Max E. Youngstein Movies
Studio executive and independent film producer Max E. Youngstein played a key role in saving United Artists from ruin. In 1951, he was one of five partners (Arthur Krim, Robert Benjamin, Arnold Picker, and Bill Heineman) who purchased the nearly bankrupt production and distribution company from co-founders Charles Chaplin and Mary Pickford. For the next 12 years, the charismatic Youngstein, who of the five had the greatest rapport with and understanding of Hollywood's entertainment industry, would supervise productions. He also founded and helmed United Artists Records and United Artists Music. With Youngstein's assistance, the company became a leading name in independent productions. In 1962, Youngstein left UA to found Max E. Youngstein Enterprises Inc. Films to emerge from his company include Fail Safe (1964) and Welcome to Hard Times (1967). He became the vice president of the Todd-AO-Corp. in 1972 and spent the rest of the decade working for several different production companies. Hoping to create a new launching pad for independent films, Youngstein and partner Cheryl Christiansen founded the Worldwide Artists production company. Youngstein passed away in his home the following year. He was 84. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1969
Veteran western director Burt Kennedy wrote the screenplay for this tale, based on the novel Who Rides with Wyatt? and also released under the title Who Rides with Kane? Robert Mitchum, who sings the title song, stars as Ben Kane, an ex-sheriff hunting for Frank Boone (John Anderson), the man who killed his son. He enlists the aid of Billy Young (Robert Walker), a hired gun who was abandoned by his fleeing partner Jesse Boone (David Carradine) after they killed a Mexican general. Kane becomes marshal of Lordsburg and falls in love with Lily Beloit (Angie Dickinson), a dance hall girl. John Behan (Jack Kelly) and Jesse Boone try to kill Kane, but Lily warns him of the plot in time. Kane arrests Jesse Boone, and when Kane learns that his captive is the son of his son's killer, he uses him as bait in a plan to catch Frank Boone. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Mitchum, Angie Dickinson, (more)
- 1967
Long before he scored with the epic Ragtime, novelist E.L. Doctorow wrote a minor novel upon which this stark 1967 film is based. It was adapted for the screen by veteran western director Burt Kennedy. In a forlorn town called Hard Times in the Old West, a cowardly mayor, Will Blue (Henry Fonda), does little to protect the citizens from the rampages of a ruthless criminal known as The Man from Bodie (Aldo Ray). The cold-blooded killer gets away with murder -- and then he burns down the town as he leaves. The citizens rebuild, and a newcomer named Zar (Keenan Wynn) injects some life into the desolate place by opening a saloon that attracts a bevy of interesting women, including Molly Riordan (Janice Rule) and Adah (Janice Paige). However, things again look bleak when The Man from Bodie returns to town. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Henry Fonda, Janice Rule, (more)
- 1966
Wandering cowpoke Kiowa Jones (Robert Horton) is deputized by a mortally wounded marshal (Gary Merrill) for a deadly mission. Jones is to transport two killers (Sal Mineo, Nehemiah Persoff) to a faraway fort. One of the criminals has offered a $2000 reward to anyone who will help him escape. Since Dangerous Days of Kiowa Jones was the pilot for a TV series, we can say with some confidence that Mr. Jones completes his mission. This made-for-TV movie--the first such for MGM--was first networkcast on Christmas day, 1966; later on, MGM released the film theatrically in Europe. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
In this well-regarded film noir thriller, Joe Barron (Glenn Ford) is a police detective whose wife Lisa (Elke Sommer) has inherited a stock portfolio from her father. Joe and Lisa go on a spending spree, but when their new holdings fail to pay dividends, Joe finds himself deep in debt. Dr. Horace Van Tilden (Joseph Cotten), a rich doctor who caters to high-society clientele, shoots an intruder in his home, and Joe is assigned to investigate; Joe discovers that Van Tilden has a lucrative sideline selling drugs, and that the shooting victim was actually an addict looking for dope. When Joe learns that Van Tilden keeps his drug money in a safe at home, he sees a way to finally pay off his debts, but his partner, Pete Delanos (Ricardo Montalban), gets wind of Joe's scheme and demands a cut of the action. Matters become more complicated for Joe when he learns that the man Van Tilden shot was married to Rosalie (Rita Hayworth), whom he loved many years ago. The Money Trap was directed by Burt Kennedy, who was best known for his witty and unconventional westerns. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glenn Ford, Elke Sommer, (more)
Based on the novel by Eugene Burdick and Harvey Wheeler, Fail-Safe is set for the most part at Strategic Air Command headquarters, where a misguided transmission sends a squadron of bombers hurtling towards Russia, fully prepared to drop their atomic weaponry on Moscow. Air Force commander Frank Overton desperately tries to establish radio contact with the bombers, but once the pilots have passed the "fail safe" point, they've been instructed to disregard any reversal of orders. Racing against time, US President Henry Fonda, through his interpreter (Larry Hagman), informs the Russian premiere of the impending nuclear disaster. Working in concert with SAC, the Russians send up interceptors to shoot down the American bombers, while some of the planes run out of fuel and crash. Unfortunately, one aircraft, piloted by Edward Binns, manages to escape destruction and continues on its fatal mission. Realizing that Moscow is doomed, the President must decide how to avert World War III. Featured in the cast of Fail Safe are Walter Matthau as a hawkish scientist, Fritz Weaver as a round-the-bend colonel, and Dom DeLuise (billed as "DeLouise") as a weeping sergeant. Fail-Safe is followed by a government-dictated disclaimer insisting that the events leading up to the nuclear disaster depicted in the film could not possibly happen. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Henry Fonda, Walter Matthau, (more)
- 1963
At the end of 1963, The Best of Cinerama was released -- marking the end of the pioneering three-projector widescreen system when single-system Panavision was rapidly becoming the industry norm. A greatest hits package, this lengthy film features the finest moments from the Cinerama travelogues -- the ballet of Navy jets and the stomach-turning rollercoaster ride from This Is Cinerama; the excursion in St. Moritz from Cinerama Holiday; the Oriental vistas from Seven Wonders of the World, and the death-defying leaps of the island natives from an elevated platform from South Sea Cinerama. Lowell Thomas is still the host as he guides the audience through Cinerama's finest (and past) moments. But with the release of It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World in the single camera Ultra Panavision 70 process under Cinerama's auspices that same year, this compilation film also services as an epitaph to the unique widescreen process that was Cinerama. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lowell Thomas, Thom Conroy, (more)
