Don Tait Movies
In the fourth installment of the "Herbie" series of Volkswagen Bug fantasies, the magical car has lost a lot of its sheen as it is retreaded into a journey through Central America. D.J. (Charles Martin Smith) and Pete (Stephan W. Burns) want to enter their supernatural car in a special, high-stakes race in Brazil. And so they set off driving with that goal in mind. Along the way the car ends up in a bullring playing the role of matador, the best of several incongruous adventures. Most audiences will still favor The Love Bug, the 1969 hit that spawned this third sequel. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cloris Leachman, Charles Martin Smith, (more)
We prefer the original release title of Disney's A Spaceman in King Arthur's Court: Unidentified Flying Oddball. In this new twist on an old Mark Twain yarn, NASA scientist Dennis Dugan and his robot clone are whisked back in time to the days of King Arthur (Kenneth More). After performing several acts of "sorcery" with the state-of-the-art paraphernalia at his disposal, Dugan incurs the wrath of in-house magician Merlin (Ron Moody). Jim Dale costars as the most hyperkinetic Sir Mordred that you're ever likely too see. Previous versions of Twain's Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court were filmed in 1921, 1931 and 1948; Spaceman in King Arthur's Court would be followed by an early-1990s TV adaptation of Connecticut Yankee starring The Cosby Show's Keshia Knight Pulliam, and by Disney's 1995 theatrical feature, A Kid in King Arthur's Court. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dennis Dugan, Kenneth More, (more)
One of the bigger non-cartoon moneymakers for Disney in the 1970s, The North Avenue Irregulars is predicated on the premise of the "Neighborhood Watch" system. Priest Michael Hill (Edward Herrmann), newly arrived on North Avenue, decides to buck the patriarchal notions of his superiors by delegating church responsibilities to the neighborhood women. Since the ladies include Vickie, Jane, Anne, Claire and Rose (Barbara Harris, Karen Valentine, Susan Clark, Cloris Leachman and Patsy Kelly), we're well primed for a surfeit of feistiness. Father Michael entrusts the church funds to Rose, who loses it all at the race track. In trying to retrieve the cash, he comes up against an influential bookie ring, controlled by several of the above-suspicion town officials. The wily priest responds by organizing the ladies of his congregation into the North Avenue Irregulars, a two-fisted crimefighting unit. There's slapstick aplenty within the film's 99 minutes, including the expected comic car crash. North Avenue Irregulars is based on a (drawn-from-life?) novel by the Reverend Albert Fay Hill. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edward Herrmann, Barbara Harris, (more)
- 1979
- G
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Tim Conway and Don Knotts, mere supporting characters in the original Apple Dumpling Gang, are promoted to starring roles in the 1979 sequel The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again. Once more cast as clumsy, soft-hearted western outlaws, Conway and Knotts come to the rescue of cavalry private Tim Matheson. The villain, lieutenant Philip Pine, is undermining the authority of Matheson's commander Harry Morgan, and Matheson wants to find out why. Featured performers include Jack Elam as Big Mac and Ruth Buzzi as Tough Kate. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tim Conway, Don Knotts, (more)
This adventure chronicles two boys' search for a treasure buried somewhere in the Florida Keys during the mid 1800s. The children are assisted by three adults, who each have the their own agendas for finding the cache. The hunters are followed by a greedy gang of villains. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Foxworth, Joan Hackett, (more)
Robert Stevenson, Walt Disney Productions' house director, cobbled together his 19th family film for the organization with this slapstick sequel to the Disney comedy The Shaggy Dog (produced 17 years after the fact). Dean Jones plays Wilby Daniels, a lawyer running against the villainous John Slade (Keenan Wynn) for district attorney. His campaign is cast into doubt when he comes upon an ancient ring that transforms him into a fat sheepdog. But the campaign progresses on a level playing field when the unscrupulous Slade finds himself also turned into a canine -- a disgruntled bulldog. Another sequel, The Return of the Shaggy Dog, followed. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dean Jones, Tim Conway, (more)
The Apple Dumpling Gang stars Bill Bixby as Russell Donovan, a slick frontier gambler. In Runyon-esque fashion, he is compelled to look after three precocious oprhaned kids. He can't handle the responsibilities alone, so he agrees to an in-name-only marriage to hoydenish stagecoach driver, Magnolia Dusty Clydesdale (Susan Clark). Fortuitously, they discover that a mine belonging to the kids' late father is worth millions. This brings several disreputable characters into the storyline: bumbling "nice" bandits Theodore Ogelvie and Amos (Don Knotts and Tim Conway), and deadly "bad" bandits headed by Frank Stillwell (Slim Pickens). Based on a novel by Jack M. Bickham, The Apple Dumpling Gang was successful enough to spawn a sequel-not to mention several future screen teamings for Don Knotts and Tim Conway. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bill Bixby, Susan Clark, (more)
