Vince Howard Movies
- 1994
While watching TV with a group of friends, Jessica (Angela Lansbury) is amused by an amateurish-looking production being presented on a cable-access channel. Before long, however, Jessica realizes that the "production" is the real thing: the TV is hooked up to a surveillance system. Worse still, the on-screen "characters" are planning a big-time robbery, with murder a likely option! Future Everybody Loves Raymond costar Doris Roberts shows up as a woman with a very, very serious problem. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1994
A metal sculpture created by artist Kim Mitchell (Loretta Swit) proves quite versatile when it used as a murder weapon. The victim is Philip Jovi (Edward Hibbert), an art gallery owner with whom Kim did not see eye-to-eye. Fortunately for Kim, her friend Jessica (Angela Lansbury) is on hand to help her beat a murder rap...maybe. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Superstars Mel Gibson and Danny Glover return with director Richard Donner for Lethal Weapon 3, the third in the phenomenally successful action series. In this film, Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) is only eight days away from retirement and his partner Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) once again manages to get them both into hot water with the both LAPD and the bad guys, who this time are Jack Travis (Stuart Wilson) and a gang of hoodlums selling armor-piercing bullets. Joe Pesci returns as the fast-talking schmuck Leo Getz. A new addition to the cast is Rene Russo as Lorna Cole, a sergeant from internal affairs sent to investigate Riggs and Murtaugh, but who ultimately ends up falling in love with the caffienated Riggs. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, (more)
- 1992
In the conclusion of A Different World's two-part Season Six opener, Whitley (Jasmine Guy and Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison) continue to recall their chaotic honeymoon in riot-torn Los Angeles. At the same time, the couple's friends react to the violence (inspired by the infamous Rodney King verdict) in a variety of ways: Col. Taylor (Glynn Turman) is disillusioned over the fact that race relations haven't progressed much since the Watts riots, Lena (Jada Pinkett) places all the blame on the white population, and Freddie (Cree Summer) attempts to be level-headed--a difficult feat, inasmuch as she is being hit on by Ron (Darryl M. Bell) while his girlfriend Kim (Charnele Brown) fumes. Appearing in cameo roles are sitcom diva Roseanne and her then-husband Tom Arnold. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1991
In this fact-based made-for-cable docudrama, Leonard Nimoy stars as Mel Mermelstein, a Nazi death camp survivor who wages a court battle against the revisionist Institute for Historical Review over their claims that the Holocaust never occurred. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leonard Nimoy, Dabney Coleman, (more)
- 1990
Hunter (Fred Dryer) finds out that the undercover cop (Blake Bahner) who was murdered during his investigation of a computer-chip robbery ring was actually the illegitimate son of Mafia don Sal Scarlatti (played by a pre-Law&Order Jerry Orbach). While Hunter tracks down the killer, the grieving Scarlatti maps out his own plan of revenge. But neither Hunter nor Scarlatti realize (until it is too late!) that the murderer is Scarlatti's other son Tony (Paul Regina)--who never imagined that he was snuffing out his own half-brother. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1990
Diana Canova guests as Maggie McCauley, former student of Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury) and now the producer of a TV police show. Shortly after a heated argument between Maggie and the network programmer who is planning to cancel the series, the programmer turns up murdered. With herself under suspicion, Maggie draws upon the deductive skills gleaned from her mentor Jessica to find the real killer. Actor-turned-network executive Dwayne Hickman is quite cleverly cast in this episode!. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1988
Rebecca (Kirstie Alley) is shocked and appalled when Sam (Ted Danson) is promoted to an executive post with the corporation that owns Cheers. She then discovers that Sam has only gotten the promotion so he can play on the company's softball team. Sam, however, is blissfully unaware of this fact, and Rebecca wonders if she can work up enough gumption and spite to tell him. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1988
Upon learning that her boss Evan Drake (Tom Skerritt) is about to be transferred to Japan, Rebecca (Kirstie Alley) despairs, reasoning that she will never have the opportunity to express her ardor. Desperate to have one last moment alone with Evan, Rebecca takes Sam's suggestion to adopt a disguise -- and ends up in jail as a result. But as this final episode of Cheers' sixth season draws to a close, it looks as though the contentious relationship between Sam (Ted Danson) and Rebecca is about to enter a new and totally unexpected dimension. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1987
