1 9 6 9 (Canada/UK/Australia)
39 x 25 minute episodes
15-year-old Billy Williams and his younger sister Hannah lived with their widowed mother Nancy (played by Lois Maxwell – Miss Moneypenny of James Bond fame) at a hunting and fishing lodge on beautiful Lake Huron in Rainbow Country, a popular wilderness area of Northern Ontario, Canada.
The lodge was built by Billy’s father Frank, who had disappeared when his plane went down while he was prospecting for gold.
Although still a teenager, Billy was an accomplished wilderness guide, scuba diver, angler, white-water canoeist, photographer, marksman, rock climber, skydiver and bass player in his rock group The Thunderbirds. Billy had a mop of shaggy blonde hair and always wore a mohair sweater, a denim jacket and jeans (even on the hottest summer days).
Billy’s best friend was Pete Gawa, a native Canadian (Ojibway) who also had many outdoor skills (which led me to believe as I was growing up that every Canadian kid could do all this stuff!).
The inseparable pair experienced an endless adventure after adventure, thwarting jewel thieves, kidnappers, defectors, hijackers, the military, witch doctors and even the Devil himself (in the episode Lac du Diable).
The series was an international co-production of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Television Films Ltd. of Britain and the Australian Broadcasting Company. When it aired on CBC in Canada, four million people tuned in every week – a CBC record at the time. The show was also a huge success in Germany and other markets and played for years on American cable channels.
Adventures in Rainbow Country was filmed around Whitefish Falls, Gore Bay, Webbwood and Espanola. The majority of filming took place on the Whitefish River First Nation, located at Birch Island, Ontario. The log home is still located on Whitefish River First Nation and is known as Rainbow Lodge.
Billy Williams
Stephen Cottier
Hannah Williams
Susan Conway
Nancy Williams
Lois Maxwell
Pete Gawa
Buckley Petawabano
Roger Lemieux
Albert Millaire
Dougall McGregor
Alan Mills
Dennis McGubgub
Wally Koster