- 1974
- G
James Garner stars as a genial cowboy in this wholesome slice of Disney family fare. Garner is Lincoln Costain, a cowboy in the 1850s who finds himself shanghaied and shipwrecked on a Hawaiian island. He runs into luckless widow Henrietta MacAvoy (Vera Miles) and helps her turn her struggling potato farm into a prosperous cattle ranch. But evil land baron Bryson (Robert Culp) wants all the land for himself and he holds Henrietta's mortgage. Lincoln had been planning to leave Hawaii and return to his Texas home, but decides to stay and help the beautiful widow fend off Bryson's land-grabbing greed. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Garner, Vera Miles, (more)
In this light-weight Disney family fare, Dean Jones plays Johnny Baxter, who -- along with his wife Sue (Nancy Olsen) and his two kids, Chris (Kathleen Cody) and Richard (Johnny Whitaker) -- decides to leave the New York City rat-race for the clean air and easy living of the Colorado ski country. Baxter has inherited a decaying Gothic mansion and, with the love of his family and a little bit of money, he converts the old house into a popular ski lodge. While preparing his lodge for the tourists and ski bums, Baxter has to deal with a few plumbing problems, a scheming banker (Keenan Wynn), and a grizzled old miner (Harry Morgan). In typical Disney fashion, the plot culminates in a wild, slapstick snowmobile race. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dean Jones, Nancy Olson, (more)
- 1971
- PG
In this western, a train robber is framed by a fellow gang member and sent to prison. The gang member betrayed him so that he could marry the robber's love. To get his revenge, the robber helps out a gang of Chinese whose father, the other guy kidnapped. A showdown between the two leads ensues. Naturally the hero wins it all. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1971
- PG
This film is notable for singer Marvin Gaye's debut acting performance. In Chrome and Hot Leather, Green Beret sergeant Mitch's (Tony Young) girlfriend has been mortally injured, and just before her death divulges that a motorcycle gang called "The Devils" were responsible. Mitch and his sergeant buddies (including Marvin Gaye as Jim) take military leave and prepare themselves to track down the evildoers by adopting, as best as they can, the appearance of a motorcycle gang: bikes, clothes and all. This results in some humorous moments. They use their army skills in the quest for justice, and The Devils come in for some serious trouble. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
Chuck (Tom Stern) and his brother Wes (Jeremy Slate) are the wealthy siblings who plan to rob Caesar's Palace more for fun than profit. They ingratiate themselves to the Hell's Angels of Oakland, lead by Sonny Barger (himself). The brothers plan to use the gang as a diversion during the staging of the planned heist. When Betsy the biker babe (Conny Van Dyke) mistakenly reveals the plan, the brothers are forced to take other measures when they become separated in this boring biker movie that features real Hell's Angels gang members. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Stern, Jeremy Slate, (more)
- 1965
Season Six of Bonanza was brought to a close on May 23, 1965, with another of the series' many "redeption" yarns. In "Patchwork Man," Grant Williams (best known for his star turn in the classic sci-fier The Incredible Shrinking Man) is cast as Albert "Patch" Saunders, a self-deprecating loner living in a ghost town. Feeling a bit sorry for Patch, Hoss Cartwright hires him as a Ponderosa ranch-hand. Hoss soon discovers why Patch is such a recluse: The man is a craven coward, pure and simple. Bruce Gordon, the former "Frank Nitti" on The Untouchables, appears as Bronson, while Sue Randall onetime "Miss Landers" on Leave It to Beaver, is seen as Ann. "Patchwork Man" was cowritten by Don Tait and actor Walter Koenig. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1965
In a plot reminiscent of a key scene in The Longest Day, American paratrooper Riddell (David Scheiner) finds himself trapped when his chute gets caught on a church spire. Entering the church to cut Riddell down, Saunders (Vic Morrow) and his men are themselves trapped by the sudden arrival of enemy troops. There is nothing for Saunders to do but hide in the the shadows of the church--and pray that the Germans do not get to Riddell before he does. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
Oscar-winning Viennese actress Luise Rainer makes her first Hollywood appearance since the 1943 theatrical film Hostages in this episode, in which she is cast as French countess Loraine De Roy. Wounded in combat, Lt. Hanley (Rick Jason) is forced to take refuge in the servant's quarters of the Countess' chateau, where a reception is taking place. Hanley's presence places Loraine in a most precarious position: at the moment, she and her husband (played by silent-film favorite Ramon Novarro) are playing host to several high-ranking German officers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
Lt. Hanley (Rick Jason) is ordered to guard a much-despised French collaborator (Robert Loggia) who possesses valuable information. Hanley's job is to get the turncoat to London safely for interrogation. But the Americans find themselves in a standoff with several members of the French underground, who intend to capture the collaborator and executive him on the spot. Some sources list the title of this episode as "The Tree of Mercy". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1964
