If you grew up in the 1970s as I did, you may remember a television series called “The White Shadow.” It was a basketball drama that debuted on November 27, 1978, and ran until the final episode on March 16, 1981. The premise of the show was that the actor Ken Howard was a former NBA player who because of an injury had his pro career cut short.
In the show Howard took on the character of coach Ken Reeves who was hired to be the head basketball coach at the ficitional high school, Carver High. The school was in Los Angeles, California in an impoverished neighborhood. The series centered around Reeves trying to mentor the young men who made up his team all the while having to deal with their off-the-court issues and focusing on their real-life problems.
The team was made up of Warren Coolidge, the big man on the court played by Byron Stewart and joined by teammates Mario “Salami” Pettrino (Timothy Van Patten), James Hayward (Thomas Carter), Milton Reese (Nathan Cook), Abner Goldstein (Ken Michelman), and Ira Angustain (Ricky Gomez).
The writer of the show was Bruce Paltrow, father of actress Gwyneth Paltrow. Another writer for the show was Steven Bochco who was a major part of the award-winning show “Hill Street Blues.” The principal of Carver High School in the show was Jim Willis who was played first by Jason Bernard and then by Ed Bernard as the character is portrayed as a teammate of Coach Reeves when the two played for the Boston Celtics.
Some of the topics covered in the three seasons were child abuse, drug use, sexually transmitted diseases, gambling, prostitution, and physical and mental disabilities. There were comedic moments in the show so while it was a drama there was some light-heartedness. As for Ken Howard he was a basketball player at one time starring at Manhasset High School in Long Island, New York. As the only white man in the starting lineup at his high school, he earned the nickname “The White Shadow” thus the idea for the name of the television show he would later star in.
Howard continued his basketball career at Amherst College where he was team captain. The theme song for The White Shadow was composed by Mike Post and Pete Carpenter. Post became famous for the theme music to Law & Order, The A-Team, NYPD Blue, L.A. Law, The Rockford Files, and Hill Street Blues, among others.
As for a where are they now…the aforementioned actors in the show are summarized below.
- Ken Howard. In the show Howard was a former player for the Chicago Bulls. For three years he served as the President of the Screen Actors Guild. As a youth, he grew to be 6 feet 6 inches and classmates in high school called him “Stork.” He married three times but passed away in 2016 at the age of 71 from complications of prostate cancer and shingles. At the time of his death, he was still president of the Actors Guild becoming the first in that role to pass while still holding office.
- Byron Stewart. “Coolidge” stood 6’8” and in the television show “St. Elsewhere” Stewart replayed his role from The White Shadow with the premise being he was on scholarship at Boston College only to lose that because of an injury so he went to work at the St. Elsewhere hospital. Stewart is still with us today and has four children including grandchildren.
- Timothy Van Patten. Van Patten comes from an acting family that includes half brother Dick, half sister Joyce, and two nephews in the business, Vincent and Nels. He also has a niece that is an actress that being Talia Balsam. Currently 65, Van Patten is still in the movie business as a director, producer, screenwriter, and of course actor.
- Thomas Carter. Another of the cast who stayed in the business is Carter now also a director and producer and in parts is responsible for Swing Kids, Save the Last Dance, and Coach Carter. Now 71, Carter graduated from Texas State University in 1974.
- Nathan Cook. Here we have one of the show’s tragedies after the series concluded. Nathan Cook passed away at the early age of 38 after suffering complications due to an allergic reaction to penicillin. He was married at the time and grew up in Philadelphia. Sadly, Cook appeared in just three movies, Abby (1974), The Last Word (1979), and National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983).
- Ken Michelman. These days Michelman is a part time actor but as a trivial twist, he played basketball at the University of Denver. His teammate was David Adkins more well known as the comedian “Sinbad.” Michelman currently lives in Sherman Oaks, California and today is 69 years old. Michelman has appeared in the past on M*A*S*H*, The Waltons, Hart to Hart, The West Wing, and in his last appearance in 2013, Grey’s Anatomy.
- Ira Angustain. This former White Shadow cast member is now an Ordained minister living in Glendale, California at the age of 66. He is also a screenwriter. He starred as Freddie Prinze in the TV movie, “Can You Hear the Laughter? The Story of Freddie Prinze.” His last television appearance was on Hill Street Blues in 1986.
To watch the White Shadow Theme and opening credits use the YouTube link below.
