''B.J. and the Bear'' is an American

action Action may refer to: * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video game Film * Action film, a genre of film * ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford * ''Action'' (1980 fil ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

television series which aired on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

from February 10, 1979, to May 9, 1981. Created by Glen A. Larson and Christopher Crowe, the series stars

Greg Evigan Gregory Ralph Evigan (born October 14, 1953) is an American film, stage, and television actor. He began his career in theater, appearing in the Broadway production of ''Jesus Christ Superstar'', followed by a stage production of the musical '' Gr ...

. The series was produced when the

CB radio Citizens band radio (also known as CB radio), used in many countries, is a land mobile radio system, a system allowing short-distance person-to-many persons bidirectional voice communication among individuals, using two way radios operating on ...

and

trucking Road transport or road transportation is a type of transport using roads. Transport on roads can be roughly grouped into the transportation of goods and transportation of people. In many countries licensing requirements and safety regulations e ...

craze had peaked in the United States, following the 1974–1976 television series '' Movin' On,'' the number one song "

Convoy A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...

" (1975) by C. W. McCall, as well as the films '' White Line Fever'' (1975), ''

Smokey and the Bandit ''Smokey and the Bandit'' is a 1977 American road action comedy film starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Pat McCormick, Paul Williams and Mike Henry. The directorial debut of stuntman Hal Needham, the film follows ...

'' (1977), ''

'' (1978), and ''

Every Which Way but Loose ''Every Which Way but Loose'' is a 1978 American action comedy film released by Warner Bros., produced by Robert Daley and directed by James Fargo. It stars Clint Eastwood in an uncharacteristic and offbeat comedy role as Philo Beddoe, a tr ...

'' (1978). The theme song, also titled "B.J. and the Bear", was written by Glen Larson and performed by Greg Evigan.

Premise and storylines

Greg Evigan stars as Billie Joe "B.J." McKay, a professional

freelance ''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance ...

itinerant

trucker A truck driver (commonly referred to as a trucker, teamster, or driver in the United States and Canada; a truckie in Australia and New Zealand; a HGV driver in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the European Union, a lorry driver, or driver in ...

who travels the country's highways in a red and white

Kenworth Kenworth Truck Company is an American truck manufacturer. Founded in 1923 as the successor to Gersix Motor Company, Kenworth specializes in production of heavy-duty ( Class 8) and medium-duty (Class 5–7) commercial vehicles. Headquartered in ...

K-100 Aerodyne (a COE

semi truck A semi-trailer truck, also known as a semitruck, (or semi, eighteen-wheeler, big rig, tractor-trailer or, by synecdoche, a semitrailer) is the combination of a tractor unit and one or more semi-trailers to carry freight. A semi-trailer a ...

) with his pet

chimpanzee The chimpanzee (''Pan troglodytes''), also known as simply the chimp, is a species of great ape native to the forest and savannah of tropical Africa. It has four confirmed subspecies and a fifth proposed subspecies. When its close relative t ...

Bear (named after

Bear Bryant Paul William "Bear" Bryant (September 11, 1913 – January 26, 1983) was an American college football player and coach. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest college football coaches of all time, and best known as the head coach of ...

, the famed football coach for the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and largest of the publ ...

). In the pilot movie, it is stated that he had spent two years in Vietnam as a medical helicopter pilot, had been a captain and earned the

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) *Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) *Distinguished Service Cross (U ...

. He was a prisoner of war in North Vietnam at the

Hanoi Hilton Hanoi or Ha Noi ( or ; vi, Hà Nội ) is the capital and second-largest city of Vietnam. It covers an area of . It consists of 12 urban districts, one district-leveled town and 17 rural districts. Located within the Red River Delta, Hanoi is ...

for four months in 1973 after his helicopter went down over the DMZ. Episodes typically deal with B.J. uncovering or getting mixed up with crime in the area he's traveling through, and a local resident — usually, a young, beautiful woman — appealing to him for help. A frequent guest star in the first season is Sheriff Elroy P. Lobo (

Claude Akins Claude Aubrey Akins (May 25, 1926 – January 27, 1994) was an American character actor with a long career on stage, screen, and television. He was best known as Sheriff Lobo on the 1979–1981 television series '' B.J. and the Bear'', and ...

, who previously starred in the trucking series '' Movin' On''), whose character eventually spun off onto his own show ''

The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo ''The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo'' is an American action comedy television series that ran on NBC from September 18, 1979, to May 5, 1981. For its second season the show was renamed ''Lobo''. The program aired Tuesday nights, at 8:00p.m. East ...

