John Yates Movies
This tension-filled made-for-television drama is set a few hours before the Viet Cong took over Saigon in 1975 and chronicles the struggle of Americans and Vietnamese to be on board the last commercial flight out of the city. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Producer/director/star Clint Eastwood takes his sweet time getting Firefox started. Eastwood plays Mitchell Gant, a past-his-prime U.S. pilot, smuggled into the Soviet Union to steal a new Russian supersonic fighting plane. Fortunately the KGB men are as burnt out as Gant, enabling him to abscond with the plane with the greatest of ease. The rest of the film is a protracted chase, pitting Gant against scores of impersonal MIG pilots. Based on a novel by Craig Thomas. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clint Eastwood, Freddie Jones, (more)
- 1981
Unwilling to admit to her old-school chum Mary (Martha Smith) that she is merely a cab driver -- and an unattached one at that -- Elaine (Marilu Henner) spins a tall tale about her "wonderful" job and her "dream" boyfriend, a professor at Columbia University. Inasmuch as no such boyfriend exists, Alex (Judd Hirsch) is pressed into service to pose as the imaginary beau. The deception comes off well -- perhaps too well -- but can Alex and Elaine build a genuine relationship on a mountain of lies? ~ All Movie Guide
- 1979
A slick sports promoter (Ray Walston) convinces Jonathan Garvey (Merlin Olsen) that he has genuine talent as a wrestler. It is all part of a scheme to bilk the citizens of Walnut Grove by staging a rigged wrestling match. Things get really sticky when, consumed by gambling fever, Mrs. Oleson (Katherine MacGregor) bets the church funds on the outcome of the match. It is up to the crooked promoter's henchman (played by B-movie favorite Leo Gordon) to unexpectedly save the day. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, (more)
- 1978
TV personality Ruth Beetson-White (played by futureNewhart costar Mary Frann) is determined to frame Morry Hawthorne (Ken McMillan), the manager of boxer Jesus Hernandez (Rocky Echevarria), on a trumped-up federal charge. Since Jim (James Garner) owns a percentage of Hernandez, Hawthorne's plight is of special interest to him. It later develops that several of Jim's fellow investors have been scammed by Hawthorne, but this doesn't make Ruth right; in fact, her involvement in the case may make her dead wrong. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1976
Hardbitten, hard-driving San Francisco police detectives Mike Stone (Karl Malden) and Steve Keller (Michael Douglas) may have finally met their match in the form of brash, bullying New York cop Bert D'Angelo (Paul Sorvino). Having arrived in the Bay Area to track down a runaway informant who may have set up his ex-partner for murder, D'Angelo breaks as many rules as humanly possible--but withal, he earns the grudging respect of his SFPD counterparts. Originally telecast on March 4, 1976, this episode was rather blatantly designed as the pilot for the weekly Streets of San Francisco spinoff Bert D'Angelo, Superstar, which had launched its single-season run some two weeks earlier on February 21. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1974
This episode is truly episodic, offering poignant and sometimes tragic vignettes occuring during a single San Francisco weekend. The catalyst for the the story is a .25 caliber pistol, hunting by both the police and the underworld alike. In the course of events, the pistol claims two victims: a syndicate thug and an innocent little boy. It is up to Stone (Karl Malden) and Keller (Michael Douglas) to prevent further bloodshed--hardly an easy task, considered that the pistol has already passed through too many hands. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1972
Several future TV headliners appear in guest roles in this, the first episode of The F.B.I.'s eighth season. Inspector Erskine (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) spearheads a search for Clifford Wade (David Soul), an ex-football star turned criminal. Hoping to recapture a vestige of his past celebrity, Wade has vanished in the Oregon wilderness with female hostage Margo Bengston (Belinda Montgomery). In addition to David Soul, this episode also features Robert Urich (Vegas, Spenser for Hire) and Jim Davis (Dallas). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
George Hamilton produced and stars in this appealing bio-pic about real-life stunt daredevil Evel Knievel. Knievel's famous motorcycle stunts and early life are remembered in flashback by the performer in the moments before a big jump. The cast includes familiar drive-in movie faces like Vic Tayback, Sue Lyon, Cheryl Rainbeaux Smith, and Dub Taylor, and much of it was filmed on location in Knievel's hometown of Butte, Montana. Though Hamilton is quite good in the lead, most fans prefer the real thing -- Knievel portraying himself in the later Viva Knievel! (1978). ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Hamilton
The target audience for this supernatural thriller is never quite clear: the film's poster attempts a psychedelic look, as the ad copy touts "the black mass...the spells...the incantations...the curses...the ceremonial sex," and other ad copy says "He curses the Establishment." In the film, Andrew Prine plays a Los Angeles sewer-dwelling warlock who discovers that his magical talents are more powerful than he had imagined, leading him to power among a group of cult followers. The role of the Satanic cult leader is played by Ultra Violet, a celebrity in artist Andy Warhol's community. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Andrew Prine, George Paulsin, (more)
- 1971
John McIntire is cast as Michael "Doc" Lacy, a lifelong criminal whose career stretches back to the Dillinger era. Having never truly succeeded in his chosen profession, Lacy escapes from prison in hopes of pulling off one last "dream" robbery. Inasmuch as the old man's target is a huge military payroll, the FBI takes a more than passing interest in his movements. Appearing as Lacy's wife Helen is John McIntire's real-life spouse Jeanette Nolan. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1970
With the Feds in hot pursuit, narcotics peddler Arthur Majors (played by a cast-against-type William Shatner) needs a safe place to hide. Relocating in a small town, Majors worms his way into the confidence of lonely widow Mary Binyon (Bettye Ackerman) and her rebellious daughter Shelly (Astrid Warner). Unfortunately, a drug distributor whom Majors has betrayed has vowed to kill him--meaning that both Mary and Shelly will end up in the crossfire unless Inspector Erskine (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) can catch up with the fugitive in time. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1970
It's a personal matter for FBI assistant director Arthur Ward (Phillip Abbott) when Marianne Lowe (Pamela McMyler), the daughter of Ward's good friend Philip Lowe (Lin McCarthy), is kidnapped. A clue in Marianne's diary leads Inspector Erskine (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) to suspect that an employee at the girl's favorite beauty parlor is in on the abduction scheme. Meanwhile, the captive Marianne chips away at the conscience of the conscience of her abductor Beau Manley (Mark Jenkins), who unlike his partner Alex Drake (Joe Don Baker) is reluctant to kill her...maybe. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1964
In 1964, as the "Boston Strangler" killings of young nurses in Boston remained unsolved, this film was rushed into release to exploit the horrifying situation. Victor Buono gives a chilling performance as Leo Kroll, a worker in a Boston hospital who has a propensity for strangling young nurses. Like Norman Bates in Psycho, Leo has an extremely unhealthy mother fixation. When Mom (Ellen Corby suffers a heart attack and Clara (Jeanne Bates), a young and attractive nurse, is assigned to care for her, Leo's hormones start to rage. On one hand Leo is attracted to Clara, but he is also jealous of her, fearing that she has replaced him in his mother's affections. Leo proceeds to go on a killing spree, targeting young and attractive nurses. But Leo's downfall is imminent; he is a collector of kewpie dolls, and mistakenly leaves one behind at the scene of one of his murders. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Victor Buono, David McLean, (more)
