Freedom Road

Edit links
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For the American Marxist–Leninist organization, see Freedom Road Socialist Organization.
Freedom Road
GenreHistorical mini-series
Based onFreedom Road
by Howard Fast
Directed by
Jan Kadar
StarringMuhammad Ali
Kris Kristofferson
Production
Executive producerZev Braun
ProducersLeland Nolan
Chet Walker
CinematographyCharles Correll
Original release
NetworkNBC
ReleaseOctober 29 (1979-10-29) –
October 30, 1979 (1979-10-30)

Freedom Road was a 1979 American TV historical drama

Jan Kadar. Running for four hours, it was first broadcast on NBC on October 29 and 30, 1979.[1]

Plot

Ali plays ex-slave Gideon Jackson, a former

U.S. senator. The film and Fast's novel are based on a true story, but they take a number of liberties. (Jackson was also the inspiration for the villain in D. W. Griffith's racist propaganda film The Birth of a Nation.)[2]

Initially representing black ex-slaves at the state's

constitutional convention, Jackson is elected to the state legislature and eventually to the U.S. Senate despite opposition from white landowners, law enforcement, and the Ku Klux Klan. Kristofferson plays sharecropper Abner Lait, who helps Jackson unite former slaves and white tenant farmers.[1]

Production

The cast also included Barbara O. Jones (as Jackson's wife), Ron O'Neal, Edward Herrmann, John McLiam (as Ulysses S. Grant), Sonny Jim Gaines, Joel Fluellen, Grace Zabriskie and Alfre Woodard. It was narrated by Ossie Davis.

It was the final film of director Jan Kadar, who died in June 1979. It had a $7 million budget and was filmed around Natchez, Mississippi because of the historic property in the area.[3]

Critical reaction

The

St Petersburg Times found that Ali was not entirely convincing but showed potential and that his quiet performance failed to convey Jackson's charisma.[4] The Encyclopedia of Television Film Directors calls it "intermittently compelling".[5]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Ali Makes Acting Debut In 'Freedom Road'". The News and Courier (Charleston, SC). October 27, 1979. p. 28-D. Retrieved October 23, 2013.
  2. ^ "Freedom Road (1979)". Archived from the original on July 16, 2014. Retrieved March 4, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  3. ^ "Ali does 'Roadwork' on 'Freedom Road'". Ebony. Johnson Publishing Company. October 1979. pp. 102–106. Retrieved October 23, 2013.
  4. ^ Ely, Robert (October 29, 1979). "'Freedom Road', Ali Wins Limited Success". St Petersburg Times. Retrieved October 23, 2013.
  5. ISBN 9780810863781
    .

External links
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Freedom_Road&oldid=1224446436"