Welcome back Kotter
 Gabe
Kotter returns to his former NYC high school (James Buchanan High)
to teach Social studies and history.
His class were a bunch of semi-literate delinquents (all
seemingly well past school age!) called the Sweathogs.
The Sweathogs were led by Vinnie Barbarino, who had a penchant
for rhyming insults (e.g: "up your nose with a rubber
hose", "Off my case, potato face" etc).
This was the role which made John Travolta a major star and set
him up for successful movie career with films such as Saturday
Night Fever.
After just one season, Travolta was already a
sensation, second only to Happy Days Henry Winkler.
With 7,500 pieces of fan mail coming in a week, he
was featured on posters and records and was leaning heavily on
Scientology to maintain his sanity. However, even faith and
philosophy couldn't keep his personal life sane.
Whenever Travolta returned to his childhood home
in Englewood, New Jersey, he snuck in unannounced in the middle of
the night. "It's because of my mother," he explained.
"Both my folks are enjoying my success more than I ever
could, and that's great. But if I tell her I'm coming, she tells
the whole town. And the next thing you know, all these strangers
are prowling around the place, peeking at us and tearing out
chunks of the house as souvenirs."
The other 'key' sweathogs were Epstein (a Jewish Puerto Rican),
Washington (a cool streetwise black guy) and Arnold Dingfelder
Horshack.
A schoolteacher who was sick of her students imitating
Horshack's famous laugh - which Ron Palillo invented on the spot
at his audition to differentiate himself from the competition -
wrote to him "I sometimes wish your show had never come on
the air," and Palillo found himself constantly forced to do
Arnold's trademark laugh for strangers who approached him in
restaurants.
In 1978 Angie became the first female Sweathog and Beau (a
Southerner) joined the class. Also in 1978, Kotter was promoted to
vice principal and Mr Woodman became principal.
Based on the UK TV Series Please Sir! (Which in turn was
based on the 60s movie, To Sir With Love), Welcome Back
Kotter amassed a huge following during the 70s. But it didn't
please everyone initially.
Executive Producer James Komack originally hated the concept
and had little enthusiasm for Kaplan's comedy. So he walked out on
the show three times before warming to both and deciding to
stay.
A group of station managers hated the Sweathogs
and, after viewing only the pilot, said the show was
"glorifying hoodlums."
The National Education Association tried to force
the show to accept an adviser in order to "protect the image
of schoolteachers" and Boston's ABC affiliate initially
banned the show, saying it "advocated the kind of bad
attitudes that are not proper behaviour in the
classroom."
Welcome back
Your dreams were your ticket out
Welcome back
To that same old place that you laughed about
Well, the names have all changed since you hung around
But those dreams have remained and they've turned around
Who'dve thought they'd lead ya?
Back here where we need ya?
Yeah, we tease him a lot
'cause we've got him on the spot
Welcome back
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