Robert Crosson Movies
- 1984
- R
An ordinary woman is unwittingly led into California's criminal underbelly in this drama. Betty Parrish (Debra Winger) is a bank teller who is involved in a rather sporadic relationship with Mike (Mark Keyloun), a low-level tennis pro who supplements his income by dealing cocaine on the side. One night, Betty finds herself stood up by Mike and discovers that there's a good reason why he hasn't shown up -- he's been killed. It seems that Mike and his friend Pete (Darrell Larson) were acting as middlemen in a deal for one of the city's major drug suppliers. Mike and Pete made the mistake of siphoning off some of the cocaine for their own purposes (Mike wanted product to sell to his customers, while Pete needed to satisfy his growing addiction to coke), and the dealer's thugs had Mike eliminated rather than allowing him to steal from their boss. Betty and Pete want to find out the truth about how and why Mike was murdered, and their journey leads them into the darkest regions of the Los Angeles underworld. Mike's Murder went through extensive revisions between its first previews and its final release; pop singer and songwriter Joe Jackson, then at the height of his popularity, composed a score for the film, and a soundtrack album of his music appeared in stores several months before the film's belated release. However, by that time much of Jackson's music had been replaced with a new score by John Berry. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Debra Winger, Mark Keyloun, (more)
- 1955
Friday (Jack Webb) and Smith (Ben Alexander) respond to a call from the LAPD's San Fernando Valley division. Several new homes in the district have been robbed by a thief with a bizarre MO: he only targets people who own pet birds--which he brutally kills on every occasion. Following the grim trail of clues, the two detectives catch up with a young man whose cheerful demeanor masks an all-consuming hatred for our feathered friends. One of the most popular black-and-white Dragnet episodes on the current public-domain home video market, "The Big Bird" was adapted from a radio drama originally broadcast on February 1, 1955. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1955
Two well-armed criminals terrorize the city with a three-week robbery spree. Though one of the outlaws is captured and held in a Highland Park jail, his machine gun-wielding sidekick breaks him out of his cell, along with another prisoner. With three criminals now at large, Friday (Jack Webb) and Smith (Ben Alexander) are more determined than ever to bring them to justice. Imagine the detectives' surprise when one of the fugitives casually strolls into police headquarters to give himself off an provide vital information on the other two! This episode is based on the Dragnet radio broadcast of July 13, 1954. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1955
In this drama, a divinity student endeavors to help the police break up the rackets by impersonating his jailed brother, a gangster. In his disguise, he gets into his brother's gang and cons them into to uniting with other gangs to improve efficiency. He then coerces them into keeping careful records of their various rackets. Trouble ensues when the real gangster brother busts out of jail and threatens to expose his brother. Fortunately, he is accidently killed by one of his own men. The good brother's actions bear fruit when all the racketeers are exposed, rounded-up, and sent to jail. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sean McClory, Joanne Jordan, (more)
- 1954
Under normal circumstances, Friday (Jack Webb) and Smith (Ben Alexander) would have had suspected holdup man Tom Stanford (Robert Crosson) dead to rights: Stanford has confessed to robbing a grocery store, and the storekeeper has identified him of the culprit. But Friday can't shake the feeling that Stanford is innocent--despite his fervent and almost manic protestations of guilt. The solution to the mystery is determined by the strained relationship between Tom Stanford and his father Arthur (Bill Johnstone), whom his son contemptuously dismisses as a "nobody". Curiously, future Andy Griffith Show costar Frances Bavier is billed in the closing credits by her character name "Hazel Howard" rather than her real name. This final episode of Dragnet's third season is based on a radio broadcast of May 17, 1953. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1954
The police department receives at tip that a war between two teenage gangs, the Orchids and the Pink Rats, is scheduled to begin within 48 hours. Knowing that both sides are well armed with stolen weapons, Friday (Jack Webb) and Smith (Ben Alexander) race against time to prevent the bloodshed. But they're too late: a scant few hours before the war is to begin, an 11-year-old boy is killed in a shootout. The climactic scene between the cocky young killer and the victim's grieving mother is a classic. This episode is based on the Dragnet radio broadcast of November 10, 1953. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1954
