| My Sweet Charlie | |
|---|---|
 Videotape cover | |
| Based on | My Sweet Charlie byDavid Westheimer |
| Written by | Richard Levinson William Link |
| Directed by | Lamont Johnson |
| Starring | Patty Duke Al Freeman Jr. |
| Theme music composer | Gil Melle |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Bob Banner |
| Producers | Richard Levinson William Link |
| Cinematography | Gene Polito |
| Editor | Edward M. Abroms |
| Running time | 97 minutes |
| Production company | Universal Television |
| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | January 20, 1970 (1970-01-20) |
My Sweet Charlie is a 1970 Americanmade-for-televisiondrama film directed byLamont Johnson. Theteleplay byRichard Levinson andWilliam Link is based on the novel of the same name byDavid Westheimer. Produced byUniversal Television and broadcast byNBC on January 20, 1970, it later had a brief theatrical release. It is considered a landmark in television films. The film was made on location inPort Bolivar, Texas.
Set during the Civil Rights Movement, Charlie Roberts is a militantAfrican Americanattorney fromNew York City falsely accused ofmurder during a demonstration inruralTexas.
Escaping from his captors, Charlie breaks into a vacant coastal vacation home, where he encounters white Marlene Chambers, an uneducated,prejudiced, unwed pregnant teenager who has been shunned by her father and boyfriend due to her pregnancy and who sought refuge in the vacant home a few weeks before Charlie arrives.
Realizing their survival depends upon their willingness to help each other, their relationship, at first defined by mutual contempt, prejudice, and hostility, slowly evolves into a touching friendship.
In 1966, Westheimer adapted his novel for a play that opened atBroadway'sLongacre Theatre withBonnie Bedelia andLouis Gossett in the leading roles. It ran for 12 previews and 31 performances.[1]
The television production was filmed on location inPort Bolivar, Texas in 1968 and was plagued by almost as many racial tensions as those depicted in the film. According to Patty Duke in her autobiography, her friendship with Freeman led to rumors of an affair.Marijuana was planted in Duke's Galveston hotel room by locals, though it was quickly determined not to belong to Duke. Texas governorJohn Connally intervened with local authorities to stop harassment of the production company and Duke.[2]
The film earned very high ratings, with aNielsen rating of 31.7, an audience share of 48% and a record audience for a TV movie with 18.5 million homes watching.[3][4]
Both leading actors were nominated forEmmy Awards, and Patty Duke won.[5]
| Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1970 | NAACP Image Awards | Best Program of the Year | Won | [6] | |
| Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Dramatic Program | Nominated | [7] | ||
| Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role | Al Freeman Jr. | Nominated | |||
| Outstanding Single Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role | Patty Duke | Won | |||
| Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Drama | Lamont Johnson | Nominated | |||
| Outstanding Writing Achievement in Drama | Richard Levinson andWilliam Link | Won | |||
| Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography for Entertainment Programming – For a Special or Feature Length Program Made for Television | Gene Polito | Nominated | |||
| Outstanding Achievement in Film Editing for Entertainment Programming – For a Special or Feature Length Program Made for Television | Edward M. Abroms | Won | |||
| Outstanding Achievement in Film Sound Mixing | Roger Heman Jr.,Melvin Metcalfe Sr., Clarence Self, andJohn Stransky Jr. | Nominated | |||
1971 | Directors Guild of America Awards | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Television | Lamont Johnson | Won | [8] |