Saunders (Vic Morrow) and his men are assigned to capture an important Nazi officer during a "welcome home" reception at German field headquarters. It soon develops that Saunders has less to worry about from the Germans than he does from his own ranks. The fly in the ointment is technical sergeant Meider (Gary Lockwood), a born malingerer and malcontent whose whining ineptitute threatens to snafu the entire mission. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1964
Trapped behind enemy lines, Lt. Hanley (Rick Jason) and a wounded GI named Stark (Warren Oates) take refuge in a deserted pillbox. Before long, a thunderstorm aries, and the two men are joined by three others--all German soldiers. Thus are mortal enemies thrown together by circumstance, forced to rely upon one another for their mutual survival. But when the storm blows over, who will have "won" this battle of wits and wills? This is the first Combat! episode directed by series star Vic Morrow (Sgt. Saunders). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1964
Kathie Browne makes her third appearance as Adam Cartwright's erstwhile lady friend Laura Dayton. Encouraged by her Aunt Lil (Joan Blondell) to rush Adam into marriage, Laura decides to make her sweetheart jealous by playing up to Adam's cousin Will (Guy Williams). The scheme backfires when Laura and Will fall in love for real. First telecast on May 10, 1964, "The Pressure Game" was written by Don Tait. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, (more)
- 1961
A blinding snowstorm outside of Denver forces Beau Maverick (Roger Moore) and his friend Judge Scott (Alan Baxter) to seek shelter in seedy hotel. Here Beau is attracted to the beautiful Sally Flood (Marlene Willis), only to be informed by Sally's aunt Martha (Jeanne Cooper) that the poor girl is insane. Beau is inclined to believe this when Sally begins prattling about "strange voices" in the night. . .until he begins hearing those strange voices as well. The actual sinister presence in this little melodrama is Aunt Molly's very good friend Chet Whitehead (played by Australian actor-director Michael Pate). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1961
Jack Kelly plays a dual role in this episode, as frontier gambler Bart Maverick and his exact lookalike, vicious outlaw Red Claxton. Mistaken for Claxton, who has been systematically stealing army payrolls, Bart is arrested and thrown in the stockade. Sentenced to hang, our hero must somehow break out of jail to prove his innocence. Appearing as ingenue Caprice Rambeau is a young Dawn Wells, three years before her starmaking turn as Mary Ann on Gilligan's Island. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1961
Whenever the betwiching Roxane Berard guest-stars on Maverick, there's bound to be some elegant larceny, with at least one member of the Maverick clan ending up the victim. In this particular episode, Berard is cast as Danielle de Lisle, an apparent damsel in distress who asks Beau Maverick (Roger Moore) to safeguard a precious diamond. Sure enough, Beau is tricked into substituting a fake diamond for the genuine article--and ends up in jail for his troubles. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1961
In the conclusion of a two-part story, Bart (Jack Kelly) and crooked peddler Cannonbaugh (John Dehner) have been captured by the same hostile tribe from whom Cannonbaugh had kidnapped the Indian girl Tawney (Sharon Hugueny). In order to secure his release, the peddler convinces the Indian chief to accept a "magic" necklace, which will render him impervious to gunshot wounds. Unfortunately, the chief now feels emboldened to attack a nearby Army fort--and unless Bart and Tawny act quickly, every man, woman and child in the fort will be massacred before the day is done. A young Chad Everett plays a minor role in this final episode of Maverick's fourth season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1961
Season Four of Maverick concludes with the series' only two-part episode. In Part One, Bart (Jack Kelly) purchases a wagonload of merchandise sight unseen from silver-tongued peddler Luther Cannonbaugh (John Dehner). Bart's plan to sell the merchandise at a nearby Army post hits a snag when he peeks into the wagon and finds a large supply of illegal liquor--as well as a bound and gagged Indian girl named Tawney (Sharon Hugueny). In his efforts to keep himself out of prison and avoid an all-out Indian war, Bart ends up captured by Tawney's tribe. Also held captive is the redoubtable Mr. Cannonbaugh, who thinks he has devised a foolproof scheme to save himself and Bart from being killed...and he's just the fool to prove it. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
No sooner has he arrived at Fort Casper than Beau (Roger Moore) is framed for the murder of Indian brave Swift Rider (Miguel Landa). The actual killers were Marsh (John Zaccaro) and Lawson (Richard Coogan), a pair of crooked shopkeepers who have been systematically cheating Swift Rider's tribe, and are hoping to stir up a war between the Indians and the Army to cover their tracks. Locked up in the stockade, Beau is rescued by Chief Standing Bull (Robert Warwick)--but only so he can be married to Swift Rider's sister Pale Moon (Andra Martin, a marriage slated to end as quickly as it begins with Beau's swift and ignominious demise. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
