Highway to Heaven

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Highway to Heaven
Highway To Heaven.jpg
Genre Supernatural
Family Drama
Directed by William F. Claxton
Victor French
Dan Gordon
Kevin Inch
Michael Landon
Starring Michael Landon
Victor French
Country of origin United States
No. of seasons 5
No. of episodes 111 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s) Michael Landon
Producer(s) Kent McCray
Camera setup Single-camera
Running time 45–48 minutes
Production company(s) Michael Landon Productions
Distributor Genesis Entertainment
20th Television (1997-present)
Broadcast
Original channel NBC
Original run August 19, 1984 (1984-08-19) – August 1, 1989 (1989-08-01)

Highway to Heaven is an American television drama series which ran on NBC from 1984 to 1989. The series aired for five seasons, running a total of 111 episodes. It was shot entirely in California.

Contents

Synopsis [edit]

The series stars Michael Landon as Jonathan Smith, an angel sent down to earth "on probation", and his human companion Mark Gordon, played by Victor French, Landon's co-star from Little House on the Prairie. Jonathan and Mark are given "assignments" by "The Boss" (God) where they are required to use their humanity (and sometimes a little bit of "The Stuff") in order to help various troubled souls to overcome their problems. Examples of these problems include families dealing with sick loved ones; wealthy and greedy businessmen being encouraged to use their wealth for good; and discouraging prejudice in regards to people of different ethnicities, appearances, or socioeconomic backgrounds or who have disabilities. While dealing with these situations with sensitivity, Highway to Heaven also used humor – particularly between Jonathan and Mark. Their personalities often clash (Jonathan being more sensible and compassionate but naive, and Mark being more pragmatic and cynical), but they always support each other. Jonathan's mission on Earth is to do enough good so that he could earn his wings and, presumably, ascend to heaven. Due to the close relationship that builds between Jonathan and Mark, this becomes a contentious issue as Mark does not want to lose his friend, and sometimes tries to prevent it from happening.[1]

Guest stars [edit]

Guest stars Devon Odessa, Alyson Croft, and Joshua John Miller all won Young Artist Awards for their appearances. Landon's Bonanza co-star Lorne Greene appeared in a 1985 episode. Landon's Little House on the Prairie co-star Matthew Laborteaux appeared in the Season 1 episode "The Right Thing". Moses Gunn, who also co-starred on Little House on the Prairie and starred on Father Murphy, appeared in the Season 2 episode "Popcorn, Peanuts and Cracker Jacks". Barbara Stuart appeared as Carla in the 1986 two-part episode "Love and Marriage". In his last roles, Tyler McVey appeared in separate episodes in 1985 and 1986 as a minister. Don Keefer portrayed Dr. Washburn in the 1986 episode "For the Love of Larry". Anthony Zerbe played a servant of the devil in the episode "The Devil and Jonathan Smith". In the May 1985 2 part episode, "The Thoroughbred", Helen Hunt starred as a young and expectant mother with cancer. In Season 3, episode 9 "Code Named Freak", a young Jeff B. Davis guest starred as a twelve year old boy genius in college. Davis is known for his guest appearances in Whose Line is it Anyway? and regular appearance on Drew Carey's Improv-A-Ganza, both shows of improvisation.

Other notable guest stars include:

Production notes [edit]

Filming locations [edit]

Victor French and Michael Landon.

Filming locations included Los Angeles, Simi Valley, Stanislaus National Forest, and Tuolumne County, all in California. In addition, the pilot episode from 1984 was partially filmed along Dawn Road, south of Tucson, Arizona. The footage of Jonathan walking before being picked up by Mark was filmed in Tucson and along Soledad Canyon Road near Acton, California.

Theme song [edit]

The theme tune for Highway to Heaven was performed by David Rose.

Cancellation [edit]

In June 1988, NBC decided that season five would be the last, since the show was falling in the ratings. The show was removed from the 1988 fall schedule and used as a mid-season replacement in 1989. Michael Landon made an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson in early 1989 and explained this as the reason why episodes that were originally filmed in the fall of 1988 did not air until the late spring and summer of 1989. The episode aired on August 1, 1989. Series co-star Victor French died in June 1989 from lung cancer, but this was not the reason for the cancellation.

Syndication [edit]

The series currently airs in syndication on cable networks the GMC, NBC Nonstop, INSP - Inspiration, and the digital network RTV.

DVD releases [edit]

In Region 1, A&E Home Video (under license from the estate and production company of Michael Landon) released the first 3 seasons on DVD in 2005-2006.[2][3][4] The episodes contained on these releases are the edited, syndicated versions and not the original broadcast versions. Due to poor sales, the final two seasons were never released.

On March 18, 2013, it was announced that Mill Creek Entertainment had acquired the rights to the series and plan on releasing it in its entirety.[5] It was also announced that the complete first season will be re-released on May 14, 2013 and will contain the original uncut versions of all 25 episodes.

In Region 2, Paramount Home Entertainment & CBS DVD have released all five seasons on DVD in France under the title "Les Routes Du Paradis". The Box Art depicts the eye of Horus. Seasons 1 to 4 have been released in Germany under the title "Ein Engel auf Erden", while in the Netherlands, the first two seasons have been released on DVD.

Revelation Films acquired the rights to the series in the UK and has released the first three seasons on DVD. Season four will be released on July 29, 2013,[6] followed by the fifth and final season on October 7, 2013.[7]

In Region 4, Paramount Home Entertainment & CBS DVD have released the first three seasons on DVD in Australia. The episodes contained on these releases are edited, syndicated versions and not the original broadcast versions. Seasons 4 and 5 were to be released on DVD on December 24, 2009 but the releases never materialized. It is unknown when the final two seasons will be released. The Australian Region 4 DVD releases do not contain the Region 1 DVD Extras, but do have English and French soundtracks and subtitles.

DVD Name Ep # Release Dates
Region 1 Region 2 (France) Region 2 (Germany) Region 2 (UK) Region 4
Season 1 24 April 26, 2005 April 17, 2008 December 11, 2008 June 4, 2012 April 10, 2008
Season 2 24 August 30, 2005 October 9, 2008 March 5, 2009 October 29, 2012 September 4, 2008
Season 3 25 March 28, 2006 June 18, 2009 December 12, 2009 February 11, 2013 April 2, 2009
Season 4 24 N/A June 18, 2009 March 4, 2010 July 29, 2013 N/A
Season 5 13 N/A December 1, 2009 N/A October 7, 2013 N/A

References [edit]

  1. ^ O'Connor, John J. (September 19, 1984). "TV REVIEW; 'HIGHWAY TO HEAVEN' WITH LANDON". New York Times. Retrieved 2010-08-10. 
  2. ^ http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Highway-Heaven/2618
  3. ^ http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Highway-Heaven/3500
  4. ^ http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Highway-Heaven/4791
  5. ^ Highway to Heaven - The Classic Michael Landon Series Returns to DVD with MORE Than Ever!
  6. ^ http://www.amazon.co.uk/Highway-Heaven-Season-Four-DVD/dp/B00B3SQXZY
  7. ^ http://www.amazon.co.uk/Highway-Heaven-Season-Five-DVD/dp/B00B3SQXUY

External links [edit]

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