Palmerstown USA

1 9 8 0 – 1 9 8 1 (USA)
17 x 60 minute episodes

This CBS series told of life in a small Tennesse town in the early 1930s, particularly the interaction between blacks and whites.

Stories centred around two young boys: David Hall (Brian G Wilson), the son of the town’s white grocer, and Booker T Freeman (Jermain H Johnson), whose black father, Luther (Bill Duke), was a blacksmith. Despite the prevalent colour bar, the two were good friends.

Although separated by law, custom and mutual distrust, Palmerstown’s blacks and whites were capable of coming together. One such instance occurred when a professional black baseball team came to town and challenged Palmerstown’s white team to a game.

The whites – who didn’t read the black newspapers – were unaware that their opponents were professionals; the town’s blacks knew the score and laughed under their breath – until the visitors’ citified ways got under their skin.

In the end, blacks and whites joined to preserve Palmerstown’s honour by fielding the best of the town’s black and white baseballers. And in the crucial ninth ending, with Palmerstown losing, David Hall’s dad cast aside his dreams of pitching a winning game and yielded his glove to an old black hotshot, who proceeded to win the game for Palmerstown.

Palmerstown USA was co-created by Roots author Alex Haley and producer Norman Lear (All In The Family). The cast included Jonelle Allen, Beeson Carroll and a young Michael J Fox.

Bessie Freeman
Jonelle Allen
WD Hall
Beeson Carroll
David Hall
Brian G Wilson
Booker T Freeman
Jermain H Johnson
Luther Freeman
Bill Duke
Coralee Hall
Janice St. John
Willy-Joe Hall
Michael J Fox
Diana Freeman
Star-Shemah Bobatoon
Sheriff
Kenneth White
Widder Brown
Iris Korn
Jacob
Wally Taylor

Video