Louis Gossett, Jr. Movies

A sharply intelligent novelist, Stanley has everything -- a successful career, a beautiful home, and a loving wife and son. But, when his little boy is killed in a tragic accident, Stanley cannot accept his loss, and proceeds to poison his marriage and everything around him with his bitterness and grief. Two years have passed since the tragedy, Stanley is on the verge of leaving Lisa, his long-suffering spouse, and he hasn't written a word since the death of his son. But a visit from a mysterious and magical messenger, who offers him three wishes, just may reawaken Stanley's hope for the future. With a little help from a couple of needy foster kids next door, Stanley and Lisa find that all their wishes can come true if they just believe.

While this original movie version of Lorraine Hansberry's award-winning play may have dated somewhat, it was groundbreaking when first released in 1961, and a wealth of future plays, films, and TV productions have taken their lead from this socially conscious drama about a struggling African-American family. Lena Younger (Claudia McNeil) is a strong, proud woman who has raised a family in a crowded apartment on the South Side of Chicago. Her son Walter Lee (Sidney Poitier) works as a chauffeur; intelligent and ambitious but impulsive and often angry, he desperately wants to get ahead in a world that offers him few opportunities. His wife Ruth (Ruby Dee) takes in laundry to help make ends meet and watches over their son. Younger daughter Beneatha (Diana Sands) is a college student who wants to become a doctor and often speaks of searching for her cultural identity. On the death of her husband, Lena becomes the beneficiary of a $10,000 life insurance payment, and suddenly the family is in conflict over how the money should be spent. Lena wants to use the money for a down payment on a house. Beneatha is hoping that Lena will help her pay for medical school. And Walter Lee wants to go into business with friends who plan to open a liquor store, which he's convinced will be a sure money maker. The cast, nearly all reprising their roles from the original Broadway production, offers a collection of superb performances; also keep an eye peeled for a young Louis Gossett Jr. as George Murchison. While Daniel Petrie's direction never takes A Raisin in the Sun very far from its roots as a stage play, it captures the power and tension of a strong ensemble cast working with an intelligent and moving script. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Paul Newman served as co-producer of this allegorical drama and stars as Rheinhardt, a opportunistic drifter who ends up in New Orleans and hits up his old friend Farley (Laurence Harvey), a con man-turned-phony preacher, for a job. Farley is able to get Rheinhardt hired on as an announcer at a local radio station, WUSA, but the station is a right-wing propaganda mill that devotes its air time to venomous tirades against political and social progress. Rheinhardt is happy to be making decent money, and he makes the friendly acquaintance of a local working girl, Geraldine (Joanne Woodward), so he refuses to look his gift horse in the mouth. However, when he finds out that WUSA is actually involved in shadowy political actions, he is at a loss for what to do, especially after a naïve and troubled social worker (Anthony Perkins) is tricked into starting a race riot. Robert Stone wrote the screenplay, adapted from his novel A Hall of Mirrors. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Wealthy, insensitive young Beau Bridges buys an inner-city tenement, planning to evict the present occupants and construct a luxury home for himself. But once he ventures into the tenement, he grows quite fond of the low-income ethnic types who dwell within. He even kicks over the traces of his WASP upbringing by romancing black tenants Diana Sands and Marki Bey. Though essentially a comedy, The Landlord offers several painful truths about ghetto existence. Essentially, Beau Bridges acts as the audience's "eyes:" we learn as he learns, we grow as he grows. The Landlord represents the first directorial effort of Oscar-winning film editor Hal Ashby. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The Partridges come to the rescue of brothers A.E. and Sam Simon (Richard Pryor, Louis Gossett Jr.), the owners of an inner-city Detroit nightclub called the Fire House. Seems that local loan shark Heavy (Charles Lampkin) is living up to his name, exerting pressure to put the Simons out of business. The happy-ending wrapup occurs at a fundraising block party, where the white-bread Partridges perform such soul tunes as "Bandala", and little Danny (Danny Bonaduce) manages to organize a group of sinister-looking street fighters into an orchestra! Reportedly, this episode was designed as the pilot for a potential series starring Richard Pryor and Louis Gossett Jr. (Wonder whatever happened to those two guys?) ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Skin Game was historically significant as the 2000th film produced by Warner Bros. studios. The film is a comedy western starring James Garner and Louis Gossett Jr. as a pair of clever Antebellum con men. Garner regularly "sells" the black Gossett into slavery for an exalted price, then "liberates" Gossett so that they can move on to the next sucker. Unfortunately, they outsmart themselves, and before long Gossett seems doomed to a lifetime of forced servitude. They are rescued by pretty pickpocket Susan Clark, who has a few surprises in store for them. Skin Game was supposed to be spun off into a TV series, but the project never got any farther than the 1974 pilot film Sidekicks. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Stuart Rosenberg's taut police thriller, based on the Martin Beck novel by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahlöö, concerns a serial killer who is targeting bus riders. When a bus full of innocent commuters are killed on a San Francisco street, Jake Martin (Walter Matthau) is assigned to track down the killer. Jake has a personal stake in the killings because his partner was one of the victims. Teamed up with new partner Leo Larsen (Bruce Dern), Jake investigates the back alleys of San Francisco to find the serial killer. The trail leads to a tour of the underbelly of the city's gay subculture. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

