PAPER CHASE, THE: THE SECOND YEAR: OUTLINE FEVER {SECOND SEASON PREMIERE} (TV)
Summary
One in this drama series about law student James T. Hart and his fellow Harvard classmates, based on the novel by John Jay Osborn, Jr. In this episode, Hart and Ford happily return to campus for their second year and move into an apartment together. Elsewhere, Bell runs an orientation meeting with the first-year students, or 1Ls, but they are only interested in advice on handling the notoriously challenging Professor Kingsfield. He advises them to procure an outline from a 2L, and one student, Sims, seeks out Hart, the only student to receive an A from Kingsfield in recent memory. He requests to buy his outline, but Hart turns him down. Sims next finds Connie Lehman and invites her into a study group, but she is unsure. The next day, in class, Kingsfield is particularly tough on Lehman and she is embarrassed by her incorrect answer, and Sims retracts his offer. Kingsfield then visits the law review office, where Golden has been elected president, and offers them all a rather dire warning about overconfidence. Golden gives Hart a tough assignment and Hart heads off to the library, where he meets a stressed-out Lehman and offers her some advice. Late at night, a panicked 1L calls Hart and Ford's home, begging for the outline, and Hart again refuses. Sims too has trouble in Kingsfield's class as they discuss prophecy versus promise, and he appeals to Bell about the outline, saying that he would pay a great deal of money for it. Hart calls Lehman for a date and they discuss Kingsfield further, with Hart giving her a book written by the professor himself.
Lehman then attends a meeting with the professor and politely requests that he refrain from calling on her until she has had a chance to learn more, but he flatly refuses and sends her away. Bell chastises her for revealing her self-doubt, and when Hart attends Kingsfield's prestigious seminar class, Kingsfield does not remember his grade-A student. Hart finds the class "fantastic," however, and Bell and Ford approach him about the outline again. He argues that the 1Ls should do their own work, but they outvote him, as they wrote the outline as a group, and they decide to hold an auction for the desperate students, making comparisons to the Roman Colosseum and deciding to hold the event in Kingsfield's lecture hall. Mrs. Nottingham balks at the request, but Bell claims that he wants to use the room for something to do with Roman law, and she gives in. They make flyers and the 1Ls discuss the event, with Sims desperately trying to procure money from his family. At the auction, Bell assumes Kingsfield's place at the podium and riles up the crowd with talk of the challenges of law school, and the bidding begins.
Hart learns of the auction as he studies with Lehman in the library, and Sims' bid of $600 eventually wins, though he admits he does not yet have the cash. Nottingham finds the flyer and realizes their trick, and Hart steals the outline back, disapproving. He returns to his apartment with Lehman, but she is distracted from their date by the outline and asks to borrow it, and though he is reluctant, he gives in. Bell and Ford confront Hart at the law review, saying that the outline is worthless if it is made public, suggesting that Lehman may have faked her romantic interest in Hart to get the notes. Hart then catches Lehman making copies and accuses her of playing him false, and she is insulted and gives the outline back. Kingsfield summons Bell to his office and, having heard of his "interest" in Roman law, orders him to make a long presentation in class on the subject for no credit. Sims finally comes up with the money and buys the outline, though Hart demands a copy for himself. Bell delivers his "unusual" presentation on Cicero and does reasonably well, and Hart is impressed, though Kingsfield somewhat less so. In class, Sims uses the outline to give an answer, but realizes that the information is outdated because of the ever-changing nature of the law. Lehman, though stymied at first, gives the correct answer from her own work, and later meets up with Hart, admitting that he was right about not taking shortcuts and suggesting that they start their relationship over, and he agrees. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: Showtime
- DATE: April 15, 1983 8:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:00:00
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:15523
- GENRE: Drama, legal
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, legal
- SERIES RUN: Showtime - TV series, 1978-1986
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Lynn Roth … Executive Producer
- Cleve Landsberg … Producer
- Keith Alexander … Associate Producer
- Jack Bender … Director
- James Bridges … Developed by
- John Jay Osborn Jr. … Writer, Based on the book by
- Stephen Seretan … Music by
- John Houseman … Cast, Professor Charles W. Kingsfield Jr.
- James Stephens … Cast, James T. Hart
- Tom Fitzsimmons … Cast, Franklin Ford III
- James Keane … Cast, Willis Bell
- Jane Kaczmarek … Cast, Connie Lehman
- Michael Tucci … Cast, Gerald Golden
- Betty Harford … Cast, Mrs. Nottingham
- Mark Schubb … Cast, Sims
- Michael Chieffo … Cast
- Wendy Kilbourne … Cast
- Michael Mitz … Cast
- Nancy Morgan … Cast
- Richard Wygant … Cast
- Gabriel Yorke … Cast
- Marion Yue … Cast