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*Rich Man, Poor Man*
Rich Man, Poor Man
Genre	Drama
Written by	Dean Riesner
Directed by	David Greene; Boris Sagal
Starring	Peter Strauss; Nick Nolte; Susan Blakely; Ed Asner; Dorothy McGuire; Robert Reed
Theme music composer	Alex North
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of episodes	12
Production
Executive producer	Harve Bennett
Producers	Jon Epstein; Frank Price
Editors	Richard Bracken; Douglas Stewart
Production companies	Harve Bennett Productions; Universal Television
Original release
Network	ABC
Release	February 1 –; March 15, 1976
Related
	Rich Man, Poor Man Book II

Rich Man, Poor Man is a 1976 American television miniseries based on the 1969 novel of the same name by Irwin Shaw that aired on ABC in one or two-hour episodes mostly on Monday nights over seven weeks, beginning February 1. It was produced by Universal Television and was the second time programming of this nature had been attempted. The first TV miniseries, QB VII, had aired — also on ABC — in 1974. These projects proved to be a critical and ratings success and were the forerunner for similar projects based on literary works, such as Roots and Shōgun. The miniseries stars Peter Strauss, Nick Nolte and Susan Blakely.

It spawned the sequel Rich Man, Poor Man Book II, which aired from September 1976 through March 1977. The network repeated the original series Tuesday nights at 9:00pm from May to June 1977.^[1]

Plot

Based on the best-selling 1969 novel by Irwin Shaw, it spans the period 1945 through the late 1960s and follows the divergent career courses of the impoverished German American Jordache brothers. Rudy (Peter Strauss) is the titular rich man, a well-educated and very ambitious entrepreneur who triumphs over his background and constructs a corporate and political empire. Poor man Tom (Nick Nolte) is a rebel who eventually turns to boxing to support himself. Axel and Mary are their parents, and Julie Prescott is Rudy's lifelong sweetheart who eventually marries him.

Later, another important character appears: the dangerous and eccentric Falconetti, lifelong nemesis of the Jordache Brothers, who is intent on killing them.

The first series spans a twenty-year period between 1945 and 1965; the second series begins in 1968. The series became a huge success in the countries that aired it.

Cast

Actor	Role
Starring
Peter Strauss	Rudy Jordache
Nick Nolte	Tom Jordache
Susan Blakely	Julie Prescott
Guest stars
Steve Allen	Bayard Nichols
Edward Asner	Axel Jordache
Bill Bixby	Willie Abbott
Dick Butkus	Al Fanducci
Kim Darby	Virginia Calderwood
Andrew Duggan	Col. Deiner
Mike Evans	Arnold Simms
Norman Fell	Smitty
Fionnula Flanagan	Clothilde
Lynda Day George	Linda Quayles
Gloria Grahame	Sue Prescott
Murray Hamilton	Sid Gossett
Herbert Jefferson Jr.	Roy Dwyer
Van Johnson	Marsh Goodwin
Kay Lenz	Kate Jordache
George Maharis	Joey Quayles
Dorothy Malone	Irene Goodwin
Dorothy McGuire	Mary Jordache
Tim McIntire	Brad Knight
Ray Milland	Duncan Calderwood
Lawrence Pressman	Bill Denton
Robert Reed	Teddy Boylan
Dick Sargent	Eddie Heath
Talia Shire	Teresa Santoro
William Smith	Anthony Falconetti
Craig Stevens	Asher Berg

