Roy Jenson Movies

In this, the third in the Matt Helm special-agent series, Dean Martin plays Helm who's called to save those aboard a hijacked U.S. spacecraft. Ambushers is generally regarded as the weakest of the Helm films, lacking inspiration at most levels. ~ Rovi

U.S. Marshal Gid McCool (George Montgomery) leads a wagon train of convicted felons to Huntsville prison in this routine western. The only female among the crooks is the dancehall girl Laura Mannon (Yvonne De Carlo), McCool's former flame. When McCool cannot be swayed from completing his lawful duty, Laura tries to endear herself to shotgun rider Mike Reno (Tab Hunter) in hopes he will set her free. The party is shadowed by some outlaws led by Aaron (John Russell), the brother of one of the condemned murderers, in hopes he can free his doomed sibling. Mike's efforts land him in chains, but McCool releases him to fight when the outlaws attack. The hero McCool comes through with only a slight scratch while his adversaries are all beaten to a bloody pulp. Silent movie star Francis X. Bushman was to have appeared in this film, but died in August 1966. His part was taken over by Donald "Red" Barry. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

This Mexican-made western features Robert Conrad (also the director) as one of three outlaw cowboys who head south of the border after being rescued from the hangman's noose by a Mexican compadre. From their refuge in a Mexican mission, they set out looking for a fortune in buried gold. ~ Rovi

It won't be long before Opie will be attending college, and Andy wonders how he can possibly afford his son's education. To pick up some extra cash, Andy invests in a coin-operated laundromat. Before long, however, he is spending too much time running the laundry and not enough time tending to his appointed duties as Mayberry's number one lawman. Originally telecast on November 20, 1967, "Andy's Investment" was written by Michael Morris and Seaman Jacobs. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Screenwriter William Goldman has claimed that Paul Newman agreed to do Harper, the film that established the grateful writer's career, only because he was working unhappily on Lady L. (1965) in Europe, and was looking for something as unlike that film as possible. He stars as Lew Harper, a hip L.A. private dick whose business has gotten so bad that he's re-using his coffee grounds. At the suggestion of his friend, attorney Albert Graves (Arthur Hill), the detective takes on the investigation of the disappearance of the wealthy husband of waspish cripple Elaine Sampson (Lauren Bacall). After finding a photograph of former actress Fay Estabrook (Shelley Winters), Harper locates the alcoholic actress in a bar, plies her with booze, and takes her home to search her apartment while she's unconscious. There he takes a call which leads him to another bar to meet Betty Fraley (Julie Harris), a singer with a heroin problem. To curtail his inquisitive behavior, some large and unpleasant gentleman beat him up outside the saloon. Hoping for sympathy from his soon to be ex-wife (Janet Leigh), who has just filed divorce papers, the weary detective is much more successful than he has any right to expect. ~ Michael Costello, Rovi

Former silent-movie idol Ramon Novarro guest-stars as Jose Ortega, a prevaricating old windbag who claims to possess a Spanish land grant deeding him the Ponderosa and most of the surrounding territory. Of course, nobody believes Ortega, and everybody takes turns beating him up. Rescued from another pummelling by Joe Cartwright, Jose rewards Joe with a valuable gift, which leads the Cartwrights' lawyer to conclude that maybe Ortega was telling the truth about his land holding after all-and that the Ponderosa may indeed no longer belong to Ben Cartwright. Michael Dante costars as Ortega's avaricious nephew Miguel. First telecast September 26, 1965, "The Brass Box" was written by Paul Schneider. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this western adventure, a sheriff prepares to retire and finds himself forced to deal with his past when he is assigned to round up a gang of outlaws comprised of the sons of the man who raised him after his own parents were killed. The sheriff has to kill one of the desperadoes. The other he will transport to jail on the stage coach. He ends up waiting at the station owned by the parents of his ex-lover. The hapless lawman is watched over by a hired gun who is to make sure the sheriff does indeed deliver the criminal. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

In 1950, Maj. Jefferson Pike (James Garner), an Army intelligence agent who served with distinction in World War II, awakens in a hospital with severe amnesia. He isn't sure where he is, how he got there, or even who the woman at his side is, even though the doctor tells him that her name is Anna (Eva Marie Saint) and that she is his wife. The doctor instructs Pike to recall, in as much detail as possible, what he was doing before the accident that caused his traumatic memory loss. But the doctor isn't a doctor, Anna isn't Pike's wife, it isn't 1950, and he isn't in an American hospital. World War II is still very much in progress, and Pike is being duped in an elaborate scheme prepared by Maj. Walter Gerber (Rod Taylor), a German intelligence agent. Gerber is trying to trick a drugged and suggestible Pike into telling him everything he knows, as the injured soldier lies in a Bavarian military hospital after being taken prisoner. Will Pike be able to see through the cracks in Gerber's facade before he spills the beans that could mean death and defeat for American soldiers? 36 Hours was later remade for TV under the title Breaking Point. TV fans will want to keep an eye peeled for bit parts by James Doohan from Star Trek and John Banner from Hogan's Heroes. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Filmed in panoramic Cinerama, this star-studded, epic Western adventure is a true cinematic classic. Three legendary directors (Henry Hathaway, John Ford, and George Marshall) combine their skills to tell the story of three families and their travels from the Erie Canal to California between 1839 and 1889. Spencer Tracy narrates the film, which cost an estimated 15 million dollars to complete. In the first segment, "The Rivers," pioneer Zebulon Prescott (Karl Malden) sets out to settle in the West with his wife (Agnes Moorehead) and their four children. Along with other settlers and river pirates, they run into mountain man Linus Rawlings (James Stewart), who sells animal hides. The Prescotts try to raft down the Ohio River in a raft, but only daughters Lilith (Debbie Reynolds) and Eve (Carroll Baker) survive. Eve and Linus get married, while Lilith continues on. In the second segment, "The Plains," Lilith ends up singing in a saloon in St. Louis, but she really wants to head west in a wagon train led by Roger Morgan (Robert Preston). Along the way, she's accompanied by the roguish gambler Cleve Van Valen (Gregory Peck), who claims he can protect her. After he saves her life during an Indian attack, they get married and move to San Francisco. In the third segment, "The Civil War," Eve and Linus' son, Zeb (George Peppard), fights for the Union. After he's forced to kill his Confederate friend, he returns home and gives the family farm to his brother. In the fourth segment, "The Railroads," Zeb fights with his railroad boss (Richard Widmark), who wants to cut straight through Indian territory. Zeb's co-worker Jethro (Henry Fonda) refuses to cut through the land, so he quits and moves to the mountains. After the railway camp is destroyed, Zeb heads for the mountains to visit him. In the fifth segment, "The Outlaws," Lilith is an old widow traveling from California to Arizona to stay with her nephew Zeb on his ranch. However, he has to fight a gang of desperadoes first. How the West Was Won garnered three Oscars, for screenplay, film editing, and sound production. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

Those familiar only with Johnny Horton's song hit North to Alaska might not be aware that the song came equipped with a movie. John Wayne and Stewart Granger star as a couple of lucky miners in Alaska Territory during the '98 gold rush. Since the Duke is the only man he can trust, Granger sends his pal to Seattle to fetch his fiance. Fabian appears in the cast (playing Granger's brother) primarily to attract teenage filmgoers; he gets to sing, of course, but he's better than usual. The film's centerpiece, an outsized brawl in the muddy streets of Nome, was repeated with several variations in Wayne's subsequent McLintock (1963). North to Alaska was based on a considerably more genteel stage play, Laszlo Fodor's Birthday Gift. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This effective gangster film on the notorious New York mobster Jack "Legs" Diamond is interspersed with moments of comic relief and was released just a few months after The Purple Gang shot their way across the silver screens in the U.S. Ironically, that gang and Diamond met their ends in the same year, 1931, and their rise was largely due to Prohibition. "Legsie" (Ray Danton) gets his name because he was a dancer, but he gets his reputation because he double-crosses anyone. He is a psychopath who works his way up the body count to the top of his own network of rackets. Along the way he meets and marries his wife Alice Schiffer (Karen Steele) and survives three attempts on his life that send him to the hospital each time. His reputation for "invulnerability," the inability of the police to touch him, gangsters who kill each other off, the racketeering with union bosses, and the hijacking of liquor shipments are all elements found in this film and The Purple Gang as well. Watch for a young Dyan Cannon in a bit part as Dixie, back when her first name was spelled like everyone else spells Diane. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Legendary stage actress Adah Isaacs Menken (Ruth Roman) brings her celebrated Mazeppa troupe to Virginia City. Ben Cartwright welcomes the opportunity to renew his longstanding friendship with the "lady in pink tights." As for Ben's sons Adam, Hoss, and Little Joe, they become convinced that Adah is trying to ensnare their father into marriage. Also in the cast is Don Megowan as Adah's persistent would-be suitor John Regan. Written by Donald S. Sanford, "The Magnificent Adah" was originally telecast on November 14, 1959. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi