Walter Woolf King Movies

In the second of five episodes filmed on location at Silver Dollar City in the Missouri Ozarks, Granny tussles with her old rival Elverna Bradshaw (Elvia Allman), rekindling a long-standing feud. Meanwhile, back in Beverly Hills, Jethro transforms the mansion into a hippie commune. Rob Reiner appears as a bearded flower child named Mitch, while Shug Fisher makes the first of several series appearances as Silver Dollar City hotelier Shorty Kellems. "The Hills of Home" originally aired on October 1, 1969. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Hoping to coerce Tony (Larry Hagman) into marrying her, Jeannie pretends to accept Roger's marriage proposal. This makes it imperative for Jeannie to hide her true identity from Roger(Bill Daily). For this purpose, she "creates" a set of wealthy parents, who live in the house across the street from Tony--which she also conjures up out of thin air, leading to no end of complications for her long-suffering Master. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Sentenced to 15 years in prison for a crime he did not commit, Howard Clements (Bradford Dillman) is released after serving only two years. Shortly afterward, he pays a visit to Isabel Smith (Barbara Baxley), the woman whose testimony put him behind bars. Though Isabel is worried that he seeks revenge, Howard explains that he is now running a successful business, and is willing to let bygones be bygones. Ultimately, Howard and Isabel are married...but if you've guessed that this is not the end of the story, your guess is right on the money. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The debut episode of the mirthfully macabre sitcom The Munsters begins as Marilyn, the "normal" member of the monstrous Munster family of Mockingbird Heights (normal by our standards if not by theirs) is invited to a costume party held by the snobbish parents of her new boyfriend Tom Daly (Linden Chiles). Under these circumstances, Mr. and Mrs. Daly (Frank Wilcox, Mabel Albertson) have no way of knowing that the masqueraded Munsters bear close resemblances to such Hollywood horrors as the Frankenstein monster, Dracula and the Wolfman. The fun begins when Herman Munster (Fred Gwynne), seeing that Tom's father has unwittingly made himself up to look just like Herman, jumps to the conclusion that Mr. Daly isn't wearing any costume at all! With this episode, Beverly Owen makes the first of 13 appearances as Marilyn Munster, a role played for the remainder of the series by Pat Priest. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Kimble (David Jansen) takes on the alias "David Benson" when he goes to work for Allan Pruitt (Richard Carlson) and Pruitt's second wife Dorina (Gloria Grahame). At the same time, Mr. Pruitt's troubled daughter Janice (Shirley Knight) returns home from a long hospital stay, having suffered a nervous breakdown after a child in her care was killed by her pet dog. Resenting Janice's presence, Dorina devises an elaborate scheme to drive the girl insane--and when Kimble tries to help Janice, Dorina adds him to her list of victims. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Householder was the very first collaboration between producer Ismael Merchant and James Ivory. A pleasant, low-key domestic comedy, the film details the travails of a young married couple. The husband (Shashi Kapoor) had wanted no part of the arranged marriage in the first place: now he must not only deal with a virtual stranger for a wife, but also a passle of financial headaches. Despite the unfamiliarity of the surroundings, American filmgoers should recognize several universal truths in this touching tale. The script was the handiwork of Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, adapted from her own novel; Jhabvala would remain a valuable member of the Merchant-Ivory aggregation. Offering an uncredited assist in the editing room was none other than legendary Indian filmmaker Satyajit Ray. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Gangster Eddie Slovak (Alex Nicol) is worried that his cowardice during the Korean War will be exposed by his old army buddy Pete (Don Keefer). To prevent this, Eddie offers Pete a huge sum of money to keep his mouth shut. But the gangster overplays his hand when he falls in love with Pete's wife Louise (Nita Talbot). Figuring into the outcome of the story is an elaborate murder scheme involving another woman, named Fay (Carmen Mathews). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A child star becomes a brat to hide her loneliness in this drama. The popular little actress is quite insolent and refuses to allow anyone to push her around. She becomes quite stubborn when a studio publicist asks her to do an interview with his ex-wife, a prominent columnist. He finally bribes her into it, and when the contrary miss meets the journalist she takes an immediate shine to her. The lonesome girl becomes so enamored with the woman that she runs away from home to be near her. Trouble ensues when the publicist is arrested for kidnapping. Fortunately the girl turns up, affects a new attitude and happiness ensues all around. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Frank Sinatra stars as legendary nightclub comic Joe E. Lewis in this dramatic screen biography. In the 1920s, Lewis was a popular singer in Chicago who could fill any nightclub he chose to play. This doesn't go unnoticed by the mobsters who control many of the city's venues; when they ask Lewis to leave his steady gig and come work for them, he politely but firmly refuses. This does not make Al Capone and his men happy, and they respond by brutally attacking Lewis, cutting his throat and damaging his vocal cords so severely that he can never sing again. Lewis sinks into a deep depression and develops a highly caustic sense of humor, but his friend Austin Mack (Eddie Albert) suggests that he could put his sharp wit to work as a comedian. With little to lose, Lewis tries his hand at comedy, and with the encouragement of famous entertainer Sophie Tucker, Lewis once again rises to stardom as his salty material makes him the talk of late-night spots and burlesque houses everywhere. Along the way, he becomes involved with chorus girl Martha Stewart (Mitzi Gaynor) and wealthy socialite Letty Page (Jeanne Crain); while he marries Martha, he's not able to get Letty out of his thoughts for long. Lewis' romantic conflicts and the pressures of success fan the flames of his already potent taste for alcohol, and soon Lewis becomes a bitter drunk whose addiction to the bottle threatens to send his career (and his life) back into the gutter. The classic Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen number "All the Way" was introduced in The Joker Is Wild, and it won a 1957 Academy Award for Best Song; the film was later re-released as All the Way. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Ann Blyth plays famed "torch singer" Helen Morgan, from her humble beginnings as a carnival dancer to the height of her nightclub fame in the 1920s. Helen spends most of her spare time anguishing over the on-and-off affections of her boorish boyfriend (Paul Newman), who had discovered Helen during her carnival days and promoted her to stardom. By 1927, Helen is headlining in her own nightclub, with further fame and fortune greeting her when she is cast as Julie in the blockbusting Broadway hit Show Boat. But when she realizes that her erstwhile boyfriend has been using her as a "meal ticket", Helen turns to drink. Losing her fortune to Revenue agents and the Stock Market crash of 1929, Helen hits rock bottom, ending up in the Bellevue alcoholic ward. Her boyfriend suddenly has a change of heart and declares his love for Helen, arranging for a lavish testimonial in her honor, hosted by Walter Winchell. The film ends at this point, suggesting that Helen Morgan is on the road to lasting success and happiness (tragically not the case in real life). For reasons unknown, Ann Blyth, an excellent singer in her own right, was dubbed in The Helen Morgan Story by songstress Gogi Grant. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on the Holy Scriptures, with additional dialogue by several other hands, The Ten Commandments was the last film directed by Cecil B. DeMille. The story relates the life of Moses, from the time he was discovered in the bullrushes as an infant by the pharoah's daughter, to his long, hard struggle to free the Hebrews from their slavery at the hands of the Egyptians. Moses (Charlton Heston) starts out "in solid" as Pharoah's adopted son (and a whiz at designing pyramids, dispensing such construction-site advice as "Blood makes poor mortar"), but when he discovers his true Hebrew heritage, he attempts to make life easier for his people. Banished by his jealous half-brother Rameses (Yul Brynner), Moses returns fully bearded to Pharoah's court, warning that he's had a message from God and that the Egyptians had better free the Hebrews post-haste if they know what's good for them. Only after the Deadly Plagues have decimated Egypt does Rameses give in. As the Hebrews reach the Red Sea, they discover that Rameses has gone back on his word and plans to have them all killed. But Moses rescues his people with a little Divine legerdemain by parting the Seas. Later, Moses is again confronted by God on Mt. Sinai, who delivers unto him the Ten Commandments. Meanwhile, the Hebrews, led by the duplicitous Dathan (Edward G. Robinson), are forgetting their religion and behaving like libertines. "Where's your Moses now?" brays Dathan in the manner of a Lower East Side gangster. He soon finds out. DeMille's The Ten Commandments may not be the most subtle and sophisticated entertainment ever concocted, but it tells its story with a clarity and vitality that few Biblical scholars have ever been able to duplicate. It is very likely the most eventful 219 minutes ever recorded to film--and who's to say that Nefertiri (Anne Baxter) didn't make speeches like, "Oh, Moses, Moses, you splendid, stubborn, adorable fool"? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Tonight we Sing is the life story of legendary impresario Sol Hurok, impersonated herein by David Wayne. A lover of the arts, young immigrant Hurok despairs when he realizes he has no musical or artistic talents. Thus it is that, despite great personal and financial sacrifice, Hurok devotes his life to discovering and nurturing other performers and bringing them to Broadway. Among his more celebrated protégés are Russian opera-singer Feodor Chaliapin (Ezio Pinza) and violinist Eugene Ysaye (Isaac Stern). Other notables making guest appearances are singer Jan Peerce and Roberta Peters and ballerina Tamara Toumanova. Anne Bancroft co-stars as Hurok's gentle, patient wife Emma. Based on the autobiography by Sol Horuk (co-written with Ruth Goode), Tonight We Sing was produced for 20th Century-Fox by George Jessel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide