Friends

1 9 7 9 (USA)
5 x 60 minute episodes

Not to be confused with the later blockbuster sitcom starring Jennifer Anniston and Courteney Cox, this version of Friends looked at life through the eyes of three Southern California eleven-year-old kids from vastly different upbringings and was recommended by the NEA (National Education Association).

There was Pete Richards (Charles Aiken) and his parents Frank (Andy Romano) and Pamela (Karen Morrow); Nancy Wilks (Jill Whelan), who was from a broken home, and her father, Charley (Dennis Redfield); and Randy Summerfield (Jarred Johnson), an African American lawyer’s son, and his parents, Warren (Roger Robinson) and Jane (Janet MacLachlan).

Episodes focused upon the trials and tribulations of adolescence and involved subjects such as dating, family, school, growing pains, and friendship.

Also in the cast were Charles Lampkin as Randy’s granddad, Tug, and Alicia Fleer as Pete’s elder sister, Cynthia – a role originally intended for a young Helen Hunt.

Pete Richards
Charles Aiken
Nancy Wilks
Jill Whelan
Randy Summerfield
Jarred Johnson
Frank Richards 
Andy Romano
Pamela Richards 
Karen Morrow
Charley Wilks
Dennis Redfield
Warren Summerfield
Roger Robinson
Jane Summerfield
Janet MacLachlan
Tug Summerfield
Charles Lampkin
Cynthia Richards
Alicia Fleer