In this, the pilot movie for the series, we meet Jonathan Smith walking slowly down a lonely road toward an unknown destination. He flags down a passing truck and asks for a ride from the old man driving. The man refuses and drives on, only to have his truck engine blow before he gets more than a few yards down the road. Jonathan obligingly does a little quick mechanic work on the vehicle and tells him to have a nice day. The man hastily changes his mind and offers a ride. With this scene, the theme of the entire series is set into motion. Stangers help strangers, people do good for one another, the forgotten and lonely are given a new purpose in life, and the world becomes just a little bit better place. In this case, Jonathan's destination is a retirement home called Havencrest, where he takes on the recently vacated job of handyman. It seems no one wants the job because the home is on the verge of being sold out from under the residents, leaving most of them nowhere to go.
In this, the pilot movie for the series, we meet Jonathan Smith walking slowly down a lonely road toward an unknown destination. He flags down a passing truck and asks for a ride from the old man driving. The man refuses and drives on, only to have his truck engine blow before he gets more than a few yards down the road. Jonathan obligingly does a little quick mechanic work on the vehicle and tells him to have a nice day. The man hastily changes his mind and offers a ride. With this scene, the theme of the entire series is set into motion. Stangers help strangers, people do good for one another, the forgotten and lonely are given a new purpose in life, and the world becomes just a little bit better place. In this case, Jonathan's destination is a retirement home called Havencrest, where he takes on the recently vacated job of handyman. It seems no one wants the job because the home is on the verge of being sold out from under the residents, leaving most of them nowhere to go. L
Jonathan counsels a young runaway (Tony La Torre) and a widow (Carrie Snodgress) with a terminally ill son (Barret Oliver).
Jonathan and Mark take jobs working in a local area boxing ring. The owner's grandson, Joey, has a good shot at the local championship fight against the leader of the gang causing the problems. Joey wants to win so that he can give the kids in the neighborhood an honest example to live up to, hopefully to prevent at least a few of them from joining the gangs. In order to ensure his victory, Thumper (the gang leader), kidnaps Joey's grandfather. Joey feels that his hands are tied and he has no choice but to throw the fight. Mark tries to tough talk the gang, figuring on Jonathan's angelic powers to kick their collective ass, but God doesn't see fit to grant Mark's wish and Jonathan gets beat up. He doesn't have any marks to show for the beating, but Jonathan is obviously pretty irritated with Mark over the incident, and can't figure out what he's supposed to do if God won't let him take the direct approach.
The guys' latest assignment is reunite a broken family. Evelyn Higgins left her husband Tim and baby daughter Sarah in search of a career in music and Tim never forgave her for it, even going as far as telling their daughter that her mother has died. Evelyn had a fairly successful career after changing her name to Patsy Maynard, but guilt and sorrow over her past life have led her to become a lush and a has-been who can only get gigs playing small honkey-tonk bars. She is set to play one such place right outside her old hometown and her daughter eagerly comes to see her, having no idea that the singer is her mother. Sarah shares her mother's love of music and wants to be a professional country singer, against the wishes of her father who fears losing his daughter the same way he lost his wife. Jonathan and Mark go to work in the bar/casino where Patsy sings. Through a little investigative work, Mark discovers that the owner of the place is a crook who is rigging every game. Jonathan fi
One day, while showing off for some friends by riding his skateboard and hanging on to his friend's speeding car, another car comes around a blind corner from the opposite direction and is not able to swerve out of the way in time to avoid hitting Deke. The next time we see the young man, he is in the hospital where both of his legs have had to be amputated below the knee. Feeling bitter and resentful toward everyone, Deke drives away everyone who tries to visit with him. He seems intent on simply sulking and bemoaning his fate until the day he dies. Fortunately, this is where Jonathan steps in to help. He has taken the job of physical therapist at the hospital, but it's easy to see that it's really Deke's mental and emotional state that he's there to work on. With the willing help of a quadriplegic patient named Scotty, a shy fellow student named Eleanor, and a young gymnast who is the boy who crippled Deke, Jonathan sets out to restore Deke's faith in himself.
Jonathan and Mark have started their assignment by meeting with one of the people that Crock Jr. wants to bulldoze, a sweet middle-aged lady named Gwen,who runs a veterinary clinic. Jonathan convinces Gwen to go with him to plead her case before Mr. Crock. Poor Gwen is nearly scared out of her wits when she meets 'King Arthur' and is ranted at for being an invader to his realm. Jonathan very smoothly convinces the man that he is a humble subject of the realm who has accompanied the Lady Guinevere, who wishes to petition her liege. The king promptly knights Jonathan and accepts the petition, stunning the lady again by offering his loving heart to her.
A movie star is stranger to his own kids.
Martin Lamm is waiting to hear that his script will become a movie, checking with the front desk clerk frequently to see if any mail has arrived for him. None ever does. Martin's friend, Joey,nails a poster on a pole asking for an ""angel"" in the sense Martin needs one: someone with the money to help him turn his script into a movie. Jonathan and Mark respond to the poster, not knowing what kind of angel Joey is looking for. While Jonathan and Mark are finding out what kind of angel Joey is looking for, a man named Petros arrives with the poster in his hand. He loves the script and and wants to make the movie. Petros at first scoffs at Martin's idea of using people from the neighborhood as actors in the movie, but Jonathan suggests they might find a star among the amateurs, save money and help people at the same time.
Family and friends of a Vietnam veteran (James Whitmore Jr.) won't accept his Amerasian daughter.
Mark and Jonathan work as hotel bellhops to help a millionaire's son (Brian Kerwin) find meaning in his life.
Jonathan and Mark become involved in their own version of Dickens' classic "Christmas Carol" ... only their "Scrooge" is a heartless used car salesman.
Mark hopes that he and Jonathan don't have assignment so they can visit Charlie Down who worked on the police force with Mark. What was supposed to be a happy time with a friend turned into finding out why he went missing for five days. Charlie down worked with border enforcement to try and stop drugs. Mark and Jonathan soon discover where Charlie is they find out that Jack Harm shot Charlie because he found cocaine in a model airplane.
Jonathan has a tough time on this particular assignment. He is supposed to get Libby and earl to fall love with each other but Jonathan runs into one problem before he can accomplish the assignment he falls in love with Libby. Mark tells Jonathan that God may have wanted Jonathan to fall in love again so he wouldn't lose touch with what it's like to be a human being and feel how painful falling in love can be.
Mark gets a chance to go back in time to tell his grandfather that he loved him. Mark also gets to help his grandfather said his farm for repossession but he must get Mark Jr. to tell his grandfather that he loves him and would rather stay with him.
Brian Baldwin learns that his hopes of being a college basketball star are dashed when he is diagnosed with cardiac insufficiency. Now he must face another challenge the challenge is that he cannot read. He tries to hide that fact but doesn't hide it very well.
Jonathan and Mark try to reunite a father and daughter who hadn't seen each other in years because of the daughter had a child from own without a husband. Now Jonathan has a difficult task of trying to convince the father that he doesn't have a lot of time to get to know his daughter Marsha because she is terminally ill.
Jonathan helps Mark's Cousin Diane find romance in an unlikely place. Diane begins to fall in love with a quadriplegic lawyer named Scotty who is surprised at how fast the romance seems to be going. When they go out on a date to eat dinner they hit a snag.
Jonathan tries to help a candidate for mayor learn to be nice but gets more than he bargained for when Melvin rich decides to stay rich. Jonathan then has Willie the waiver change places with Melvyn rich to see what it would be like if the each lived different lives.
Jonathan and Mark help a young actress not to be so controlling around other's. Laurie soon tells Mark and Jonathan that she never wanted to be the star. She only wanted to continue acting and let someone else be the star.
Jonathan must get neighbors to help Helen keep her home from getting in the hands of corporate developers. Jonathan asks the neighbors to buy some stock and hope that it rises high enough so they to will lose their homes. Also Jonathan tries to get a man that used to work for the developer to make sure that his wife's death will mean something.
A former jogger still grieving over the loss of his wife's death sees no reason to live again. So Harry is put into a nursing home even though Matt's father doesn't agree with the plan. Harry gets the chance to fill his wife's wish to go Hollywood.
Jonathan and Mark reunite Lizzy MacGill Garth Armstrong (they haven't seen each other since they were kids) Garth is set to marry Elaine who he doesn't like very much because his father wants him to marry someone rich. Lizzy and Garth compete together in a horse competition and find out who is the best horse rider but they also find that they love each other. Garth to finds his daughter's wishes by asking Lizzy to marry him. Only to encounter some trouble ahead.
In the conclusion of a two-part story, wealthy horse breeder Mr. Armstrong (Stephen Elliott) is still dead set against the romance between his playboy son Garth (John Hammond) and the daughter of Armstrong's head trainer MacGill (Noble Willingham). It is up to angel-in-training Jonathan Smith (Michael Landon) to smooth out the course (or in this case, the bridal path) of true love. Complications ensue when the young couple elopes -- with Garth unaware that his sweetheart is suffering from cancer
Jonathan and Mark taken interest in Todd who has no desire to be in Special Olympics because he feels he can't do anything. Tries to convince Todd to get into Special Olympics to prove to himself that he can do things. Scotty and Diane learn whether they can have children or if they will have to adopt children. Diane learns her fate and it decides to adopt children but Scotty is against adoption because he wants to have a baby that looks like him and can run and play.
Now that Diane and Scotty want to have children they decided to adopt Todd but learn that his natural parents don't want anyone to adopt him. Todd's natural parents were told some years ago that they had to put him out for adoption because he his handicapped.
After his owners are trapped at the bottom of a hill in car accident, a precocious dog tries to lead Jonathon and Mark to them.
Jonathan informs a man, Mr. Clancy that his son who died in Vietnam fathered a child. Now he is still hurting over losing his son, that he doesn't want them. But nevetheless brings them over. Now the boy is being shook down by some bullies who want his lunch money. Now the man's anger reaches it's boiling point and he throws them out. Jonathan then informs him of what his grandson has been going through. He goes out there to tell them to stop shaking him down. They try to rough them up but Jonathan gives a little bit of power to fight back. Later the man and his grandson finally reconcile.
Bill Cassidy is a model TV dad of the hit series, ""That's Our Dad, a show known for its closing (where he ""adopts"" two orphaned children at the end of each show). At least on-screen Cassidy is the model TV dad. Off the set is a little different story. Bill is an egotistical jerk who verbally abuses his co-stars and crew members ... and even the children he was said to have adopted. His off-screen attitude is put to the test when two orphans, who happen to be fans of ""That's Our Dad,"" and especially Bill Cassidy. The two track down Bill and ask if he'd consider adopting them ... especially because they have taken the closing segments to heart. When Bill refuses to speak to them, and later tells them to get lost, the children enlist Jonathan and Mark's help in talking with Bill and setting his attitude straight.
Jonathan and Mark are on their way to their next assignment and meet another angel, Ted, whom Jonathan knows, and they both arrive at their destination. When Ted learns that the subject of his mission is his wife Laura and that it involves pairing her with a guy named Roy; not only does he refuse to do it but he sabotages any chances Roy may have had with her. He then romances her himself but Jonathan steps in and shows what damage he has done and so to fix, he starts acting like a jerk which inspires Roy to tell him to leave Laura alone and their romance begins.
Jonathan and Mark taken a couple back in time to help them understand what life would of been like had they not met each other 49 years earlier. Clarence and rose are about to divorce each other because they have fallen out of love.
Jonathan is working as a teacher at a college. And the focus of his assignment is a young boy genius who's accepted to college. The boy feels like an outcast. His roommate is a guy who's on an athletic scholarship. When his roommate has trouble in a class, he's asked to help get him a copy of a test. But when it's found out what happened, things get out of hand.
Jonathan and Mark try to get a father and son to get to know each other again before Gary loses his father due to leukemia. Jonathan tries to make these tycoons live life to the fullest and not work so hard.
Jonathan persuades an influential United States senator to restore severe Congressional budget cuts dealing with health-care, but when the senator suffers a fatal heart attack on the Senate floor, the assignment seems doomed to failure.
After Mark wins a lot of money he puts Jonathan and Brady out of the picture. Mark falls in love with Nina who is broke but doesn't know it.
It's Christmas time and Jonathan and Mark's assignment is to prove to a cynical reporter, who doesn't believe that there's any goodness in the world, that there is.
When a major fire threatens a neighborhood, Jonathan and Mark (in the guise of priests) re-open an abandoned church as a shelter, and one of the people who take shelter there is a hustler also disguised as a priest who has found a briefcase containing $1 million and needs a place to hide from the hoods who lost it
Jonathan and Mark tag along with an elderly street puppeteer who's also an angel - but doesn't know it.
James Earl Jones stars as Gabe Wilson, an old friend of Mark's and down-and-out jazz pianist who tries to re-build his life after suffering a heart attack. Gabe reconnects with an old flame named Ellie, a God-fearing widow who is having problems trying to relate to her daughter, Vanessa, the vocalist in a rock band. When Gabe tries to encourage Vanessa to pursue her dreams, he unwittingly strains the not-so-harmonious mother-daughter relationship even more. After Vanessa runs away without leaving a note, Ellie lashes out at Gabe, telling him that God made him blind to make him pay for his sins (he had become blind after a drunk driver struck his vehicle years earlier). It is up to Jonathan to reunite Ellie and Vanessa and set them both straight.
Mark and Jonathan help Danny and Kate overcome their height issues as they get ready for prom.
Jonathan and Mark's assignment is to reunite a Hollywood actress with her estranged daughter who is writing a book about her life with her mother in a negative way because she was never told the truth about her father. Meanwhile, another angel reveals to Mark that if Jonathan is successful with this assignment it could mean he will be moved up to heaven and Mark isn't happy about the idea of loosing his best friend.
Jonathan and Mark's next assignment takes them to a halfway house for people who were confined to mental facilities but released because they're no longer deemed a danger to society, though not yet fully rehabilitated. The other members of the neighborhood don't want them there because of their past condition, but when they meet each other they begin to realize their humanity.
Joe Mason is a Vietnam Vet who is trying to get the VA to help him pay expensive dental work but because his condition is not related to his military service, he is denied.
Jonathan and Mark, as police detectives investigating drug selling in schools, become involved when the son of a famous news anchorman and leading anti-drug proponent learns that his father is a secret cocaine user and informs the police, leading to a cover-up and betrayal of trust by the father.
When Jonathan and Mark decide to take some time off, they visit Mark's friends to go fishing. When they arrive, they discover, the son of Mark's friends was in an accident a few years ago and after being taken off life support is still alive and is a convalescent home. And the father spends all his time with his son practically ignoring his wife. And the tension between them causes problems for their daughter who hasn't visited her brother because she was with her brother when he had his accident.
Jonathan and Mark have an interesting assignment as they try to give Gary and Alice a new direction in their lives. As Gary begins to fall in love with Alice he soon discovers a secret that suddenly makes him a father. Alice makes plans to give up her baby for adoption but as the birth of the baby gets closer she begins to have second thoughts about giving the baby up.
Birdy Belker a mystery writer gets to meet the man of her dreams. She meets Roger bolt who was slain in 1968. Jonathan grants birdy's wish to actually meet the man she writes about. She learns that meeting the man she writes about isn't all it's cracked up to be.
Jonathan and Mark's latest assignment is to try and get cold hearted businessman R.R. Benson to change his ways. When subtlety fails, Jonathan decides to try the direct approach and tell Benson who he is and why he is here. When Benson refuses to change, Jonathan tells him to read the Bible. And it's during the night that a burglar breaks in and shoots Benson. Later Jonathan and Mark find Benson but he's now a spirit. That's when Jonathan takes him on a tour of his life and what he has done. Upon seeing that Jonathan tells him he's being given the opportunity to relive the last week of his life. And he tries to do the right thing this time.
