''Survival of Dana'' is a 1979

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

made-for-TV A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a terrestr ...

film, a teenage

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

starring Melissa Sue Anderson, who experiences conflicting social values when her parents divorce and she moves from

Fargo, North Dakota Fargo is the List of cities in North Dakota, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Cass County, North Dakota, Cass County. The population was 125,990 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, which was e ...

to the

San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, Los Angeles County, California. Situated to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it comprises a large portion of Los Angeles, the Municipal corpo ...

suburbs of

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. The cast also includes

Robert Carradine Robert Reed Carradine ( ; born March 24, 1954) is an American actor. A member of the Carradine family, he made his first appearances on television Western series such as ''Bonanza'' and his brother David's TV series, ''Kung Fu''. Carradine's fi ...

Talia Balsam Talia Balsam (born 1959) is an American television and film actress. Early life Talia Balsam was born in New York City in 1959, to actors Martin Balsam and Joyce Van Patten. Her ancestry is Russian Jewish (father) and Italian, Dutch, and Engl ...

(

Martin Balsam Martin Henry Balsam (November 4, 1919 – February 13, 1996) was an American actor. He had a prolific career in character roles in film, in theatre, and on television. An early member of the Actors Studio, he began his career on the New ...

's only child),

Marion Ross Marion Ross (born Marian Eileen Ross; October 25, 1928) is an American actress. Her best-known role is that of Marion Cunningham (Happy Days), Marion Cunningham on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television sitcom ''Happy Days'', on which ...

, and

Judge Reinhold Edward Ernest "Judge" Reinhold Jr. (born May 21, 1957) is an American actor who is best known for his work in Hollywood films during the 1980s. He has starred in several popular films such as '' Stripes'' (1981), '' Fast Times at Ridgemont High' ...

in his first film. Anderson was on hiatus from ''

Little House on the Prairie The ''Little House on the Prairie'' books comprise a series of American children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder (b. Laura Elizabeth Ingalls). The stories are based on her childhood and adulthood in the Midwestern United States, Americ ...

'' and Ross (playing Dana's grandmother) was at the time a star on the series ''

Happy Days ''Happy Days'' is an American television sitcom that aired first-run on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC network from January 15, 1974, to July 19, 1984, with a total of 255 half-hour episodes spanning 11 seasons. Created by Garry Marsha ...

''. ''Survival of Dana'' was directed by

Jack Starrett Claude Ennis "Jack" Starrett Jr. (November 2, 1936 – March 27, 1989) was an American actor and film director.Staff report (March 29, 1989). Jack Starrett, 52; Adventure Film Actor, Director. ''Los Angeles Times'' Starrett is perhaps best k ...

, whose only child, Jennifer, plays Lynn, one of the members of the antisocial clique.

Plot

Dana Lee Gilbert has moved from Fargo to the San Fernando Valley to live with her widowed grandmother after her parents' divorce. She finds her new school, Tremont High, was vandalized the night before by a teenage gang unknown to her led by Donny Davis. At the end of her first day, she watches the school's

ice skating Ice skating is the Human-powered transport, self-propulsion and gliding of a person across an ice surface, using metal-bladed ice skates. People skate for various reasons, including recreation (fun), exercise, competitive sports, and commuting. ...

team practice and wants to try out for it. Waiting for her grandmother at a shopping mall, she meets another Tremont girl, Rona Simms, who shoplifts and they are both arrested. Banned from skating, she joins the gang and starts dating Donny. One of the gang's big plans brings them into conflict with adult criminals.Steven Puchalski
"''The Survival of Dana'', 1979
''Shock Cinema Magazine'', 2012.

Cast

* Melissa Sue Anderson as Dana Lee Gilbert *

as Donny Davis *

as Madeline *

as Rona Simms *

Michael Pataki Michael Pataki (January 16, 1938 – April 15, 2010) was an American actor of stage, film and television.Obituary ''Los Angeles Times'', May 5, 2010; p. AA7. Early life Pataki was born in Youngstown, Ohio, to Hungarian parents, the youngest ...

as Arnold * Kevin Breslin as Skates *

as Bear * Dan Spector as Anthony *

Barbara Babcock Barbara Babcock (born February 27, 1937) is an American actress. She began her career on television in mid-1950s with guest-starring appearances in more than 60 television series through her career. She made several appearances on '' Star Trek ...

as Lorna Sims * Shelby Leverington as Mrs. Blake * Dawn Jeffory as Joanie * Trent Dolan as Coach Tanner * Scott McGinnis as Paul

References

External links

* 1979 television films 1979 films American television films Films scored by Craig Safan Films directed by Jack Starrett {{US-tv-drama-film-stub