Article Originally Published: May 19, 2014
A Stranger To Love first aired on Sunday, March 24, 1996. Occasionally, A Stranger To Love airs on the Lifetime Movie Network and the Hallmark Channel. The true-story family drama is directed by Peter Levin and written by Richard Leder. Beau Bridges, Tess Harper, Pam Dawber, and Billy Forester star in the movie, The New York Times reports.
 |
| A Stranger To Love was based on a real true story |
A Stranger To Love synopsis/plot
Adam, a restaurant owner and chef, loves his life and his family. But tragedy strikes after Adam is robbed during a carjacking. When a dead body turns up in the local river, he is declared dead. But a few years later, his family begins to believe that they may have buried the wrong person, and that Adam could be suffering from amnesia and living in another location.
The true story that inspired A Stranger To Love involves the amnesia-disappearance case of James McDonnell, also known as Jim Peters. The case happened in Larchmont, N.Y., in the 1980s, according to the Movies Based On True Stories Archives.
Caption: Based on the case of James McDonnell
I was the first to post this story to the Internet in April of 2013.
I uncovered the true story during my research at the library, where I found articles from Reader's Digest and the Los Angeles Times. These articles were not posted to the internet as they are today.
Here are some of my original notes from the real story.
James McDonnell's case gained national attention in late 1985 when a story about a man who had amnesia for fifteen years hit the press. The real case took place in Larchmont, New York, when James McDonnell suffered amnesia after experiencing a few minor head injuries one day. He gained his memory back after fifteen years when he bumped his head again.
Here is a brief timeline of the case.
James McDonnell lives in Larchmont, New York, with his wife of more than 10 years. He works as a mail carrier at a local post office. He is known as a very nice and friendly man.
February 24, 1971: On a cold day, James McDonnell takes out the trash and slips on his icy steps. He injures his back and his head in the fall. The injuries are minor.
February 25, 1971: James McDonnell starts sneezing, loses control of his vehicle, and strikes his head on a pole.
February 26, 1971: McDonnell starts to complain of a headache and dizziness while working, and he falls again.
March 1971: He is in another car accident and suffers a minor concussion. A few weeks later, he walks home and vanishes.
March-April 1971: After dropping off his in-laws, James becomes disoriented and begins to wander off on foot. Close to midnight, when James does not arrive home, his wife Anne begins to look for him. He was reported missing. The police check his background, and they find no reason for him to want to abandon his life. It eventually crosses Anne's mind that he could possibly have amnesia due to the falls. Family and friends describe Anne as a woman who was beside herself with worry. She prays constantly and anxiously waits to hear something about Jim.
When he does not return home for several months, Anne has to take a job as a nursing assistant to make ends meet. James is legally declared dead.
At some point, James McDonnell suddenly appears in Philadelphia. He eventually assumes the name Jim Peters after seeing the name on a sign in a store window. He obtains a Social Security card and finds a job as a short-order cook at P&P Luncheonette. He makes lots of friends with the customers and with the luncheonette's owner, Susan Shriver.
March 29, 1971: James A. McDonnell vanishes. His wife eventually declares him dead, though she never really gives up hope that he will be found alive. She decides to keep everything the same in case he returns.
James McDonnell begins a new life as Jim Peters. He is a cook and a bartender. He also has a side job as Santa Claus.
James McDonnell begins a new life as Jim Peters. He is a cook and a bartender. He also has a side job as Santa Claus.