J.T. (TV): modcinema*

J.T. (TV) (1969 USA)

Directed by Robert M. Young
Starring: Kevin Hooks, Theresa Merritt, Ja'net DuBois
Genres: Black, Drama, Kids
49 minutes | Full screen | Color | English

This exquisite drama stars Kevin Hooks as a young kid in Harlem who misbehaves at home and in the neighborhood until he unofficially adopts and cares for a badly injured alley cat days before Christmas and secretly nurses it back to health. J.T. was one of the first productions of its kind that did not condescend to its African American subjects, and writer Jane Wagner's humanism is the guiding spirit of the movie, along with her ability to inhabit her characters' lives and actions. After it premiered, Lily Tomlin tapped Wagner to help develop material for her knowing kid character Edith Ann, among others, for her 1972 Grammy-nominated album Modern Scream.

This exquisite drama stars Kevin Hooks as a young kid in Harlem who misbehaves at home and in the neighborhood until he unofficially adopts and cares for a badly injured alley cat days before Christmas and secretly nurses it back to health. J.T. was one of the first productions of its kind that did not condescend to its African American subjects, and writer Jane Wagner's humanism is the guiding spirit of the movie, along with her ability to inhabit her characters' lives and actions. After it premiered, Lily Tomlin tapped Wagner to help develop material for her knowing kid character Edith Ann, among others, for her 1972 Grammy-nominated album Modern Scream.

J.T. (TV) (1969 USA)

Screen Caps