Pat Collins Movies
- 1986
- PG
In a rambling, somewhat uneven drama, 14-year-old Jack Simmons (Peter Billingsley) takes it on himself to help his friend, coach Mike (Patrick Collins), save his hot dog and soft drink concession. Mr. Hodgkins (Stuart Pankin) is a greedy, self-serving banker who is determined to raze Mike's hot dog stand and build a new bank on its site. Jack's primary resource in his fight against Mr. Hodgkins is a motorbike that does everything except speak French. With this motorized wonder (which starts itself), Jack tackles a gang of tough bikers and the infamous Mr. Hodgkins, taking him for a ride he will never forget. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Peter Billingsley, Stuart Pankin, (more)
- 1984
At the behest of Robin Masters, Magnum (Tom Selleck) is forced to allow pesky novelist Betty Windom (Cassie Yates) to accompany him on an insurance-fraud investigation. As the story progresses, Betty decides that the case at hand is excellent grist for her creative mill, and thus she formulates the plotline of a novel based on the investigation, in which Magnum is reborn as the dashing "Sebastian Steele" and she herself is the lucious "Colette". Alas, in her innocent zeal to transform fact into fiction, Betty has placed herself and Magnum in a potentially deadly situation! The episode's final moment is a glorious takeoff of the "beach scene" in From Here to Eternity. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1984
Produced for the Disney Channel cable service, The Juggler of Notre Dame is based on the classic fable by Anatole France. Carl Carlsson plays the title role, an itinerant juggler who can't make a go of it in any "practical" line of work. On Christmas Eve, it is customary for the townspeople to offer presents to the statue of the Virgin Mary at Notre Dame cathedral. Carlsson knows no craft, can sing no song, can write no books. What can he offer the blessed Virgin? The answer is implicit in the title, but even without the element of surprise, The Juggler of Notre Dame is a captivating, heartwarming tale. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
In this comedy, a group of randy young interns turn City Hospital upside down with their romantic liaisons and their blunders. ~ Iotis Erlewine, Rovi
- Starring:
- Michael McKean, Sean Young, (more)
- 1981
While attending a literature seminar in Arizona, Laura (Melissa Gilbert) is reunited with her sister-in-law Eliza Jane (Lucy Lee Flippin). This happy reunion is compromised when, failing to land a local tutoring job, Laura is forced to take menial work at a local restaurant. Before long, Laura and Eliza Jane find themselves in a quasi-romantic triangle involving the erudite Professor Woestehoff (Joseph Lambie). Though a married woman and certainly disinclined to stray, Laura allows the professor to flatter her in hopes that he will give a positive assessment of her writing efforts -- while the unattached Eliza Jane seethes with jealousy. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, (more)
- 1979
In this concluding episode of a two-part story, a "killer rabbit" -- actually a murderer dressed in a bunny suit -- lies in wait in the Jefferson apartment. The homicidal hare intends to bump off Louise Jefferson (Isabel Sanford), the only witness to his crime. Unfortunately for the villain, his deadly mission is continually thwarted by a multitude of unexpected interruptions. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sherman Hemsley, Isabel Sanford, (more)
- 1979
This two-part story was apparently inspired by an incident in the life of President Jimmy Carter, who while swimming one day was "attacked" by a hostile rabbit. In this instance, the "killer rabbit" is a man in a bunny suit, who commits a murder in a high-rise apartment. Unfortunately, Louise Jefferson (Isabel Sanford) witnesses the killing while preparing to attend a costume party with husband George (Sherman Hemsley) and the Willises (Franklin Cover, Roxie Roker). Part one of "Now You See, It Now You Don't" originally aired on October 21, 1979. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sherman Hemsley, Isabel Sanford, (more)
- 1979
