The author and playwright helped establish Sarasota’s New College John Jakes Endowed Writing Scholarship, and The Florida State University Libraries named him a Florida Literary Legend. The script has been widely produced by university and regional theaters, including the Alabama Shakespeare Festival and the Burt Reynolds Institute for Theater Training in West Palm Beach. Jakes’ later work included a stage adaptation of A Christmas Carol for his home playhouse on Hilton Head Island in the late 1980s. Hal Holbrook portrayed Abraham Lincoln in all three miniseries, along with Robert Guillaume as Frederick Douglass and Johnny Cash as John Brown. Most returned for the third installment, with the exception of Swayze.

The large cast of North And South also featured Lesley-Anne Down, Wendy Kilbourne, Kirstie Alley and Genie Francis.

The first two miniseries starred Patrick Swayze and James Read as best friends who found themselves fighting on opposite sides during the war. The trilogy was adapted into ABC’s successful trio of miniseries, beginning with North and South in 1985, followed by the renamed North And South Book II in ’86 and Heaven and Hell: North And South Book III in ’94. North And South, the first book in the series, was published in 1982, with Love And War arriving in ’84 and Heaven And Hell in ’87. 1) John Jakes From 3.59 2 The Rebels (Kent Family Chronicles, 2) John Jakes From 3.59 3 The Seekers (Kent Family Chronicles, Volume 3) John Jakes From 3.79 4 The Furies (Kent Family Chronicles 4) John Jakes From 3.59 5 The Titans (Kent Family Chronicles, Vol.

The Bastard was adapted into a four-hour TV movie starring Andrew Stevens in 1978, airing as part of Operation Prime Time, a consortium of American independent television stations.Įven more popular was Jakes’ North And South trilogy set before, during and immediately after the Civil War. 9 Books 1 The Bastard (Kent Family Chronicles, Vol. Andrew Stevens, Tom Bosley, ‘The Bastard’, 1978 (Credit: Everett Collection)

The Bastard by John Jakes