Don Richardson Movies
Don Richardson directed television and theatrical productions. At the end of his career, he became a respected acting teacher whose book Acting Without Agony: An Alternative to the Method has been used worldwide. Famous Richardson students include Anne Bancroft, Grace Kelly, John Cassavetes, and Zero Mostel. His television credits run the gamut from Bonanza to Lost in Space to One Day at a Time. As an instructor Richardson taught at Barnard College and at both the East and West coast campuses of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. He was awarded a professorship at Tel Aviv University in Israel. Richardson continued teaching after retirement, holding workshops for directors and actors through U.C.L.A. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide- 1969
Joe Cartwright is dumbfounded when his friend, bank employee Wade Turner (Gregory Walcott), abruptly leaves town before his marriage to his sweetheart Sarah (Sandra Smith). Wade's abrupt exit coincides with a shortage in the bank's accounts, prompting Joe to seek out his friend and demand an explanation. But no one knows the real reason for Wade's departure: he is slowly dying of a brain tumor. Featured in the cast is a young Dabney Coleman as Clyde. Written by John Hawkins, Jonathan Knopf and B.W. Sandefur, "A Darker Shadow" originally aired on November 23, 1969. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1969
While Sheriff Coffee testifies at a trial in San Francisco, Hoss Cartwright serves as temporary sheriff of Virginia City. Before long, Hoss has outraged and astonished the townsfolk by locking up millionaire Paul Forbes (Robert Emhardt) and his valet Fairfax (Jay Novello), for reasons which remain unclear throughout most of the episode. Conversely, Hoss refuses to accommodate troublemaker Hiram Peabody (Tom Bosley), who desperately wants to be arrested so he can escape his impending marriage to Cissie Summers (Melinda Dillon). First telecast on October 5, 1969, the lighthearted "A Lawman's Lot is Not a Happy One" was written by Robert Vincent Wright. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1969
Mary Fickett is cast as Erin O'Donnell, an Irish girl raised by the Sioux in Paiutes. Falling in love with Erin, Hoss Cartwright does his best to shield her from the bigotry of the townspeople. But Erin regards Hoss' efforts as futile, citing the tribal prophecy that she is "the wolf child, born to fight and die for the Indian.". Given the mortality rate of the Cartwright boys' sweethearts, it isn't hard to predict the outcome of this melancholy tale. Written by Sandy Summerhays, "Erin" was originally telecast on January 26, 1969, then rebroadcast by NBC on June 4, 1972. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1970
Carri Sturgis (Jewel Blanch), a young friend of Ben Cartwright's adopted son Jamie, lives in terror under the cruel supervision of her Aunt Vella (Madeleine Sherwood) and Uncle Gifford (William Bramley). Inasmuch as the couple hates children, Jamie can't understand why they so desperately desire custody of Carri. Before long, the truth is revealed: The girl is heir to her late grandfather's gold mine. Also in the cast are Paul Fix as Buford and Peggy Rea as Clara. Written by B.W. Sandefur, "For a Young Lady" initially aired on December 27, 1970. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1970
In her third Bonanza appearance, Mariette Hartley is here cast as Jennifer, the daughter of Ben Cartwright's old friend Harry Carlis (John McLiam). Slated to be wed to influential banker Tuttle Ames (Burr DeBennings, Jennifer leaves her intended at the altar and makes a beeline to the Ponderosa, insisting that she's been in love with Ben all her life. Even though Ben refuses to marry the girl, the vengeful Ames does everything in his power to destroy the Cartwright's financial empire. B.W. Sandefur's script makes a passing reference to Ben's son Adam, who hadn't been seen on Bonanza for nearly five years when "Is There Any Man Here?" first aired on February 8, 1970. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1968
A distant relative of Ben Cartwright, preteen tomboy Samantha Dorcas (Linda Sue Risk is delivered to the Ponderosa in the hope that Ben will be able to "tame" the troublesome girl. Meanwhile, Sam's mother Martha (Antoinette Bower) struggles desperately to escape her existence as a saloon girl. Further complications ensue when Sam's grandfather Calvin (George Mitchell) arrives on the scene. First shown on November 3, 1968, "Little Girl Lost" was written by Michael Fessier. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1970
When Bonanza debuted in 1959, its first episode was "A Rose for Lotta", guest-starring Yvonne DeCarlo as real-life musical peformer Lotta Crabtree. Written by Stanley Roberts, the series' March 1, 1970 episode "Return Engagement" found Sally Kellerman in the role of the fabulous Lotta. As indicated by the title, Ms. Crabtree has once again honored Virginia City with a visit, and both Joe and Hoss Cartwright are swept off their feet by the glamorous actress (Joe even begins entertaining notions of pursuing a stage career himself!) Things take a sinister turn when Lotta's leading man is killed and Hoss is accused of the crime. Joyce Bulifant, who later played Marie Slaughter on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, appears as Bonnie. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1969
Joan Van Ark made an early TV starring appearance in this January 5, 1969 episode of Bonanza. The actress is cast as Laurie Adams, who is desperate to break off her relationship with her fugitive-outlaw husband Kelly Adams (James Olson). Hoss Cartwright tries to help Laurie, a task made difficult when her misguided pride prohibits her from revealing her husband's whereabouts. Written by John Hawkins, Kay Lenard, Jess Carneol and Jackson Gillis, "Sweet Annie Laurie" was one of several 1960s Bonanza installments chosen by NBC for "encore" presentations in the summer of 1972. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1969
Melissa Murphy is cast as Jenny Winters, who claims she can identify the outlaw Logan gang as the men who robbed a stagecoach and murdered the driver. Hoping to protect Jenny from the Logans, Joe Cartwright and Candy offer the girl shelter at the Ponderosa. What neither the good guys nor the bad guys know is that Jenny is a chronic liar, whose "eyewitness" yarn is a total fabrication. Others in the cast include Stefan Gierasch as Orvil Winters, Connie Hines as Hilda, Alan Baxter as Jim, and Bo Hopkins as Stretch. First shown on September 21, 1969, "The Witness" was written by Joel Murcott. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1974
John (Randolph Mantooth) would like to date a new nurse named Daisy (Britt Lind), but it looks like he'll have to wait in line. Among the evening's emergency patients is a refrigerator repairman who ends up frozen to an ice-house floor, an elderly hobbyist (John Carradine) who has glued himself to a model ship, and a man trapped in a theater fire. The guest cast this week includes TV-sitcom veterans Steve Franken ("Chatsworth Osborne" on Dobie Gillis) and Ann Morgan Guilbert ("Millie Helper" on The Dick Van Dyke Show. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1974
Everyone at the station house joins forces to get even with Chet (Tim Donnelly) for his never-ending practical jokes. Elsewhere, the victim of a motorcycle accident is forced to rely on extremely limited communications skills, and a worker trapped under a boat proves surprisingly uncooperative with his rescuer. Olympic swimming star Mark Spitz and his wife Suzy Spitz make their TV dramatic debuts as a young husband and his pregnant wife, who has been wounded by a malufunctioning gun. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
After playing on a strange-looking harp, Dr. Smith (Jonathan Harris) ends up where everybody said he would end up...or so it seems. Transported to what looks like Hell, Smith comes faces to face with the demonic Morbus (Gerald Mohr), who demands the destruction of the aforementioned harp, else Smith will remain "down below." It takes the combined efforts of Don (Mark Goddard) and Judy (Marta Kristen) to rescue Smith and prove that Morbus isn't exactly whom he claims to be. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1967
An unexpected "launch window" has provided the Robinsons with a golden opportunity to get off the planet. Unfortunately, time is of the essence--and right now time is running out thanks to a computer, residing in a tomblike cave, that has taken over Dr. Smith's (Jonathan Harris) mind and body, transforming him into an alien from a long-dead civilization. Will the Robinsons be forced to leave Smith behind in order to save themselves? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1967
Future Hill Street Blues star Daniel J. Travanti (billed as "Dan Travanty") guests in this episode as Ilan, shaggy-haired leader of a band of space cyclists. Hoping to rise above their "misfit" status, Ilan and his fellow cycle bums agree to blow up a planet in order to keep it colliding with their own. Alas, the planet slated for destruction is currently occupied by the Robinsons--and the cyclists have no intention of letting them escape! The plot takes a bizarre twist when, thanks to a gaseous substance, Dr. Smith (Jonathan Harris) is suddenly transformed into a green-haired muscleman--whose awesome strength keeps failing him at the most inopportune moments! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Injured after falling down a hole in a cave, John (Guy Williams) awakens to find himself a changed man. Specifically, the spirit of the centuries-old alien warrior Canto now possesses John's body and a good portion of his mind--a portion which increases every time John falls asleep. Thus enslaved by Canto, John imprisons the rest of his family and prepares to murder his own son Will (Bill Mumy)! Listen as the Robot sums up the cowardice of Dr. Smith (Jonathan Harris) by paraphrasing "The Prisoner of Zenda" in this, the final episode of Lost in Space's first season, and the last one filmed in black and white. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Hit by a strange missile, the Jupiter 2 crash-lands on a fog-shrouded planet, ruled over by a curious hermit named Captain Tiabo (Wally Cox) and his monstrous pet bird. Vowing to wipe out the Robinsons, Tiabo schemes to create a huge and loyal army to destroy the Jupiter 2--and never mind that the diminutive soldier's dreams of conquest are only pathetic delusions. But though Tiabo ultimately proves to be a washout, Dr. Smith (Jonathan Harris) definitely poses a threat to all concerned when he drinks a "nectar" that transforms him into a human bomb! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1967
None the worse for having been "killed" in the previous episode, John Robinson (Guy Williams) slays a space monster that was threatening his family. As a result, John himself becomes the quarry in a bizarre big-game hunt conducted by gigantic humanoid sportsman Megazor (Vincent Beck). In fine "Most Dangerous Game" tradition, John spends the rest of the episode desperately trying to elude the relentless Megazor, with only a single weapon to defend himself! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1967
This episode marks the first appearance of the Space Pod, which allows the members of the Jupiter 2 party to travel "light" from time to time. Alas, no sooner has the Space Pod been activated than its mother ship is captured by menacing Androids, acting under orders from a huge, clocklike computer. In the course of ensuing events, the Robot is forced to become the leader of the androids, Dr. Smith (Jonathan Harris) is transformed into a small boy--and horror of horrors, Professor John Robinson (Guy Williams) is killed! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1967
Demented space pirate Admiral Zahrt (Ronald Long) shanghais Will (Billy Mumy), Dr. Smith (Jonathan Harris) and the Robot, forcing the trio to work as his crew. Zahrt needs as many hands as he can get in his never-ending quest to find his mutinous first mate Mr. Christiansen, who had stranded the Admiral on the Robinsons' planet years earlier. Meanwhile, the rest of the Robinsons, along with Don West (Mark Goddard), do what they can to rescue the kidnapped trio (and, incidentally, to remind the viewers that they're still on Lost in Space too). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1967
Will (Billy Mumy), Dr. Smith (Jonathan Harris), and the robot encounter a super-powerful android, IDAK (short for Instant Destroyer and Killer) Alpha-12 (Don Matheson), who has been dispatched to destroy a runaway android. Having been damaged by his interstellar journey, and a little disoriented in dealing with humans, IDAK accepts their help in recovering his full strength and also their assurances that there are no androids among the Robinson party, just humans and one robot. But they're wrong -- Verda (Dee Hartford), the female android introduced earlier in the episode "The Android Machine", has returned to them. A policy change at the Celestial Department Store resulted in an order for all androids of her type to report for destruction, but she refused and ran, transporting herself back to the Robinsons' planet -- except that she's changed, and she looks and acts almost completely human. At first, unable to convince IDAK Alpha-12 to abandon his programming, she is able to convince him that she is human, and enough of what she shows him about being human rubs off, that he is able to resist his programming to kill her. When the CDS sends another, much more powerful IDAK Omega-17 model (Dawson Palmer), however, the first IDAK struggles between the new impulse for survival and the self-sacrifice that he sees in Verda, and finally joins together with the Robinsons to combat the threat. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
- 1967
Lost in Space meets The Munsters as former "Grandpa Munster" Al Lewis guest stars as Zalto, a somewhat seedy space sorcerer. In hopes of flying Zalto's spaceship back to earth, Dr. Smith (Jonathan Harris) offers his services as the sorceror's apprentice. Unfortunately, the combined bungling of Zalto and Smith ends up seriously imperiling the Robinson family. This episode is highlighted by a wheezy vaudeville routine between Jonathan Harris and Al Lewis, reportedly improvised on the set when the script came up a bit short. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Stumbling upon a vending machine for the "Celestial Department Store", Dr. Smith (Jonathan Harris accidentally places an order for a gorgeous--and emotionless--female android named Verda (Dee Hartford). Enter Zumdish (Fritz Feld in his first series appearance), the pompous CEO of the Celestial Department Store. With a crook of the eyebrow and a "pop" of the hand, Zumdish demands that Verda be returned immediately--but alas, the android has been "ruined" by the Robinsons, who have endowed the curvaceous android with human emotions. This is the episode which establishes the Robinsons' deutronium fuel supply as the "Euro" currency of the universe. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1967
A cosmic time warp takes Will (Billy Mumy back to Glamis Castle in 19th century Scotland. It so happens that the castle houses a ghost named McPherson (Sean McClory) and a monster named Angus (Dawson Palmer), both of whom remain imprisoned on earth until McPherson can fulfill a vendetta. Seeing the opportunity to return to earth, Dr. Smith (Jonathan Harris) follows Will into the castle--unaware that McPherson is foresworn to kill Smith, whose ancestors were responsible for the angry ghost's current plight! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
A fifteen-year-old Kurt Russell appears in this episode as Quano, the 11-year-old prince of a faraway planet. Accompanied by his father, the Ruler (Michael Ansara), Quano arrives on the Robinsons' planet, where the two aliens challenge John (Guy Williams) and Will (Bill Mumy) to a test of superiority. The two Robinson men accept the challenge, little realizing that if they win, the rest of their family loses. . .their lives! This episode allows Guy Williams to show off the swordfighting prowess that had distinguished his previous TV stint as Zorro. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
John Abbott guest stars as Sesmar, an alien scientist who has created an android named Raddion (played by the ubiquitous Dawson Palmer). The android is quite a piece of work, seemingly human in every respect save one: he lacks human emotions. To rectify this shortcoming, Sesmar drains the Robinsons of all their emotions and transfers them to his Raddion--leaving only Don (Mark Goddard) "complete" enough to rescue his companions...if he can. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