The 8-hour TV miniseries Blind Ambition was originally telecast May 20 through 23, 1979. This 105-minute feature-film version, prepared in 1982, seems a bit rushed at times, but overall does a credible and coherent job of storytelling. Based on John Dean's book Blind Ambition, with elements of Maureen Dean's Mo woven in by screenwriter Stanley R. Greenberg, this is the saga of the Watergate affair, as experienced by Dean (Martin Sheen) and hia wife Maureen (Theresa Russell). As the Nixon administration goes down in flames, the Deans' marriage is sorely tested-as is Dean's success-at-any-price credo. Rip Torn plays Nixon like something out of a Greek Tragedy; some viewers accepted his interpretation, others found it jarringly inaccurate. Others in the cast of "usual suspects" include Michael Callan as Charles Colson, Lonny Chapman as L. Patrick Gray, William Daniels as G. Gordon Liddy, Fred Grandy as Donald Segretti, Christopher Guest as Jeb Magruder, Lawrence Pressman as H. R. Haldeman, William Windom as Richard Kleindienst, James Greene as E. Howard Hunt, Logan Ramsey as J. Edgar Hoover, and Al Checco as judge John Sirica. Also known as The John Dean Story, Blind Ambition earned two Emmy nominations. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Martin Sheen, Theresa Russell, (more)
- 1978
Not realizing that his new assistant, Val (Tanya Boyd), is his boss' daughter, J.J. (Jimmie Walker) puts on the usual amorous moves. Eventually, J.J. learns the truth -- and not long afterward he receives a promotion at the art agency. Is it remotely possible that J.J. is currying romantic favor with Val only to advance himself professionally? ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
An unhappy couple discover breaking up really is hard to do in this satiric comedy. Richard Harmon (Dick Van Dyke) and his wife, Barbara (Debbie Reynolds), are a typical married couple in American Suburbia -- which is to say they're not very happy with each other. After 15 years together, Richard and Barbara decide they've reached the end of their collective rope, and after several rounds of marriage counseling proves fruitless, they file for divorce. Between negotiating child custody, alimony, and finding new places to live, Richard and Barbara discover divorce isn't appreciably easier than being married; meanwhile, Richard makes a new friend in Nelson Downes (Jason Robards), a fellow divorcé who would love nothing more than for Richard to marry his former wife, Nancy (Jean Simmons), and take away the burden of alimony. Also featuring Van Johnson, Lee Grant, Shelley Berman, and Eileen Brennan in her first film role, Divorce American Style earned an Oscar nomination for Norman Lear and Robert Kaufman's original screenplay. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Dick Van Dyke, Debbie Reynolds, (more)
Columbia's final release for 1950 was the Gene Autry western Indian Territory. Set during the Reconstruction Era, the story finds Autry working as an undercover agent for the U.S. cavalry. His mission: to neutralize a former Austrian army officer named Curt Raidler (Phil Van Zandt), who is leading a group of renegade Indians on a series of destructive raids. A subplot concerns the friendly rivalry between Autry and Union lieutenant Randolph Mason (played by Kirby Grant, later famous as TV's Sky King). Like most of Gene Autry's films from this era, Indian Territory co-stars Pat Buttram and Gail "Annie Oakley" Davis. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Gene Autry, Pat Buttram, (more)
- 1950
No good deed goes unpunished in the "Bowery Boys" entry Triple Trouble. When Slip (Leo Gorcey), Sach (Huntz Hall) and the rest of the Bowery Boys attempt to stop a robbery, it is they who wind up in prison. Once behind bars, the boys learn of an escape plan, but when they try to relay this information to the warden, they're threatened with solitary confinement. And when Slip and Sach try to sabotage a short-wave radio that is being used by one of the prisoners to orchestrate burglaries on the outside, our two heroes are thrown into solitary. Even poor sweet-shop owner Louie (Bernard Gorcey) is not spared; running into the street and calling for help after being robbed, Louie is told by the beat cop that he risks arrest for disturbing the peace! Amazingly, the Bowery Boys manage to survive all these knocks and bring the film's genuine bad guys to justice. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Leo Gorcey, Huntz Hall, (more)
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