Kim Darby Movies
Kim Darby's assertive acting style was likened by one film historian to "a 1938 Judy Garland forever waiting to burst into song." The daughter of "The Dancing Zerbies," Kim was a stage performer from childhood, when she was billed as Derby Zerby. Her short stature and cherubic face enabled Kim to play teenagers well into her twenties. After several TV appearances, she began her film career in 1965, reaching a peak with the role of Maddie Ross in True Grit (1968). Forever feisty, Kim earned one of the biggest laughs in 1977's The One and Only when she decked Henry Winkler with a one-two punch. Kim Darby has continued in secondary roles into the 1990s, recently making a guest appearance on that crowded way-station for former celebrities, TV's Murder She Wrote. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie GuideIn the conclusion of a two-part story, Ironside (Raymond Burr) has degenerated from a respected law enforcement officer to a seedy skid-row bum, apparently because 10-year-old murder witness Jerry Abbott (Lee H. Montgomery) was killed while in the Chief's protective custody. What even Ironside's loyal assistants are unaware of is that little Jerry is still alive, and that the Chief is only posing as a derelict to flush out the murderer. The situation reaches the crisis stage when two attempts are made on Ironside's alive--and the Chief can't summon the aid of his associates without blowing his cover. This episode features two original songs by David and Marty Paich: "Street Song", peformed by Carol Carmichael; and "Way Up Here", sung by Marty Paich. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
In this entry from the Cool Million television series, a detective finds a Canadian artist whose knowledge is crucial to a murder investigation. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Ranking with Dan Curtis' Trilogy of Terror as one of the spookiest made-for-TV horror films of the 1970's, this atmospheric monster chiller stars Kim Darby and Jim Hutton as a comfortable, reasonably happy young couple who inherit the archetypal "Old Dark House" from the wife Sally's deceased aunt. While renovating the creepy mansion, they enter a previously-sealed room, which features a securely bricked-up fireplace. Despite the insistence of a local contractor (My Three Sons' William Demarest) that they leave the room undisturbed, Sally's husband manages to open the flue, releasing a horde of shriveled mini-monsters imprisoned there for decades. The little demons immediately fixate their malevolent attention on Sally in an effort to claim her soul, a mission which can only be averted by the love of her husband -- which, in light of his self-centered careerism, means poor Sally's pretty much on her own. Director John Newland manages to pull off this one-note premise with some effective, frightening scenes -- especially when he chooses to show as little of the goofy-looking monsters as possible -- but it's hard to sustain this level of suspense for a full 90 minutes. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
In this thriller an older detective and his side-kick look into a dating service that seems to deal in murder, extortion, and death. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
In the first half of a two-part story (originally telecast as a single two-hour episode), Chief Ironside is assigned to protect little Jerry Abbott, an autistic 10-year-old who has witnessed a murder. Not long afterward, the newspapers are reporting that Jerry himself has been killed--and that Ironside, tortured by guilt, has quit the force, crawled into a booze bottle, and ended up a derelict on Skid Row. But is this grim situation everything it appears to be? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The 2-hour pilot film for the long-running (1972-77) TV detective series first aired on September 16, 1972. Veteran police detective lieutenant Mike Stone (Karl Malden) and his young partner Steve Keller (Michael Douglas) try to solve the murder of runaway Holly Jean Berry (Kim Darby). By reconstructing Holly's last days of life, Stone and Keller draw up a list of likely suspects, foremost of which is slick but not overly bright corporate lawyer David J. Farr (Robert Wagner). The actual murderer may seem to come out of left field, but his sudden appearance on the scene is perfectly credible within the framework of Edward Hume's teleplay. Streets of San Francisco was based on Poor, Poor Ophelia, a novel by Carolyn Weston. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The Grissom Gang is a remake of the notorious 1949 British melodrama No Orchids for Miss Blandish. Kim Darby plays a 1920s-era debutante who is kidnapped and held for ransom. Her captors are the Grissoms, a family comprised of sadists and morons, and headed by Ma Barker clone Irene Dailey. One of the Grissoms, played by Scott Wilson, takes a liking to his prisoner, which results in a bloody breakdown of the family unit. Both The Grissom Gang and the original No Orchids for Miss Blandish were inspired by the best-seller by James Hadley Chase, though neither film retains Chase's original ending. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kim Darby, Scott Wilson, (more)
