''The White Lions'' is a 1981 American
drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...
directed by
Mel Stuart
Mel Stuart (born Stuart Solomon; September 2, 1928 – August 9, 2012) was an American film director and producer who often worked with producer David L. Wolper, at whose production firm he worked for 17 years, before going freelance.
Ea ...
and starring
Michael York
Michael York OBE (born Michael Hugh Johnson; 27 March 1942) is an English film, television and stage actor. After performing on-stage with the Royal National Theatre, he had a breakthrough in films by playing Tybalt in Franco Zeffirelli's ''Ro ...
and
Glynnis O'Connor
Glynnis O'Connor (born November 19, 1956) is an American actress of television, film, radio, and theater. She first gained wide attention in the mid-1970s with leading roles in the television version of ''Our Town'' and in the short-lived series ...
.
Premise
A
college professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...
, his wife, and daughter go to the wilds of
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
to live and study the rare
white lion
The white lion is a rare color mutation of the lion, specifically the Southern African lion. White lions in the area of Timbavati are thought to have been indigenous to the Timbavati region of South Africa for centuries, although the earliest r ...
s of the region.
Cast
*
Michael York
Michael York OBE (born Michael Hugh Johnson; 27 March 1942) is an English film, television and stage actor. After performing on-stage with the Royal National Theatre, he had a breakthrough in films by playing Tybalt in Franco Zeffirelli's ''Ro ...
as Chris McBride
*
Glynnis O'Connor
Glynnis O'Connor (born November 19, 1956) is an American actress of television, film, radio, and theater. She first gained wide attention in the mid-1970s with leading roles in the television version of ''Our Town'' and in the short-lived series ...
as Jeannie McBride
*
Donald Moffat
Donald Moffat (26 December 1930 – 20 December 2018) was a British–American actor with a decades-long career in film and stage in the United States. He began his acting career on- and off-Broadway, which included appearances in ''The Wild D ...
as Vreeland
*
J.A. Preston
James Allen Preston (born November 13, 1932) is a former American actor. Preston is best known for portraying Colonel Randolph in the movie ''A Few Good Men'' and for his role as Ozzie Cleveland on the NBC prime-time television series ''Hill St ...
as Aniel
*
Roger E. Mosley
Roger Earl Mosley (; December 18, 1938 – August 7, 2022) was an American actor, director, and writer best known for his role as the helicopter pilot Theodore "T.C." Calvin in the CBS television series '' Magnum, P.I.'', which originally aired ...
as John Kani
*Lauri Lynn Myers as Laura McBride
*
Tom Taylor
Tom Taylor (19 October 1817 – 12 July 1880) was an English dramatist, critic, biographer, public servant, and editor of ''Punch'' magazine. Taylor had a brief academic career, holding the professorship of English literature and language a ...
as Mr. Gleason
*Louis Heshimu White III as Intern
*
Larry Drake
Larry Richard Drake (February 21, 1950 – March 17, 2016) was an American actor and comedian. He was best known as Benny Stulwicz in '' L.A. Law'', for which he won two Primetime Emmy Awards. He also appeared as Robert G. Durant in both ''Dark ...
as Fiske
*
Norma Young as Prof. Thorndike
*
David Haney as Dr. Ford
*
Columbia Dowell as Mrs. Gleason
*
Charles Pace as Ranger
*Hugh Gorrian as Dr. Uffner
*Sally Norvell as Sarah (as Sarah Norvell)
*William H. Burkett as Man
*Keith Alcorn as College student (uncredited)
References
External links
*
1981 films
1981 drama films
American drama films
Films about lions
Films shot in Texas
Films set in South Africa
Universal Pictures films
Films directed by Mel Stuart
1980s English-language films
1980s American films
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