The Mississippi (TV series)

The Mississippi
Created byDarryl Ponicsan
StarringRalph Waite
Linda Miller
Stan Shaw
ComposerLee Holdridge
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes23
Production
Running time60 minutes
Production companiesRalph Waite Productions
Hajeno Productions
Warner Bros. Television
Original release
NetworkCBS
ReleaseMarch 25, 1983 (1983-03-25) –
March 6, 1984 (1984-03-06)
Promotional Picture The Mississippi

The Mississippi is an American legal drama television series which ran for 2 seasons from 1983 to 1984 on CBS. The series consisted of 24 episodes: 1 pilot, 6 first-season episodes and 17 episodes in the second season. The series was written by Aubrey Solomon and starred Ralph Waite, Linda Miller, and Stan Shaw.[1]

Plot

Ralph Waite played Ben Walker, a successful criminal attorney who, after retiring his law practice, sought a simpler life on the Mississippi River as the captain of a stern wheel river boat. Conflicting with his desire for an easy retirement from legal practice, he'd find at every port someone who needed a good attorney, and he would end up defending him or her. His “crew” consisted of Stella McMullen and Lafayette 'Lafe' Tate, both of whom were more interested in helping people, fighting crime, and becoming attorneys than in running the tug.

Filming occurred in several cities along the Mississippi River including Natchez, Mississippi, and Memphis, Tennessee.

Cast

Episodes

Season 1: 1982–83

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
00"The Mississippi"Richard C. SarafianDarryl PonicsanJune 14, 1982 (1982-06-14)
Series pilot.
11"Murder at Mt. Parnassus"Lee H. KatzinJerry ZiegmanMarch 25, 1983 (1983-03-25)
22"Edge of the River"Lee H. KatzinShel WillensApril 1, 1983 (1983-04-01)
33"Beyond a Reasonable Doubt"Russ MayberryTerry Louise FisherApril 8, 1983 (1983-04-08)
44"We Remember, We Revere"Leo PennStory by : John Wilder & Paul Savage
Teleplay by : Paul Savage		April 15, 1983 (1983-04-15)
55"Mardi Gras"Ralph WaiteJeffrey LaneApril 29, 1983 (1983-04-29)
66"Old Hatreds Die Hard"Leo PennStory by : John Wilder & Paul Savage
Teleplay by : Paul Savage		May 6, 1983 (1983-05-06)

Season 2: 1983–84

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
71"There Is a Tiger in the Town"Jeffrey HaydenRobert CraisSeptember 27, 1983 (1983-09-27)
82"Cradle to Grave"Leo PennPatricia GreenOctober 4, 1983 (1983-10-04)
93"The Trial of Ben Walker"David ShawDavid ShawOctober 11, 1983 (1983-10-11)
104"The Last Voice You Hear"Alex MarchDavid KarpOctober 18, 1983 (1983-10-18)
115"The Shooting"Georg Stanford BrownSidney EllisOctober 25, 1983 (1983-10-25)
126"Peace with Honor"Robert SallinPatricia GreenNovember 1, 1983 (1983-11-01)
137"Joey"Alex MarchIrv PearlbergNovember 8, 1983 (1983-11-08)
148"Crisis of Identity"Harry HarrisDavid ShawNovember 15, 1983 (1983-11-15)
159"A Town Without Pity"Oz ScottSteve Greenberg & Aubrey SolomonNovember 22, 1983 (1983-11-22)
1610"G.I. Blues"Leo PennStory by : Preston Marshall Ransone & Art Eisenson
Teleplay by : James M. Miller		November 13, 1983 (1983-11-13)
1711"Between Fathers and Sons"John PattersonChris ManheimDecember 13, 1983 (1983-12-13)
1812"The Big Leagues"Leo PennIrv PearlbergDecember 27, 1983 (1983-12-27)
1913"Going Back to Hannibal"Allen ReisnerAlan BrennertJanuary 10, 1984 (1984-01-10)
2014"Wheels of Justice"William WiardDavid Shaw,
Ed Waters		January 17, 1984 (1984-01-17)
2115"Informed Consent"Oz ScottRogers TurrentineJanuary 24, 1984 (1984-01-24)
2216"Abigail"Alex MarchIrv PearlbergFebruary 7, 1984 (1984-02-07)
2317"Home Again"Allen ReisnerAlan BrennertMarch 6, 1984 (1984-03-06)

US television ratings

Season Episodes Start date End date Nielsen rank Nielsen rating
1982–83 6 March 25, 1983 May 6, 1983 15 19.3[2][a]
1983–84 17 September 27, 1983 March 6, 1984 66 13.6[3][b]

Awards

The episode "Old Hatreds Die Hard" was nominated for a 1983 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series.[4]

Notes

  1. ^ Ted with 9 to 5
  2. ^ Tied with Mama's Family and Automan

References

  1. ^ The Mississippi at IMDb Edit this at Wikidata
  2. ^ Lina. "The TV Ratings Guide: 1982-83 Ratings History -- Soap Bubbles Rise, Several Veterans Part and NBC Renews Poorly Rated Masterpieces". Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  3. ^ "1983-84 Ratings History -- The Networks Are Awash in a Bubble Bath of Soaps".
  4. ^ "Awards for The Mississippi". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2011-07-04.