Thursday, March 25, 2010

Roe vs. Wade (1989) TV Movie

Holly Hunter plays a lonely (irrelevant), single (as are many people), poorly educated (who's fault?), Texan(?) who finds herself pregnant (she was unaware of 'where babies come from?') with no (apparent) means to support a child. This movie is a disgrace.


Roe vs. Wade (1989) TV Movie
Cast: Alycia Grant, Amy Madigan, Chris Mulkey, Dion Anderson, Holly Hunter, Jerry Hardin, Kathy Bates, Ken Jenkins, Kevin Cooney, Marnie Andrews, Paul Lambert, Terry O'Quinn

Karen Carpenter Story, The (1989) TV Movie

Story of the meteoric rise and sudden fall of Karen Carpenter, who became a famous singer before battling anorexia and bulemia.

Good movie, little cheesy (this is a TV movie) but great subject matter. The Carpenters were the greatest.

Love the Gibb!

The Karen Carpenter Story (1989) TV Movie
Cast: Carrie Mitchum, Cynthia Gibb, Kip Gilman, Louise Fletcher, Mitchell Anderson, Peter Michael Goetz, Scott Burkholder

Stillwatch (1987) TV Movie

Television journalist, Patricia Traymore, moves to Washington to do an in-depth interview with vice presidential hopeful, Senator Abigail Winslow. Wonder Woman at her non-superhero best.





Stillwatch (1987) TV Movie
Cast: Angie Dickinson, Barry Primus, Bibi Osterwald, Don Murray, Gary Werntz, John Wesley, Louise Latham, Lynda Carter, Stuart Whitman, Walter Olkewicz

Stranger Waits, A (1987) TV Movie

Suspense thriller. Frankly, didn't hold my attention. More for mystery fans than casual viewing. Suzanne Pleshette is beautiful as usual.






A Stranger Waits (1987) TV Movie
Cast: Ann Wedgeworth, Justin Deas, Kenneth Welsh, Paul Benjamin, Suzanne Pleshette, Tom Atkins

Jackie Gleason: The Great One (1988) (TV)

Fabulous production, half tribute and half retrospective, hosted by another legend, John Candy. Candy's love for the "Great One" is obvious as is the respect and admiration of all those in attendance at the Black Tie event. Tons of clips and archival footage.

Jackie Gleason: The Great One (1988) (TV)
Cast: Art Carney, Audrey Meadows, Jackie Gleason, Jane Curtin, Jane Kean, John Candy, John Larroquette, Joyce Randolph, Sheila MacRae, Sue Ane Langdon, Teri Garr

Ordeal of Bill Carney, The (1981) TV Movie

Good movie starring the enigmatic Ray Sharkey, about a man crippled in an accident and his child custody fight with his ex-wife. Great cast (Tony Dow and David Faustino!) with the great Richard Crenna, one of the best ever.



The Ordeal of Bill Carney (1981) TV Movie
Cast: Ana Alicia, Betty Buckley, David Faustino, Jeremy Licht, Martin Milner, Ray Sharkey, Richard Crenna, Tony Dow, Vincent Baggetta

Side by Side (1988) TV Movie

Three men who have just been forced to retire convince their bank to finance their dream; to produce a line of clothing for senior citizens.

Great movie with 3 classic legends among many familiar faces.



Side by Side (1988) TV Movie
Cast: Ben Slack, Danny Thomas, Edith Fields, Georgann Johnson, Gina Belafonte, Jennifer Bassey, Marjorie Lord, Milton Berle, Morey Amsterdam, Richard Kline, Sid Caesar

Original Sin (1989) TV Movie

When his son is kidnapped a man has to face his past demons in speaking to a Mafia don.

We love Ann Jillian.







Original Sin (1989) TV Movie
Ann Jillian, Charlton Heston, Marshall R. Teague, Nicky Blair, Richard Portnow, S.A. Griffin

St. Louis Blues (1958)

Will Handy grows up in Memphis with his preacher father and his Aunt Hagar. His father intends for him to use his musical gifts only in church.

William Christopher Handy (November 16, 1873 – March 28, 1958) was a blues composer and musician, often known as the "Father of the Blues".

