On May 13, 1977, ABC broadcast the pilot for
The San Pedro Beach Bums, a 90-minute movie titled
The San Pedro Bums, which told the story of the "Bums" finding
Our Boat and moving onto it. Although a similar premise had not worked in the unsuccessful comedy-drama ''
It's a Man's World in 1962–1963, ABC believed in the concept, and it picked up the show as a weekly one-hour sitcom for its fall 1977 schedule. Concerned that the use of the word "bums" in the pilots title could be construed as negative and drive some viewers away unless softened by a more lighthearted connotation, ABC changed the name of the weekly series to The San Pedro Beach Bums''. A cast change also took place, with Jeff Druce, who played Boychick in the pilot, replaced by Christopher DeRose in the weekly series. To boost viewership for
The San Pedro Beach Bums, ABC scheduled it as the lead-in for the 1977 season of the popular
ABC Monday Night Football. To garner extra attention for the shows premiere in September 1977, the women who starred as the "Angels" in the hit ABC program ''
Charlie's Angels'' –
Kate Jackson,
Jaclyn Smith, and
Cheryl Ladd – guest-starred as themselves in the episode.
Aaron Spelling and
Douglas S. Cramer were the shows executive producers.
E. Duke Vincent wrote and produced the pilot, and
Barry Shear directed it. Episode directors were
Jack Arnold,
Allen Baron,
Earl Bellamy,
Gene Nelson,
George Tyne, and
Don Weis. Episode writers included Earl Barret, William Raynor, and
Myles Wilder. ==Broadcast history==