B. J. and the Bear
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| BJ and the Bear | |
|---|---|
| Format | Comedy-drama |
| Starring | Greg Evigan Claude Akins |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| No. of seasons | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 48 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | NBC |
| Original run | February 10, 1979 – August 1, 1981 |
| External links | |
| IMDb profile | |
| TV.com summary | |
B.J. and the Bear was a comedy/adventure television series which aired on NBC from 1979 to 1981. It starred Greg Evigan.
[edit] Plot
Evigan stars as B. J. (Billie Joe) McKay, a professional freelance itinerant trucker who traveled the country's highways in a red and white Kenworth K-100 cab over semi truck with his pet chimpanzee, Bear (named for Bear Bryant, the famed college football coach; this explains the chimp's choice of headwear). He was constantly harassed by sheriff Elroy P. Lobo (Claude Akins, who eventually spun off onto his own show, The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo).
In 1981, when the show returned from hiatus, B.J. had settled down to run Bear Enterprises, a trucking company based in Los Angeles. His nemesis was Rutherford T. Grant (Murray Hamilton), the corrupt head of the state's Special Crimes Action Team, who was a silent partner in a competing trucking company. Because of Grant's harassment, B.J. was unable to hire experienced truckers, and he was forced to hire several beautiful young female truckers, including Grant's daughter Cindy (Sherilyn Wolter), and another busty blonde nicknamed "Stacks" (Judy Landers).
[edit] Cultural references
- The band Minus the Bear derived their name from a joke based on the show title.
- The UK sitcom Max and Paddy's Road to Nowhere parodies parts of the show theme song in its opening credits.
- On one podcast from the Ninja of Ask A Ninja he reveals his love for the show and hums a little bit of the theme.
- In Kevin Smith's Mallrats, Brody (Jason Lee) remarks to his friend T.S. Quint (Jeremy London) that he'd like to see a remake of B.J. and the Bear, (...'a remake good show') because if there is one thing he can't " get enough of ", it's " a man and his monkey ".
