Saturday, July 31, 2010

Home Fires Burning (1988) TV Movie

Part of the "Hallmark Hall of Fame" series.

This is from the original broadcast of 29 January 1989, and it is episode 2 of the 38th season.





Home Fires Burning (1988) TV Movie
Cast: Barnard Hughes, Sada Thompson, Robert Prosky, Bill Pullman, Elizabeth Berridge, Neil Patrick Harris, Brad Sullivan, William Duell, Warde Q. Butler, Wallace Wilkinson, Ric Reitz, Kyle Chandler

Sports Illustrated 20th Century Sports Awards (1999) (TV)

Honoring the greatest athletes of the past 100 years, as selected by the editors of Sports Illustrated magazine.







Sports Illustrated 20th Century Sports Awards (1999) (TV)
Host: Bryant Gumbel with musical performances by Paul Simon, Whitney Houston and Garth Brooks

Shattered Innocence (1988) TV Movie

This provocative drama based on the tragic life of Shauna Grant, chronicles the events that lead up to her untimely death and her change from All-American teen-ager to drug-addicted porno star. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Shattered Innocence (1988) TV Movie
Cast: Jonna Lee, Melinda Dillon, John Pleshette, Kris Kamm, Ben Frank, Dennis Howard, Stephen Schnetzer, Richard Cox, Nadine Van der Velde, Randy Hamilton, Peppi Sanders, Melissa Michaelsen

Friday, July 30, 2010

Star Trek Saga, The: From One Generation to the Next (1988) (TV)

Watch as the baton passes from one to the other. This is hosted by Patrick Stewart not Jonathan Frakes. Includes the original 1 hour pilot episode, "The Cage" with Jeffrey Hunter. This is very rare and rarely seen, an excellent document of the franchise to that date.

The Star Trek Saga: From One Generation to the Next (1988) (TV)
Cast: Jonathan Frakes, Patrick Stewart, Denise Crosby, LeVar Burton, Rick Berman, Brent Spiner, Michael Dorn, Marina Sirtis, Gates McFadden, William Shatner

Cold Night's Death, A (1973) TV Movie

Scientists suspect something other than research primates is inhabiting their polar station.







A Cold Night's Death (1973) TV Movie
Cast: Robert Culp, Eli Wallach, Michael C. Gwynne

Christopher Columbus (1985) TV miniseries

After his proposal to sail west to the East Indies is rejected by Portugal, Columbus overcomes court intrigue in Spain to gain support for his expedition.



 


Christopher Columbus (1985) TV miniseries
Cast: Gabriel Byrne, Rossano Brazzi, Virna Lisi, Oliver Reed, Raf Vallone, Max von Sydow, Eli Wallach, Nicol Williamson, Faye Dunaway

Case Closed (1988) TV Movie

Dismissed as "annoyingly awful" by the critic at TV Guide, Case Closed has its moments of value now and again. Co-writer and co-producer Byron Allen stars as a hip black cop, assigned to solve a puzzling series of murders. Straight-laced white cop Charles Durning is dragged out of retirement to lend Allen a hand. The mismatched pair doesn't get along at first, but we'll bet the ranch that they're palsy-walsy before fade-out time. Filmed on location in Atlanta, this spotty "action comedy" was first telecast on April 19, 1988. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Case Closed (1988) TV Movie
Cast: Marc Alaimo, Byron Allen, Donna Biscoe, Jimmy Briscoe, Saundra Dunson-Franks, Charles Durning, Ric Reitz

Thursday, July 29, 2010

State of the Union Address (1987)

Text of President Reagan's 1987 State of the Union Address.









Mr. Speaker, Mr. President, distinguished Members of Congress, honored guests, and fellow citizens:

May I congratulate all of you who are Members of this historic 100th Congress of the United States of America. In this 200th anniversary year of our Constitution, you and I stand on the shoulders of giants—men whose words and deeds put wind in the sails of freedom. However, we must always remember that our Constitution is to be celebrated not for being old, but for being young—young with the same energy, spirit, and promise that filled each eventful day in Philadelphia's statehouse. We will be guided tonight by their acts, and we will be guided forever by their words.

Now, forgive me, but I can't resist sharing a story from those historic days. Philadelphia was bursting with civic pride in the spring of 1787, and its newspapers began embellishing the arrival of the Convention delegates with elaborate social classifications. Governors of States were called Excellency. Justices and Chancellors had reserved for them honorable with a capital "H." For Congressmen, it was honorable with a small "h." And all others were referred to as "the following respectable characters." [Laughter] Well, for this 100th Congress, I invoke special executive powers to declare that each of you must never be titled less than honorable with a capital "H." Incidentally, I'm delighted you are celebrating the 100th birthday of the Congress. It's always a pleasure to congratulate someone with more birthdays than I've had. [Laughter]

Now, there's a new face at this place of honor tonight. And please join me in warm congratulations to the Speaker of the House, Jim Wright. [Applause] Mr. Speaker, you might recall a similar situation in your very first session of Congress 32 years ago. Then, as now, the speakership had changed hands and another great son of Texas, Sam Rayburn—"Mr. Sam"—sat in your chair. I cannot find better words than those used by President Eisenhower that evening. He said, "We shall have much to do together; I am sure that we will get it done and that we shall do it in harmony and good will." Tonight I renew that pledge. To you, Mr. Speaker, and to Senate Majority Leader Robert Byrd, who brings 34 years of distinguished service to the Congress, may I say: Though there are changes in the Congress, America's interests remain the same. And I am confident that, along with Republican leaders Bob Michel and Bob Dole, this Congress can make history.

