California Fever (NBC 1979, Jimmy McNichol, Marc McClure)

Hour-long CBS show California Fever, an attempt at catering to the late 70’s youth market, would probably make for a pretty interesting time capsule today. It focused on Vince and Ross, two teenage buddies enjoying the Southern California lifestyle. Vince also ran a pirate radio station, using the home of his buddy Rick as the studio. Ross was a wizard with cars and had his own super-customized oddity of a car, known to one and all as the ‘Grossmobile.’ There was also a female member of the gang, Laurie.

The stories revolved around this quartet of teens as they cruised for fun and encompassed all the major Californian youth fads of the day: roller skating, disco, surfing, car customizing, etc. However, despite all of this and the presence of teen idol Jimmy McNichol as Vince, California Fever didn’t take off. It was canceled after less than three months, ending its run in December of 1979. Jimmy McNichol as Vince Butler

production details
USA / CBS – Warner Bros TV / x50 minute episodes / Broadcast 25 September – 11 December 1979

cast
Jimmy McNichol as Vince Butler
Marc McClure as Ross Whitman
Michele Tobin as Laurie Newman
Lorenzo Lamas as Rick
Cosie Costa as Bobby
Lisa Cori as Sue