During a non-stop flight to London, a valuable necklace is stolen and the courier hired to guard the necklace is poisoned. One of the passengers is Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury), who of course offers her services to Scotland Yard as they try to retrieve the gems and catch the killer. Among the main characters in this melodrama are a famous actress, a taciturn former police officer, and a furtive-looking tourist couple. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1986
Hunter (Fred Dryer) recognizes a murder victim as the mistress of crooked international financier Michael Varn (Jack Colvin)--the man suspected of killing Hunter's former partner three years ago. Making it his personal mission to bring Varn to justice, Hunter winds up falling into a well-laid trap and is framed for a brutal assault. It is up to McCall (Stepfanie Kramer) to clear Hunter, put the existing clues together, and capture Varn--assuming, of course, that she can stay alive long enough to finish the job! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
In this flat attempt at comedy by the director of the Police Academy series, Neal Israel, a brash Dana Cannon (John Murray, brother of Bill) lands in a crooked re-education school for delinquent drivers, run by Deputy Halik (James Keach, brother of Stacey). The objective is to lord it over the miscreant drivers sent to the school (wrongly given citations and tickets by cops out to fill a quota, according to opening sequences) and make some money in the bargain. Deputy Halik has already decided to flunk out anyone in his classes, with the objective of impounding their cars and then auctioning off the vehicles to the highest bidders. Dana, the irrepressible new student, manages to unite the other put-upon drivers at the school into a single, determined faction -- and trouble quickly brews. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Murray, Jennifer Tilly, (more)
- 1984
Originally and imprudently titled The Whorehouse Sting, this fact-based, made-for-TV melodrama casts Beau Bridges as federal agent Frank Powell, who makes it his mission to bring slick but deadly racketeer Oliver Sully (Harold Gould) to justice. This undertaking requires Powell and his fellow government functionaries to set up a phony San Francisco brothel (total price tag: $450,000), thereby setting the stage for an intricate extortion "sting". Putting her life on the line along with Powell is professional call girl Kathy Dunne (Farrah Fawcett), who agrees to pose as the brothel's madam. Laced with moments of unexpected humor and capped by an unexpected denoument, The Red-Light Sting debuted April 5, 1984, on CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1984
The duplicitous owner (James Coco) of a popular theme park engages Jessica (Angela Lansbury) to design a "house of horror". Shortly, thereafter, the owner is murdered in his underground office--an "impossible" crime, inasmuch as the office was securely locked from the inside. Inasmuch as the wife of investigating detective Lt. Donovan (James Stephens) is Jessica's niece Carol , it is perhaps a "given" that our heroine will take a hand in solving the murder. Incidentally, the two Donovan children are played by a very young Joaquin Phoenix (here billed as "Leaf") and his sister Summer Phoenix. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1983
Quincy (Jack Klugman) is an unwilling key player in an elaborate vengeance scheme concocted by arrogant paralegal Carl Norman (Jeff Pomerantz). After the 7-year-old granddaughter of law professor Henry Hillman (Lew Ayres) is kidnapped in broad daylight, Norman calmly walks into police headquarters and confesses to the crime, further demanding to be put on trial immediately. Using the flaws in the legal system to his advantage, Norman is supremely confident that he will not only be acquitted for the crime, but that he will be able to collect the ransom for the girl without running the risk of a future arrest--thanks to that all-too-familiar loophole known as "Double Jeopardy". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1982
With great reluctance, Quincy (Jack Klugman) sets out to prove that wealthy Powell Dixon (George Gaynes) was murdered by his wife Jeannina (Ina Balin), who has a history of mental problems. What makes this particular case so difficult is that Jeannina and Quincy had been lovers back in their medical-school days. Things takes a wild and unexpected turn when Jeannina herself is apparently murdered--the first of several baffling events which culminate in a startling climactic twist. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1979
Because the producers couldn't get clearance to film on the real Golden Gate bridge, The Golden Gate Murders is enacted upon a distressingly unconvincing studio mock-up. The film itself is far better than its backdrop: David Janssen stars as a detective investigating the supposed suicide of a priest. Susannah York portrays a nun who is anxious to save the priest's immortal soul by proving that his fatal plunge into San Francisco Bay was murder, not suicide. A curious, chaste romance develops between cop and nun, which turns out to be more interesting at times than the case at hand. Golden Gate Murders was released theatrically as Specter on the Bridge. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1978
In the conclusion of a two-part story, Jim Rockford (James Garner) and rookie private eye Richie Brockelman (Dennis Dugan) continue to investigate the suspicious death of their mutual mentor Joe Tooley. When the trail of clues leads to crooked computer-company CEO Garth McGregor (Jackie Cooper), he uses his influence to frame the two detectives and force them to take it on the lam. Ingredients essential to the outcome of the story are an underground storage silo, a conspiracy involving a corrupt congressman, and a wild helicopter-chase finale. This final episode of The Rockford Files' fourth season served to introduce the character of Richie Brockelman, who was subsequently spun off into his own TV series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1978
In the first half of a two-part story, Jim (James Garner) investigates the mysterious death of his mentor Joe Tooley (Paul Fix) on the Ventura Freeway. Assisting Jim--in a manner of speaking--is greenhorn detective Richie Brockelman (Dennis Dugan), who likewise suspects that Tooley's demise was no accident. The evidence leads to a crooked city councilman and a sinister data-storage firm called the Credit Computer Centre. This episode and its followup served to introduce the character of Richie Brockelman, soon to be spun off into his own eponymously titled TV series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
Fed up with low-quality television programs, John (Randolph Mantooth) stays up all night--for several consecutive nights--to develop his own TV game show. Back on the job, John joins Roy (Kevin Tighe) in treating an ex-jazz singer who may have heart problems. Other emegencies on tonight's docket include a tightrope walker who is trapped between two tall buildings, and a multiple-injury incident caused by a careless driver. This final episode of Emergency!'s sixth season is also the series' last hour-long episode; thereafter, the program would resurface in the form of six movie-length "specials", spread out over the next two years. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
After burying his victim in an underground box with a limited air supply, a kidnapper rushes to the location where the ransom is to dropped--only to be killed in a car crash. Racing against time, the police desperately seek out clues as to the victim's whereabouts before his oxygen runs out. Joining the hunt is medical examiner Quincy (Jack Klugman), who hopes that a discarded piece of apple will provide enough forensic evidence to save a life. This is one of a handful of second-season Quincy, M.E. episodes deemed worthy of two network rerun showings. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
A huge rainstorm traps Johnny (Randolph Mantooth) and Roy (Kevin Tighe) at Station 86. It turns out that the two paramedics are the only medical personnel in the area, as the storm causes major power failures and washed-out roads and bridges. Among the patients treated during the crisis are an old lady with a hip injury, a child suffering from bronchitis, a policeman struck by lightning, and a major traffic pile-up. Lindel Stuart guest stars as Dr. Slade, a psychiatrist who performs above and beyond the call of duty as the storm gets worse and worse. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
The paramedics in general and Jim (Randolph Mantooth) and Roy (Kevin Tighe) in particular are outraged when Dr. Morton (Ron Pinkard]) insists that they handle all emergency calls equally, regardless of their severity. This new policy poses a number of problems during tonight's case roster, which includes a man suffering from extreme phosphorous burns and a youthful baseball player who suffers a concussion from a hit ball. Elsewhere, a hot tub proves to be a death trap. and a routine call takes a grim turn when Officer Vince (Vince Howard) suffers brain damage in car accident. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
After being involved in a fatal car accident, Dr. Brackett (Robert Fuller) is consumed by guilt over the fact that the father of a young girl has been killed--and the girl herself has seemingly gone into shock. Elsewhere, the emergency team is confronted by a raging ammonia fire, and a shootout in which a cop suffers chest pains. And on a lighter note, John (Randolph Mantooth) goes to extreme lengths to win a ticket-selling contest. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1976
Much against his will (and his better judgement), Jim (James Garner) gets involved in the trials and tribulations of Warren Weeks (Ron Rifkin), the wimpish cousin of attorney Beth Davenport (Gretchen Corbett). Warren was recently fired from his job by a man who later turned up murdered. The principal suspect in the killing is the victim's own boss Perry Lefcourt (Joe Maross)--who happens to be the husband of Warren's current sweetheart Catherine (played by onetime Playboy centerfold Anne Randall). When Lefcourt himself turns up dead, the feckless Warren finds himself facing charges for both murders--and in his efforts to clear Warren, Jim ends up getting arrested no fewer than three times! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
