I'll Fly Away (1991)
Synopsis
I'll Fly Away is an American drama television series set during the late 1950s and early 1960s, in an unspecified Southern U.S. state. It aired on NBC from 1991 to 1993 and starred Regina Taylor as Lilly Harper, a black housekeeper for the family of district attorney Forrest Bedford, whose name is an ironic reference to Nathan Bedford Forrest, the founder of the Ku Klux Klan. As the show progressed, Lilly became increasingly involved in the Civil Rights Movement, with events eventually drawing in Forrest as well. I'll Fly Away won two 1992 Emmy Awards, and 23 nominations in total. It won three Humanitas Prizes, two Golden Globe Awards, two NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Drama Series, and a Peabody Award. However, the series was never a ratings blockbuster, and it was canceled by NBC in 1993, despite widespread protests by critics and viewer organizations. After the program's cancellation, a two-hour movie, I'll Fly Away: Then and Now, was produced, in order to resolve dangling storylines from Season 2, and provide the series with a true finale. The movie aired on October 11, 1993 on PBS. Its major storyline closely paralleled the true story of the 1955 murder of Emmett Till in Money, Mississippi. Thereafter, PBS began airing repeats of the original episodes, ceasing after one complete showing of the entire series.
First Air Date: 1991-10-07
Last Air Date: 1993-10-11
Number of Seasons: 3
Number of Episodes: 39
Created By: John Falsey, Joshua Brand
Networks: NBC
Top Cast
- Mary Alice as Marguerite Peck
- Sam Waterston as Forrest Bedford
- Regina Taylor as Lilly Harper
- Jeremy London as Nathaniel 'Nathan' Bedford
- Ashlee Levitch as Francie Bedford
- John Aaron Bennett as John Morgan Bedford
- Peter Simmons as Paul Slocum
- Kathryn Harrold as Christina LeKatzis
- Bill Cobbs as Lewis Coleman
- Rae'Ven Larrymore Kelly as Adlaine Harper
Seasons
Season 1 (1991)
No overview available for this season.
Episodes:
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Ep. 1: I'll Fly Away (Pilot)
Lawyer Forrest Bedford struggles to raise a family amid the civil-rights strife of the 1958 South, aided by Lily, a lack housekeeper who comes to work in the opener to find Forrest prosecuting a young white for a bus accident that killed three black; and little John Morgan missing his hospitalized mama.
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Ep. 2: The Hat
When John Morgan loses his cowboy hat out of the car window, Lilly finds it—but then so does her daughter—-while Forrest faces verbal cross-fire over a beating case arising from the demonstration.
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Ep. 3: Rules of the Game
With Forrest away on a weekend hunting trip, womanhood takes aim at Francie, who feels utterly alone; while worries about the fate of an errant arrow dog, John Morgan.
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Ep. 4: Amazing Grace
As Forrest joins the race for attorney general, Lilly considers attending a voting-rights meetings, while Francie elects to overcome her writer's block by committing a betrayal.
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Ep. 5: All God's Children
John Morgan is upset when he doesn't get to go to Lilly's birthday party; the wrestlers aren't celebrating Zollicofer's decision to let a black join the team; Forrest realizes running for office isn't going to be a piece of cake.
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Ep. 6: Beyond Here Dar Be Dragons
On Halloween, the specter of the KKK haunts Christina as she's asked to investigate Prevtiss Carver's death. It also haunts John Morgan, who's heard about the ""dragon men"" from Adlaine.
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Ep. 7: Parallel Lives
Slocum wrestles with his conscience—-and with-–Evans as Zollicfer applies pressure over the brick-throwing incident; Lilly balks when Lewis, wanting to relive his time in the Negro Leagues, takes his eyes off the ball at home.
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Ep. 8: Coming Home
Thanksgiving brings family—and conflict—home: Gwen's visit from the mental hospital knocks the stuffing out of the Bedfords, especially Nathan; and Lilly's brother makes a pilgrimage home after discovering the New World of the North.
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Ep. 9: Some Desperate Glory
A game of checkers turns deadly serious for Nathan and Slocum; Lilly helps Francie, who's afraid she'll lay an egg singing in the church benefit.
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Ep. 10: Desire
Lilly expresses a burning desire to divorce her absent husband; sparks fly between Nathan and a carnival worker; Forrest's arrest of an upstanding citizen in the McDaniel murder adds fuel to the fire against him, which licks at John Morgan.
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Ep. 11: Alice Oakley Doesn't Live Here Anymore
John Morgan makes up a tall tale about his absent mother joining the rodeo; as the trial approaches, Forrest lassos a witness and then tightens the rope; Slocum's father brands his son a loser and kicks him out of the house.
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Ep. 12: On the Road
On a campaign swing, Forrest lobbies for the affections of a difficult Francie, while Lilly faces a difficult test registering to vote.
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Ep. 13: Master Magician
As Election Day nears, John Morgan plans a post-victory show, but Forrest isn't sure he can pull a win out of his hat in his race for attorney general. He's facing a blackmail threat from a drunken Tyler. Meanwhile, Lilly's determination to vote remains unabated, even after her faith is tested by the opposition of her minister. But discrimination at the polling place makes that step forward seems more like an illusion.
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Ep. 14: Hard Lessons
Forrest faces a test in courage when some of the townsfolk decide to teach him a lesson; Nathan is eager to learn why Forrest and Lake had a falling-out; and Lilly enrolls in night school.
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Ep. 15: Cool Winter Blues
An impromptu lunch-counter protest leads to a more serious demonstration; Lilly has to chew out John Morgan and an unruly friend; Nathan, stunned by a revelation about his girlfriend, wishes he could eat his words after Slocum repeals them to her.
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Ep. 16: The Way Things Are
Forrest is shocked when Rev. Henry's latest protest sparks Lilly to action; Nathan and Diane's status as a couple generates charged comments; John Morgan fools with electricity.
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Ep. 17: Slow Dark Coming
Diane's father tries to put a damper on her and Nathan's passions; racial tensions heat up with the department-store boycott, leaving Lilly's cousin Oscar out in the cold.
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Ep. 18: Toy Soldiers
Not realizing how deep town sentiment runs, Lilly and Forrest learn fast after witnessing a police attack on black children; tucker robs the cradle with Forrests' young campaign worker; Francie behaves childishly after being asked to walk John Morgan to school.
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Ep. 19: The Kindness of Strangers
Lilly finds herself in time with a visiting sax player; a frustrated Forrest wants someone to face the music about his incompetent opposing counsel in a murder trial; Slocum is jazzed to find Zollicofer in town, trying to get his job back.
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Ep. 20: Not Buried
John Morgan tries to put to rest his guilt and fear over an elderly neighbor's passing; Forrest asks Christina to step in to save the dying defense of a black man accused of murder.
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Ep. 21: A Dangerous Comfort
Lilly feels no pain when she's with Clarence, but Lewis isn't as intoxicated by his presence; Christina faces her own demons helping alcoholic tucker dry out; Nathan keeps his anger bottled up after catching Forrest in a compromising position.
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Ep. 22: The Slightest Distance
Forrest ponders an offer for a challenging job; Lilly tries to make peace between her father and Clarence, who asks her to make a life-changing decision; Nathan sees something he shouldn't; and Slocum saves his mother's birthday party.
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