Six years ago I was here to ask the Congress to join me in America's new beginning. Well, the results are something of which we can all be proud. Our inflation rate is now the lowest in a quarter of a century. The prime interest rate has fallen from the 21 1/2 percent the month before we took office to 7 1/2 percent today. And those rates have triggered the most housing starts in 8 years. The unemployment rate—still too high—is the lowest in nearly 7 years, and our people have created nearly 13 million new jobs. Over 61 percent of everyone over the age of 16, male and female, is employed—the highest percentage on record. Let's roll up our sleeves and go to work and put America's economic engine at full throttle. We can also be heartened by our progress across the world. Most important, America is at peace tonight, and freedom is on the march. And we've done much these past years to restore our defenses, our alliances, and our leadership in the world. Our sons and daughters in the services once again wear their uniforms with pride.

But though we've made much progress, I have one major regret: I took a risk with regard to our action in Iran. It did not work, and for that I assume full responsibility. The goals were worthy. I do not believe it was wrong to try to establish contacts with a country of strategic importance or to try to save lives. And certainly it was not wrong to try to secure freedom for our citizens held in barbaric captivity. But we did not achieve what we wished, and serious mistakes were made in trying to do so. We will get to the bottom of this, and I will take whatever action is called for. But in debating the past, we must not deny ourselves the successes of the future. Let it never be said of this generation of Americans that we became so obsessed with failure that we refused to take risks that could further the cause of peace and freedom in the world. Much is at stake here, and the Nation and the world are watching to see if we go forward together in the national interest or if we let partisanship weaken us. And let there be no mistake about American policy: We will not sit idly by if our interests or our friends in the Middle East are threatened, nor will we yield to terrorist blackmail.

And now, ladies and gentlemen of the Congress, why don't we get to work? I am pleased to report that because of our efforts to rebuild the strength of America, the world is a safer place. Earlier this month I submitted a budget to defend America and maintain our momentum to make up for neglect in the last decade. Well, I ask you to vote out a defense and foreign affairs budget that says yes to protecting our country. While the world is safer, it is not safe.

Since 1970 the Soviets have invested $500 billion more on their military forces than we have. Even today, though nearly 1 in 3 Soviet families is without running hot water and the average family spends 2 hours a day shopping for the basic necessities of life, their government still found the resources to transfer $75 billion in weapons to client states in the past 5 years—clients like Syria, Vietnam, Cuba, Libya, Angola, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, and Nicaragua. With 120,000 Soviet combat and military personnel and 15,000 military advisers in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, can anyone still doubt their single-minded determination to expand their power? Despite this, the Congress cut my request for critical U.S. security assistance to free nations by 21 percent this year, and cut defense requests by $85 billion in the last 3 years.

These assistance programs serve our national interests as well as mutual interests. And when the programs are devastated, American interests are harmed. My friends, it's my duty as President to say to you again tonight that there is no surer way to lose freedom than to lose our resolve. Today the brave people of Afghanistan are showing that resolve. The Soviet Union says it wants a peaceful settlement in Afghanistan, yet it continues a brutal war and props up a regime whose days are clearly numbered. We are ready to support a political solution that guarantees the rapid withdrawal of all Soviet troops and genuine self-determination for the Afghan people.

In Central America, too, the cause of freedom is being tested. And our resolve is being tested there as well. Here, especially, the world is watching to see how this nation responds. Today over 90 percent of the people of Latin America live in democracy. Democracy is on the march in Central and South America. Communist Nicaragua is the odd man out—suppressing the church, the press, and democratic dissent and promoting subversion in the region. We support diplomatic efforts, but these efforts can never succeed if the Sandinistas win their war against the Nicaraguan people.

Our commitment to a Western Hemisphere safe from aggression did not occur by spontaneous generation on the day that we took office. It began with the Monroe Doctrine in 1823 and continues our historic bipartisan American policy. Franklin Roosevelt said we "are determined to do everything possible to maintain peace on this hemisphere." President Truman was very blunt: "International communism seeks to crush and undermine and destroy the independence of the Americas. We cannot let that happen here." And John F. Kennedy made clear that "Communist domination in this hemisphere can never be negotiated." Some in this Congress may choose to depart from this historic commitment, but I will not.

This year we celebrate the second century of our Constitution. The Sandinistas just signed theirs 2 weeks ago, and then suspended it. We won't know how my words tonight will be reported there for one simple reason: There is no free press in Nicaragua. Nicaraguan freedom fighters have never asked us to wage their battle, but I will fight any effort to shut off their lifeblood and consign them to death, defeat, or a life without freedom. There must be no Soviet beachhead in Central America.

You know, we Americans have always preferred dialog to conflict, and so, we always remain open to more constructive relations with the Soviet Union. But more responsible Soviet conduct around the world is a key element of the U.S.-Soviet agenda. Progress is also required on the other items of our agenda as well—real respect for human rights and more open contacts between our societies and, of course, arms reduction.

