B.J. AND THE BEAR

Show Type: Comedy Adventure

First Telecast: February 10, 1979

Last Telecast: August 1, 1981

Theme Song: "B.J. And the Bear" written by Glen A. Larson and sung by Greg Evigan

Broadcast History:

February 1979-March 1980, Saturday 9:00-10:00 on NBC

March 1980-August 1980, Saturday 8:00-9:00 on NBC

January 1981-April 1981, Tuesday 9:00-10:00 on NBC

April 1981-April 1981, Saturday 9:00-10:00 on NBC

Cast

B.J. (Billie Joe) McCay..... Greg Evigan

Sheriff Elroy P. Lobo (1979)..... Claude Akins

Deputy Perkins (1979)..... Mills Watson

Sheriff Masters (1979)..... Richard Deacon

Sheriff Cain (1979-1980)..... Ed Lauter

Sgt. Beauregard Wiley (1979)..... Slim Pickens

Wilhelmina "The Fox" Johnson (1979-1980)..... Conchata Ferrell

Deputy Higgins (1979-1980)..... Otto Felix

Tommy (1979-1980)..... Janet Louise Johnson

Bullets (1979-1980)..... Joshua Shelley

Rutherford T. Grant (1981)..... Murray Hamilton

Lt. Jim Steiger (1981)..... Eric Server

Stacks (1981)..... Judy Landers

Callie (1981)..... Linda McCullough

Samantha (1981)..... Barbra Horan

Teri Garrison (1981)..... Candi Brough

Geri Garrison (1981)..... Randi Brough

Cindy Grant (1981)..... Sherilyn Wolter

Angie Cartwright (1981)..... Sheila DeWindt

SYNOPSIS

In the mid-1970's, NBC had aired an adventure series about two truckers traveling around the country, titled Movin' On. A few years later, and about the same time, CBS premiered its hit "good ole boy" rural adventure series, The Dukes of Hazzard, this countrified version of Movin' On turned up on NBC. B.J. And The Bear was played more for laughs than adventure, and did seem to put stronger emphasis on pretty girls and wild car and truck chases, but it had a distinct family resemblance to its predecessor on NBC.

B.J. McCay was a good-looking young trucker who traveled around the country in his big red-and-white rig, with a single companion, his pet chimp, Bear. Although he logged a lot of miles, B.J. was based in rural Georgia, where he was confronted by a succession of corrupt local sheriffs - Elroy P. Lobo (who was later given his own series, Lobo), followed in the fall of 1979 by Sgt. Wiley of Winslow County and his two fellow lawmen, Sheriffs Cain and Masters. The only honest cop B.J. seemed to encounter was the Fox, who spent much of her time trying to trap the crooked local cops. Tommy was a lady trucker friend of B.J.'s and Bullets ran the local hangout, the Country Comfort Truck Stop.

When B.J. And The Bear returned for its second season in January of 1981 (delayed several months by an actors' strike), B.J. had settled down to run a trucking business in Los Angeles called Bear Enterprises. For B.J., however, corruption seemed to follow wherever he went. His new adversary was Rutherford T. Grant, a corrupt politician who headed the state Special Crimes Action Team. Grant was a silent partner in TransCal, the largest trucking firm in the state, and stopped at nothing to stamp out potential competition. Because of Grant's intervention, B.J. found it impossible to get regular male truck drivers to work for him and had to settle for a crew of seven young, beautiful lady truckers (in the cast credits from Stacks to Angie), including a pair of identical twins, and Grant's daughter, Cindy.

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