| The Ryan White Story | |
|---|---|
 UK VHS cover of "The Ryan White Story" | |
| Genre | Drama Biography |
| Written by | Phil Penningroth John Herzfeld |
| Story by | Phil Penningroth |
| Directed by | John Herzfeld |
| Starring | Judith Light Lukas Haas George C. Scott |
| Theme music composer | Mike Post |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Alan Landsburg Howard Lipstone |
| Producer | Linda Otto |
| Production locations | Russiaville, Indiana Statesville, North Carolina |
| Cinematography | Steven Shaw |
| Editor | Robert Florio |
| Running time | 105 minutes |
| Production companies | Landsburg Company Saban International |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC |
| Release | January 16, 1989 |
| Infobox instructions (only shown in preview) | |
The Ryan White Story is a 1989 American made-for-television biographical drama film starring Lukas Haas, and Judith Light, directed by John Herzfeld. The film first aired on the ABC network on January 16, 1989. It is based on the true story of the American teenager Ryan White, who became a national poster child for HIV/AIDS in the United States, after being expelled from middle school because of his infection. Nielsen ratings estimated that the movie was seen by 15 million viewers on the original airing.[1]
Upon airing, some residents of White's hometown of Kokomo, Indiana felt that the film unfairly portrayed the town in a negative light. The office of Kokomo mayor Robert F. Sargent was flooded with complaints from across the country.[1][2] Others in the film included Nikki Cox as Ryan's sister Andrea, Sarah Jessica Parker as a sympathetic nurse, George Dzundza as Ryan's doctor, and George C. Scott as Ryan's attorney from Vaughan & Vaughan,[3] who legally argued against school board authorities. The real life Ryan White made a cameo appearance in the film as another hemophiliac AIDS sufferer named Chad.[4] The film's final scene was filmed at South Iredell High School in Statesville, North Carolina.[5] After its airing, the film was released on VHS in the UK.[6]
- ^ a b "Kokomo Mayor Swamped With Angry Calls Following Ryan White TV Movie". Associated Press. January 18, 1989.
- ^ O'Connor, John J (January 16, 1989). "Review/Television; AIDS and Hemophilia". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 16, 2013. Retrieved June 14, 2010.
- ^ "Vaughan & Vaughan". Ryan White's Attorney, Charles Vaughan Sr. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
- ^ "The Ryan White Story Plot Summary and Details". Moviefone. Retrieved 2012-05-30.
- ^ "The Ryan White Story (TV Movie 1989) - IMDb". IMDb.
- ^ "The Ryan White Story [1989]: Lukas Haas, George C.Scott: Amazon.co.uk: Video". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 2012-05-30.