In Iceland, last October, we had one moment of opportunity that the Soviets dashed because they sought to cripple our Strategic Defense Initiative, SDI. I wouldn't let them do it then; I won't let them do it now or in the future. This is the most positive and promising defense program we have undertaken. It's the path, for both sides, to a safer future—a system that defends human life instead of threatening it. SDI will go forward. The United States has made serious, fair, and far-reaching proposals to the Soviet Union, and this is a moment of rare opportunity for arms reduction. But I will need, and American negotiators in Geneva will need, Congress' support. Enacting the Soviet negotiating position into American law would not be the way to win a good agreement. So, I must tell you in this Congress I will veto any effort that undercuts our national security and our negotiating leverage.

Now, today, we also find ourselves engaged in expanding peaceful commerce across the world. We will work to expand our opportunities in international markets through the Uruguay round of trade negotiations and to complete an historic free trade arrangement between the world's two largest trading partners, Canada and the United States. Our basic trade policy remains the same: We remain opposed as ever to protectionism, because America's growth and future depend on trade. But we would insist on trade that is fair and free. We are always willing to be trade partners but never trade patsies.

Now, from foreign borders let us return to our own, because America in the world is only as strong as America at home. This 100th Congress has high responsibilities. I begin with a gentle reminder that many of these are simply the incomplete obligations of the past. The American people deserve to be impatient, because we do not yet have the public house in order. We've had great success in restoring our economic integrity, and we've rescued our nation from the worst economic mess since the Depression. But there's more to do. For starters, the Federal deficit is outrageous. For years I've asked that we stop pushing onto our children the excesses of our government. And what the Congress finally needs to do is pass a constitutional amendment that mandates a balanced budget and forces government to live within its means. States, cities, and the families of America balance their budgets. Why can't we?

Next, the budget process is a sorry spectacle. The missing of deadlines and the nightmare of monstrous continuing resolutions packing hundreds of billions of dollars of spending into one bill must be stopped. We ask the Congress once again: Give us the same tool that 43 Governors have—a lineitem veto so we can carve out the boondoggles and pork, those items that would never survive on their own. I will send the Congress broad recommendations on the budget, but first I'd like to see yours. Let's go to work and get this done together.

But now let's talk about this year's budget. Even though I have submitted it within the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings deficit reduction target, I have seen suggestions that we might postpone that timetable. Well, I think the American people are tired of hearing the same old excuses. Together we made a commitment to balance the budget. Now let's keep it. As for those suggestions that the answer is higher taxes, the American people have repeatedly rejected that shop-worn advice. They know that we don't have deficits because people are taxed too little. We have deficits because big government spends too much.

Now, next month I'll place two additional reforms before the Congress. We've created a welfare monster that is a shocking indictment of our sense of priorities. Our national welfare system consists of some 59 major programs and over 6,000 pages of Federal laws and regulations on which more than $132 billion was spent in 1985. I will propose a new national welfare strategy, a program of welfare reform through State-sponsored, community-based demonstration projects. This is the time to reform this outmoded social dinosaur and finally break the poverty trap. Now, we will never abandon those who, through no fault of their own, must have our help. But let us work to see how many can be freed from the dependency of welfare and made self-supporting, which the great majority of welfare recipients want more than anything else. Next, let us remove a financial specter facing our older Americans: the fear of an illness so expensive that it can result in having to make an intolerable choice between bankruptcy and death. I will submit legislation shortly to help free the elderly from the fear of catastrophic illness.

Now let's turn to the future. It's widely said that America is losing her competitive edge. Well, that won't happen if we act now. How well prepared are we to enter the 21st century? In my lifetime, America set the standard for the world. It is now time to determine that we should enter the next century having achieved a level of excellence unsurpassed in history. We will achieve this, first, by guaranteeing that government does everything possible to promote America's ability to compete. Second, we must act as individuals in a quest for excellence that will not be measured by new proposals or billions in new funding. Rather, it involves an expenditure of American spirit and just plain American grit. The Congress will soon receive my comprehensive proposals to enhance our competitiveness, including new science and technology centers and strong new funding for basic research. The bill will include legal and regulatory reforms and weapons to fight unfair trade practices. Competitiveness also means giving our farmers a shot at participating fairly and fully in a changing world market.

Preparing for the future must begin, as always, with our children. We need to set for them new and more rigorous goals. We must demand more of ourselves and our children by raising literacy levels dramatically by the year 2000. Our children should master the basic concepts of math and science, and let's insist that students not leave high school until they have studied and understood the basic documents of our national heritage. There's one more thing we can't let up on: Let's redouble our personal efforts to provide for every child a safe and drug-free learning environment. If our crusade against drugs succeeds with our children, we will defeat that scourge all over the country.

Finally, let's stop suppressing the spiritual core of our national being. Our nation could not have been conceived without divine help. Why is it that we can build a nation with our prayers, but we can't use a schoolroom for voluntary prayer? The 100th Congress of the United States should be remembered as the one that ended the expulsion of God from America's classrooms.

The quest for excellence into the 21st century begins in the schoolroom but must go next to the workplace. More than 20 million new jobs will be created before the new century unfolds, and by then, our economy should be able to provide a job for everyone who wants to work. We must also enable our workers to adapt to the rapidly changing nature of the workplace. And I will propose substantial, new Federal commitments keyed to retraining and job mobility.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be sending the Congress a complete series of these special messages—on budget reform, welfare reform, competitiveness, including education, trade, worker training and assistance, agriculture, and other subjects. The Congress can give us these tools, but to make these tools work, it really comes down to just being our best. And that is the core of American greatness. The responsibility of freedom presses us towards higher knowledge and, I believe, moral and spiritual greatness. Through lower taxes and smaller government, government has its ways of freeing people's spirits. But only we, each of us, can let the spirit soar against our own individual standards. Excellence is what makes freedom ring. And isn't that what we do best?

