''Rich Man, Poor Man Book II'' is an American television miniseries that aired on ABC in one-hour episodes at 9:00pm ET/PT on Tuesday nights between September 21, 1976 and March 8, 1977. A sequel to '' Rich Man, Poor Man'' that had aired the previous season, it focused on the further exploits and conflicts of the Jordache family.

Synopsis

The series began shortly after the death of Tom Jordache. His son Wesley ( Gregg Henry) is now in the care of Tom's brother Rudy (

Peter Strauss Peter Lawrence Strauss (born February 20, 1947) is an American television and film actor, known for his roles in several television miniseries in the 1970s and 1980s. He is five-time Golden Globe Awards nominee. Early life Strauss was born in C ...

), who was seeking a seat in the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

. Also living in the household was Billy, Rudy's stepson, and much of the ongoing storyline concentrated on the tension between the two ambitious boys. Also crucial to the plot was Rudy's protracted battle with Charles Estep ( Peter Haskell), the mysterious billionaire owner of Tricorp. Returning from the original series was Anthony Falconetti ( William Smith), who had served time for the murder of Tom Jordache and was now free and intent on disposing of Rudy as well. At the same time, Falconetti firmly intends to eliminate Rudy, Wesley and all the friends of the Jordache family and this time it will not be enough to ignore it to escape him. CAST SIMILARITIES AND CHANGES: Gregg Henry, as Wesley Jordache, the son of slain Tom Jorache (Nick Nolte) replaced Nick Nolte's character-type, being content with having nothing but still trying to survive while Bill Bixby and Susan Blakely's son Billy, played by James Carroll Jordan, the son-in-law of Peter Strauss's Rudy Jordache, is desperately trying to become rich, like Rudy did in the original (but without much success). William Smith as the infamous Anthony Falconetti, who appeared in the last four episodes of the original miniseries' 12 total, is not only one of two (including corporate tycoon Peter Haskell) primary antagonists, but is one of the main characters this time. Susan Blakely, the ingenue in the original series, dies early in this sequel, and her leading lady role is shared by Wesley's working class girlfriend Romana, played by Penny Peyser, and Cassie Yates as Annie Adams, a Janis Joplin type up-and-coming singer who Billy is involved with (while he's also secretly involved with Ramona). Meanwhile Peter Strauss's Rudy has two love interests: assertive, progressive lawyer Maggie Porter, played by Susan Sullivan (whose underage daughter Jenny Beck becomes involved with Wesley), and, returning from the original, Nick Nolte's widow Kate, played by Kay Lenz. So while Peter Strauss as Rudy Jordache is the central character, the titular "Rich Man Poor Man" premise has him overseeing the new young characters, somewhat filling in the shoes of wealthy Strauss and struggling Nolte.

Primary cast

. . . Senator Rudy Jordache * Gregg Henry . . . Wesley Jordache *

Susan Blakely Susan Blakely is an American actress and model. She is best known for her leading role in the 1976 ABC miniseries '' Rich Man, Poor Man'', for which she received a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama. Blakely also ha ...

. . . as Julie Prescott * James Carroll Jordan . . . Billy Abbott * William Smith . . . as Anthony Falconetti * Herbert Jefferson Jr. . . . Roy Dwyer *

Kay Lenz Kay Ann Lenz (born March 4, 1953) is an American actress. She is the recipient of a Daytime Emmy Award and a Primetime Emmy Award, as well as nominations for a Golden Globe Award and a Saturn Award. Lenz is best known for her title role in the f ...

. . . Kate Jordache * Peter Haskell . . . Charles Estep *

Susan Sullivan Susan Michaela Sullivan (born November 18, 1944) is an American actress. Sullivan is best known for her roles as Lenore Curtin Delaney on the NBC daytime soap opera '' Another World'' (1971–76), as Lois Adams on the ABC sitcom '' It's a Livin ...

. . . Maggie Porter *

Kimberly Beck Kimberly Beck (born January 9, 1956) is a former American actress and model. She is best known for her role as Trish Jarvis in Joseph Zito's '' Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter'' (1984). Her other film roles include Alfred Hitchcock's ''Marni ...