St. Louis Blues (1958)
Cast: Billy Preston, Cab Calloway, Eartha Kitt, Ella Fitzgerald, Mahalia Jackson, Nat King Cole, Pearl Bailey, Ruby Dee

Best of the West (1981) TV series 1981-1982

The Wild West misadventures of a mild-mannered store owner turned town Marshal.










AVAILABLE EPISODES
Season 1, Episode 3
Mail Order Bride
24 September 1981

Season 1, Episode 5
The Reunion
8 October 1981

Season 1, Episode 22
The Funeral
21 June 1982

Best of the West (1981) TV series 1981-1982
Cast: Carlene Watkins, Joel Higgins, Leonard Frey, Meeno Peluce, Tom Ewell, Tracey Walter, Valri Bromfield

1st Annual American Comedy Awards, The (1987) (TV)

From the world famous Palladium in Hollywood, California. Hosted by long-time Hollywood icon Army Archerd. I promise you'll be laughing, either with or against but either way, you'll be laughing when you see Mr. Archerd getting schticky with a young Gilbert Gottfried.

The 1st Annual American Comedy Awards (1987) (TV)
Host: Army Archerd

Good Sports (1991) TV series

Ultimately the failure of this show can be attributed to the inability of Farrah and Ryan to get a laugh, both are adequate in dramatic roles but COMEDY IS HARD.





AVAILABLE EPISODES
Season 1, Episode 1
Pro and Ex-Cons
10 January 1991

Season 1, Episode 2
Gayle Wouldn't Do That
21 January 1991

Good Sports (1991) TV series
Cast: Brian Doyle-Murray, Christine Dunford, Cleavant Derricks, Farrah Fawcett, Lane Smith, Paul Feig, Ryan O'Neal, William Katt

Snoops (1989) TV series 1989-1990

Chance Dennis is a criminology professor, his wife, Micki, works for the state department. They live in Washington, D.C. Starring real-life married couple Tim and Daphne Reid.





AVAILABLE EPISODES
Season 1, Episode 3
The Big, Brass Cookie Jar
6 October 1989

Season 1, Episode 4
Mr. Dennis' Neighborhood
13 October 1989

Snoops (1989) TV series 1989-1990
Cast: Adam Silbar, Daphne Reid, John Karlen, Tim Reid, Troy Curvey Jr.

Dedication of The Richard Nixon Presidential Library & Museum (1990) (TV)

This is a 5 minute local evening news spot and a 35 minute live Special Report of the dedication from 19 July 1990. Terrific historical piece.

Dedication of The Richard Nixon Presidential Library & Museum (1990) (TV)

In-Laws (2002) TV series 2002-2003

A newly married man moves into his wife's parents' house to save money, only to have his life completely taken over by her father.







AVAILABLE EPISODES
Season 1, Episode 1
Pilot
24 September 2002

Season 1, Episode 2
Fleetwood Matt
24 September 2002

In-Laws (2002) TV series 2002-2003
Cast: Bonnie Somerville, Dennis Farina, Elon Gold, Jean Smart

Buddy Holly & The Crickets - A Tribute (1988) (TV)

Hosted by Kris Kristofferson on the 28th anniversary of Buddy Holly's death at the age of 22. Performers include; Kris Kristofferson and The Borderlords, Marshall Crenshaw, The Crickets, Duane Eddy, Joe Ely, John Fogerty, Waylon Jennings, The Jordanaires, Buddy Knox, Don McLean, Carl Perkins, Brian Setzer, Billy Swan, Sweethearts of the Rodeo, and Bobby Vee. The performances are intimate and excellent. Good stuff.

Buddy Holly & The Crickets - A Tribute (1988) (TV)
Cast: Kris Kristofferson and The Borderlords, Marshall Crenshaw, The Crickets, Duane Eddy, Joe Ely, John Fogerty, Waylon Jennings, The Jordanaires, Buddy Knox, Don McLean, Carl Perkins, Brian Setzer, Billy Swan, Sweethearts of the Rodeo, Bobby Vee

Happy Birthday Hollywood (1987) (TV)

As you can see from the opening frame, this is not titled "Happy 100th Birthday, Hollywood" as listed elsewhere, it's simply "Happy Birthday Hollywood" as anyone who had actually seen the production could attest.

