| BJ and the Bear | |
|---|---|
| Format | Comedy-drama |
| Starring | Greg Evigan Claude Akins |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| No. of episodes | 48 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | NBC |
| Original run | February 10, 1979 – August 1, 1981 |
| External links | |
| IMDb profile | |
| TV.com summary | |
B.J. and the Bear was a comedy/adventure television series which aired on NBC from 1979 to 1981. It starred Greg Evigan as B. J. (Billie Joe) McKay, a professional freelance itinerant trucker who traveled the country's highways in a Kenworth K-100 cab over semi truck with his pet chimpanzee, Bear (named for Bear Bryant, the famed college football coach; this explains the chimp's choice of headwear). He was constantly harassed by sheriff Elroy P. Lobo (Claude Akins, who eventually spun off onto his own show, The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo). In 1981, when the show returned from hiatus, B.J. had settled down to run Bear Enterprises, a trucking company based in Los Angeles. His nemesis was Rutherford T. Grant (Murray Hamilton), the corrupt head of the state's Special Crimes Action Team, who was a silent partner in a competing trucking company. Because of Grant's harassment, B.J. was unable to hire experienced truckers, and he was forced to hire several beautiful young female truckers, including Grant's daughter Cindy (Sherilyn Wolter), and another busty blonde nicknamed "Stacks" (Judy Landers). Billy Joel's "My Life" was used for the opening theme song, causing some younger watchers of the era to confuse Evigan with Joel. The band Minus the Bear derived their name from a joke based on the show title.
