster guitars, vocal harmonies,...

, and was a No. 1 single on the Billboard magazine Hot Country Singles

Hot Country Songs

Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...

 chart in July 1975.

The series was likened to Route 66

Route 66 (TV series)

Route 66 is an American TV series in which two young men traveled across America. The show ran weekly on CBS from 1960 to 1964. It starred Martin Milner as Tod Stiles and, for two and a half seasons, George Maharis as Buz Murdock. Maharis was ill for much of the third season, during which time Tod...

, following a similar format. Episodes usually centered around Sonny and Will, always traveling, becoming involved in the lives of people they met (or met again) in the various places they found themselves.

The pilot episode was a TV movie originally titled In Tandem (a reference to the tandem axles on the tractor and trailer). It begins with Will sliding out of control in a truck he was driving, due to poor maintenance of the brakes. After he manages to get the truck stopped, he drives to a truck stop and calls the company to quit his job. He then meets Sonny, a "gypsy" trucker, and they decide to try driving as a team. Of course, this works out well.

The semi-tractor featured on the pilot episode was a dark green 1973 Kenworth

Kenworth

Kenworth is an American manufacturer of medium and heavy-duty Class 8 trucks based in Kirkland, Washington, United States, a suburb of Seattle. It is a subsidiary of PACCAR, and is also a former manufacturer of transit buses and school buses.-History:...

 W-925, but was later changed to a 1974 model for the series run. Movin' On was filmed on location all over the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 including Buford, Georgia

Buford, Georgia

As of 2010 Buford had a population of 12,225. The racial and ethnic composition of the population was 65.8% white, 13.8% black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 2.9% Asian, 14.7% reporting some other race and 2.5% reproting two or more races...

; Astoria

Astoria, Oregon

Astoria is the county seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Situated near the mouth of the Columbia River, the city was named after the American investor John Jacob Astor. His American Fur Company founded Fort Astoria at the site in 1811...

, Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

; Durham

Durham

Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...

 and Charlotte

CHARLOTTE

- CHARLOTTE :CHARLOTTE is an American blues-based hard rock band that formed in Los Angeles, California in 1986. Currently, they are signed to indie label, Eonian Records, under which they released their debut cd, Medusa Groove, in 2010. Notable Charlotte songs include 'Siren', 'Little Devils',...

, North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

; San Diego, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

; Sedona, Arizona

Arizona

Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...

; The Dalles, Oregon.

Akins and Converse actually drove the trucks during filming, having been trained and obtaining their Chauffeur's Licenses (the forerunner to the Commercial Driver's License

Commercial driver's license

A Commercial Driver's License is a driver's license required in the United States to operate any type of vehicle which has a gross vehicle weight rating of 26,001 lb or more for commercial use, or transports quantities of hazardous materials that require warning placards under Department of...

) prior to making the pilot episode. Executive producers for the series were Barry Weitz and Philip D'Antoni

Philip D'Antoni

-Work:D'Antoni won an Academy Award in 1971 for the Best Picture, for The French Connection. He also won a Golden Globe award in 1972 for the Best Motion Picture Drama for The French Connection. He began his career on TV with the glamorous productions, "Sophia Loren in Rome," "Elizabeth Taylor in...

.

Season 1 (1974-1975)

1. "The Time of His Life" (September 12, 1974)
2. "Roadblock" (September 19, 1974)
3. "Grit" (September 26, 1974)
4. "Lifeline" (October 3, 1974)
5. "The Trick Is to Stay Alive" (October 10, 1974)
6. "Cowhands" (October 24, 1974)
7. "The Good Life" (November 7, 1974)
8. "Games" (November 14, 1974)
9. "Hoots" (November 21, 1974)
10. "Good for Laughs" (November 28, 1974)
11. "High Rollers" (December 5, 1974)
12. "Goin' Home (Part 1)" (December 12, 1974)
13. "Goin' Home (Part 2)" (December 19, 1974)
14. "Antiques" (December 26, 1974)
15. "Explosion" (January 2, 1975)
16. "Landslide" (January 16, 1975)
17. "Ann's Party" (January 23, 1975)
18. "Fraud" (January 30, 1975)
19. "Ammo" (February 6, 1975)
20. "Tattoos" (February 13, 1975)
21. "Ransom" (February 20, 1975)
22. "The Price of Loving" (April 2, 1975)
23. "Wedding Bells" (April 9, 1975)

Season 2 (1975-1976)

1. "The Stowaway" (September 9, 1975)
2. "From Baltimore to Eternity" (September 16, 1975)
3. "The Toughest Man in America" (September 23, 1975)
4. "The Elephant Story" (September 30, 1975)
5. "Home Is Not a House" (October 7, 1975)
6. "...To Be in Carolina" (October 14, 1975)
7. "Will the Last Trucker Leaving Charlotte Turn Out the Lights?" (October 21, 1975)
8. "General Delivery Raleigh" (November 4, 1975)
9. "The Big Wheel"(November 11, 1975)
10. "Prosperity Number One" (November 16, 1975)
11. "Please Don't Talk to the Driver" (November 25, 1975)
12. "The Long Haul" (December 2, 1975)
13. "The Long Way to Nowhere" (December 9, 1975)
14. "Breakout" (December 16, 1975)
15. "Love, Death and Laura Brown"(December 23, 1975)
16. "The Old South Will Rise Again" (January 6, 1976)
17. "Witch Hunt" (January 16, 1976)
18. "The Big Switch" (January 20, 1976)
19. "Woman of Steel" (January 27, 1976)
20. "Living It Up" (February 10, 1976)
21. "No More Sad Songs" (February 17, 1976)
22. "Full Fathom Five" (February 24, 1976)
23. "Sing It Again, Sonny" (March 2, 1976)

Syndication

The Retro Television Network

Retro Television Network

The Retro Television Network is a system of television stations that airs classic television shows as well as more recently produced programs...

began airing the show for the first time in syndication on June 30, 2011.