''The Outsiders'' is an American

drama series 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-gen ...

that aired from March to July 1990 on

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

. Based on the characters from the 1967 novel of the same title by

S. E. Hinton Susan Eloise Hinton (born July 22, 1948) is an American writer best known for her young-adult novels (YA) set in Oklahoma, especially '' The Outsiders'' (1967), which she wrote during high school. Hinton is credited with introducing the YA genr ...

, the series' executive producer was the 1983 film's director

Francis Ford Coppola Francis Ford Coppola (; ; born April 7, 1939) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the major figures of the New Hollywood filmmaking movement of the 1960s and 1970s. Coppola is the recipient of five A ...

Production

The 90-minute

pilot episode A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distri ...

directed by Alan Shapiro and

Sharron Miller Sharron Miller is an American television and film director, producer, and screenwriter. She is one of the pioneering women directors who worked regularly in mainstream Hollywood in the 1970s and 1980s (along with Elaine May, Lee Grant, Joan Da ...

served as a sequel to the film and began with a short scene from the original film of Dallas Winston (

Matt Dillon Matthew Raymond Dillon (born February 18, 1964) is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including an Oscar and Grammy nomination. Dillon made his feature film debut in '' Over the Edge'' (1979) and established himself as a te ...

) running from police and being shot. Alan Shapiro wrote and directed the pilot, which was aired as a special preview on March 25, 1990 (seven years after the release of the film) at 9:30 p.m. while the rest of the series aired at 7:00 p.m. The pilot was Fox's highest rated drama in the network's history, drawing a 9.3/16 national Nielsen rating and 14.1 million viewers, and tied for 64th for the week. However, ''The Outsiders'' lost half the viewers from its '' Married... with Children'' lead-in.

Cast

Jay R. Ferguson Jay R. Ferguson (born July 25, 1974) is an American actor, known as Taylor Newton in '' Evening Shade'' (1990–1994), Stan Rizzo in ''Mad Men'' (2010–2015), and Ben Olinsky in '' The Conners'' (2018–present). Biography In 1990 Ferguson pla ...

as Ponyboy Curtis *

Rodney Harvey Rodney Michael Harvey (July 31, 1967 – April 11, 1998) was an American actor, model, and dancer. Career Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Harvey was discovered by director Paul Morrissey in 1984. Morrissey cast Harvey in two of his fi ...

as Sodapop Curtis *

Boyd Kestner Boyd Kestner (born November 23, 1964) is an American actor. Kestner starred in '' The Outsiders'' television series, and later became well known for his role as Alex Barth in the television drama '' Knots Landing''. He also appeared in the 1997 D ...

as Darrel "Darry" Curtis *

Harold Pruett Harold P. Pruett (April 13, 1969 – February 21, 2002) was an American film and television actor. He appeared in over 30 films and TV series in the 1970s to the 1990s. Career Born in Anchorage, Alaska, Pruett made his acting debut at age fiv ...

as Steve Randle *

David Arquette David Arquette (born September 8, 1971) is an American actor and former professional wrestler. He is best known for his role as Dewey Riley in the slasher film franchise ''Scream'', for which he won a Teen Choice Award and two Blockbuster Enter ...

as Keith "Two-Bit" Matthews *

Robert Rusler Robert Rusler (born September 20, 1965) is an American film and television actor. He starred in the 1989 film '' Shag'' as main character “Buzz”. Life and career Rusler was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the son of Maria Elena (née Varela) an ...

as Tim Shepherd * Kim Walker as Sherri "Cherry" Valance *

Heather McComb Heather Ann McComb (born March 2, 1977) is an American actress. Career McComb started acting at age two in a commercial for Publisher's Clearing House. In 1989 she played the title character in Francis Ford Coppola's segment, "Life Without Z ...

as Belinda "Scout" Jenkins *

Sean Kanan Sean Kanan () Perelman; born November 2, 1966) is an American actor, producer, and author, best known for his portrayals of Mike Barnes (in ''The Karate Kid Part III'' and ''Cobra Kai''), A. J. Quartermaine (on ''General Hospital''), and Deacon ...

as Gregg Parker * Scott Coffey as Randy Anderson *

Billy Bob Thornton Billy Bob Thornton (born August 4, 1955) is an American actor, filmmaker and musician. He had his first break when he co-wrote and starred in the 1992 thriller ''One False Move'', and received international attention after writing, directing, a ...

as Buck Merrill * Jennifer McComb as Marcia * Leonardo DiCaprio as Boy fighting Scout

Episodes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Outsiders, The 1990 American television series debuts 1990 American television series endings 1990s American drama television series 1990s American teen drama television series English-language television shows Fox Broadcasting Company original programming Period television series Live action television shows based on films Television series about teenagers Television series by 20th Century Fox Television Television series set in the 1960s Television series based on adaptations Television shows set in Cleveland