Uprooted from his familiar surroundings of Oregon, a young teen finds himself living in Boston, and not fitting in at all. This drama of teen angst and all the pressures of being a young man were epitomized in the series James at 15.
Created by journalist Dan Wakefield, James at 15 was based on his book Going All the Way, a novel about a displaced teenager of the 1950s. Wakefield was asked by NBC to create the series, and set the show in Boston in order to get out of Los Angeles, like every other show on television at the time.
Actor Lance Kerwin was chosen to be James, an unsure boy who wants to become a photographer and isn’t too impressed with the choices of his Dad, a college professor, and their move to the big city. NBC originally asked for a tv movie, which did well and led to the debut of the series in 1977.
Unlike many other dramas, the show was highly realistic and described the true life of being an adolescent, as opposed to being a show that was created to attract adolescents. Wakefield’s creation of the character seemed inspired by the realism that was happening in the world of ’70s films.
James’ friends included Sly, an African-American who middle class family surrounds him in classical music and Marlene, whose blue-collar plumber Dad makes more money than James’ university Dad, both shattering the conventions of the time for many characters on primetive tv. Critics adored the show, and James’ sensitive ways made it a favourite of tv viewers.
In the second half of the first season James at 16 becomes the new name as James begins a relationship with Swedish exchange student, who becomes pregnant. Wakefield quit the show over a dispute with the network of how James should react to the pregnancy. The show only lasted one season, but left a lasting impression. Kevin Williamson, creator of Dawson’s Creek, cited James at 15 as his influence, for its unique depiction of teenage life.
I liked James at 15 – although too young to truly understand his angst for moving and now living in a big city, since that’s exactly what I wanted – to move from a small town. I appreciated the feeling of being an outsider, wanting to fit in and wanting to be true to oneself.
Lance Kerwin kept acting, appearing in tv and films, but kept away from series television after his experience with James at 15, a show that broke ground, and led the way for many other series to contemplate the teenage years as not a silly party time on tv, but faced with serious issues of self-worth and responsibility. The network may have felt the audience wasn’t ready for James at 15/ James at 16, but it makes you wonder what would have happened if we’d been allow to see how James handled his change from teen to man.


The ideal beauty for the 1980s was a California girl – she epitomized the sexy beach culture and was the source of many a man’s fantasy: Bo Derek.
She made her first appearance in Playboy Magazine in 1980, in a 12 page pictorial showing her frolicking with her dog at the beach, photographed by her husband John. She appeared twice in the pages of Playboy in 1980 and several times over the next five years.
A trucker and a chimpanzee, travelling across the US, getting in trouble and helping people out? Yes, the premise of BJ and the Bear does seem odd, but it was a favourite of 1979 when it debuted starring 1970s hearthrob Greg Evigan.

Spurned on by success in illuminating the famine in Ethiopia with Band Aid, Bob Geldof decided to create something bigger and bolder with the creation of Live Aid. This multi-venue rock event held on two different continents raised the awareness of the world to the plight of starving Africans.

