BJ AND THE BEAR: SILENT NIGHT, UNHOLY NIGHT (TV)

Summary

One in this comedy series about a wandering trucker and his pet chimpanzee Bear.

Tom Spencer, a criminal lawyer investigating the corrupt local Sheriff Nathan T. McCandles, is beset by problems when McCandles’ men ransack his office. He instructs his pregnant wife Alison to retrieve a diary he secretly obtained from McCandles and to deliver it personally to him at the federal building, despite the approach of Christmas and a heavy snowstorm. BJ takes a job transporting live turkeys, which is complicated when Bear lets them out of their enclosure and allows them to run amok. McCandles orders his deputy to retrieve the diary, which contains incriminating evidence of his illicit activities. He instructs the deputy to follow Tom to determine the diary’s location, hoping to intimidate him into dropping his investigation. He discovers that Alison has the diary and orders all of his units to find and apprehend her at once. Alison and BJ encounter each other on the road and get into an accident, wrecking her car by the roadside. BJ rushes to extricate her from the vehicle before it explodes. She bursts into tears, explaining that her children’s Christmas presents were in the back seat. He gives her a ride, and they drive off before McCandles and his men can arrive at the scene of the burning car.

BJ offers to take Alison to the hospital, worried that she or her unborn child may have suffered injury. She refuses to go there and instead asks to be dropped off at a Christmas party that her children are attending. BJ agrees, although he is still worried about her condition. McCandles learns that Alison is with BJ and orders his men to track him down. They arrive at the party and BJ meets Alison’s children Debbie and Jim. BJ decides to stay a little longer and entertain the children by singing to them. Alison attempts to call Tom but cannot get through to him. She becomes nervous when she spots a growing number of police cars stationed outside. BJ asks for an explanation and she tells him about Tom’s investigation and her involvement in the case. She asks him to drive her to the federal building to meet with Tom and he agrees regardless of his transportation deadline, realizing that she is in great danger. BJ organizes a distraction, allowing him to bring Alison to his truck and get away safely.

Alison and BJ stop in a roadside café to get something to eat. BJ asks to see the diary and Alison shows it to him, he briefly peruses it and offers to keep it on his person for the time being. Alison laments that Tom’s obsession with prosecuting McCandles over the past few months has made it difficult to spend time with him. McCandles and his men pull up to the café and Bear leaves the truck to warn BJ and Alison. They slip out of the back way in order to evade their notice. Alison hesitates, feeling discomfort, but gets into BJ’s truck as they make their escape. Alison continues to suffer pain, wondering if it is being caused by her baby. They encounter a roadblock set up by McCandles’ men and BJ decides to plow straight through it, scattering the assembled policemen. They end up at the residence of Captain John Sebastian Cain, sheriff of the neighboring county, and BJ explains the situation to him. Cain assures them that they are over the county line and are thus safe from McCandles for the moment. However, McCandles arrives with several squad cars and demands that BJ and Alison be brought out. Cain steps out and places BJ and Alison under protective custody, but McCandles does not care and threatens to come in and take them by force if necessary. Realizing that McCandles will not be swayed, Cain and several other officers take up arms to cover BJ and Alison’s escape.

However, McCandles and his men manage to seize Alison while she and BJ are sneaking out. There is a brief struggle and Cain helps them escape. Alison’s pains grow worse and it becomes clear that her baby is coming out soon, although there are no hospitals nearby for her to visit. They pull over by the side of the road and BJ does his best to calm an increasingly panicked Alison. He takes her to the back of the truck and successfully delivers her baby, a girl whom she names “Harriet.” Cain’s policemen arrive in order to help escort BJ and Alison to the federal building. Eventually they reach their destination and deliver the diary to Tom while Alison and Harriet are brought to the hospital to recover. BJ manages to make his turkey delivery just in time. Later BJ attends a Christmas party and Alison comes with Harriet to visit him, naming BJ as Harriet’s godfather. She tearfully tells him that she has to go out to join her husband and family, seemingly unwilling to part ways with BJ. Commercials deleted.

Details

NETWORK: NBC
DATE: December 15, 1979 9:00 PM
RUNNING TIME: 0:47:57
COLOR/B&W: Color
CATALOG ID: B:71725
GENRE: Comedy
SUBJECT HEADING: Comedy; Chimpanzees; Christmas
SERIES RUN: NBC - TV series, 1979-1981
COMMERCIALS: N/A

CREDITS

Glen A. Larson … Executive Producer, Created by, Theme Music by
Michael Sloan … Executive Producer, Writer
Joe Boston … Producer
Richard Lindheim … Co-Producer
Roy Watts … Associate Producer
Vince Edwards … Director
Christopher Crowe … Created by
Stu Phillips … Music by
Greg Evigan … Theme Music by
Greg Evigan … Cast, Billy Joe "BJ" McKay
Pamela Susan Shoop … Cast, Alison Spencer
Dana Elcar … Cast, Sheriff Nathan T. McCandles
Ted Danson … Cast, Tom Spencer
Marc Alaimo … Cast, Randy
Joshua Shelley … Cast, Bullets
Otto Felix … Cast, Deputy Higgins
Janet Louise Johnson … Cast, Tommy
Mark Harrison … Cast, Officer Cain
Bert Rosario … Cast, Mark Harrison
Ed Lauter … Cast, Captain John Sebastian Cain
Hank Garrett … Cast, Officer Rosen
Susan Gay Powell … Cast, Jill Cummings
Tom Jackman … Cast, Deputy Karlen
Hank Underwood … Cast, Cooper
Patrick Brennan … Cast, Jim
Tyler Darling … Cast, Debbie
Pat Studstill … Cast, 1st Officer
John Lawrence … Cast, McIntire
Eileen Aroesti … Cast, Waitress