Writer Zenna Henderson's science-fiction stories were the basis for this made-for-TV movie. A young teacher goes to a remote area to work with secluded and backwards inhabitants. She accidentally discovers, though, that the residents are actually aliens with psychic-powers who escaped their own now-destroyed planet and are hiding here on Earth, hoping to blend in. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
This film is based on the James Simon Kunen book about student unrest on the Columbia University campus. Simon (Bruce Davison) joins the campus protest movement to socialize with the various hippie girls. When a violent police assault breaks up the protest, Simon's thoughts quickly turn from female infatuation to more important social causes. He becomes active in protests against the Vietnam War, police brutality, student's rights and the draft. He is branded a Communist and becomes part of the great worldwide social revolution of his times. Music from Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Thunderclap Newman, Richard Strauss and John Lennon accurately reflect the turbulent times in which the film was released. Bud Cort, James Coco, and Kim Darby star in this uneven political drama. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruce Davison, Kim Darby, (more)
In this romance, an ex-Marine begins looking for a fellow Vietnam vet in hopes of making it as musicians in New York. He does not realize it, but he is driving in stolen cars. After being chased by the police, he ditches the cars and hitchhikes the New York. By the time he arrives, his pal has already left. At the friend's former apartment, the Marine gets romantic with a hippie chick and begins singing in the Village where he finds audiences unreceptive. He then boards a bus where he meets a young woman on her way to marry a Marine who ends up refusing to marry her. Soon she and the musical Marine are traveling companions. They are accompanied by a trick chicken, and a midget. Just as he finally finds his friend, the girl states that she is pregnant and the honorable fellow offers to marry her, but she will not. Then her old fiancé appears and a fight ensues. She ends up going with him. When the singer finally gets his big chance, he sees the girl watching him and realizes they are in love. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glen Campbell, Kim Darby, (more)
Time for Giving is the British title for the American comedy film Generation. This exercise in late-sixties "mod"-ness is based on William Goodhart's Broadway play, which originally starred Henry Fonda. David Janssen takes over Fonda's role as the harried father of rebellious daughter Kim Darby. It was bad enough when Darby married kooky Peter Duel and moved to Greenwich Village. Now Darby is pregnant, and she and her husband insist upon partaking of that new hippie craze known as "natural childbirth," dispensing with the aid of an obstetrician. Fortunately for the Establishment status quo, Darby's husband gets cold feet, and loyal family doctor Carl Reiner is brought in when the kid is ready to come out of the chute. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Janssen, Kim Darby, (more)
In fine Hollywood tradition, John Wayne had to play a "one-eyed fat man" before the Motion Picture Academy considered him worthy of an Oscar. In True Grit, Wayne plays grumpy, pot-bellied U.S. marshal "Rooster" Cogburn, hired by 14-year-old Mattie Ross (Kim Darby) to find Tom Chaney (Jeff Corey), who killed her father. The headstrong Mattie could have had her pick of lawmen, but selects the aging Cogburn because she believes he has "true grit" (she talks this way all through the picture, so be prepared). Also heading into Indian territory in search of Chaney is Texas Ranger La Boeuf (Glen Campbell), who wants to collect the reward placed on the fugitive's head for his earlier crimes. Complicating matters are Chaney's scurrilous cronies Ned Pepper (Robert Duvall), Quincy (Jeremy Slate), and Moon (Dennis Hopper), who have no qualms about killing a troublesome teenaged girl like Mattie. While the plot of True Grit, adapted (and streamlined) by Marguerite Roberts from the novel by Charles Portis, maintains audience interest throughout, the glue that truly holds this Western together is John Wayne, delivering one of his finest performances (though some believe he was better in She Wore a Yellow Ribbon). Wayne's casual charisma is infinitely more effective than the mannered method acting of Kim Darby and the floundering non-acting of poor Glen Campbell. And who could not love the climatic face-off between Duvall and company and John Wayne, whose "Fill your hand, you son of a bitch!" is not only a classic bit of dialogue, but the apotheosis of the Wayne mystique. In 1975, Wayne repeated his True Grit characterization opposite Katharine Hepburn in Rooster Cogburn, but the film failed to match its predecessor and the overall effect was blunted. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Wayne, Glen Campbell, (more)
Ben Cartwright purchaeses a stallion from drunken lout Burt Loughlin (Tom Tully), hoping to fulfill the fondest dreams of Burt's sweet daughter Trudy (Kim Darby). It is Trudy's wish to ride the stallion to victory in a upcoming high-stakes race. But Ben's good intentions may be undone by Burt, who has aligned with crooked gambler Harper (William Bryant) to fix the outcome of the race. Written by Sydney Ellis and Robert Vincent Wright, "The Sure Thing" was originally telecast on November 12, 1967. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
The Man from UNCLE comes to the big screen in this spy thriller comprised of episodes from the popular television series. The story centers around the attempts of evil THRUSH operatives who endeavor to abduct a professor who has developed a formula for turning salt water into gold. ~ Sandra Brennan, 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
Exploring the remnants of a plague-ravaged planet, Captain Kirk and an Enterprise landing party unexpectedly discover a number of young children who have survived the otherwise total devastation in this episode of the original Star Trek television series. These children all possess a strong distrust of adults, with the exception of Miri, a young girl who befriends the adults and develops a youthful crush on Kirk. The reason behind the children's animosity becomes clear when the Enterprise crew members discover that they have also been affected by the plague, which prolongs childhood to hundreds of years but brings death to anyone past puberty. Indeed, Kirk himself has contracted the disease and must somehow find a cure -- a quest that becomes all the more difficult when he and Miri, who has also begun to show symptoms, are held captive by a violent gang of children. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
Newly arrived in Utah under the alias "Jim Corman", Kimble (David Janssen) meets unwed mother Ruth Simmons (Kim Darby), whose baby is seriously ill. In his efforts to treat the infant, Kimble meets strong opposition in the form of Ruth's father Joshua (Harry Townes), a religious zealot who objects to any sort of medical treatment. Adding to Kimble's burden of woe is an ambitious deputy named Pete (Tom Skerritt) who is using a team of bloodhounds to track down the fugitive. This episode was originally slated to air on October 11, 1966. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
In this religious movie, a married pair of television writers begin researching a script on restless teenagers and end up as born-again Christians. Meanwhile their own adolescent son runs away with a pregnant teen who is looking for the child's father. When she cannot, she tries to kill herself. Later, the son goes to a Billy Graham crusade with his dad, and he too is saved. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
William Inge co-wrote this story about a young man who may have outgrown the straight-laced boundaries of his home town. After a hitch in the Navy, Bus Riley (Michael Thomas Parks) comes home to the staid Midwestern town of his birth; however, home doesn't feel quite like it used to, and Riley is looking for a new sense of purpose in his life. While his girlfriend Judy (Janet Margolin) tries to offer him the love and understanding he needs, she just isn't enough any more, and Riley soon starts looking for thrills with Laurel (Ann-Margret), a local floozy. Michael Thomas Parks, better known simply as Michael Parks, first put his James Dean-esque loner persona to work in this film; he'd get the most use out of it three years later, when he was top-billed in the briefly popular TV series Then Came Bronson. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann-Margret, Michael Parks, (more)
As "Ed Curtis", Richard Kimble befriends Josephus Adams (Arthur O'Connell), an old-fashioned rural doctor who believes in using "folk remedies" to cure all ills. After a woman in Adams' care dies of an untreated bronchial infection, Kimble insists upon intervening in the doctor's future cases. Meanwhile, Adams' faithless young wife Marianne (Sheree North) threatens to reveal Kimble's true identity if he resists her romantic advances. Things come to a head when Adams' beloved niece Sharon (Kim Darby) lapses into a coma after being stung by a bee. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Disneyland host Walt Disney endeavors to demonstrate how inanimate objects can become "human", with the attendant full range of emotions and problems, in the wonderful world of animation. To demonstrate, Walt has three otherwise non-living objects narrate a series of cartoon segments, lifted from past Disney theatrical releases. Highlights include "Little Toot", the saga of an eager young tugboat excerpted from the animated feature Melody Time (1948) and musically narrated by The Andrews Sisters; and "Johnny Fedora and Alice Blue Bonnet", a romance between a pair of hats, again featuring the Andrews Sisters and lifted from the 1946 feature Make Mine Music. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- The Andrews Sisters, Sterling Holloway, (more)
















