''Apple's Way'' is an American

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

television series that aired on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

from February 10, 1974, to January 12, 1975. It was created by

Earl Hamner Jr. Earl Henry Hamner Jr. (July 10, 1923 – March 24, 2016) was an American television writer and producer (sometimes credited as Earl Hamner), best known for his work in the 1970s and 1980s as the creator of two long-running series, ''The Waltons' ...

Premise

The Apples of Los Angeles—architect George, his wife Barbara, their children Paul, Cathy, Steven, and Patricia; and Grandfather Aldon—seek refuge from the hectic pace of city living and relocate to George's hometown of Appleton,

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

, which was founded by his ancestors. The family had to adjust to a different culture and climate and to a slower pace of life. They lived in a working

grist mill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...

that served as a backdrop for the situations depicted in each episode. Well-meaning George would often get involved in causes that increased his family's tensions. ''Apple's Way'' was a mid-season replacement for ''

The New Perry Mason ''The New Perry Mason'' is a CBS TV series that ran from 1973 to 1974. It was a revival of the 1957 ''Perry Mason'' television series about Erle Stanley Gardner's brilliant defense attorney. Plot All of the major characters of the original seri ...

''. The series did not gain the ratings CBS had hoped for, partly because it had to compete with

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

's long-running Top 20 hit ''

The Wonderful World of Disney The Walt Disney Company has produced an anthology television series since 1954 under several titles and formats. The program's current title, ''The Wonderful World of Disney'', was used from 1969 to 1979 and again from 1991 to the present. The pr ...

'' and

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

's popular crime drama ''

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''. The concept was "re-booted" in the second season to focus on plots that dealt more with such issues (such as freedom of speech, drug use, terminal illness) as opposed to the more rural-specific plots of the first season. The second season was produced by successful veteran producer-writer John Furia Jr. Furia hired

Worley Thorne Worley Thorne is an American screenwriter, television writer, script consultant and adjunct assistant professor of composition, critical thinking and screenwriting. Thorne's work as a writer encompasses hourlong television drama, and feature film ...

as story editor. The series was canceled during its second season and replaced with '' Cher''.

Cast

Ronny Cox Daniel Ronald Cox (born July 23, 1938) is an American actor, singer and songwriter. His best-known roles include Drew Ballinger in ''Deliverance'' (1972), George Apple in '' Apple's Way'' (1974–75), Ozark Bule in '' Bound for Glory'' (1976), C ...

as George Apple *

Frances Lee McCain Frances Lee McCain (born July 28, 1943) is an American actress. Early life and education McCain was born in York, Pennsylvania and grew up in New York, Illinois and Colorado in addition to California. She graduated from Ripon College with ...

as Barbara Apple *

Vince Van Patten Vincent Van Patten (born October 17, 1957) is an American actor, former professional tennis player, and the commentator for the World Poker Tour. Personal life Van Patten was born in Bellerose, New York, as the youngest son of actor Dick Van Pa ...

as Paul Apple (1974–1975) *

Malcolm Atterbury Malcolm MacLeod Atterbury (February 20, 1907 – August 16, 1992) was an American stage, film, and television actor, and vaudevillian. Early years A native of Philadelphia, Atterbury was the son of Malcolm MacLeod, Sr. and Arminia Clara (Rosenga ...

as Grandfather Aldon * Kristy McNichol as Patricia Apple (1974–1975) *Eric Olson as Steven Apple *Patti Cohoon as Cathy Apple *Frannie Michel as Patricia Apple (1974)

Episode list

Season 1: 1974

Season 2: 1974–75

Syndication

Both

TV Land TV Land is an American pay television channel owned by Paramount Global through its networks division. Originally a spinoff of Nick at Nite consisting exclusively of classic television shows, the channel now airs a combination of recent and cl ...

and AmericanLife TV aired the series in reruns during the late 1990s and early 2000. Two decades after this series left the air, lead actors Ronny Cox and Frances Lee McCain were reunited in the short lived 1993–1994 television prime time soap '' Second Chances''.

References

External links

* *
Apple's Way
' at The Classic TV Archive * {{epguides, ApplesWay, Apple's Way
From the creator of The Waltons, Earl Hamner's Apple's Way
1970s American comedy-drama television series 1974 American television series debuts 1975 American television series endings CBS original programming English-language television shows Television series by Lorimar Television Television shows set in Iowa