We're entering our third century now, but it's wrong to judge our nation by its years. The calendar can't measure America because we were meant to be an endless experiment in freedom—with no limit to our reaches, no boundaries to what we can do, no end point to our hopes. The United States Constitution is the impassioned and inspired vehicle by which we travel through history. It grew out of the most fundamental inspiration of our existence: that we are here to serve Him by living free—that living free releases in us the noblest of impulses and the best of our abilities; that we would use these gifts for good and generous purposes and would secure them not just for ourselves and for our children but for all mankind.

Over the years—I won't count if you don't—nothing has been so heartwarming to me as speaking to America's young, and the little ones especially, so fresh-faced and so eager to know. Well, from time to time I've been with them—they will ask about our Constitution. And I hope you Members of Congress will not deem this a breach of protocol if you'll permit me to share these thoughts again with the young people who might be listening or watching this evening. I've read the constitutions of a number of countries, including the Soviet Union's. Now, some people are surprised to hear that they have a constitution, and it even supposedly grants a number of freedoms to its people. Many countries have written into their constitution provisions for freedom of speech and freedom of assembly. Well, if this is true, why is the Constitution of the United States so exceptional?

Well, the difference is so small that it almost escapes you, but it's so great it tells you the whole story in just three words: We the people. In those other constitutions, the Government tells the people of those countries what they're allowed to do. In our Constitution, we the people tell the Government what it can do, and it can do only those things listed in that document and no others. Virtually every other revolution in history has just exchanged one set of rulers for another set of rulers. Our revolution is the first to say the people are the masters and government is their servant. And you young people out there, don't ever forget that. Someday you could be in this room, but wherever you are, America is depending on you to reach your highest and be your best—because here in America, we the people are in charge.

Just three words: We the people—those are the kids on Christmas Day looking out from a frozen sentry post on the 38th parallel in Korea or aboard an aircraft carrier in the Mediterranean. A million miles from home, but doing their duty.

We the people—those are the warmhearted whose numbers we can't begin to count, who'll begin the day with a little prayer for hostages they will never know and MIA families they will never meet. Why? Because that's the way we are, this unique breed we call Americans.

We the people—they're farmers on tough times, but who never stop feeding a hungry world. They're the volunteers at the hospital choking back their tears for the hundredth time, caring for a baby struggling for life because of a mother who used drugs. And you'll forgive me a special memory—it's a million mothers like Nelle Reagan who never knew a stranger or turned a hungry person away from her kitchen door.

We the people—they refute last week's television commentary downgrading our optimism and our idealism. They are the entrepreneurs, the builders, the pioneers, and a lot of regular folks—the true heroes of our land who make up the most uncommon nation of doers in history. You know they're Americans because their spirit is as big as the universe and their hearts are bigger than their spirits.

We the people—starting the third century of a dream and standing up to some cynic who's trying to tell us we're not going to get any better. Are we at the end? Well, I can't tell it any better than the real thing—a story recorded by James Madison from the final moments of the Constitutional Convention, September 17th, 1787. As the last few members signed the document, Benjamin Franklin—the oldest delegate at 81 years and in frail health—looked over toward the chair where George Washington daily presided. At the back of the chair was painted the picture of a Sun on the horizon. And turning to those sitting next to him, Franklin observed that artists found it difficult in their painting to distinguish between a rising and a setting Sun.

Well, I know if we were there, we could see those delegates sitting around Franklin-leaning in to listen more closely to him. And then Dr. Franklin began to share his deepest hopes and fears about the outcome of their efforts, and this is what he said: "I have often looked at that picture behind the President without being able to tell whether it was a rising or setting Sun: But now at length I have the happiness to know that it is a rising and not a setting Sun." Well, you can bet it's rising because, my fellow citizens, America isn't finished. Her best days have just begun.

Thank you, God bless you, and God bless America.

Note: The President spoke at 9:03 p.m. in the House Chamber of the Capitol. He was introduced by Jim Wright, Speaker of the House of Representatives. The address was broadcast live on nationwide radio and television.
Courtesy Congressional Record

State of the Union Address (1987)
Host: Tom Brokaw

Crash Course (1988) TV Movie

Some students taking driver's ed during the summer. This is a frantic movie with nutty writing. We love the Jackée!







Crash Course (1988) TV Movie
Cast: Jackée Harry, Brian Bloom, Harvey Korman, Alyssa Milano, Charles Robinson, Rob Stone, Tina Yothers, Dick Butkus, Olivia d'Abo, Edie McClurg, Ray Walston, Nathan Dyer, B.D. Wong, Micah Grant, Frank Lugo