'' along with guest character "Waverly"

Ben Cooper Ben Cooper (September 30, 1933 – February 24, 2020) was an American actor of film and television, who won a Golden Boot Award in 2005 for his work in westerns. Stage Cooper appeared on Broadway in '' Life With Father'' (1939). He debuted in ...

. Two episodes in season two, "Eyes Of Texas" (1979) and "The Girls On The Hollywood High" (1980), were designed as prospective pilots for a series about a pair of private detectives called Heather Fern (Rebecca Reynolds) and Caroline Capodi (Lorrie Mahaffey in the first one,

Heather Thomas Heather Anne Thomas (born September 8, 1957) is an American actress, author, and political activist, who co-starred as Jody Banks on the TV series ''The Fall Guy.'' Early life Thomas was born in Greenwich, Connecticut, to Gladdy Lou Ryder, a s ...

in the second). The latter episode has cameo appearances from

John S. Ragin John Stanley Ragin (May 5, 1929 - April 14, 2013) was an American television and film actor. He was best known for his role as uptight, bureaucratic Dr. Robert Asten, M.E. in the TV series ''Quincy, M.E.'' (1976–83). Early years Ragin was bor ...

and

Robert Ito Robert Ito (born July 2, 1931) is a Canadian actor of Japanese ancestry. He is known for his television and film work, including the roles of Sam Fujiyama on the 1976–83 NBC series '' Quincy, M.E.'' and Larry Mishima on the 1980s CBS primetime ...

as their characters from ''

Quincy, M.E. ''Quincy, M.E.'' (also called ''Quincy'') is an American mystery medical drama television series from Universal Studios that aired on NBC from October 3, 1976, to May 11, 1983. Jack Klugman starred in the title role as a Los Angeles County med ...

'' (also a Glen A. Larson series).Lee Goldberg, ''Unsold Television Pilots: 1955 through 1989,'' 1990, pp. 352-353, McFarland, In 1981, when the show returned for its third season with the two-part episode "B.J. and the Seven Lady Truckers" (not to be confused with the season two opener "Snow White and the Seven Lady Truckers", also a two-parter), B.J. has settled down to run Bear Enterprises, a trucking company based in Los Angeles. His nemesis is Rutherford T. Grant (

Murray Hamilton Murray Hamilton (March 24, 1923 – September 1, 1986) was an American stage, screen, and television character actor who appeared in such films as '' Anatomy of a Murder'', '' The Hustler'', '' The Graduate'', ''Jaws'' and '' The Amityvill ...

), the corrupt head of the state's Special Crimes Action Team, who is a secret partner in a competing trucking company. Because of Grant's harassment, B.J. is unable to hire experienced truckers, and is forced to hire seven beautiful young female truckers, consisting of Grant's daughter Cindy (

Sherilyn Wolter Sherilyn Marjorie Wolter (born November 30, 1951) is an American former actress. Wolter starred on the TV series ''B. J. and the Bear'' in 1981, and then portrayed Celia Quartermaine on the daytime soap opera ''General Hospital'' from March 17 ...

), twins Teri and Geri (Candi and Randi Brough), no-nonsense Angie (

Sheila Wills Sheila Wills (born August 11, 1947) is an American actress, also known as Sheila DeWindt. She is known for her regular role on the television series ''B.J. and the Bear'', and recurring roles on series including ''Days of Our Lives'', ''Battlestar ...

), Samantha (Amanda Horan Kennedy), Callie (Linda McCullough), and a busty blonde nicknamed "Stacks" ( Judy Landers), along with a female dispatcher, Stacy (Susan Woolen). Though Universal has not yet released ''BJ and the Bear'' on home video, bootleg editions are available on DVD.

Episodes

Pilot (1978)

Season 1 (1979)

Season 2 (1979–80)

Season 3 (1981)

References

External links

* (Pilot) * * {{Trucking industry in the United States 1979 American television series debuts 1981 American television series endings 1970s American comedy television series 1980s American comedy television series American action comedy television series American television shows featuring puppetry Citizens band radio in popular culture English-language television shows Fictional duos Kenworth NBC original programming Television series by Universal Television Television shows set in Los Angeles Trucking industry in the United States Television series created by Christopher Crowe (screenwriter) Television series created by Glen A. Larson Television shows about chimpanzees