After a troubled, seemingly sleepless night, Perry White (John Hamilton) arrives at work at the offices of the Metropolis Daily Planet, only to find that -- as part of a civic program that he himself approved -- his job, like that of the mayor, chief of police, and every other important figure in Metropolis, has been given over for one day to the most junior male employee on the staff, part of what is called "Boys' Day." As a result, cub reporter Jimmy Olsen (Jack Larson) is now editor-in-chief of the newspaper, and vows to make an impact in his one day on the job by breaking the Legs Lemmy case -- seven years earlier, Legs Lemmy (Herb Vigran) pulled off a major armored car robbery, but the police were never able to find enough evidence to arrest him, and the statute of limitations for prosecuting the crime is set to run out in 24 hours. Olsen prints a front-page story about having new evidence in the case, which shakes up the mobster enough so that he and his two henchmen arrive at the Planet offices and take Olsen and Lois Lane (Noel Neill) hostage. Clark Kent (George Reeves) and Perry White discover what is happening in White's office, but are helpless to do anything about it, for fear of Lois and Jimmy getting hurt -- even Superman breaking in might cause the hoods to open fire. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
White Christmas, Paramount's belated follow-up to the 1942 hit Holiday Inn, was the studio's first VistaVision production. A veritable warehouse full of oldie-but-goodie Irving Berlin tunes are woven into the film's simplistic plotline, along with a handful of new songs, of which "What Can You Do With a General?" is the least memorable. Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye (replacing an ailing Donald O'Connor) play nightclub entertainers Bob Wallace and Phil Davis, while Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen are cast as singing-sister act Betty and Judy. The foursome travel to Vermont to visit Bob and Phil's WII commanding officer, General Waverly (Dean Jagger, who looks and sounds like Dwight D. Eisenhower!), who now runs a rustic old inn. Discovering that the general is in dire financial straits, the four entertainers secretly make plans to bail the old guy out with a big musical show, enlisting the aid of Bob and Phil's army buddies. Corny in the extreme, White Christmas evidently struck a responsive note with film fans; it was the high-grossing picture of 1954, and a decade later proved to be a ratings bonanza when it was given its network-TV premiere. Of the four stars, Crosby comes off best, especially when singing the title song at the beginning and end of the film; Kaye is a bit overshadowed this time out, though he's quite funny camping it up in a "drag" version of Irving Berlin's "Sisters." Still a big favorite on the home-video circuit, White Christmas may not be the best Bing Crosby musical on the market, but it's certainly one of the most heartwarming. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, (more)
- 1953
Two elderly women have been killed by a hit-and-run driver--and the lack of skid marks at the death scene indicates that the driver didn't even bother to slow down after striking his victims. Investigating, Friday (Jack Webb) and Smith (Ben Alexander) learn that the driver was a young blonde man, and that the vehicle was a late-1930s model. A visit to a helpful used-car dealer may provide a vital clue. When this episode was adapted for television from the Dragnet radio broadcast of June 21, 1951, the character of Joe Friday's mother was written out--and Joe's erstwhile girlfriend Ann Baker (Dorothy Abbott) was written in! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1953
A young man (Bob Crosson) identifying himself as Bruce Hamilton drags himself into an LA police station, battered and bruised. Questioned by Friday (Jack Webb) and Smith (Ben Alexander), the boy claims that he was prospecting in Mexico with his best friend Kevin Bradley when both of them were attacked by bandits on horseback--and further insists that Kevin was killed in melee. So far as the skeptical detectives are concerned, however, the whole story sounds too "bad" to be true, like something out of the movies. The truth is finally revealed just before Kevin Bradley's mother shows up at headquarters. This episode was adapted from the Dragnet radio broadcast of August 28, 1952. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