Charles and Diana: Unhappily Ever After (1992) TV Movie

Since two TV movies were inspired by the marriage of England's Prince Charles and Princess Diana, it is only logical that at least one made-for-TV feature would greet the decline and fall of that overexposed union. "Charles and Diana: Unhappily Ever After", permitted the viewer the perverse delight of seeing Catherine Oxenberg, who'd previously played Diana in 1982's "The Royal Romance of Charles and Diana", back again as the same (albeit older and wiser) character. Roger Rees costars as the redoubtable Charles, who despite his mile-wide character flaws comes off as relatively sympathetic. Other "royals" lurking about are Amanda Walker as Queen Elizabeth, David Quilter as Prince Philip, Benedict Taylor as Prince Andrew, and Tracy Brabin as "Fergie". Our favorite scene: Diana, dressed to the nines, sitting in the back of her luxurious limo and talking into her designer car phone, whining about how miserable her life is. Later retitled "Charles and Diana: A Palace Divided", this gloriously trashy endeavor was first telecast December 13, 1992. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Charles and Diana: Unhappily Ever After (1992) TV Movie
Cast: Catherine Oxenberg, Roger Rees, Benedict Taylor, Tracy Brabin, Amanda Walker, David Quilter, Jane How, Gladys Crosbie, Cate Fowler, Alan Manson, Patrick Pearson, Thomas Szekeres, Oliver Stone

Chicago Story (1981) TV Movie

This is the story of a pair of cops, a pair of doctors, and a pair of lawyers. And how the shooting of a little girl affects their lives.








Chicago Story (1981) TV Movie
Cast: Vincent Baggetta, Dennis Franz, Kene Holliday, Jack Kehoe, Craig T. Nelson, Kristoffer Tabori, Gail Youngs, Michael Horton, Charles Hallahan, Allan Rich, Richard Venture, Brooke Alderson, Luca Bercovici, Cynthia Lea Clark, Byrne Piven

Sunday, July 25, 2010

American Film Institute Presents, The: TV or Not TV? (1990) (TV)

Novice writers from a writers workshop wrote the show's sketches. Hosted by the great Jack Lemmon.







The American Film Institute Presents: TV or Not TV? (1990) (TV)
Cast: Denny Dillon, Harvey Fierstein, Woody Harrelson, Jack Lemmon, Michael McKean, Alyssa Milano, Richard Moll, Harry Shearer, Renée Taylor, Jay Thomas, George Wallace, Lucy Webb, David Wohl

AFI's 100 Years... 100 Songs: America's Greatest Music in the Movies (2004) (TV)

There's no song like "Over the Rainbow." Kansas farm girl Dorothy Gale's wistful ditty in "The Wizard of Oz" led the American Film Institute's list of 100 best movie songs Tuesday, followed by "As Time Goes By" from "Casablanca" at No. 2 and the title tune from "Singin' in the Rain" at No. 3.

"Over the Rainbow," sung by Judy Garland in the 1939 musical fantasy, was picked as the top song in U.S. cinema in voting by about 1,500 actors, filmmakers, writers, critics and others in Hollywood.

"That deserves it. It's one of the great, great songs. Judy Garland, the emotion in that song. It gives me chills whenever I hear it," said Burt Bacharach, who was represented on the list for co-writing "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" (No. 23) from "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" and "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" (No. 79) from "Arthur."

In 2001, Garland's "Over the Rainbow" (and Bing Crosby's "White Christmas") also topped the 365 "Songs of the Century" selected by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Recording Industry Association of America.

The rest of the AFI top 10: 4. "Moon River" from "Breakfast at Tiffany's"; 5. "White Christmas" from "Holiday Inn"; 6. "Mrs. Robinson" from "The Graduate"; 7. "When You Wish Upon a Star" from "Pinocchio"; 8. "The Way We Were" from "The Way We Were"; 9. "Stayin' Alive" from "Saturday Night Fever"; 10. "The Sound of Music" from "The Sound of Music."

Two other songs made the list from both "The Sound of Music" ("My Favorite Things" at No. 64 and "Do Re Mi" at No. 88) and "Singin' in the Rain" ("Make 'Em Laugh" at No. 49 and "Good Morning" at No. 72). "West Side Story" also landed three songs: "Somewhere" (No. 20), "America" (No. 35) and "Tonight" (No. 59).

Chosen from 400 nominees, the list was announced in the CBS special "AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Songs," the institute's latest countdown to promote U.S. film history. The show's host was John Travolta, star of "Saturday Night Fever" and "Grease," whose "Summer Nights" came in at No. 70.

"A list like this really drives people back to rediscover or discover these movies," said Jean Picker Firstenburg, the institute's director. "It's about older generations revisiting them and younger generations finding them for the first time."

Past specials presented such lists as the best 100 American movies, comedies, screen legends and love stories. AFI leaders had been mulling a list of best movie songs for years.

"It's an idea we've had floating around since the beginning," said Bob Gazzale, who produces the AFI specials. "Movies and music are so obviously linked at the heart, really. Even before sound came to films, there were songs that went with silent pictures, as well."

The earliest song to make the list was "Isn't It Romantic" (No. 73), sung by Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald in 1932's "Love Me Tonight." The newest came from 2002 with Catherine Zeta-Jones and Renee Zellweger's rendition of "All That Jazz" (No. 98) from "Chicago" and Eminem's "Lose Yourself" (No. 93) from "8 Mile."

Unlike the Academy Awards, which honors songs written specifically for new movies, the AFI list allowed any tune integral to a movie. So songs such as "It Had to Be You" (No. 60) from "When Harry Met Sally..." and "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" (No. 94) from "The Big Chill" made the cut.

Other tunes ranged from sublime with Paul Robeson's "Ol' Man River (No. 24) from the 1936 version of "Show Boat" and Garland's "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (No. 76) from "Meet Me in St. Louis" to the goofy with "Springtime for Hitler" (No. 80) from Mel Brooks' "The Producers" and Gene Wilder and Peter Boyle's wacky rendition of "Puttin' on the Ritz" (No. 89) from Brooks' "Young Frankenstein."

