Centennial was a 12-episode American television miniseries that aired on NBC from October 1978 to February 1979. It was based on the novel of the same name by James A. Michener. The miniseries was produced by John Wilder.
The miniseries follows the history of the area of the fictional town of Centennial, Colorado from the late 18th century to the 1970s. The novel places the town at the junction of the South Platte River and the Cache la Poudre River. This is the general location of Greeley, Colorado. (There is a city called Centennial, Colorado, but it did not exist until 2001 and its location and history are not similar to the town described in either the book or miniseries.)
Although Michener began his novel in prehistory, the series itself begins with Chapter 5 of the book which is entitled The Yellow Apron.
Its star-studded cast includes Richard Chamberlain, Robert Conrad, Richard Crenna, Timothy Dalton, Andy Griffith, Mark Harmon, Gregory Harrison, Alex Karras, Brian Keith, Lynn Redgrave, Robert Vaughn, Anthony Zerbe, Stephanie Zimbalist, and numerous other well-known actors.
The miniseries was one of the longest (26½ hours) and most ambitious television projects ever attempted at the time. It had a then huge budget of US$25 million, employed four directors and five cinematographers, and featured over 100 speaking parts spanning 26 hours of television viewing time.
This is the story of the evolution of the town Centennial, Colorado. It follows the paths of dozens of people who come to the area for many reasons: money, freedom, or crime. It also shows the bigoted treatment of the Native Indians by the advancing US colonists. It is topped off with a murder mystery that takes 100 years to solve. Written by Tony Berkoff
