Evening Shade

During the opening credits to Evening Shade, they showed photos of the principal actors "growing up" and it was obvious that they had used real childhood photos of the real actors. I always wondered about the Hal Holbrook photo in a West Point style military uniform. I figured it was not just an idle thought, but had some significance. It wasn't until I came to work at Culver Military Academy, Culver, IN, that I discovered that Harold Rowe Holbrook, Jr. was a graduate of the class of '42. It was there he discovered his love for acting, though by his own admission, he was not the best cadet. He was recently enshrined in Culver's Arts & Entertainment Hall of Fame.

A low key Sitcom/drama that never found the right audience the show deserved. Its one of the good shows I used to watched on CBS that I wished was still on. Good performances were given by acting veterans like Burt Reynolds and Marilu Henner. "Evening Shade"(1990) had some interesting episodes that dealt with fascinating themes. Ossie Davis brought class to a television show which deserved better than what it got.

I was up late one night last week and channel surfing when I heard an old familiar favorite theme song. " got my front porch swing, a glass of lemonade". I thought I had died and went to heaven. Is it possible ? Yes, Evening Shade was actually on CMT. I loved this show when it originally aired on CBS in the early 90's. I found the warmth and humor so refreshing and was a loyal viewer until the end. Burt and his cast were close in real life and that brought a wonderful humanity to the screen. The talent alone on that show was enough to make it believable. But knowing that these actors, Micheal Jeter, Charles Durning, Hal Holbrook, Ozzie Davis, Marilu Henner, and of course Burt Reynolds had not only worked together in the past, but actually were friends made the chemistry on the show so enjoyable to watch. I have spent the last week hoping to see Evening Shade on the CMT line-up, but I have been disappointed. If anyone knows anything about any DVD sales or any station listing it, please post. THANK YOU. HAPPY WATCHING.

I admired many of Burt Reynolds performances... he never seemed to take himself seriously but would take on any kind of role. Comedy to drama, to action and playing a lovable character to a despicable jerk. That is acting. He has done well at that and has the box office and numerous awards to back it up, but when he surrounded himself with a bunch of close friends who also happened to be first rate actors... the magic of Evening Shade happened. Well scripted first rate story lines all fluidly performed by this stellar cast. I often surf the net looking for information on a DVD box set release. Shows of much less stature, and certainly much less quality are already out so I keep on hoping to spend some more quality TV viewing evenings... in the town of Evening Shade!

An underrated television program from the early years of the last decade which featured good stories, interesting subplots, and brilliant mixture of comedy and drama. Was Burt Reynolds's last time that he gave a good and consistent performance as an actor. Evening Shade(1990) is definitely better than any of the shows on NBC today which passes for quality television. Also contributing to the good acting was Charles Durning and Ossie Davis. One of my favorite shows from that time period that derserved to stay on air longer.