This deeply felt recollection of adolescent life on Chicago’s near North Side, set in 1964, is based on episodes from the childhood of screenwriter Eric Monte (who also co-created TV’s “Good Times”). The story centers on two high-school seniors preparing for post-high-school life: Leroy “Preach” Jackson, who loves to read and aspires to be a Hollywood screenwriter despite rotten grades, and his best friend Richard “Cochise” Morris, a basketball star and suave ladies-man. With humor and realism, Cooley High chronicles their troubles with girls, school, and the police.
Cooley High
Dir. Michael Schultz USA 117 min PG
1975