Songs came from blockbusters ("My Heart Will Go On" from "Titanic" at No. 14 and "Unchained Melody" from "Ghost" at No. 27) and from counterculture flicks ("Born to Be Wild" from "Easy Rider" at No. 29 and "Aquarius" from "Hair" at No. 33).

"I think this list is about music that has made its way into daily lives, rather than an assessment of what's great," said Jennifer Warnes, who sang two duets that made the list, "Up Where We Belong" (No. 75) from "An Officer and a Gentleman" and "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" (No. 86) from "Dirty Dancing."

"The reason why my songs made it there is that they're used. I still hear `Up Where We Belong' when I'm at the store buying frozen peas, and it makes me happier to be buying frozen peas."

The American Film Institute's list of top 100 songs From U.S. movies, with film title and year of release:

1. "Over the Rainbow," "The Wizard of Oz," 1939.
2. "As Time Goes by," "Casablanca," 1942.
3. "Singin' in the Rain," "Singin' in the Rain," 1952.
4. "Moon River," "Breakfast at Tiffany's," 1961.
5. "White Christmas," "Holiday Inn," 1942.
6. "Mrs. Robinson," "The Graduate," 1967.
7. "When You Wish Upon a Star," "Pinocchio," 1940.
8. "The Way We Were," "The Way We Were," 1973.
9. "Stayin' Alive," "Saturday Night Fever," 1977.
10. "The Sound of Music," "The Sound of Music," 1965.
11. "The Man That Got Away," "A Star Is Born," 1954.
12. "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend," "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," 1953.
13. "People," "Funny Girl," 1968.
14. "My Heart Will Go On," "Titanic," 1997.
15. "Cheek to Cheek," "Top Hat," 1935.
16. "Evergreen (Love Theme From `A Star Is Born')," "A Star Is Born," 1976.
17. "I Could Have Danced All Night," "My Fair Lady," 1964.
18. "Cabaret," "Cabaret," 1972.
19. "Some Day My Prince Will Come," "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," 1937.
20. "Somewhere," "West Side Story," 1961.
21. "Jailhouse Rock," "Jailhouse Rock," 1957.
22. "Everybody's Talkin'," "Midnight Cowboy, 1969.
23. "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," 1969.
24. "Ol' Man River," "Show Boat," 1936.
25. "High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin')," "High Noon," 1952.
26. "The Trolley Song," "Meet Me in St. Louis," 1944.
27. "Unchained Melody," "Ghost," 1990.
28. "Some Enchanted Evening," "South Pacific," 1958.
29. "Born to Be Wild," "Easy Rider," 1969.
30. "Stormy Weather," "Stormy Weather," 1943.
31. "Theme From `New York, New York,"' "New York, New York," 1977.
32. "I Got Rhythm," "An American in Paris," 1951.
33. "Aquarius, "Hair," 1979.
34. "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off," "Shall We Dance," 1937.
35. "America," "West Side Story," 1961.
36. "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious," "Mary Poppins," 1964.
37. "Swinging on a Star," "Going My Way," 1944.
38. "Theme From `Shaft,"' "Shaft," 1971.
39. "Days of Wine and Roses," "Days of Wine and Roses," 1963.
40. "Fight the Power," "Do the Right Thing," 1989.
41. "New York, New York," "On the Town," 1949.
42. "Luck Be a Lady," "Guys and Dolls," 1955.
43. "The Way You Look Tonight," "The Swing Time," 1936.
44. "Wind Beneath My Wings," "Beaches," 1988.
45. "That's Entertainment," "The Band Wagon," 1953.
46. "Don't Rain on My Parade," "Funny Girl," 1968.
47. "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah," "Song of the South," 1947.
48. "Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera)," "The Man Who Knew Too Much," 1956.
49. "Make 'Em Laugh," "Singin' in the Rain," 1952.
50. "Rock Around the Clock," "Blackboard Jungle," 1955.
51. "Fame," "Fame," 1980.
52. "Summertime," "Porgy and Bess," 1959.
53. "Goldfinger," "Goldfinger," 1964.
54. "Shall We Dance," "The King and I," 1956.
55. "Flashdance ... What a Feeling," "Flashdance," 1983.
56. "Thank Heaven for Little Girls," "Gigi," 1958.
57. "The Windmills of Your Mind," "The Thomas Crown Affair," 1968.
58. "Gonna Fly Now," "Rocky," 1976.
59. "Tonight," "West Side Story," 1961.
60. "It Had to Be You," "When Harry Met Sally ...," 1989.
61. "Get Happy," "Summer Stock," 1950.
62. "Beauty and the Beast," "Beauty and the Beast," 1991.
63. "Thanks for the Memory," "The Big Broadcast of 1938," 1938.
64. "My Favorite Things," "The Sound of Music," 1965.
65. "I Will Always Love You," "The Bodyguard," 1992.
66. "Suicide Is Painless," "M-A-S-H," 1970.
67. "Nobody Does It Better," "The Spy Who Loved Me," 1977.
68. "Streets of Philadelphia," "Philadelphia," 1993.
69. "On the Good Ship Lollipop," "Bright Eyes," 1934.
70. "Summer Nights," "Grease," 1978.
71. "The Yankee Doodle Boy," "Yankee Doodle Dandy," 1942.
72. "Good Morning," "Singin' in the Rain," 1952.
73. "Isn't It Romantic?" "Love Me Tonight," 1932.
74. "Rainbow Connection," "The Muppet Movie," 1979.
75. "Up Where We Belong," "An Officer and a Gentleman," 1982.
76. "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," "Meet Me in St. Louis," 1944.
77. "The Shadow of Your Smile," "The Sandpiper," 1965.
78. "9 to 5," "9 to 5," 1980.
79. "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)," "Arthur," 1981.
80. "Springtime for Hitler," "The Producers," 1968.
81. "I'm Easy," "Nashville," 1975.
82. "Ding Dong the Witch Is Dead," "The Wizard of Oz," 1939.
83. "The Rose," "The Rose," 1979.
84. "Put the Blame on Mame," "Gilda," 1946.
85. "Come What May," "Moulin Rouge!" 2001.
86. "(I've Had) the Time of My Life," "Dirty Dancing," 1987.
87. "Buttons and Bows," "The Paleface," 1948.
88. "Do Re Mi," "The Sound of Music," 1965.
89. "Puttin' on the Ritz," "Young Frankenstein," 1974.
90. "Seems Like Old Times," "Annie Hall," 1977.
91. "Let the River Run," "Working Girl," 1988.
92. "Long Ago and Far Away," "Cover Girl," 1944.
93. "Lose Yourself," "8 Mile," 2002.
94. "Ain't Too Proud to Beg," "The Big Chill," 1983.
95. "(We're Off on the) Road to Morocco," "Road to Morocco," 1942.
96. "Footloose," "Footloose," 1984.
97. "42nd Street," "42nd Street," 1933.
98. "All That Jazz," "Chicago," 2002.
99. "Hakuna Matata," "The Lion King," 1994.
100. "Old Time Rock and Roll," "Risky Business," 1983.
© 2004 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

