''The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams'' is a 1974 independent feature film produced by

Charles E. Sellier Jr. Charles Edward Sellier Jr. (November 9, 1943 – January 31, 2011) was an American television producer, screenwriter, novelist and director, best known for creating the American book and television series ''The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams'' ...

and Raylan D. Jensen for Sun Classic Pictures. The film's popularity led to an

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 ...

television series of the same name. The title character, played by

Dan Haggerty Daniel Francis Haggerty (November 19, 1942 – January 15, 2016) was an American actor who was best known for playing the title role in the film and television series ''The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams''. Early life Haggerty's birthplace i ...

, was loosely based on California mountain man John "Grizzly" Adams (1812–1860).

Plot

The film portrays the somewhat fictional Grizzly Adams as a frontier

woodsman Woodsman (also, woodsmen, pl.) is a competitive, co-ed intercollegiate sport in the United States, Canada and elsewhere based on various skills traditionally part of forestry educational and technical training programs. In North America, the sp ...

who fled into the mountains in the year 1853, after he was accused of a murder he didn't commit. While struggling to survive, Adams saves an orphaned

grizzly bear The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America. In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horri ...

cub he adopts and names Ben. The bear, while growing to its huge adult size, becomes Adams' closest companion. Consistently kind and gentle, Adams discovers and demonstrates an uncanny ability to gain the trust of most of the indigenous wildlife of the region, and he helps, sometimes rescues, takes in and tames many species. Originally a hunter, with his learned affection for wildlife Adams resolves never to harm another animal whenever possible. Adams also gains two human friends, an old mountain man trader named "Mad Jack" (

Denver Pyle Denver Dell Pyle (May 11, 1920 – December 25, 1997) was an American film and television actor and director. He was well known for a number of TV roles from the 1960s through the 1980s, including his portrayal of Briscoe Darling Jr. in se ...

) who is often featured with his mule ("Number Seven"), and a Native American by the name of "Nakoma" ( Don Shanks). Adams, Mad Jack, and Nakoma help myriad mountain visitors while protecting wildlife at the same time. NBC aired the series finale of the TV series on February 21, 1982, by way of a two-hour

TV movie 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 ...

called ''The Capture of Grizzly Adams''; it presents an ending diverging from the 1974 TV movie portrayal. A hateful rancher, whose partner Adams allegedly killed, uses Adams' daughter Peg, who was not seen or mentioned since the 1974 film, in a ploy to lure the fugitive mountain man back to civilization and kill him. In the end, Adams exposes the rancher for the murder for which he was himself accused, proving his innocence.

Cast

TV series

as James Capen 'Grizzly' Adams *

as Mad Jack * Don Shanks as Nakoma * John Bishop as Robbie Cartman * Bozo (a grizzly bear) as Ben (named after

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading inte ...

) In addition to Ben, there were many other named animals in the TV series, the most prominent being ''Number 7'', Mad Jack's ornery mule.

Bart the Bear Bart the Bear (January 19, 1977 – May 10, 2000) was a male Kodiak bear best known for his numerous appearances in films, including '' The Bear'' (for which he received widespread acclaim),Prettyman, Brett"Utah's Bart the Bear: Hollywood star, ...

, then a bear cub, made one of his first acting appearances in the series playing Ben as a cub.

1974 film

*Lisa Jones as Young Peg *Marjorie Harper as Adult Peg *

William Woodson William T. Woodson (July 16, 1917 – February 22, 2017) was an American film, stage, radio and voice actor, best known for his narration of the radio series '' This is Your FBI'', the animated series '' Super Friends'' and all its spin-offs, and ...

as Narrator

''The Capture of Grizzly Adams''

Sydney Penny Sydney Margaret Penny (born August 7, 1971) is an American actress. She is known for her portrayal of Julia Santos Keefer on the soap opera ''All My Children'' and Samantha "Sam" Kelly on the CBS soap opera ''The Bold and the Beautiful''. She ...

as Peg Adams *

Kim Darby Kim Darby (born Deborah Zerby; July 8, 1947) is an American actress best known for her role as Mattie Ross in the film ''True Grit'' (1969). Early life and film career Darby was born Deborah Zerby in Los Angeles, the daughter of professional da ...

as Kate Bradey *

Chuck Connors Kevin Joseph Aloysius "Chuck" Connors (April 10, 1921 – November 10, 1992) was an American actor, writer, and professional basketball and baseball player. He is one of only 13 athletes in the history of American professional sports to have p ...

as Frank Briggs * G. W. Bailey as Tom Quigley * Noah Beery Jr. as Sheriff Hawkins *

June Lockhart June Lockhart (born June 25, 1925) is an American actress, beginning a film career in 1930s & 1940s in such films at ''A Christmas Carol'' and ''Meet Me in St. Louis''. She primarily acted in 1950s and 1960s television, and with performances on ...

as Mrs. Hawkins *Spencer Alston as Daniel Quigley *Peg Stewart as Widow Thompkins *Ken Kemp as Ezra Thompkins

Production

''The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams'' TV series was created by Charles E. Sellier Jr. and produced through

Schick Sunn Classic Pictures Sunn Classic Pictures, also known as Sunn International Pictures, Schick Sunn Classic Pictures, and Taft International Pictures was an independent U.S.-based film distributor, founded in 1971. The company was notable for family films and document ...

