Highway to Heaven 

A probationary angel, sent back to Earth, teams with an ex-cop to help people.

Creator:

Michael Landon

Stars:

Michael Landon, Victor French, James Troesh

Nominated for 7 Primetime Emmys. Another 3 wins & 13 nominations.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Michael Landon	...	Jonathan Smith 111 episodes, 1984-1989
Victor French	...	Mark Gordon 111 episodes, 1984-1989

Storyline

Jonathan Smith is a probationary angel sent back to Earth to help people. During the series' first episode, he meets embittered ex-policeman Mark Gordon (as Jonathan is walking along a little-used road, on which Mark happens to be driving). Jonathan helps reform Mark, with the grateful Mark agreeing to become Jonathan's right-hand associate in carrying out the heavenly mission. The two begin traveling the country as itinerant workers, receiving assignments from "the Boss" (God), with their mission being to deliver love, understanding and humility to the people they encountered. Typical episodes stressed moral, Christian themes; though many episodes dealt with common human failings, such as egotism, bitterness and greed, some shows addressed such topics as racism and cancer. A few shows, however, were played mainly for laughs (such as Landon recreating his first famous starring role in a takeoff of his 1957 film I Was a Teenage Werewolf and his role in in little house on the prairie).

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Plot Keywords:

psychotronic series | angel | comic relief | friendship between men | friendship | 

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Taglines:

Some powers are higher than others.

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Genres:

Drama | Fantasy

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Every week, the color pink was very prominent, often in an unusual way to make it unmistakable that this was so. Sometimes Jonathan was wearing a hot pink shirt, sometimes he drove a pastel pink van, other times he walked into his new assignment's place where the walls were painted a soft baby pink. This was perhaps most evident in Highway to Heaven: A Dolphin Song for Lee: Part 1 (1988), where the very first scene showcases the protagonists sitting at the Pink Cafe, the camera lingering on the name of the building, which was also painted pastel pink.

It was most incongruous in Highway to Heaven: The Devil and Jonathan Smith (1985), where the Devil makes his entrance in a pink mist, bathed in a pink light. His face and horns are made up in light pink powder, and his cape is lined with bright pastel pink, which matches his pink bow-tie. All this, perhaps to neutralize his symbolic negative energies from both characters and audiences. In symbolism, pink is the color of love---and corresponds to the heart chakra---which is what the show aimed to represent. ("God is Love", proclaims the Bible.)

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Quotes

Mark Gordon: I got the stuff! I got the stuff!

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Alternate Versions

Most of the original episodes, which aired on prime time television, normally contained between five to seven minutes of additional scenes and dialogue which has since been lost. This material was not included in any of the syndicated copies of the show, which today are the only versions available.

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Connections

Spoofed in Robot Chicken: Zeb and Kevin Erotic Hot Tub Canvas (2015)

User Reviews

Highway To Heaven

I was please to hear that the reruns are coming back on in our area this coming week. I loved this series.It had good messages in it for everyone. With Michael Landon and Victor French-a winning team just like they were on Little House.Maybe more people should watch family shows like this and Touched By A Angel and maybe they will once again realize things that we all have but seemed to have put on the back burner at times----Faith, Hope, and Love.Thank you Michael Landon for giving us all a chance to see real situations,real people,and what the power that we possess inside of all of us can really do.This show to me was one of the best.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 September 1984 (USA)

Also Known As:

Highway to Heaven

Filming Locations:

Old Tucson - 201 S. Kinney Road, Tucson, Arizona, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Michael Landon Productions, National Broadcasting Company (NBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min (111 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1