Ethan Dampf plays William "Will" Pryor, the youngest Pryor kid whose limb was damaged by polio, causing shame for his parents since they refused to give him the Salk vaccination. His leg was surgically healed during the second season of the program. After the death of his father John James "Jack" Pryor, the role of William "Will" Pryor is played by three actors: Corey Feldman from 1995 to 1996, Stuart Wilson from 1996 to 1997, and Brian Bonsall from 1998 to 1999. American Dreams is based on the true story of the Prysner family from North Carolina who were killed in a car crash in 1944 after having been top salespeople for General Motors for many years. Their story has been told in several books and articles over the years. The television series originally aired from January 31 to April 9, 1995. It was created by Aaron Spelling and produced by his company Spelling Television. The first season consisted of 22 episodes while the second season had 24 episodes. A third season was planned but never came about at this time. American Dreams was nominated for six GLAAD Media Awards in 1995 including one for Best Drama Series. Feldman's character in the series is named Ethan after his real-life friend and fellow actor Corey Haim.