Episode list

Nº	Title	Directed by	Teleplay by	Runtime	Original air date
1	"Part I: Chapters 1 and 2"	David Greene	Dean Riesner	96 min.	February 1, 1976 (1976-02-01)
2	"Part II: Chapters 3 and 4"	David Greene	Dean Riesner	95 min.	February 2, 1976 (1976-02-02)
3	"Part III: Chapter 5"	Boris Sagal	Dean Riesner	48 min.	February 9, 1976 (1976-02-09)
4	"Part IV: Chapter 6"	Boris Sagal	Dean Riesner	48 min.	February 16, 1976 (1976-02-16)
5	"Part V: Chapter 7"	Boris Sagal	Dean Riesner	48 min.	February 23, 1976 (1976-02-23)
6	"Part VI: Chapter 8"	Boris Sagal	Dean Riesner	48 min.	March 1, 1976 (1976-03-01)
7	"Part VII: Chapter 9"	David Greene	Dean Riesner	48 min.	March 8, 1976 (1976-03-08)
8	"Part VII: Chapter 10"	David Greene	Dean Riesner	48 min.	March 8, 1976 (1976-03-08)
9	"Part VIII: Chapters 11 and 12"	David Greene	Dean Riesner	98 min.	March 15, 1976 (1976-03-15)

Production notes

Dean Riesner wrote all twelve episodes, and direction was shared by David Greene and Boris Sagal. The musical score was composed by Alex North.

Awards and nominations

Award	Category	Nominee(s)	Result	Ref.
Golden Globe Awards	Best Television Series – Drama		Won	^[2]
	Best Actor in a Television Series – Drama	Nick Nolte	Nominated
	Best Actor in a Television Series – Drama	Peter Strauss	Nominated
	Best Actress in a Television Series – Drama	Susan Blakely	Won
	Best Supporting Actor – Television	Ed Asner	Won
	Best Supporting Actress – Television	Josette Banzet	Won
Grammy Awards	Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special	Rich Man, Poor Man – Alex North	Nominated	^[3]
Online Film & Television Association Awards	Hall of Fame – Television Programs		Inducted	^[4]
Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Limited Series	Harve Bennett and Jon Epstein	Nominated	^[5]
	Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series	Nick Nolte	Nominated
	Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series	Peter Strauss	Nominated
	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series	Susan Blakely	Won
	Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Drama Series	Ray Milland	Nominated
		Robert Reed	Nominated
	Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actress in a Drama Series	Dorothy McGuire	Nominated
	Outstanding Lead Actor for a Single Appearance in a Drama or Comedy Series	Ed Asner (for "Part I: Chapters 1 and 2")	Won
	Outstanding Single Performance by a Supporting Actor in Comedy or Drama Series	Bill Bixby (for "Part VI: Chapter 8")	Nominated
		Norman Fell (for "Part V: Chapter 7")	Nominated
		Van Johnson (for "Part VII: Chapter 9")	Nominated
	Outstanding Single Performance by a Supporting Actress in Comedy or Drama Series	Kim Darby (for "Part II: Chapters 3 and 4")	Nominated
		Fionnula Flanagan (for "Part II: Chapters 3 and 4")	Won
		Kay Lenz (for "Part VIII: Chapters 11 and 12")	Nominated
	Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series	David Greene (for "Part VII: Chapter 10")	Won
	Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series	Boris Sagal (for "Part V: Chapter 7")	Nominated
	Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series	Dean Riesner	Nominated
	Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction or Scenic Design – Single Episode of a Comedy, Drama or Limited Series	William Hiney and Joseph Stone (for "Part VII: Chapter 9")	Nominated
	Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography for Entertainment Programming for a Series	Howard Schwartz (for "Part I: Chapters 1 and 2")	Nominated
	Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design for a Drama or Comedy Series	Charles Waldo (for "Part I: Chapters 1 and 2")	Nominated
	Outstanding Achievement in Film Editing for Entertainment Programming for a Series – For a Single Episode of a Drama or Limited Series	Richard Bracken (for "Part VII: Chapter 10")	Nominated
		Douglas Stewart (for "Part II: Chapters 3 and 4")	Nominated
	Outstanding Achievement in Music Composition for a Series	Alex North	Won
TP de Oro	Best Foreign Series		2nd Place	^[6]
	Best Foreign Actor	Peter Strauss	Won
	Most Popular Personage	William Smith	2nd Place
TV Land Awards	Miniseries You Didn't Miss a Moment Of		Nominated

Home media

A&E Home Video released an edited version of Rich Man, Poor Man: The Complete Collection on Region 1 DVD in the United States on September 28, 2010.