The Young Rebels


The Young Rebels is an American adventure TV series that was broadcast by ABC as part of its 1970 fall lineup on Sunday night at 7:00 p.m Eastern time.

Plot

The Young Rebels was the story of a group of youthful guerrillas fighting on the Patriot side in the American Revolutionary War. They were part of the fictional "Yankee Doodle Society", based in Chester, Pennsylvania, in 1777. Their goal was to harass the British forces however they could and serve as spies for the rebels. The four main characters were Jeremy, son of the mayor of Chester, Isak, a former slave, Henry, a bright young, bespectacled man who looked a lot like a younger Benjamin Franklin, whom he greatly admired, and Elizabeth, Jeremy's even-younger girlfriend. Any parallel between this "youth movement" and the one going on in the United States in real life at the same time that this show was aired was completely intentional. Aiding these young American rebels in their cause was a young French rebel, the Marquis de Lafayette, who had come to their aid not just because he believed in their cause but also to learn how to export many of its principles to his native France.

Reception

The Young Rebels was up against the very popular family shows Lassie and The Wonderful World of Disney on competitors CBS and NBC respectively. Rick Ely and Philippe Forquet became teenage idols and were widely featured in movie and fan magazines. Despite extensive promotion and a large production budget, The Young Rebels failed to garner enough of an audience and was canceled at midseason.

Episodes