Slattery's People (1964)

Genre

drama television series

Country

United States

Length

2 seasons, 36 episodes

Rating

7.0 of 10 from 2 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A state legislator works on political issues and tries to do the right thing in a system that is not always ideal. The show focuses on the challenges of local government and the people involved in making laws.

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What happens

Slattery's People is a 1964–65 American television series about local politics starring Richard Crenna as title character James Slattery, a state legislator, co-starring Ed Asner and Tol Avery, and featuring Carroll O'Connor and Warren Oates in a few episodes each. James E. Moser was executive producer. The original name of the show was Lawmaker. The production company was Bing Crosby Productions. The program, telecast on CBS, was nominated for a Golden Globe Award. Slattery's People is mainly notable for having been one of the few American television series spotlighting the travails of local politicians, a topic that other programs of the period mainly avoided. Episodes opened with this admonition: "Democracy is a very bad form of government. But I ask you never to forget: All the others are so much worse." Many television critics highly praised the series. Many politicians also approved of the program. U.S. Representative James C. Corman said in a Congressional Record statement on September 30, 1964, “I am pleased that they have taken the high road to show a legislator’s life, and have not pandered to sensationalism or unreality to stimulate an audience following.” This series was a major career change for Crenna. Following more than a decade as a lead actor in two popular network comedies, Our Miss Brooks and The Real McCoys, his role as Jim Slattery opened doors for later guest appearances in several dramatic programs and feature films. Moser's script for the pilot ("Question: What is truth?") was printed as an appendix in Teleplay; an introduction to television writing by Coles Trapnell. Television composer Nathan Scott wrote the theme music for Slattery's People. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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