This whole thing is absolutely fabulous start to finish. As I watched, keeping an eye for special frames to capture, there were at least 40 different places that would have been appropriate. Too much work, so I settled on just one. It would have been 15 frames just to get the cast roll call! Almost everyone is here;

Debbie Allen, June Allyson, Bea Arthur, Edward Asner, Lucille Ball, Gene Barry, Drew Barrymore, Hinton Battle, Shari Belafonte, Sandahl Bergman, Tom Bosley, Morgan Brittany, Charles Bronson, Gregg Burge, Carol Burnett, Sid Caesar, Lynda Carter, Cyd Charisse, James Coburn, Dabney Coleman, Mike Connors, Bert Convy, Don Correia, Arlene Dahl, Tony Danza, Sammy Davis Jr., Angie Dickinson, Nancy Dussault, Clint Eastwood, Barbara Eden, Morgan Fairchild, Alice Faye, Bonnie Franklin, Mary Frann, Gil Gerard, Lillian Gish, Whoopi Goldberg, Louis Gossett Jr., Robert Goulet, Gregory Harrison, Mary Hart, Florence Henderson, Katharine Hepburn, Charlton Heston, Bob Hope, Jill Ireland, Van Johnson, Shirley Jones, Ruby Keeler, Sally Kellerman, Jayne Kennedy, Stepfanie Kramer, Patti LaBelle, Dorothy Lamour, Burt Lancaster, Michele Lee, Janet Leigh, Shari Lewis, Gloria Loring, Lorna Luft, Tony Martin, Marlee Matlin, Marilyn McCoo, Roddy McDowall, Ann Miller, Donna Mills, Liza Minnelli, Roger Moore, Joe Namath, Donald O'Connor, Maureen O'Sullivan, Gregory Peck, Nia Peeples, Bernadette Peters, Jane Powell, Stefanie Powers, Luise Rainer, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Lou Rawls, Lee Roy Reams, Burt Reynolds, Debbie Reynolds, Alfonso Ribeiro, John Ritter, Jason Robards, Ginger Rogers, Cesar Romero, Eva Marie Saint, Tracy Scoggins, William Shatner, Ally Sheedy, Jaclyn Smith, Robert Stack, Lionel Stander, James Stewart, Jill St. John, Susan Sullivan, Loretta Swit, Alan Thicke, Lana Turner, Joan Van Ark, Dick Van Dyke, Robert Wagner, Dee Wallace, Betty White, Jesse White, Esther Williams, Treat Williams, Henry Winkler, Jane Wyman, and Loretta Young.

Audacious musical numbers, a terrific opening medley featuring Liza herself and a huge group-sing of (what else?) "Hooray For Hollywood" with the likes of Chuck Bronson, Burt Lancaster and James Coburn among MANY others. 

Happy Birthday Hollywood (1987) (TV)
Cast: Almost everybody who was alive in 1987

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

I Love Liberty (1982) (TV)

An all-star salute to American ideals, commemorating the 250th anniversary of George Washington's birth. Barbra Streisand performs "America the Beautiful" with the U.S. Air Force Band in England; Robin Williams performs a monologue as the American flag; and the Muppets play members of the Continental Congress. Nominated for 3 Primetime Emmys.

From the Los Angeles Sports Arena, this is a production of the great Norman Lear. Opens with a young lad from the Pasadena Boys Choir singing his little heart out, then a long, long roll call (should Jane Fonda and Barry Goldwater ever coexist?) leading to the legendary Burt Lancaster delivering his take on liberty. The final grand scene is a group-sing led by the legend Helen Reddy with everyone literally holding hands. A fun watch just the same.

I Love Liberty (1982) (TV)
Cast: Barbra Streisand, Jane Fonda, Martin Sheen, Patty Duke, Robin Williams, Helen Reddy, Shirley MacLaine

We the People 200: The Constitutional Parade (1987) (TV)

Companion piece to "We the People 200: The Constitutional Gala". This is the accompanying parade and continued celebration. Too packed with goodness to accurately describe, suffice it to say, "Fantastic".


We the People 200: The Constitutional Parade (1987) (TV)
Cast: The American People

We the People 200: The Constitutional Gala (1987) (TV)

Television special that salutes the 200th anniversary of the U.S. Constitutional Convention of 1787 in comedy and song. This should be mandatory viewing in our public schools. Indescribably fantastic.


We the People 200: The Constitutional Gala (1987) (TV)
Host: Walter Cronkite