The Day After
| The Day After | |
|---|---|
The Day After DVD cover
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| Written by | Edward Hume |
| Directed by | Nicholas Meyer |
| Starring |
Jason Robards JoBeth Williams Steve Guttenberg John Cullum John Lithgow Amy Madigan |
| Theme music composer |
David Raksin Virgil Thomson |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Robert Papazian (producer) Stephanie Austin (associate producer) |
| Cinematography | Gayne Rescher |
| Editor(s) | William Paul Dornisch Robert Florio |
| Running time | 126 minutes |
| Production company(s) | ABC Circle Films |
| Distributor | ABC Motion Pictures |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Original release |
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The Day After is an American television film that first aired on November 20, 1983, on the ABC television network. More than 100 million people, in nearly 39 million households, watched the program during its initial broadcast. With a 46 rating and a 62% share of the viewing audience during its initial broadcast, it was the seventh highest rated non-sports show up to that time and set a record as the highest-rated television film in history—a record it still held as recently as a 2009 report.
The film postulates a fictional war between NATO forces and the Warsaw Pact that rapidly escalates into a full-scale nuclear exchange between the United States and the Soviet Union. The action itself focuses on the residents of Lawrence, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri, as well as several family farms situated near nuclear missile silos.
The cast includes JoBeth Williams, Steve Guttenberg, John Cullum, Jason Robards, and John Lithgow. The film was written by Edward Hume, produced by Robert Papazian, and directed by Nicholas Meyer. It was released on DVD on May 18, 2004, by MGM.
The story follows several citizens – and people they encounter – in and around Kansas City, Missouri and the college town of Lawrence, Kansas, 40 miles (64 km) to its west.
The film's narrative is structured as a before-during-after scenario of a nuclear attack: the first segment introduces the various characters and their stories; the second shows the nuclear disaster itself, and; the third details the effects of the fallout on the characters.
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