''The Simple Life of Noah Dearborn'', is a 1999 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 ...

aired on 9 May 1999 on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

. It stars Sidney Poitier as the eponymous rural

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

skilled carpenter, who lives alone without electricity and seems frozen in time.

George Newbern George Young Newbern (born December 30, 1964) is an American actor, best known for his roles as Charlie in the ABC show ''Scandal'' and Bryan MacKenzie in '' Father of the Bride'' (1991) and its sequels ''Father of the Bride Part II'' and '' Fat ...

played a developer trying to force Dearborn off his land. He tries to enlist the help of his psychologist girlfriend (

Mary-Louise Parker Mary-Louise Parker (born August 2, 1964) is an American actress. After making her Broadway debut as Rita in Craig Lucas' '' Prelude to a Kiss'' in 1990 (for which she received a Tony Award nomination), Parker came to prominence for film roles i ...

), a move which backfires badly. The developer tries to have Dearborn declared mentally incompetent; the effort fails, mostly because of the efforts of the woman, who realizes why Dearborn is held in esteem by his neighbors. For her performance,

Dianne Wiest Dianne Evelyn Wiest (; born March 28, 1948) is an American actress. She has won two Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actress for 1986’s '' Hannah and Her Sisters'' and 1994’s ''Bullets over Broadway'' (both of which were directed by Wood ...

was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress - Miniseries or a Movie. Poitier retired from acting and died in 2022.

References

External links

* * 1999 television films 1999 films CBS network films Trimark Pictures films Films directed by Gregg Champion {{US-tv-film-stub