For his TV-movie directorial debut, Michael Landon selected the autobiography of baseball-great Roy Campanella. It's Good to Be Alive begins when Campanella (Paul Winfield) is nearly killed in a car accident on January 26, 1958. He survives, but his fifth cervical vertebra has been fractured, meaning that he will be paralyzed for the rest of his life. Thanks to months of tireless efforts by physical-therapist Sam Brockington (Louis Gossett Jr.), Campanella is able to move about a bit, though he remains bitter about his condition. Campanella's accident causes a deeper rift in his already tottering marriage to his second wife Ruthie (Ruby Dee), and alienates his son David (Ty Henderson), who has been raised on his father's "never say die" philosophy. Realizing that by pitying himself he is letting his family down, Campanella sincerely adopts a more optimistic, upbeat outlook on life. Eventually, the wheelchair-bound Campanella accepts an offer to coach the LA Dodgers during spring training. In a finale reminiscent of Pride of the Yankees, Roy Campanella tearfully declares to an SRO audience at Los Angeles Coliseum that "It's good to be alive." When this 90-minute film first aired on February 22, 1974, it was introduced by the real-life Roy Campanella and his family (including his third wife Roxie). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Thelma (BernNadette Stanis) has a new boyfriend, and her family is dying to meet him. But she is reluctant to bring her mystery sweetheart home, even after indicating that she's engaged. The reason? Thelma's "young man" (played by Louis Gossett Jr.) is actually not so young; in fact, he is old enough to be her father. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Normally the most level-headed member of the Evans family, young Michael (Ralph Carter) has suddenly begun acting in a goofy fashion: getting into fights, cutting classes, and failing exams. With dad James (John Amos) out of town, Florida (Esther Rolle) and her brother Wilbert (Louis Gossett Jr.) try to root out the cause of Michael's strange behavior. The answer is one of the oldest on earth: the youngest Evans has fallen victim to Cupid's arrows. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The Cut Man Caper originated as a 90-minute episode of the weekly TV anthology Police Story. Heading the cast is Robert Hooks as Ernie Tillis, a detective in the robbery-homicide division. On the trail of loan-company robbers, Hooks is forced to rely upon shifty informer Freddy (Lou Gossett Jr.). But the "snitch" is playing both ends down the middle-and he's also stolen the expensive miniature voice-transmitter entrusted to his care. The largely African American cast includes such old favorites as Scoey Mitchlll, Godfrey Cambridge and Raymond St. Jacques. Intended as the pilot for a spinoff series (which never materialized), The Cut Man Caper debuted October 28, 1975. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

It's The Wages of Fear, prairie style, in this tension-laden episode. When the price of grain plummets precipitously, Charles (Michael Landon), Edwards (Victor French), and two other men must seek out employment in a hurry. The four men accept a high-paying but highly dangerous job, transporting explosives over treacherous mountain roads. In the course of their perilous journey, the men are forced to confront their own inner demons. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

River Niger is a Tony Award-winning play turned to a movie. It features James Earl Jones as a house-painter/poet who struggles to support his cancer-plagued wife (Cicely Tyson). This is a realistic portrayal of the difficulties encountered in the poverty-stricken ghetto. ~ Rovi