Don M. Mankiewicz Movies

A Manhattan priest with a fondness for dabbling in detective work investigates a series of unnerving, mysterious attacks, seemingly designed to terrify a young actress. This made-for-television film, retitled for its video release, is inspired by the books of mystery author G.K. Chesterton. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide

Lanigan's Rabbi is the pilot for the subsequent TV series based on Harry Kemelman's novels about crimesolving Rabbi David Small. Stuart Margolin plays the Rabbi, while Art Carney is top-billed as the police detective who frequently relies on Small's intuition. This initial episode, adapted from Kemelman's Friday the Rabbi Slept Late concerns the murder of a woman whose body is discovered on the steps of the Rabbi's California synagogue. The mystery is given equal time with Small's concern over his pregnant wife, who is about to give birth at any minute. When Lanigan's Rabbi became as series, Stuart Margolin was committed to Rockford Files, so Bruce Solomon became the new Rabbi Small. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Donna Mills was still in her "imperiled heroine" career stage when she starred in the made-for-TV The Bait. Mills is a policewoman who goes incognito to solves a baffling series of rape-murders. Almost as deadly as the rapist is the sexism Mills must suffer from her superior officer (Michael Constantine)--which at times is played for laughs. Based on a novel by former policewoman Dorothy Uhnak, who must have been appalled at the liberties taken with her work by this film, The Bait was the pilot for an unlaunched weekly TV series. Sidenote (courtesy of TV-movie historian Lee Goldberg): Noam Pitlik, a guest star in The Bait, would later direct several episodes of the police sitcom Barney Miller. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this drama, the second in the "Ironside" series, the Chief becomes marked for murder after he witnesses the execution of hospital security guard. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Ironside departs from its usual one-hour format with this extended episode, originally telecast in a two-hour slot and later syndicated as a two-parter. While witnessing a murder committed by a drug thief, Ironside (Raymond Burr) incurs a shock to his spinal chord which may enable doctors to operate and cure his paralysis. The bad news is that the operation might also kill the detective--if the homicidal thief doesn't knock him off first! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A serial killer is on the loose in San Francisco, and five victims--all women--have already been claimed. Ironside (Raymond Burr) suspects that the most recent killing was not committed by the same maniac who bumped off the previous four victims, but by a different person who was using the murder spree to cover his tracks. The episode's climax finds youthful policewoman Eve Whitfield (Barbara Anderson) donning old-age makeup to flush out the villain. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this 2-hour "NBC World Premiere" pilot film for the TV series Ironside, we learn how San Francisco chief-of-detectives Robert Ironside (Raymond Burr) came to be confined to a wheelchair. Felled by a sniper's bullet, Ironside is retained by the force as a special officer for the Frisco police force. With the help of Sgt. Ed Brown (Don Galloway) and officer Eve Whitfield (Barbara Anderson), the irascible Ironside is assigned to find out who his assailant was. Appearing in cameo roles are Wally Cox, Lilla Skala, and an unbilled, pre-Laugh In Tiny Tim.The Ironside pilot premiered on March 28, 1967; the series itself ran from 1967 through 1975. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Forbidden to fight in the US because he has sustained too many serious injuries, boxer Yank Dawson (a pre-Death Wish Charles Bronson) travels to war-torn London in hopes of continuing his carrer. But just before a crucial bout, Yank is visited by an old colleague,who warns him to pack up his gloves and quit the ring. Normally, there would nothing out of the ordinary about such a warning...but this old colleague happens to be long dead. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Three explorers are hopelessly lost in the desert, their water supply all but depleted. Suddenly, a young man calling himself Eric Borgner (Jeremy Slates) appears out of nowhere, offering to guide the explorers to safety. Sadly, though the three men survive their ordeal, Eric does not. Years later, one of the explorers pays a visit to Eric's parents, to offer condolences and thank them for their son's help. But Mr. and Mrs. Borgner have quite a surprise for the nonplussed survivor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

On a ship sailing through the China Seas, First Mate Walter Blake (Don Dubbins) follows directions written on the captain's blackboard and changes course. Angrily, the captain (Robert Ellenstein) confronts Blake, insisting that he had never written such instructions. It turns out that the course was changed at the behest of a mysterious stowaway (Olan Soule)--who is completely unable to explain his actions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Grim, almost unbearably intense, I Want To Live is the story of the life and execution of Barbara Graham (Susan Hayward) a perjurer, prostitute, liar and drug addict. The product of a broken home, Graham works as a shill, luring gullible men into crooked card games. She attempts to go straight, marries the wrong man, and has a baby. When her life falls apart, she returns to her former profession and is involved in a murder. Despite her claims of innocence, she is convicted and executed. Robert Wise directs the uniformly fine cast with grim efficiency, telling Graham's story in a series of adroitly crafted scenes that won him a well-deserved Academy Award nomination. However, the film belongs to Susan Hayward who gives a intense, shattering performance without one false note. Her performance is so grimly focused that she is, at times, almost unbearable to watch. The final scenes, which lead up to Graham's execution, are exhausting in their emotional intensity as the audience is spared nothing of Graham's agony, despair and desperation when she finally loses the long battle to save her life. Whether one sees Graham as a murderer or a hapless victim of society, the power and relentless, sordid reality of her story leaves an indelible memory in the mind of the viewer. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide

Adapted by Don M. Mankiewicz from his own novel, Trial is a surprisingly timely story of how justice can sometimes be compromised by "special interests". It all begins when Mexican youth Angelo Chavez (Rafael Campos) is placed on trial for the murder of a white teenaged girl. Battling the lynch-mob mentality in and out of the courtroom is relatively inexperienced defense attorney David Blake (Glenn Ford). Believing that anything done on behalf of his client is for the common good, Blake approves the organization of an "Angelo Chavez Society" to pay the boy's court costs and ostensibly see that justice is done in the face of small-town prejudice. Soon, however, Blake discovers that both he and his client are being used as dupes by a Communist lawyer, who hopes that Chavez will be found guilty and executed, thereby creating a martyr for the Red cause. Much was made in 1955 of the fact that the presiding judge is a black man, played by Juano Hernandez. A bit creaky at times, Trial nonetheless still packs a wallop when shown today. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide