Anya's Bell
Encyclopedia
Anya's Bell is a television movie
aired on CBS
on October 31, 1999, starring Della Reese
as Anya Herpick.
woman who was always taken care of by her mother. Anya copes with her loneliness by collecting bells, a situation which becomes worse when her mother dies. Now middle aged and alone, Anya befriends a 12-year-old delivery boy, Scott Rhymes (Mason Gamble
). Scott is considered "slow", though later it is revealed that he is dyslexic (a disorder not commonly understood at that time). Anya teaches him to read braille
, which Scott rapidly learns, and the two become close friends.
Nominated
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
aired on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
on October 31, 1999, starring Della Reese
Della Reese
Delloreese Patricia Early, known professionally as Della Reese , is an American actress, singer, game show panelist of the 1970s, one-time talk-show hostess and ordained minister. She started her career in the 1950s as a gospel, pop and jazz singer, scoring a hit with her 1959 single "Don't You...
as Anya Herpick.
Plot
In 1949, Anya is a blindBlindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
woman who was always taken care of by her mother. Anya copes with her loneliness by collecting bells, a situation which becomes worse when her mother dies. Now middle aged and alone, Anya befriends a 12-year-old delivery boy, Scott Rhymes (Mason Gamble
Mason Gamble
Mason Wilson Gamble is an American actor known for his portrayal of Dennis Mitchell in the 1993 film Dennis the Menace and as Jason Schwartzman's sidekick, Dirk Calloway, in Wes Anderson and Owen Wilson's critically acclaimed 1998 film Rushmore. He also appeared in Anya's Bell with Della Reese,...
). Scott is considered "slow", though later it is revealed that he is dyslexic (a disorder not commonly understood at that time). Anya teaches him to read braille
Braille
The Braille system is a method that is widely used by blind people to read and write, and was the first digital form of writing.Braille was devised in 1825 by Louis Braille, a blind Frenchman. Each Braille character, or cell, is made up of six dot positions, arranged in a rectangle containing two...
, which Scott rapidly learns, and the two become close friends.
Cast
- Della ReeseDella ReeseDelloreese Patricia Early, known professionally as Della Reese , is an American actress, singer, game show panelist of the 1970s, one-time talk-show hostess and ordained minister. She started her career in the 1950s as a gospel, pop and jazz singer, scoring a hit with her 1959 single "Don't You...
as Anya Herpick - Mason GambleMason GambleMason Wilson Gamble is an American actor known for his portrayal of Dennis Mitchell in the 1993 film Dennis the Menace and as Jason Schwartzman's sidekick, Dirk Calloway, in Wes Anderson and Owen Wilson's critically acclaimed 1998 film Rushmore. He also appeared in Anya's Bell with Della Reese,...
as Scott Rhymes - Kelly RowanKelly RowanKelly Rowan is a Canadian television and film actress and former fashion model. She is best known for portraying Kirsten Cohen on The O.C.-Early life:...
as Jeanne Rhymes - Tom CavanaghTom CavanaghThomas "Tom" Cavanagh is a Canadian actor.-Early life:Cavanagh was born in Ottawa, Ontario. He is of Irish descent and was raised in a large Roman Catholic family. Cavanagh moved with his family to Winneba, a small city in Ghana, when he was seven years old. In his teens, the family moved to...
as Patrick Birmingham
Awards
- 2000 Young Artist AwardYoung Artist AwardThe Young Artist Award is an accolade bestowed by the Young Artist Foundation, a non-profit organization founded in 1978 to recognize and award excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young artists who may be physically and/or financially challenged.The Young Artist...
: Best Performance in a TV Movie or Pilot - Leading Young Actor; Best Family TV Movie or Pilot - Network
Nominated
- 2000 Humanitas Prize