AFI's 100 Years... 100 Songs: America's Greatest Music in the Movies (2004) (TV)
Host: John Travolta

ATF (1999) TV Movie

In the wake of the events at Waco, agents of the federal government's Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) carry out a clandestine mission.






ATF (1999) TV Movie
Cast: Kathy Baker, Amy Brenneman, Vincent Angell, Michael O'Neill, Keith David, Mark Boone Junior, William Richert, Coby Bell, Brandon Smith, Jay O. Sanders

Audrey Hepburn Remembered (1993) (TV)

Audrey Hepburn was one of movies best-loved stars, blessed with beauty, talent, an elegant sophistication, and an enduring aura of youthful innocence. Hosted by Roger Moore.




Audrey Hepburn Remembered (1993) (TV)
Cast: Audrey Hepburn, Richard Attenborough, Richard Brown, Sean Connery, Stanley Donen, Blake Edwards, Gene Feldman, Mel Ferrer, Sean H. Ferrer, Hubert de Givenchy, Henry Mancini, Roger Moore, Gregory Peck, George Peppard, Elizabeth Taylor, Connie Wald, Billy Wilder, Robert Wolders

Search for Tomorrow (1951) TV series 1951-1986

American soap opera which premiered on September 3, 1951 on CBS. The show was moved from CBS to NBC on March 29, 1982. It continued on NBC until the final episode aired on December 26, 1986. At the time of its final broadcast it was the longest-running non-news program on television, lasting thirty-five years. However, this distinction was short-lived, as these records were soon eclipsed by Guiding Light, which premiered on television nine months later.

AVAILABLE EPISODE
Season 27, Episode 1
Final Show
26 December 1986 

Search for Tomorrow (1951) TV series 1951-1986
Cast: Anita Gillette, John Cunningham, Damion Scheller, Mary Stuart, Kevin Conroy, Leslie Stevens, Jane Krakowski, Lisa Peluso, Deborah Cresswell, Marcia McCabe, Stephanie Mills, Terri Eoff, Morgan Fairchild, Ron Husmann, Sherry Mathis, Matthew Ashford

Another World (1964) TV series 1964-1999

We do not live in this world alone, but in a thousand other worlds.

The continuing story of life in the midwestern town of Bay City, and the love, loss, trials, and triumph of it's residents.



AVAILABLE EPISODES
Final Two Weeks
14-25 June 1999

Another World (1964) TV series 1964-1999
Cast: Les Brandt, Joseph Barbara, Philece Sampler, Anne Heche, Victoria Wyndham, John Littlefield, Peter Austin Noto, David Teschendorf, Luke Perry, Marcus Giamatti, Jane Krakowski, Jon M. McDonnell, Joni Fritz, William James Kennedy, Ricky Paull Goldin

Baby Girl Scott (1987) TV Movie

This heartrending TV movie stars John Lithgow and Mary Beth Hurt as the parents of a severely handicapped premature infant. Weighing a scant 20 ounces at birth, the baby girl has no esophagus and very few signs of being able to stay alive without artificial assistance. The desperate couple sign away the responsibility of their daughter to the doctors, who feel that they can pull the girl through with extensive experimental medical work. Within a week of this agreement, the cost to the couple is $71,000, an amount that will triple before the situation can be legally resolved. Though not based on any factual case, Baby Girl Scott maintains an uncomfortable reality throughout. The film first aired on May 24, 1987. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Baby Girl Scott (1987) TV Movie
Cast: John Lithgow, Mary Beth Hurt, Linda Kelsey, Ronny Cox, Mimi Kennedy, Julie Cobb, Deborah Harmon, Michael Horton, Raphael Sbarge, John M. Jackson, Robert Desiderio, Janet MacLachlan, Nancy Lenehan, Mindy Seeger, Terri Hanauer, Robina Suwol, Cathryn Perdue, Armin Shimerman

Babies (1990) TV Movie

The exploration of the physical and emotional trauma of three close-knit women trying to have children.







