The Rebels (1979)

The Rebels was the second "Operation Prime Time" miniseries to be based on author John Jakes' Kent Family Chronicles (the first was The Bastard). The saga of Philip Kent (Andrew Stevens), illegitimate son of a British blueblood, picks up with Kent fighting in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. Part One of this two-part endeavor busies itself with setting up characters, places and events; Part Two finds Kent and his pal Judson Fletcher (Don Johnson) teaming up to prevent the assassination of General George Washington (Peter Graves). The enormous all-star cast includes Richard Basehart, Doug McClure, Joan Blondell, Tom Bosley, Macdonald Carey, Robert Vaughan, William Daniels and Nehemiah Persoff; William Conrad does off-screen duty as narrator. The Rebels was syndicated to local TV stations beginning the week of May 14, 1979. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi