Promised Land is an American drama television series which aired on CBS from September 17, 1996, to May 20, 1999. It is a spin-off from another series, Touched by an Angel. The series was cancelled after its third season, spanning a total of sixty-nine episodes.

Plot

Promised Land had an ensemble cast, which featured Russell Greene (Gerald McRaney) who was on a divine mission. In the premiere episode, which aired as a special episode of Touched by an Angel, angels Tess (Della Reese) and Monica (Roma Downey) asked Russell, recently laid off from his factory job, to redefine what it means to be a good neighbor and recapture the American dream. To do this, Russell and his family traveled around the country in a beat up Airstream trailer, helping people in need, looking for work, and learning from their experiences.

Russell s family included his wife Claire (Wendy Phillips), who was licensed to homeschool their kids while they were on the road; his mother Hattie (Celeste Holm), who updated a hand-embroidered map to show all places they had traveled; teenage son Josh (Austin O Brien); daughter Dinah (Sarah Schaub); and young nephew Nathaniel (Eddie Karr), who had been abandoned by Russell s troubled brother Joe (Richard Thomas). Erasmus was an old friend of the family who lived in Chickory Creek, the small town in Kentucky where Hattie grew up. The family frequently returned to Chickory Creek to celebrate holidays and to rest. Occasionally they were assisted by Tess or other angels while they tried to help people overcome their personal problems or rekindle their lapsed faith.

Early in the second season, Claire found out that she was pregnant, but tragically their infant daughter, Grace, died soon after her birth in the season s final episode. In the third season, the family decided to settle down and moved into a run-down small house in a poor neighborhood in Denver, Colorado. Russell convinced the owner to let them live there rent free in exchange for the renovations he made to the house. Claire got a job as a guidance counselor at the local high school, where Josh and Dinah enrolled as students. Russell volunteered at the Ridley Center, a neighborhood teen center. Living next door to the Greenes in Denver were Shamaya and her teenage brother L.T., a former gang member who was struggling with trying to go straight. Josh s girlfriend was Bobbie, an unwed mother with an infant son, and Dinah had a friend named Margot, who enjoyed the 1940s era and its fashions in particular. In the series final episode, Hattie married an old friend of the family and Russell quit the Ridley Center to take a job as a police officer.

Most of the third season was spent in Denver, Colorado, but—much like Touched by an Angel—it was filmed in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Cast

Main

• Gerald McRaney as Russell Greene
• Wendy Phillips as Claire Greene
• Austin O Brien as Josh Greene
• Sarah Schaub as Dinah Greene
• Celeste Holm as Hattie Greene
• Eddie Karr as Nathaniel Greene
• Eugene Byrd as Lawrence L.T. Taggert Jr. (season 3)
• Kathryne Dora Brown as Shamaya Taggert (season 3)
• Michael Flynn as Principal Vincent Peters (season 3)
• Tinsley Grimes as Bobbie Wagner (season 3)
• Ashleigh Norman as Margot Noteworthy (season 3)

Recurring

• Ossie Davis as Erasmus Jones
• Suzzanne Douglas as Dr. Rebecca Dixon (seasons 1-2)
• Kamar de los Reyes as Leon Flores (season 3)
• Della Reese as Tess
• John Dye as Andrew
• Richard Thomas as Joe Greene
• Roma Downey as Monica

Episodes

Season	Episodes		Originally aired
			First aired	Last aired
1	24		September 17, 1996	May 20, 1997
2	23		September 25, 1997	May 14, 1998
3	22		October 1, 1998	May 20, 1999

Production

The pilot episode was filmed in the spring of 1996 by the crew of Touched by an Angel at the conclusion of production of the latter s second season. The pilot episode took place primarily in the fictional town of Chickory Creek, Kentucky but the actual location was Springville, Utah.

Because Touched by an Angel continued production for a third season, a new crew was hired for production of the Promised Land series. In the meantime, parts of the pilot episode were re-written and two characters from the original pilot episode were recast. Originally, the part of Hattie Greene was played by Peg Phillips. Celeste Holm replaced her in the cast. The part of Nathaniel Greene was also recast with Eddie Karr playing the role in the new version of the pilot and throughout the series. The newly hired crew of Promised Land spent six days reshooting portions of the pilot episode in July 1996.

The storyline of the series called for the Greene family to travel throughout the United States, so northern Utah served as a stand-in for many states. As was the case with Touched by an Angel, the crew s filming locations were usually within a two-hour drive from downtown Salt Lake City. However, during each of the first two seasons, three episodes were filmed in and around Saint George, Utah. During the third season, three episodes were filmed in and around Natchez, Mississippi (in August and September 1998).

Cancellation

After the show s third season in 1999, the show was cancelled by CBS due to low ratings and not the controversial school shooting episode A Day in the Life scheduled to air two days after the Columbine shooting. According to then CBS president, Nancy Tellem, she states the following on the show s cancellation: We were looking at it to see how it was growing, as we normally do with all our shows, and, unfortunately, it wasn t growing. And, as much as we tried to change the emphasis — instead of it being a Winnebago going across the country we placed it in an urban setting — it just wasn t performing.

The last episode, simply titled Finale aired on May 20, 1999. The characters of the Greene family were never seen or mentioned again on the parent show Touched by an Angel which continued on for four more years, ending in 2003. Recurring actor Ossie Davis returned to the show on a recurring basis, but not as his Erasmus Jones character, but instead playing an angel named Gabriel.

Broadcast

The series aired Tuesdays at 8:00 pm (EST) on CBS for its first season and Thursdays at 8:00 pm (EST) for the rest of its run.

Home media

In May 2018, Visual Entertainment released Promised Land: The Complete Collection on DVD in Region 1.

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Result	Category	Recipient
1997	Young Artist Award	Nominated	Best Performance in a TV Comedy/Drama – Supporting Young Actor Age Ten or Under	Eddie Karr
		Nominated	Best Performance in a Drama Series – Young Actress	Sarah Schaub
		Nominated	Best Performance in a Drama Series – Young Actor	Austin O Brien
		Nominated	Best Family TV Drama Series	–
		Won	Best Performance in a Drama Series – Guest Starring Young Actor	Benjamin Salisbury
1998		Nominated	Best Performance in a TV Drama Series – Leading Young Actor	Eddie Karr
		Won	Best Performance in a TV Drama Series – Leading Young Actress	Sarah Schaub (Tied with Beverley Mitchell for 7th Heaven)
		Won	Best Performance in a TV Drama Series – Leading Young Actor	Austin O Brien (Tied with Michael Yarmush for My Life as a Dog)
		Won	Best Performance in a TV Drama Series – Guest Starring Young Actor	Trever O Brien
		Won	Best Family TV Drama Series	– (Tied with 7th Heaven)
1999		Nominated	Best Performance in a TV Drama Series – Guest Starring Young Actor	Zach Hopkins
		Won	Best Performance in a TV Series – Young Ensemble	Eddie Karr, Austin O Brien, and Sarah Schaub
		Won	Best Family TV Drama Series	–
2000		Nominated	Best Performance in a TV Drama Series – Leading Young Actress	Sarah Schaub
		Won	Best Performance in a TV Drama Series – Leading Young Actor	Austin O Brien
1997	PGA Awards	Won	Most Promising Producer in Television	Martha Williamson
1998	Emmy Award	Won	Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series	Cloris Leachman (For episode Mooster s Revenge )
1998	YoungStar Award	Nominated	Best Performance by a Young Actor in a Drama TV Series	Austin O Brien
1999		Nominated	Best Performance by a Young Actor in a Drama TV Series	Austin O Brien
1999	NAACP Image Awards	Won	Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series	Ruby Dee (For a guest star or recurring role)
		Won	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series	Ossie Davis

Year	1996
ReleaseDate	1996-09-15
Plot	A family devotes their lives to traveling the country to help those in need.
Awards	Won 1 Primetime Emmy, 13 wins & 9 nominations total
Stars	Gerald McRaney, Wendy Phillips, Austin O’Brien
Series Produced by	Martha Williamson,Danna Doyle,Jon C. Andersen,Robert Visciglia Jr.,Marilyn Osborn,Ernie Wallengren,William A. Schwartz,Norman Morrill,Debbie Smith,Robert M. Rolsky,Deborah Starr Seibel,William Schmidt,David Ehrman
Series Music by	Ray Colcord,Marc Lichtman,Michael Licari
Series Cinematography by	Matthew Williams,Robert Seaman
Series Film Editing by	Lori Petersen Waite,Brad Syckes,Pat Van Duser,David Witte
Series Casting By	David Giella,Mia Levinson
Series Production Design by	Seven L. Nielsen,Diane Millett,Frederic C. Weiler
Series Art Direction by	John R. Uibel,Christopher R. DeMuri
Series Set Decoration by	Les Boothe,Barbara Ward,Eric Weiler
Series Costume Design by	Lawane Cole,Nancy Cavallaro
Series Makeup Department	Rebecca George,Kay Toney,Lindey L. Crow,Linda Hardy,Bobbi Lawson,Cheryl Voss,Gina Homan,Valecia Sarmento,Toni Riki
Series Production Management	Robert Gros,Miguel Ángel Poveda,Sondra Latham,Steve Barnett,Robert M. Rolsky,Stephen J. Fisher,Blane Reese
Series Second Unit Director or Assistant Director	Jennie Morris,Larry Lipton,Anthony Hemingway,Mitchell Bock,Kent Phillip Johnson,Robert Andrew Reeves,Donald Hauer,Polly Ann Mattson,Robert Sonntag
Series Art Department	Harmony Lauritzen,Ian Roylance,Michelle Fairbank,Steve Broussard,Curtis Crowe,Kipling Hicks,Alan Jones,John Malmborg,Jason Marty,Mark Brooks,Jonas Sappington,Kee Miller,Robert Bullock Jr.,Edward Clinch,Leslie Smoot,Ray A. Versluys,Brent Astrope,Burke Bowthorpe,Jason Haase,Janet S. Havranek,Bruce Wing,Danny Hansen,Darrin Fletcher,Mark J. Mullins,Michael J. Wheeler
Series Sound Department	Tim Chilton,Billy B. Bell,Jonathon ‘Earl’ Stein,Chris Main,Kevin Meltcher,Douglas Cameron,Bob Costanza,Tommy Goodwin,Richard Mercado,Dennis Petersen
Series Special Effects by	Greg Puga,Ken Speed
Series Visual Effects by	Craig Weiss
Series Stunts	J. Mark Donaldson,Glade Quinn,Michael Gent,Shawn Patrick Lane,Laura Albert,Debbie Evans,Diane Reneé,Jeff Chumas,Kathy Jarvis,Michael Li,Chris O’Hara,Marcus Salgado,Alex Wen,Brian J. Williams
Series Camera and Electrical Department	John K. Farr,Kevin Kennedy,Glade Quinn,John Raymer,Rick Page,Kurtis Burr,Paul Meehan,Jim Handley,Michael Meinardus,Allen Dial,Kory Mills,Michael L. Schaertl,Jason Walser,Joe Broderick,Samuel Fischer,George Griner,Craig Hitchcock,Jason Jensen,Rory Robert Knepp,Mike Lookinland,Christopher Martini,Robert SummerStone,Douglas O’Kane
Series Casting Department	Cate Praggastis,Annie DeGracia,Mia Levinson,Jennette Zarko
Series Costume and Wardrobe Department	Jennifer Breeden,Christina Phipps Johnson,Rosemary Bengele Sater,Alyson Hancey,Rachel Schroeder Swenson,Barbara Nelson,Kacie Seamons
Series Editorial Department	Bill Missett,Joe Parisella,Jaime Russell,Blane Reese,Lori Petersen Waite,Dieter Ismagil,John Stocker Jr.,Dennis Mackelburg
Series Location Management	Dennis Williams,Ani Heinig,Alan Welch,Lee A. Steadman,Krystine Karns,Andrew Langton
Series Music Department	Scott Cochran,Steve Bauman,J. Michael Hooser,Marc Lichtman,Jeff Bunnell,Lisle Leete
Series Script and Continuity Department	Rebecca Poulos
Series Transportation Department	Mark A. James,Rick Spidell,Kevin M. Rowe,Randy Kinyon,J. Armin Garza II,Britani Alexander,Leo W. Dawson Jr.,Sonia Y. Dawson
Series Additional Crew	Phillip Schenkler,Linda DeVilliers,Kipling Hicks,Rick Kelly,Kathleen Dombo,Bob Colleary,Claire Whitaker,Kathleen McGhee-Anderson,Danna Doyle,Deborah Starr Seibel,Debbie Smith,Valerie Woods,Allison Graham,Sondra Latham,Jennifer Ricci,Yun,Mark A. Butler,T. De Luca,Chad Empey,Erin Empey-Baxter,Rusty Fisher,Astrid Kemnitz,Starla Latham,Mark J. Mullins,Julie Rasmussen,Greg W. Anderson,Tamara Brock,Cheryl Harris,Cheryl Shawver
Genres	Drama
Companies	MoonWater Productions, CBS Productions
Countries	USA
Languages	English
ContentRating	TV-G
ImDbRating	7
ImDbRatingVotes	686
Keywords	husband wife relationship,father son relationship,father daughter relationship,mother son relationship,mother daughter relationship