. . . Diane Porter * Barry Sullivan . . . Senator Paxton * Laraine Stephens . . . Claire Estep * John Anderson . . . John Scott * Penny Peyser . . . Ramona Scott *

Van Johnson Charles Van Dell Johnson (August 25, 1916 – December 12, 2008) was an American film, television, theatre and radio actor. He was a major star at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer during and after World War II. Johnson was described as the embodiment o ...

. . . Marsh Goodwin * Ray Milland . . . Duncan Calderwood * Tim McIntire . . . Brad Knight * Davey Davison . . . Virginia Calderwood *

Dick Sargent Richard Stanford Cox (April 19, 1930 – July 8, 1994), known professionally as Dick Sargent, was an American actor, notable as the second actor to portray Darrin Stephens on ABC's fantasy situation comedy ''Bewitched''. He took the name ''Dick ...

. . . Eddie Heath *

Dimitra Arliss Dimitra Arliss (October 23, 1932 – January 26, 2012) was an American actress. Early life and education Of Greek descent, she was born in Lorain, Ohio, on October 23, 1932. She attended Miami University. Career Arliss's acting caree ...

. . . Marie Falconetti * Cassie Yates . . . Annie Adams * Sorrell Booke . . . Phil Greenberg *

Colleen Camp Colleen Celeste Camp (born June 7, 1953) is an American character actress and producer. After appearing in several bit parts, she had a lead role in the comedy ''The Swinging Cheerleaders'' (1974), followed by roles in two installments of the '' ...

. . . Vickie St. John *

Peter Donat Peter Donat (born Pierre Collingwood Donat; January 20, 1928 – September 10, 2018) was a Canadian-American actor. Early life Pierre Collingwood Donat was born in Kentville, Nova Scotia, Canada, the son of Marie (née Bardet) and Philip Ernst ...

. . . Arthur Raymond * G.D. Spradlin . . . Senator Dillon * Arthur Franz . . . Senator Jones * Jason Kincaid . . . Ken Catani *

Ken Swofford Kenneth Charles Swofford (July 25, 1933 – November 1, 2018) was an American film and television actor often cast as a villain or a police officer. Between 1962 and 1995, Swofford's film credits included '' Thelma & Louise'', '' Skyjacked ...

. . . Al Barber * Lynne Randall . . . Lucy *

Larry Kert Lawrence Frederick "Larry" Kert (December 5, 1930 – June 5, 1991) was an American actor, singer, and dancer. He is best known for his role of Tony in the original Broadway production of the musical ''West Side Story''. Early life Kert was ...

. . . Danny Miller *

Arlo Guthrie Arlo Davy Guthrie (born July 10, 1947) is an American folk singer-songwriter. He is known for singing songs of protest against social injustice, and storytelling while performing songs, following the tradition of his father, Woody Guthrie. Gu ...

. . . Himself *

Willie Aames Willie Aames, also credited as Willie Ames, (born Albert William Upton, July 15, 1960) is an American actor, film and television director, television producer, and screenwriter. He is best known for playing Tommy Bradford, one of the children of ...

. . . Wesley Jordache (Age 13)

Episode list

Reception

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

and

Aspen Aspen is a common name for certain tree species; some, but not all, are classified by botanists in the section ''Populus'', of the '' Populus'' genus. Species These species are called aspens: *'' Populus adenopoda'' – Chinese aspen (Chin ...

, playgrounds of the rich and famous and powerful, were two of the settings for the series. Filled with

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

-like touches, it was far more

melodramatic A modern melodrama is a dramatic work in which the plot, typically sensationalized and for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodramas typically concentrate on dialogue that is often bombastic or exce ...

than the original and not as successful critically or in the ratings. The series maintained a popular following in the UK and Europe and was released on a 6-Disc DVD set by Universal-Playback on June 18, 2007. The US DVD set contained both the original mini-series and the weekly series and was released for the first time by A & E Home Video on September 28, 2010.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* *{{epguides, id=RichManPoorManBookII 1976 American television series debuts 1977 American television series endings American Broadcasting Company original programming 1970s American drama television series 1970s American television miniseries Television series by Universal Television Television shows set in Michigan