, a company based in

Park City, Utah Park City is a city in Utah, United States. The vast majority is in Summit County, and it extends into Wasatch County. It is considered to be part of the Wasatch Back. The city is southeast of downtown Salt Lake City and from Salt Lake Cit ...

and operated by its founding executives,

Patrick Frawley Patrick Joseph Frawley, Jr. (1923–1998) was a Nicaraguan-American business magnate whose portfolio included Paper Mate, Schick (razors), Schick, and Technicolor, Inc. A devout Catholic Church, Catholic, he was a leading American conservative f ...

, Charles E. Sellier Jr., and Rayland Jenson. Parts of the series were shot in the

Uinta National Forest Uinta National Forest is a national forest located in north central Utah, USA. It was originally part of the Uinta Forest Reserve, created by Grover Cleveland on 2 February 1897. The name is derived from the Ute word ''Yoov-we-teuh'' which ...

Wasatch National Forest Wasatch National Forest was established as the Wasatch Forest Reserve by the U.S. Forest Service in Utah on August 16, 1906 with to the east of Salt Lake City and Provo. It became a National Forest on March 4, 1907. On July 1, 1908 Grantsvi ...

, and Park City. The low-budget independent studio successfully introduced innovative marketing and promotional methods. Its 1974 ''Grizzly Adams'' movie was a runaway success. Produced on a small $140,000 budget, the film grossed over $45 million at the domestic box office and $65 million worldwide. It was the 7th highest-grossing film of 1974. The 43% market share captured by a 1976 airing of the film on

led to network executives green-lighting the television series. The series drew a 32% market share, a significant figure to this day. The series also aired at a time when the

environmental movement The environmental movement (sometimes referred to as the ecology movement), also including conservation and green politics, is a diverse philosophical, social, and political movement for addressing environmental issues. Environmentalists a ...

was beginning to flourish. Bozo was purchased from a Kansas zoo, and trained by R.E. (Bob) Leonard. The show's theme song, “Maybe,” was written and sung by

Thom Pace Thomas Michael Pace (born January 13, 1949, in Boise, Idaho) is an American singer-songwriter, who is best known for the song "Maybe", which became the theme of ''The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams.'' The song started out as a medley titled ...

. The song was released as a single in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, where it reached number one, and in 1980 won Germany's

Goldene Europa Goldene Europa award is the oldest German Television award for artists and entertainers. It was awarded from 1968 to 2003. In the years 1989 and 2001, there were no ceremonies. Since 1981, the gala was broadcast on television. The original sculpt ...

award for best song. At the beginning of each episode, part of the theme song is sung, while at the end, the entire theme song is sung. "Mad Jack" also introduces the circumstances of Grizzly Adams, referring to him as a "greenhorn", his friendship with Ben and all of the animals. After selling many products bearing the Grizzly Adams brand name, the brand was eventually trademarked by its creator, film producer, Charles E. Sellier, Jr. Following Sellier's death in early 2011, the brand rights were transferred to Grizzly Adams LLC. Production for the series also took place in Utah, with location work in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

and

Ruidoso, New Mexico Ruidoso is a village in Lincoln County, New Mexico, United States, adjacent to the Lincoln National Forest. The population was 8,029 at the 2010 census. The city of Ruidoso Downs and the unincorporated area of Alto are suburbs of Ruidoso, and ...

, depending on weather conditions, due to the similarities in terrain. As with the film, animals were provided and trained by the

Olympic Game Farm Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

, housed at a second game farm built at

Woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

. A scaled-down version of Grizzly Adams' cabin, used to make Dan Haggerty appear taller, is currently located at the Olympic Game Farm in

Sequim, Washington Sequim ( ) is a city in Clallam County, Washington, United States. It is located along the Dungeness River near the base of the Olympic Mountains. The 2010 census counted a population of 6,606. Sequim lies within the rain shadow of the Olympic ...

Home media

Shout! Factory Shout! Factory is an American home video and music company founded in 2002 as Retropolis Entertainment. Its video releases include previously released feature films, classic and contemporary television series, animation, live music, and comedy ...

, under license from

CBS Home Entertainment CBS Home Entertainment (formerly CBS Video Enterprises, Inc., MGM/CBS Home Video, CBS/Fox Video and CBS Video, currently branded as CBS DVD for DVD releases and CBS Blu-ray for Blu-ray releases) is a home entertainment company owned by Paramoun ...

, released both seasons in two region-1, 4-DVD sets: season 1 on November 6, 2012, and Season 2 on February 19, 2013. The same eight discs were reissued as ''Grizzly Adams: The Complete Series'' on May 31, 2016. The Season sets do not include the 1974 film ''The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams'', which led to the series. The Season 2 set does include ''Once Upon a Starry Night,'' which aired just after the regular series ended in 1978, but not ''The Capture of Grizzly Adams'', which aired in 1982. On November 12, 2013,

released ''The Capture of Grizzly Adams'' on DVD in Region 1.DVD Announced for 'The Capture of Grizzly Adams' Wrap-Up Telefilm

Episodes

Season 1 (1977)

Season 2 (1977–78)

Sequels

Dan Haggerty also played Jeremiah, a modern-day version of Grizzly Adams, in the films ''Grizzly Mountain'' (1997) and ''Escape to Grizzly Mountain'' (2000).

References

External links

* * *
GrizzlyAdams.net
a detailed site with behind the scenes photos and episode summaries. {{DEFAULTSORT:Life And Times Of Grizzly Adams, The 1974 films 1974 drama films Films about bears Television series about bears Grizzly bears in popular culture Works about mountain men Films directed by Richard Friedenberg 1974 directorial debut films American biographical films American television films American independent films Paramount Pictures films NBC original programming Television series by CBS Studios 1977 American television series debuts 1978 American television series endings English-language television shows Television shows filmed in Utah Films shot in Utah 1970s American films