Lori March Movies

Amy Scott (Sue Randall) engages the services of both detective Paul Drake (William Hopper) and professional psychic Madama Zillia (Lori March), claiming that she wants to locate a troubled young man named Tommy Stiller (John Napier). What Paul doesn't know is that Amy is actually Tommy's sister Arnell, and that she is really trying to gather evidence proving that Madame Zillia, whom Arnell holds responsible for the suicide of her father, is a fraud. Disturbingly, Zillia's prediction that there is a death in Arnell's future comes true when the girl's landlord Victor Bundy, who was in cahoots with the phony psychic, is murdered. From this point forward, Arnell's future is in the hands of defense attorney Perry Mason (Raymond Burr). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The plot gets under way when artist Jack Culross (Britt Lomond) fakes his own suicide so that his paintings will increase in value. Upon discovering that her husband is still alive, Culross' wife Edna (Lori March) tracks him down and angrily confronts him. Not long afterward, Culross is found dead for real, and Edna is charged with the crime. Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) must find out who else knew of Culross' phony suicide--and who else hated him enough to kill him. With this episode, Wesley Lau becomes a regular as Lt. Anderson, though in many episodes he is still billed among the supporting players. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Director Richard L. Bare made an impressive Twilight Zone debut with this classic episode. Fritz Weaver and Joe Maross star respectively as scientist William Sturka and test pilot Jerry Riden, who, aware that their country is on the brink of nuclear war, conspire to rescue themselves and their families by blasting off in an experimental spaceship. But first, the fugitives-to-be must escape the watchful eye of odious government functionary Carling (Edward Andrews). Though the episode's punch line is tipped off by its title, "Third from the Sun" scores points with some truly remarkable camerawork, courtesy of director Bare and cinematographer George Clemens. Scripted by Rod Serling from a short story by Richard Matheson, this episode first aired January 8, 1960. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

After he accidentally kills a man whom he assumes to be his wife's lover, wealthy Lloyd Ashley (Leslie Nielsen) engages his lawyer -- and best friend -- Mark Robeson (Barry Sullivan) to defend him in court. To bind the bargain, Ashley offers Robeson half of his four-million-dollar fortune. Only after he has been exonerated does Ashley discover that the man he killed was not the only victim in the whole affair. This is the first Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode to be directed by longtime Hitchcock associate Norman Lloyd. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Viewers familiar with the 1996 Mel Gibson blockbuster Ransom may be disappointed that there are no smirking villains, car chases, or bloody fistfights in the original 1956 version of the same story. Even so, the earlier Ransom! has much to offer on a purely dramatic level. Based on the Richard Maibaum-Cyril Hume TV play Fearful Decision, the film stars Glenn Ford as self-made industrialist David Stannard. When his son is kidnapped and held for 500,000 dollars ransom, Stannard at first sets about to cooperate with the abductors and to raise the necessary funds. Somewhere along the line, however, Stannard's outrage erupts and boils over. Buying air time on a local TV station, he pulls out the half-million dollars, then informs the kidnappers that they'll never get their hands on a single penny. He further threatens to use the money as a reward for the kidnappers' capture, dead or alive, should any harm befall his son. Despite the protests of his wife, Edith (Donna Reed), and the admonishments of his friends, family, business associates and even the police, Stannard sticks fast to his decision...but will he live to regret it? The boy's abductors are never seen in Ransom!; instead, the film concentrates on the multitude of ramifications (including a few political ones) stemming from David Stannard's bold stance. As such, the 1956 Ransom! is in its own way as tense and exciting as the more elaborate 1996 remake. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide