E.W. Swackhamer Movies
One of television's more prolific directors, E.W. Swackhamer helmed over 25 television pilots, 18 of which became successful series, including Quincy and Eight Is Enough. He also directed numerous miniseries, telefilms, and episodes from a wide variety of series ranging from Bewitched to M*A*S*H to Murder, She Wrote. His movie credits include Bill Cosby's debut feature, Man and Boy (1972). Before becoming a director, Swackhamer worked on Broadway as a stage manager and occasional actor. In late 1994, Swackhamer was on location in Berlin shooting for the television film High Command when he died of a ruptured aortic aneurysm. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1994
In this feature-length episode, Mac Shayne is busily trying to prove a pop star innocent of murder charges when he stumbles across a conspiracy to kill an up-and-coming politician. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kenny Rogers, Maria Conchita Alonso, (more)
- 1994
An ex-convict traveling to Las Vegas to visit his son is forced to re-enter the high-stakes world of casino poker in order to win back his family in a tense tale of family loyalty starring Kenny Rogers and Terry O'Quinn. There was a time when John J. "Jack" MacShayne (Rogers) was the best gambler in all of Las Vegas, but upon traveling back to his old haunts the ex-convict discovers that Sin City has been transformed into a homogenized vacation destination for the whole family. When MacShayne is unable to locate his wife and son, ex-policeman Danny Leggett (O'Quinn) offers to reveal the pair's whereabouts if the former gambler agrees to defeat a particularly formidable opponent at the tables. If MacShayne should win, Leggett and his partner will be able to carry out their plan of robbing the casino. Should his opponent win, however, MacShayne stands to lose much more than a simple game of cards. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kenny Rogers
- 1993
After surviving a blast from a double-barrelled shotgun, Henry Jackson (Joe Seneca) is still able and willing to identify his assailant. It turns out that the shooter is an outspoken white supremacist -- and a serial killer who preys upon minorities. This is why Assistant D.A. Stone (Michael Moriarty) is astonished when the accused is defended by a prominent African-American lawyer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Made for cable TV, Are You Lonesome Tonight? serves as a wide-eyed, heart-in-throat vehicle for Jane Seymour. She plays a wealthy young society matron whose husband disappears. An added complication involves her hubby's preoccupation with a phone-sex "operator." Detective Mat Henderson (Parker Stevenson) is brought in to investigate, using the taped transcripts of the husband's heavy-breathing phone conversations as his only leads. The suspense level fluctuates between intense and ho-hum during the first two thirds of Are You Lonesome Tonight?, but things pick up considerably in the final scenes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jane Seymour, Parker Stevenson, (more)
- 1992
In this complex, gripping made-for-TV courtroom drama, the new DA of a small town is given the job of prosecuting the alleged murderer of a stripper. Unfortunately, his own father is in charge of the defense. To make matters worse, both attorneys are in love with the wife of the accused. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1992
In this made-for-cable television thriller, a widow hires a brother and sister to act as nanny and handy man to help care for her two kids and her home. The new employees seem to be perfect in every way, but for the fact that one of the siblings hides a dark and deadly secret. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1991
The ongoing debate over parental rights in medical procedures comes to the forefront when a five-year-old girl dies from a relatively minor throat infection. The child's parents, Ted and Nancy Driscoll (Byron Jennings, Kaiulani Lee) are arrested, whereupon they argue that their religious beliefs compelled them to deny medical treatment for their daughter. Incidentally, the unfortunate youngster is played by an uncredited Michelle Trachtenberg, who later co-starred on the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1991
In this concluding episode of the first two-part Law & Order, the case against mob boss Frank Masucci (Charles Cioffi), aka "the Dandy Don," ignominiously collapses in a heap. Frustrated, assistant D.A. Stone (Michael Moriarty) vows to put Masucci in prison by whatever means necessary. Unfortunately, this may require the D.A.'s office to place their confidence in Masucci's brother-in-law Harv Beigel (Bruce Altman), whose "cooperation" has already resulted in disaster. Meanwhile, detectives Greevey (George Dzundza) and Logan (Chris Noth), likewise anxious to get rid of Masucci, turn up the heat on a "small fish" named Joe Pilefsky (Stephen McHattie). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1991
When young Nicky Guzman (Enrique Monez) is accused of killing a drug dealer, public sympathy is very much on his side. This makes it difficult for the D.A.'s office to mount a successful case against Guzman. But things really get beyond the control of assistant D.A.'s Stone (Michael Moriarty) and Robinette (Richard Brooks) when Guzman engages the services of Chet Burton (J.D. Cannon), a flamboyant Texas defense lawyer with a long and unbroken string of courtroom victories. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1991
Law & Order's first two-part episode begins with an assault on the owner of a candy store. Following the trail of clues, Greevey (George Dzundza) and Logan (Chris Noth) end up at the door of prominent gangster boss Frank Masucci (Charles Cioffi). The so-called "Dandy Don" has long eluded prosecution, but attorneys Stone (Michael Moriarty) and Robinette (Richard Brooks) believe that they at last have enough evidence to put Masucci away for life. Alas, the lawyers have placed all their eggs in a single "basket" -- namely, Masucci's mercurial brother-in-law Harv Beigel (Bruce Altman). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1990
Originally shot as a television series pilot, the made-for-television Rousters is about Wyatt Earp's great-grandson (Chad Everett) who is a bouncer for Captain Jack Slade's carnival in Sladetown. The carnival is upset when a rascal named Clayton drops by, looking to cause some trouble. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Chad Everett, Hoyt Axton, (more)
- 1990
In a fictionalized replay of the notorious Tawana Brawley incident, African-American teenager Astrea Crawford (Kisha Miller) claims that she was gang-raped by white policemen. As Greevey (George Dzundza) and Logan (Chris Noth) pursue their investigation, assistant D.A.'s Stone (Michael Moriarty) and Robinette (Richard Brooks) attempt to build a case against the accused -- if indeed there is a case. The inevitable racial tensions are exacerbated by the interference, and inflammatory rhetoric, of flamboyant black congressman Ronald Eaton (J.A. Preston). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1990
Originally scheduled to air on October 11, 1990, this Law & Order episode was bumped forward to November 20 of that year. The flames of racial unrest are fueled when a young African-American honors student is shot by Freddo Parisi (John Finn), a white cop. Much to their dismay, detectives Greevey (George Dzundza) and Logan (Chris Noth) are faced with the likelihood that the cop may have planted a weapon on the deceased to get himself off the hook. Likewise made uncomfortable by the implications and possible consequences of the incident, assistant D.A.'s Stone (Michael Moriarty) and Robinette (Richard Brooks) nonetheless set a trap to catch Officer Parisi in his own web of deceit. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1990
In a fictionalized replay of the Bernhard Goetz incident, former dancer Laura di Biasi (Cynthia Nixon), a white woman, is arrested after shooting two black youths on a subway. Di Biasi claims that she was acting in self defense, but Assistant D.A. Robinette (Richard Brooks), himself an African-American, suspects that the woman had a hidden agenda. This not only leads to a racially charged murder trial, but also considerable friction between Robinette and his partner Stone (Michael Moriarty). (Trivia note: Guest star Cynthia Nixon and Law & Order regular Chris Noth later starred together on the HBO sitcom Sex and the City.) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1990
In this first telecast of Law & Order, a case of fatal criminal negligence takes front and center. During a particularly frantic night in an emergency room, a young woman dies, prompting her father to sue the hospital. Investigating detectives Greevey (George Dzundza) and Logan (Chris Noth) uncover evidence that the E.R.'s chief resident, Dr. Edward Auster (Paul Sparer), has a history of alcoholism, and may have been drinking at the time of the tragedy. D.A. Adam Schiff (Steven Hill) orders his subordinates Stone (Michael Moriarty) and Robinette (Richard Brooks) to charge Auster with murder. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1989
In exchange for clearing Duell McCall's name, the cowboy's assistance is needed in locating the murderer of the sheriff's wife. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1989
Badlands Justice is another in a series of Desperado feature films made exclusively for television. Alex McArthur returns as cowboy Duell McCall, who wanders the wide frontier in search of the one man who will clear him of a murder charge (What price Fugitive?) Once more, McCall finds himself in a corruption-ridden mining town. Since no one knows his true identity, he is able to establish a modicum of law and order, despite the concerted efforts of greedy land baron John Rhys-Davies. It is only a matter of time, however, before McCall will be forced to move on to other adventures. Well photographed and consummately acted, Badlands Justice premiered December 17, 1989. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1989
In this drama, legal eagle Cromwell must protect her client who has been wrongly accused of killing a grifter. She is up against a crafty, and earnest police officer. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1989
In this episode, defense attorney Cromwell investigates the case of a woman accused of killing her rich husband. She discovers an underlayer of greed and adultery. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1988
As a result of the surprise ratings success of the first Desperado TV movie in April of 1987, plans were hastily drawn up to release additional Desperado adventures over the next three years. Return of Desperado was the first such follow-up to be telecast, though in fact it was filmed after the official sequel, Desperado: Avalanche of Devil's Ridge. Alex McArthur is back as Duel McCall, a frontiersman on the lam from a trumped-up murder rap. Now he's in New Mexico (where Return of Desperado was lensed), running afoul of local land baron Robert Foxworth. In the tradition of David Janssen's The Fugitive, McCall pauses long enough in his escape flight to come to the aid of black homesteader Billy Dee Williams, who is being victimized by the diabolical Foxworth. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1988
When one of her former students adapts her novel Mainly Murder as a stage play, Jessica (Angela Lansbury) is honored to attend the show's opening night. Not long afterward, the reviews come out, with one critic lavishing praise on the production, and the critic's chief rival penning a devastating pan. When then "positive" critic is murdered and the "negative" critic is accused of the crime, Jessica must come to the defense of a person who obviously despises her! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1985
The story of Jack The Ripper may be the cause of a small town's crime spree in this strange made-for-television thriller. David Hasselhoff stars as Don Gregory, a cop in an Arizona town whose claim to fame is being the home of the newly transplanted pieces of the original London Bridge. When the bridge is fully assembled and a murder spree begins, Gregory suspects that the bridge's historical link to Jack The Ripper and the Thames River, may have something to do with the killings. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
- 1985
In this Stephen Cannell-produced pilot for a potential TV detective series, Mac Davis plays an ex-highway patrolman and Joseph Cortese an ex-trucker, related by marriage. Their wives were twin sisters--were, because in addition to all the other "ex" qualifications in their lives, Davis and Cortese are ex-husbands. Still pals after their group divorce, the boys become private eyes. Their first case is to get the goods on a shady tycoon (Robert Culp), who happens to be their former father-in-law. Brothers-in-Law was the first Steven J. Cannell independent production which failed to sell as a series, but it wouldn't be the last. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1983
- R
This made-for-TV comedy postulates that, someday, members of carpools will be selected by computer. The four so anointed herein are Harvey Korman, Peter Scolari, T.K. Carter and Stephanie Faracy. Their lives go along in their usual luckless fashion until the quarter of mismatched "poolers" find themselves in possession of a million dollars that has fallen from an armored car. But ex-cop Ernest Borgnine has his eyes on the loot as well, and the chase is on. Basically a bargain-basement It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World, Carpool first aired October 5, 1983. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
