J.T. (1969)

This Peabody Award winning special was first shown as part of a CBS series of hour long movies for children that was shown regularly on Saturday mornings entitled "The CBS Children's Movie". J.T. Gamble (Kevin Hooks) was a poor, shy kid who lived in Harlem. His mother, Rodeen (Ja'net DuBois) was a stuggling single parent. They lived in a tenament building where everyone had to use a community bathroom. Mrs. Hill (Helen Martin) was a mean lady who lived down the hall, and admonished J.T. for taking too much time in the bathroom.

J.T. is picked on a lot by older kids. He steals a transistor radio out of a car and is spotted by the kids, who chase him until he loses them. He comes across a one-eyed, injured alley cat days before Christmas. J.T. must hide the cat because his mother would have a fit if she found out--they can't afford a pet. J.T. nurse the cat back to health and learns responsibility.

Of all the movies I watched on that series when I was a little girl, this one remains intact in my memory. A very good Christmas-themed story. I found out recently that an educational company rents this film out, so it is being shown in schools to this day.

Kevin Hooks became a cast member on "The White Shadow" in the late 1970s, and now he directs. His father, Robert Hooks, is an actor. Ja'net Dubois was Wilona Wood on "Good Times". The late Helen Martin was a regular on "That's My Mama" and "227". The late Theresa Merritt was also in this movie; she was also a regular on "That's My Mama".