King (miniseries)

{{Infobox television

| image = King(1978).jpg

| image_size =

| caption = DVD cover

| writer = Abby Mann

| director = Abby Mann

| starring = {{Plainlist|

}}

| music = Billy Goldenberg

| country = United States

| language = English

| executive_producer = Edward S. Feldman

| producer = Paul Maslansky

| cinematography = Michael Chapman

| editor = {{Plainlist|

Byron "Buzz" Brandt
Rich Meyer
David Berlatsky

}}

| num_episodes = 3

| network = NBC

| first_aired = {{Start date|1978|02|12}}

| last_aired = {{End date|1978|02|14}}

| runtime = 300 minutes

}}

King is a 1978 American television miniseries written and directed by Abby Mann, based on the life of Martin Luther King Jr., the American civil rights leader. It aired for three consecutive nights on NBC from February 12 through 14, 1978.

Production

Several real-life figures from the Civil Rights Movement had minor roles in the production, including then-Atlanta mayor Maynard Jackson, King's sister Christine King Farris, his niece Alveda King, and his four children: Yolanda, Martin III, Dexter and Bernice. Donzaleigh Abernathy, Tony Bennett, Julian Bond and Ramsey Clark each portrayed themselves.

Reception

The miniseries earned nine Emmy Award nominations, including nominations for actors Paul Winfield, Cicely Tyson and Ossie Davis.

Though heavily promoted, the series met with controversy and was a huge ratings disappointment. The first installment was the lowest rated of all 64 prime time programs for the week of its debut.(16 February 1978). [https://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=d&d=DS19780216.2.151&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1 ABC Tops in Ratings], Desert Sun(20 April 1978). [https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=SCS19780428.1.53&srpos=2&e=------197-en--20--1--txt-txIN-nielsen+%22martin+luther+king%22----1978---1 'Holocaust' Sweeps TV Ratings], Santa Cruz Sentinel ("NBC suffered disastrous ratings on 'King'") (Associated Press story)Fuller, Jennifer. [https://go.gale.com/ps/anonymous?id=GALE%7CA221432370&sid=googleScholar&v=2.1&it=r&linkaccess=abs&issn=00097101&p=LitRC&sw=w Dangerous fictions: race, history, and King], in Cinema Journal (Vol 49, Issue 2) (Winter 2010)Cameron, Chris (4 January 2015). [https://www.aaihs.org/king-of-media-kings/ King of (Media) Kings], African American Intellectual History Society (AAIHS)Winfrey, Carey (16 February 1978). [https://www.nytimes.com/1978/02/16/archives/5-million-tv-documentary-show-is-regarded-as-a-rating-disaster.html $5 Million TV Documentary Show Is Regarded as a Rating Disaster], The New York Times, p. C19.Wilkins, Roger (16 February 1978). [https://www.nytimes.com/1978/02/16/archives/controversy-on-films-accuracy-flares-up-among-black-activists.html Controversy on Film's Accuracy Flares Up Among Black Activists], The New York Times, p. C19.

Cast

Paul Winfield as Martin Luther King Jr.
Cicely Tyson as Coretta Scott King
Tony Bennett as himself
Roscoe Lee Browne as Phillip Harrison
Lonny Chapman as Chief Frank Holloman
Ossie Davis as Martin Luther King Sr.
Cliff DeYoung as Robert F. Kennedy
Al Freeman Jr. as Damon Lockwood
Clu Gulager as William C. Sullivan
Steven Hill as Stanley Levison
William Jordan as John F. Kennedy
Warren J. Kemmerling as Lyndon B. Johnson
Lincoln Kilpatrick as Jerry WaringWaring is a fictitious character. In real life, his actions as depicted in the miniseries were performed by C. T. Vivian.
Kenneth McMillan as Theophilus E. "Bull" Connor
Howard E. Rollins Jr. as Andrew Young
David Spielberg as David Beamer
Dolph Sweet as J. Edgar Hoover
Dick Anthony Williams as Malcolm X
Art Evans as A.D. King
Frances Foster as Alberta Williams King
Tony Holmes as Martin Luther King III
Felecia Hunter as Yolanda King
Roger Robinson as Fred Shuttlesworth
Ernie Lee Banks as Ralph Abernathy
Donzaleigh Abernathy as herself
Alveda King as Babysitter
Julian Bond as himself
Ramsey Clark as himself
Christine King Farris as Ferris Church Soloist
Maynard Jackson as Wallace Whitmore
Bernice King as Student
Dexter Scott King as Student #2
Martin Luther King III as Rev. Briggs
Yolanda King as Rosa Parks

Annazette Chase was considered to portray Coretta Scott King.{{cite news|last=Kleiner|first=Dick|title=Beauty a Handicap, Miss Raffin Finds|date=3 May 1977|newspaper=Pittsburgh Press|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1144&dat=19770503&id=wIAqAAAAIBAJ&pg=5651,2132347&hl=en|access-date=25 April 2016}}