Babies (1990) TV Movie
Cast: Lindsay Wagner, Dinah Manoff, Marcy Walker, Adam Arkin, Robert Harper, John Walcutt, Robert Pine, Nancy Kwan, Valerie Landsburg, Abigail Van Alyn, Sarah Lundy, Corey Fischer

Brewster Place (1990) TV series

Based on the novel by Gloria Naylor (and the TV movie of a similar name), in which a group of strong-willed women who live in the same rundown housing project located on Brewster Place.






AVAILABLE EPISODE
Season 1, Episode 1
Partners
1 May 1990

Brewster Place (1990) TV series
Cast: Oprah Winfrey, Brenda Pressley, Olivia Cole, Rachael Crawford, Kelly Neal, John Cothran Jr., Oscar Brown Jr., John Speredakos, Jason Weaver

Burke's Law (1994) (TV series) 1994-1995

Brief revival of the 60s cop thriller continued the adventures of Amos Burke, a senior LAPD officer and millionaire. The revival continued many of the hallmarks of the old show: glamorous backgrounds, convoluted plots and big-name guest stars.

AVAILABLE EPISODE
Season 2, Episode 7
Who Killed the Centerfold?
1 June 1995

Season 2, Episode 9
Who Killed the Toymaker?
15 June 1995

Burke's Law (1994) TV series 1994-1995
Cast: Peter Barton, Gene Barry, Dom DeLuise

Barbara Walters - The 10 Most Fascinating People of 1999 (1999) (TV)

In reverse order; Ricky Martin, Jesse Ventura, Susan Lucci, Joe Torre, Johnathan Lee Iverson, Sumner Redstone, Monica Lewinsky, King Abdullah of Jordan, Caroline Kennedy, and the most fascinating of all..., Lance Armstrong. Believe it or don't.

Barbara Walters - The 10 Most Fascinating People of 1999 (1999) (TV)
Host: Barbara Walters

Baby Makes Five (1983) (TV series)

The focus of this super-cute family comedy was babies and other small children. Accountant Eddie Riddle was the young husband who found his family growing faster than expected.



AVAILABLE EPISODES
Season 1, Episode 1
Pilot
1 April 1983

Baby Makes Five (1983) TV series
Cast: Emily Moultrie, Janis Paige, Peter Scolari, Louise Williams, Priscilla Morrill

GI Factory (2006) (TV series)

Each week Kelly Perdew goes to different factories that produce items for the U.S. Military and shows us how those items are manufactured. This was a great show, where did it go?









AVAILABLE EPISODES
Season 1, Episode ?
M1A1 Abrams Main Battle Tank, Beretta 9mm Personal Sidearm
2006

GI Factory (2006) TV series
Host: Kelly Perdew

Friday, July 23, 2010

Best of 'The Hollywood Palace', The (1992) (TV)

From the long gone, but then world famous Hollywood Palace, this is a fantastic retrospective of the greats who cycled through this amazing venue over the years.





The Best of 'The Hollywood Palace' (1992) (TV)
Host: Suzanne Sommers

Bette Midler Show, The (1976) (TV)

A real sleeper, with writing by Hollywood workhorse Bruce Vilanch and produced by the late Aaron Russo. Loud, brassy fun.






The Bette Midler Show (1976) (TV)
Cast: Bette Midler, Charlotte Crossley, Ula Hedwig, Sharon Redd

Canvas of Ice (1988) (TV)

I like watching all levels of competitive ice skating but this is different. Using helicopter cameras, Brian and crew show ice skating in the outdoors. Skating over a LARGE expanse of open ice is awesome to watch.



Originally shown during the Christmas season, there are lots of young folks and a romantic interlude with the equally great Katarina Witt. Wonderful family viewing.

Canvas of Ice (1988) (TV)
Cast: Brian Boitano, Katarina Witt, Jessica Kramer

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Crazy World of Julius Vrooder, The (1974)

If they think you're crazy, you can get away with anything.

From Playboy Enterprises; directed by Arthur Hiller and produced by Hugh Hefner. This was the final film for actor George Marshall. A Vietnam veteran who lives at the V.A. Hospital escapes and builds an underground fortress next to the highway.

The Crazy World of Julius Vrooder (1974)
Cast: Timothy Bottoms, Barbara Hershey, George Marshall, Lawrence Pressman, Albert Salmi, Richard Dysart, William Lucking, Debralee Scott

Christmas Eve (1986) TV Movie

Story of a well-to-do elderly woman, who befriends the homeless and volunteers
her time with children.








Christmas Eve (1986) TV Movie
Cast: Loretta Young, Arthur Hill, Ron Leibman, Trevor Howard, Patrick Cassidy,Charles Frank, Season Hubley

Corky (1972)

Corky's comin': Smell the rubber burn. Hear the women scream.

A country boy wants to make it big as a stockcar racer.





Corky (1972)
Cast: Robert Blake, Charlotte Rampling, Patrick O'Neal, Christopher Connelly, Pamela Payton-Wright, Ben Johnson, Laurence Luckinbill, Paul Stevens, Bobby Allison, Donnie Allison, Buddy Baker, Richard Petty, Cale Yarborough