''The Father Clements Story'' is a 1987 American
television film
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
about the life of Father
George Clements
George Harold Clements (January 26, 1932 – November 25, 2019) was a Black Catholic priest who, in 1981, became the first Catholic priest in the Chicago area to adopt a child. He was also instrumental in the Black Catholic Movement, which so ...
, an African-American Roman Catholic priest who became famous for being the first United States priest to legally adopt a child.
The movie starred actors
Lou Gossett, Jr.,
Malcolm-Jamal Warner
Malcolm-Jamal Warner (born August 18, 1970) is an American actor. He rose to prominence for his role as Theodore Huxtable on the NBC sitcom ''The Cosby Show'', which earned him a nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series a ...
, and
Carroll O'Connor
John Carroll O'Connor (August 2, 1924 – June 21, 2001) was an American actor, producer, and director whose television career spanned over four decades. He became a lifelong member of the Actors Studio in 1971. O'Connor found widespread fame a ...
.
Gossett, Jr. played Clements, Warner played Clements' adopted son, and O'Connor played Cardinal John Cody, the Archbishop of Chicago.
The movie was directed by Edwin Sherin. The film score was composed by
Mark Snow
Mark Snow (born Martin Fulterman; August 26, 1946) is an American composer for film and television. Among his most famous compositions is the theme music for science fiction television series ''The X-Files''. The theme reached no. 2 on the UK Si ...
.
Plot
Frustrated when his call for volunteers to adopt troubled black youths gets little response from his congregation, a priest in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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decides to adopt himself, landing himself in hot water with his superiors in the Church..
References
1987 films
1987 television films
1980s biographical films
African-American films
Films with screenplays by Ted Tally
Films scored by Mark Snow
Films about adoption
Films about Catholic priests
American television films
1980s English-language films
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