''Delta County, U.S.A.'' is a 1977 American

made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by

Glenn Jordan Glenn Jordan (born April 5, 1936) is a retired American television director and producer. Born in San Antonio, Texas, Jordan directed multiple episodes of ''Family'' and helmed numerous television movies, several based on real persons as divers ...

and starring

Peter Donat Peter Donat (born Pierre Collingwood Donat; January 20, 1928 – September 10, 2018) was a Canadian-American actor. Early life Pierre Collingwood Donat was born in Kentville, Nova Scotia, Canada, the son of Marie (née Bardet) and Philip Ernst ...

Jeff Conaway Jeffrey Charles William Michael Conaway (October 5, 1950 – May 27, 2011) was an American actor. He portrayed Kenickie in the film '' Grease'' and had roles in two television series: struggling actor Bobby Wheeler in ''Taxi'' and security offic ...

Robert Hays Robert Hays (born July 24, 1947) is an American actor, known for a variety of television and film roles since the 1970s. He came to prominence around 1980, co-starring in the two-season domestic sitcom '' Angie'', and playing the central role of ...

Joanna Miles Joanna Miles (born March 6, 1940) is an American actress. She received two Emmy Awards for her portrayal of Laura Wingfield in the 1973 film production of Tennessee Williams' ''The Glass Menagerie''. Early life and education Miles was born in Ni ...

Lola Albright Lola Jean Albright (July 20, 1924 – March 23, 2017) was an American singer and actress, best known for playing the sultry singer Edie Hart, the girlfriend of private eye Peter Gunn, on all three seasons of the TV series ''Peter Gunn''. Early ...

Peter Masterson Peter Masterson (born Carlos Bee Masterson Jr.; June 1, 1934 – December 18, 2018) was an American actor, director, producer, and writer. Life and career Masterson often worked with his cousin, writer Horton Foote. Acting from the mid-1960s ...

Michele Carey Michele Carey (born Michele Lee Henson; February 26, 1942 – November 21, 2018) was an American actress who was best known for her role as Josephine "Joey" MacDonald in the 1966 Western film ''El Dorado''. She appeared in movies and guest-starr ...

and

Morgan Brittany Morgan Brittany (née Suzanne Cupito) is an American actress born in Los Angeles. She is known for her role as Katherine Wentworth, the scheming younger half-sister of Pamela Ewing and Cliff Barnes, on the prime-time soap opera ''Dallas''. C ...

. The film originally served as a

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

for a proposed

prime time Prime time or the peak time is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for a television show. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...

television

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

that never materialized. It was broadcast as ''The ABC Friday Night Movie'' on May 20, 1977.''Delta County, U.S.A.''
at

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The librar ...

, retrieved May 6, 2017.

Synopsis

Delta County is a staid Southern community caught between the old traditions and a rapidly changing way of life. For teenagers Terry Nicholas, his sister McCain, and Joe Ed, the boy from the wrong side of the tracks that she's attracted to, the old traditions have little meaning in their lives. Their elders, struggling to preserve values of an older day, have personal problems that are sometimes overwhelming, such as the one facing John McCain Jr. an alcoholic whose wife Kate is having a hidden and torrid romance that sets her husband off on a vengeance-seeking spree.

Cast

as John McCain Jr. *

as Terry Nicholas *

as Bo *

as Kate McCain Nicholas *

as Dossie Wilson *Jim Antonio as Jack the Bear *

as Billy Wingate *

Doney Oatman Doney may refer to: A name that means 'eternal sunshine' People * George Edward Doney (1758–1809), believed to have been born in Gambia around 1758 * Victor Doney (1881–1961), Australian politician Places * Doney Park, Arizona, United States ...

as McCain Nicholas *

Joe Penny Joseph Edward Penny Jr. (born 24 June 1956) is an English-born American actor best known for his roles as Nick Ryder on the detective series ''Riptide'' from 1984 to 1986, and as Jake Styles in the CBS television series ''Jake and the Fatman'' ...

as Joe Ed *

Tisch Raye Tisch may refer to: *Tisch School of the Arts at New York University * Jonathan M. Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service at Tufts University * Tisch Library, the main library of Tufts University *''Tisch'', a novel by Stephen Dixon Peo ...

as Robbie Jean *

as Doris Ann *

Sandy McPeak Sandy McPeak (February 21, 1936 – December 31, 1997) was an American actor best known for such films and television series as '' Winnetka Road'', '' L.A. Law'', ''Centennial'', ''Ode to Billy Joe'', '' Patton'', '' The Osterman Weekend'', ''Kel ...

as Chief Doughly *

as Jonsie Wilson

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Delta County, U.S.A. 1977 television films 1977 films 1977 drama films 1970s English-language films Films set in Texas Films directed by Glenn Jordan Films scored by Jack Elliott Paramount Pictures films American Broadcasting Company original films Television films as pilots Television pilots not picked up as a series American drama television films 1970s American films