The "North and South" miniseries of the '80s, based on John Jakes' juicy novels of the Civil War era, had a dynamite cast. When Book 1 hit the airwaves in 1985, it certainly mined the vast talent of that classic decade, featuring many stars of the BRBTV shows.
It was a time in TV history when miniseries were king. Ahhhhhh ... do we miss the mighty miniseries! So it was with great pleasure that we indulged ourselves last month with a re-viewing of the 12 hours of Book 1, which we remember so fondly from when it originally aired as six two-hour parts. Among the star-spottin' bounty:
- Lesley-Anne Down, our own Stephanie Rogers of "Dallas," playing it sweet and so soft-spoken as Creole Southern belle Madeline Fabray.
- Terri Garber, that sly Leslie Carrington of "Dynasty" and Suzanne Collier of "Santa Barbara," in the amazing role that launched her career, the evil Miss Ashton Main. (We talked with Garber about her "North and South" work; see our BRBTV interview with the star in the current edition of "Send Me to Santa Barbara," as well as a coming update to "Dynasty High.")
- Morgan Fairchild, one of the three Jenna Wades on "Dallas," who gets just a smidgen of airtime as Burdetta Halloran in Book 1 but is back for more action in Book 2.
- Jonathan Frakes, our own Jamie Lee Hogg of "The Dukes of Hazzard," in a key part as Stanley Hazard (yes, only one "z"!), co-owner with his bro in the northern Hazard Iron.
- Bill Conti, composer of the strains of "Dynasty" and "The Colbys," who also did the music for "North and South."
Now on to Book 2 ...
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