Friday night on ABC was a magical time in the early 70s. The evening started with The Brady Bunch and The Partridge Family. The night ended with The Odd Couple and Love American Style. In the middle of the family fun and the adult playground stood Room 222. This series dealt with a high school where young and old interacted. Room 222 wasnt the idealistic educational system that had been broadcasted on network TV. The man who ruled that classroom was Pete Dixon (Lloyd Haynes). He was a completely different from the teachers that came before him. He was strong, bold, challenging and black. In the fall of 1969, Dixon was a pioneer. He dated Liz McIntyre (Denise Nicholas), the guidance counselor. He oversaw a student teacher (Karen Valentine). She was a young white woman. He didnt live in fear of the white principal (Michael Constantine). Room 222: Season One contains a series that dared to be radical in the midst of an explosive time.
Pete Dixon isnt a complete revolutionary. This is not a Black Panther set loose inside Walt Whitman High School. He is quite sensible in his approach to life. However hes not writing up his lesson plan according to the textbook. His history class doesnt settle for students merely answering multiple choice questions. He wants them to connect the past to their present actions. His ability to connect with the kids makes him a favorite amongst the staff. His cool attitude allowed the show to convincingly swing from sit-com moments to serious issues.
“Richies Story” has Dixon stick his neck out to help an achieving black student. Turns out the kid was supposed to be assigned to a school in an urban war zone. He fears for this prized pupil being destroyed. He goes out of his way to find a way to keep the kid in his classroom. “Naked We Come Into the World” puts Alice Johnson, the student teacher, in charge of the class variety show. They hit on the brilliant idea to make their revue more memorable. The entire cast will strip down at the end. How can she keep the cops from raiding the auditorium without looking like an uptight sellout to the man? “Funny Boy” has the class clown upset that he cant score a date.
“Clothes Make the Boy” reminds us of a time when kids got in trouble wearing groovy fashions instead of merely showing off their underwear. Bud Cort (Harold and Maude) gets nailed for violating the dress code by wearing a funky fringed top. Hes ready for a Black Oak Arkansas concert. His sympathetic father (Kenneth Mars of The Producers) gets flipped when he takes part in altering the student dress code. Theres plenty of dashiki action in the school hallways.
In one of the most shocking sights on TV, Bob Balaban (Seinfeld) appears as one of Mr. Dixons kids in “Fathers and Sons.” This proves Bob wasnt born middle aged. Bobs got a riff against his old man (Patty Duke Shows William Schallert). No longer does he aspire to go to med school. He wants to be a teacher like Dixon. He also becomes a protester against the system. He leads the students to block tree removal on Dixons street. Even though the show wants to be radical, it maintains the clean cut roots of broadcast TV standards. “Heck no! They dont go!” the kids chant. Its up to Mr. Dixon to keep these white people from exploding.
“I Love You Charlie, I Love You Abby” has a pair of high school sweethearts eager to get hitched. The classmates all think its cute. Will Mr. Dixon bust their bubble? Cindy Williams (Laverne and Shirley) is a classmate. “Funny Money” has Mr. Dixon taking over a remedial class with Rob Reiner (All in the Family) as a big meathead. In order to get these almost dropouts interested in learning, Dixon pays them for right answers. Recently educators have been experimenting with this paycheck for grades. The guy in charge of this program was on The Colbert Report, but not once did he give credit to Pete Dixon for daring to propose this project 40 years ago.
While Room 222 reflects its times, many of the topics are still ongoing in for teens. Todays high school is a different world with the Facebook, iPods, cellphones and metal detectors. But at its core, the hallways between periods are packed with the fat kid who cant get a date, the young couple that think theyre ready for marriage and the slow student who feels doomed to a life sweeping the floor at McDonalds. Theres at least one fresh Pete Dixon keeping an eye on them all. Room 222: Season One reminds us that these lessons from 1969 are still vital in the 21st century.
The Episodes
“Richie’s Story,” “Naked Came We Into the World,” “Funny Boy,” “The Coat,” “The Flu,” “First We’ll Eat, Then We’ll Strike,” “Teacher’s Dropping Out,” “Our Teacher is Obsolete,” “Triple Date,” “Fathers and Sons,” “Alice in Blunderland,” “Clothes Make the Boy,” “Seventeen Going On Twenty-Eight,” “The Exchange Teacher,” “El Genio,” “Arizona State Loves You,” “Operation Sandpile,” “Play it Loose,” “Goodbye, Mr. Hip,” “Once Upon a Time There Was Air You Couldn’t See,” “The Whole World Can Hear You,” “Ralph,” “I Love You Charlie, I Love You Abbie,” “The New Boy,” “Funny Money” and “Just Between Friends.”

The video is 1.33:1 full frame. The transfer is the bad news. Seems that Fox completely dropped the ball when they turned over the masters to Shout! Factory. Most of these episodes look like they were transfered off 16mm prints that had been used by the teachers of Walt Whitman High for the last four decades. Theyre scratched and dirty. In a strange way, this visual destruction enhances the show because the episodes play like educational films youd see in health class. The audio is also mono. Theres pops and warble issues at time. Why doesnt Fox have any pride about this series?
Forty Years On (16:28) features new interviews with James L. Brooks, Allan Burns, Michael Constantine and Denise Nicholas. Brooks points out that the show was created around the concept of a black school teacher. They discuss about the difficulties of putting on an integrated show in the late 60s. Constantine remembers the late Lloyd Haynes. The network kept pressuring the producers to put more jokes in the episodes. They had their laughtrack eventually removed.
Room 222 is an addictive show on so many levels. The scripts touch upon the issues facing youth culture in 1969. Its a treat to spot future stars in the class room. Pete Dixon should be respected as a legendary TV icon. He broke ground and stood tall in the middle of a high school. Room 222: Season One is a case of the material outshining the video quality. If you can handle the rough shape of the image, youll take pleasure in being educated by Mr. Dixon.
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Shout! Factor presents Room 222: Season One. Starring Lloyd Haynes, Karen Valentine, Michael Constantine and Denise Nicholas. Boxset Contents: 26 Episodes on 4 DVDs. Released on DVD: March 24, 2009. Available at Amazon.
