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"Welcome Back, Kotter"
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"Welcome Back, Kotter" (1975) More at IMDbPro »TV series 1975-1979

Photos (see all 17 | slideshow) Videos (see all 5)
"Welcome Back, Kotter" (1975): Season 1: Episode 3 -- Clip: Season 3 - Episode 20 - There's No Business Like Show Business: Part 1
"Welcome Back, Kotter" (1975): Season 1: Episode 3 -- Clip: Season 1 - Episode 22 - Father Vinnie
"Welcome Back, Kotter" (1975): Season 1: Episode 3 -- Clip: Season 1 - Episode 19 - One Flu Over the Cuckoo's Nest
"Welcome Back, Kotter" (1975): Season 1: Episode 3 -- Clip: Season 1 - Episode 2 - Basket Case
"Welcome Back, Kotter" (1975): Season 1: Episode 3 -- Clip: Season 1 - Episode 3 - Welcome Back (Pilot)

Overview

User Rating:
7.3/10   524 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 14% in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Contact:
View company contact information for Welcome Back, Kotter on IMDbPro.
Seasons:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 full episode list
Release Date:
9 September 1975 (USA) more
Genre:
Comedy more
Plot:
A compassionate teacher returns to his inner city high school of his youth to teach a new generation of trouble making kids. full summary
Awards:
Nominated for 4 Primetime Emmys. Another 3 wins & 4 nominations more
User Comments:
Great Early Years, Awful in Final Season more

Cast

 (Series Cast Summary - 7 of 28)

Marcia Strassman ... Julie Kotter (92 episodes, 1975-1979)
John Sylvester White ... Mr. Michael Woodman (92 episodes, 1975-1979)

Robert Hegyes ... Juan Epstein (92 episodes, 1975-1979)
Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs ... Freddie 'Boom Boom' Washington / ... (92 episodes, 1975-1979)

Ron Palillo ... Arnold Horshack (91 episodes, 1975-1979)
Gabe Kaplan ... Gabe Kotter (79 episodes, 1975-1979)

John Travolta ... Vinnie Barbarino (78 episodes, 1975-1979)
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
"Kotter" (USA) (working title)
more
Runtime:
30 min (95 episodes)
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Sound Mix:
Mono

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
During the opening theme we see a sign that says "Welcome to Brooklyn: The 4th Largest City In America". The sign was located on the Brooklyn side of The Verrazano Narrows Bridge which connects Staten Island and Brooklyn. more
Quotes:
Vincent 'Vinnie' Barbarino: Love means never having to hear i'm pregnant more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Master Ninja II (#4.24)" (1992) more
Soundtrack:
Welcome Back more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
28 out of 28 people found the following comment useful:-
Great Early Years, Awful in Final Season, 8 July 2002
Author: John from Southfield, MI

This show ranks highly among the other 1970's shows which we remember: "All in the Family", "Maude", "Sanford and Son", "One Day at a Time", and "The Jeffersons". These shows dealt with issues such as racism, divorce, abortion, and being poor. These shows had writing that was great, and characters that were even greater. The characters, which had flaws (Archie Bunker, Fred Sanford, and George Jefferson, etc.) which we all, whether we were conservative, or liberal, or moderate, could relate to.

"Welcome Back, Kotter" was about a dedicated teacher who wanted to return to his alma mater to try to deal with a bunch of remedial, misfit high school students in inner city NYC when no one else wanted to deal with them. These types of teenagers were not tackled on TV before. The casting was perfect for the NYC setting: from the nerd in Horshack, to the cool maverick in Barbarino, to the Latino in Epstein, to the Black male, of course, in Washington. There is also the Principal in Mr. Woodman. The writing was great. The timing was awesome. The theme song by John Sebastian is breathtaking. The show was purely magical in its first few seasons.

There were problems, as life deals us sometimes. One was Marcia Straussman. She was very unhappy that her involvement in storylines was limited. It was unfortunate because the show primarily dealt with life at the school. Because she played the wife of the teacher, and she was primarily at home, there was not room for her. The act of making her a character on the show was not a good one. The Mrs. Kotter character would have been more appropriate on recurring basis. Another problem was differences between Gabe Kaplan and the other producers and writers. This explains why we never saw him much during the later run of the series.

Gabe Kaplan's lack of involvement in the show's fourth and final season was just one of the many problems which doomed the show. The writing in that final season was sloppy, unrealistic, unfunny, and was so amateurish. As a teenager watching the show in reruns, I saw that something was amiss. The actors on the show complained that the scripts were trash. A storyline about Horshack getting married was about as bad as the writing could get, and it was that. The E! Channel's "E! True Hollywood Story" about this show talks about that dismal fourth season. Another major problem with that show in the fourth season was that the actors who played the Sweathogs. The problem with actors playing teenagers is that they were older than teenagers when they began portraying those characters. To prepare to portray teens, they had to learn how to be teenagers again. It worked in the early days.

However, by the time the fourth season had arrived, the actors had matured and developed as adults where they were getting too old to portray teenagers anymore. They also did not look like teenagers, either. Let's not forget John Travolta and his blossoming as a movie star. These factors led to the demise of the series.

The series was about a concept so fresh, people in this modern era can relate to it even more now than they could back in the 70's. This concept is about misfit children. This is why it was so popular for awhile in syndication. However, it fizzled in syndication because when those fourth season episodes began airing, the viewing felt that the whole show was crap and stopped watching. USA Network had it. TV Land had it. They both stopped showing it.

Even though things did not end on a good note, true fans of the show can ignore that fourth season and remember the greater moments. It was a great show in general.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for "Welcome Back, Kotter" (1975)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
My suggested cast for Welcome Back Kotter movie GlengaryGlenross
Supposed 'Kotter' reunion sitcom greenpunk3
Funniest Sweathog? malissa-clay
James Woods dnasty68
Seasons 2, 3 and 4 on DVD coming anytime soon? hopeful302002
Fave Sweathog? CallMeGibbler
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