On Promised Land (television) A Disney Channel Premiere Film; first aired on April 17, 1994. A poignant drama set in the American South of the 1950s about two families, one black and one white, and the dreams and broken promises that bind them together. Directed by Joan Tewkesbury. Stars Joan Plowright (Mrs. Appletree), Norman D. Golden II, Judith Ivey. 99 min.