I'll Fly Away (1991)
I'll Fly Away is an American drama television series set during the late 1950s and early 1960s, in an unspecified Southern U.S. state. It aired on NBC from 1991 to 1993 and starred Regina Taylor as Lilly Harper, a black housekeeper for the family of district attorney Forrest Bedford, whose name is an ironic reference to Nathan Bedford Forrest, the founder of the Ku Klux Klan. As the show progressed, Lilly became increasingly involved in the Civil Rights Movement, with events eventually drawing in Forrest as well. I'll Fly Away won two 1992 Emmy Awards, and 23 nominations in total. It won three Humanitas Prizes, two Golden Globe Awards, two NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Drama Series, and a Peabody Award. However, the series was never a ratings blockbuster, and it was canceled by NBC in 1993, despite widespread protests by critics and viewer organizations. After the program's cancellation, a two-hour movie, I'll Fly Away: Then and Now, was produced, in order to resolve dangling storylines from Season 2, and provide the series with a true finale. The movie aired on October 11, 1993 on PBS. Its major storyline closely paralleled the true story of the 1955 murder of Emmett Till in Money, Mississippi. Thereafter, PBS began airing repeats of the original episodes, ceasing after one complete showing of the entire series.
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Episode 1 - Hello And Goodbye
Release Date: 1992-09-25In the second-season opener, Nathan reacts to Forrest's infidelity by deciding to confront Christina; Lilly struggles to give an answer to Clarence, who's new York bound; and Forrest opts to take the job as U.S. attorney, even though it means an FBI investigation of his life.
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Episode 2 - Ruler Of My Heart
Release Date: 1992-10-02Lilly is questioned by the FBI as part of Forrest's bid for U.S. attorney, and she gives some disturbing answers that may cost him the job; Forrest is surprised to learn Gwen may be coming home soon; and Francie throws a party.
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Episode 3 - All In The Life
Release Date: 1992-10-09On his first day at work as a U.S. attorney Forrest must break some bad news to his children about Gwen; the two suspects accused of killing Col. Landers are released—to no one's surprise; Slocum finds out that Parkie might be pregnant.
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Episode 4 - Until Tomorrow
Release Date: 1992-10-16The Bedfords deal with a painful loss; Slocum makes matters worse with regard to Parkie's pregnancy; Lewis takes Adlaine to a Shriners meeting.
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Episode 5 - Desperate Measure
Release Date: 1992-10-30Civil-rights leaders converge in the ""trial"" of the two men accused of killing Col. Landers, including Rev. Henry, who persuades Forrest to get involved. Meanwhile, Slocum and Parkie make some decisions about their unborn child; and Francie has trouble with her home-ec class.
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Episode 6 - Freedom Bus
Release Date: 1992-11-06A group of Freedom Riders rolls into town, one of whom stays with Lilly and changes the way she thinks about the civil-rights movement; Nathan takes his driver's license exam; and Forrest visits Washington, D.C., where he meets up with Christina.
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Episode 7 - Eighteen
Release Date: 1992-11-13Slocum decides to marry Parkie, but not before he and Nathan make a trip to a brothel; Lilly asks Forrest for a raise and is unglued by his response; Forrest persuades a young man to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan.
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Episode 8 - Fragile Truths
Release Date: 1992-11-20The police interrogate Slocum, who turns to Forrest for legal advice; Lilly throws a birthday party for Lewis that turns into a political debate when his nephew Oscar clashes with her; and Christina's pressured by her mother to date other men.
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Episode 9 - Since Walter
Release Date: 1992-11-27Frankie gets deeper into the KKK and finds out that there was a third man involved in the killing of Col. Landers; Slocum's trial commences; and Lilly's ex-husband comes to town, bringing with him his new fiancée.
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Episode 10 - The Third Man
Release Date: 1992-12-11Slocum's trial winds to a close, but not before Nathan pressures Coach Zollicofer to take the stand; Lilly tries to set Marguerite up with a train porter, but becomes attracted to him herself; and Forrest feels guilty over his treatment of Frankie.
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Episode 11 - Comfort And Joy
Release Date: 1992-12-11Lilly finds the holidays difficult to bear after she is brutally beaten by a freedom-bus protester; the Bedfords attend a Christmas party at Christina's house; and Slocum finds some Yuletide cheer in an unlikely place—Zollicofer's circle of friends.
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Episode 12 - Realpolitik
Release Date: 1993-01-08Lilly reluctantly leads a boycott of a racist's store; Forrest, after having words with his Washington contact, debates dropping the Landers' case; Christina and Forrest's relationship take a turn for the worse after they go away for a romantic weekend.
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Episode 13 - Small Wishes
Release Date: 1993-01-15Nathan is falsely arrested for narcotics possession; the Landers trial concludes with a shower of publicity, but it's not exactly what Forrest would have liked; and John Morgan becomes jealous of Lilly and Joe's relationship.
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Episode 14 - What's In A Name?
Release Date: 1993-01-22Forrest discovers that he's being followed—but it's not by whom he thinks; Nathan feels pressure at school over his relationship with Claudia; Lilly tries to persuade an elderly woman to register to vote.
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Episode 15 - Commencement
Release Date: 1993-01-29Lilly tries to study for her high-school final exams despite continual interruptions; Forrest confides to Christina that he's being matched and then goes to Washington to see if he can do something about it; and a group of students stages a sit-in.
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Episode 16 - State
Release Date: 1993-02-05Joe faces some tough decisions when he thinks about becoming a teacher for the community's new school. Meanwhile, Nathan reluctantly goes to a college interview that Forrest arranged with the dean of admissions.