Dawn: Portrait of a Teenage Runaway

• Director: Randal Kleiser
• AMG Rating:
• Genre: Drama
• Movie Type: Teen Movie, Psychological Drama
• Themes: Runaways, Kids in Trouble, Inner City Blues
• Release Year: 1976
• Country: US
• Run Time: 100 minutes

Plot

In Randal Kleiser's telemovie Dawn: Portrait of a Teenage Runaway, Eve Plumb stars as Dawn, who leaves home at 15 for the glamour of L.A. Friendless, she is taken in by the smooth line of Swan (Bo Hopkins), who offers to be her protector. Before long, Dawn has become a streetwalker, with Swan taking a sizeable chunk of her earnings. She finds true friendship in the form of another runaway, male hustler Alex (Leigh McCloskey) -- whose own story would be delineated in a 1977 sequel, Alexander: The Other Side of Dawn. Having learned a lesson with its controversial airing of Born Innocent, NBC preceded the September 27, 1976, premiere of Dawn: Portrait of a Teenage Runaway with a "parental discretion" disclaimer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cast

Sylvia Anderson - Sumi; Paul Bryar - Counterman; Stephanie Burchfield - Randy; Lynn Carlin - Dawn's Mother; Leigh McCloskey - Alexander; Eve Plumb - Dawn Wetherby; Joan Prather - Susie; Anne Ramsey - Librarian; William Schallert - Harry; Anne Seymour; Queenie Smith - Old Woman; Paul Sorenson - Police Sergeant; Brad Trumbull - Man; Romo Vincent - Fat Man; Georg Stanford Brown - Donald Umber; David Knapp - Dr. Roberts; Bo Hopkins - Swan; John Rose - Salesman; Diane Sommerfield - Joanne; Marguerita DeLain - Frankie Lee; Kaaren Ragland - Melba; David Terhune - Tom

Credit

James Hulsey - Art Director, Randal Kleiser - Director, Carroll Sax - Editor, Joan Jett - Composer (Music Score), Fred Karlin - Composer (Music Score), Kim Fowley - Composer (Music Score), Meg Karlin - Composer (Music Score), Jacques Marquette - Cinematographer, Douglas S. Cramer - Producer, Shaun Cassidy - Singer, The Runaways - Singer, Dalene Young - Screenwriter

Similar Movies

The Best Little Girl in the World; Born Innocent; Hardcore; The Boy Who Drank Too Much; 491; Go Ask Alice; Sarah T.: Portrait of a Teenage Alcoholic; Into the Arms of Danger: A Moment of Truth Movie; What Alice Found; The Hard Road; Underground