From October 1972 to July 1997, if a kid came home after school to have a snack and chill in front of the television for a bit, one TV rabbit hole possible to fall into was the ABC After School Special. The network made these cautionary tales more palatable to kids by starring young actors who looked as if they might be future movie heartthrobs.
Indeed, some of the stars of these specials went on to bigger and better things, as evidenced by the video clips included in the article linked below. See River and Joaquin (billed as Leaf) Phoenix in the video above, and check out the ABC After School Special debuts of Ben Affleck, Meg Ryan, Wil Wheaton, Viggo Mortensen, Marisa Tomei, Michelle Pfeiffer and more here.
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