William Fawcett Movies

Bonanza's twelfth season commenced on September 13, 1970 with the episode titled "The Night Virginia City Died." Several Virginia City buildings have burned to the ground; the townsfolk are in an uproar, and the local constabulary is apparently helpless. Meanwhile, the Cartwrights have befriended a pretty young stranger named Janie (Angel Tompkins), the new sweetheart of Deputy Clem (Bing Russell). Only the audience knows that the profoundly disturbed Janie is the elusive arsonist whom everyone is seeking. Written by John Hawkins, this episode was specially contrived to "destroy" the old Virginia City sets at the Paramount studios so that the Bonanza company could move into its new home at Warner Bros. "The Night Virginia City Died" also boasted a new Bonanza theme song by David Rose, which would endure until the old theme was brought back by popular demand in 1972. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

After stealing $150,000 from a bank and shooting another officer, rogue cop Fred Hickman (Robert Lansing) offers to give himself up to Chief Ironside (Raymond Burr). Instead, he takes both the Chief and Mark (Don Galloway) hostage, forcing them to accompany him as he attempts to escape. Ironside realizes that his only hope of surviving the ordeal is to convince Hickman's loyal wife Jane (Kathie Browne) that her husband is now irredeemable. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Gnome-Mobile was Walt Disney's first all-out fantasy since Mary Poppins. Walter Brennan stars in a dual role, as kindly lumber tycoon D. J. Mulrooney and the irascible (and much tinier) 943-year-old gnome Knobby. Mulrooney likes Knobby and his fellow gnomes, but the feeling isn't reciprocal, since Knobby considers Mulrooney a threat to his beloved forest. Meanwhile, the tycoon's vice-president Ralph Yarby (Richard Deacon), hearing his boss' claims that he's been consorting with gnomes, decides that the old guy is insane and has him committed. Rescued by his grandchildren Rodney (Matthew Garber) and Elizabeth (Karen Dotrice), D.J. seeks out Knobby and Knobby's own grandson Jasper (Tom Lowell), who are hiding somewhere in the woods with gnome-king Rufus (Ed Wynn, in his final film role). There follows an amusing rite of passage wherein Jasper becomes engaged to gnomette Shy Violet (Cami Sebring), leading to a happy ending for all concerned. The film's title refers to D. J. Mulroney's precious 1930 Rolls Royce, which is "adopted" by the gnome population. Gnome-Mobile is a virtual inventory of Disney's most beloved trademarks, ranging from excellent miniature and special-effects work (including the producer's newest innovation, audio-animatronics) to a zany slapstick car chase. Walt Disney did receive a producer credit on this film, which was actually made in 1966 - the year of his death - and released nationally in 1967. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Future Hawaii 5-0 regular James MacArthur guest-stars as Jase Fredericks, who tries to protect his inheritance, and his life, from his selfish uncle Bingham (Ford Rainey). The Cartwrights become involved when the conflict between Jase and Bingham boils down to Jase's prize stallion. Patricia Hyland costars as Jase's wife Kathy. Originally broadcast on December 3, 1967, "Check Rein" was written by Robert I. Holt and Olney Sherman. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

William "One Shot" Beaudine's companion piece to the equally nonsensical Billy the Kid vs. Dracula represents a memorable closing to the eccentric "Z"-movie auteur's amusing body of work. The hare-brained concept finds the legendary outlaw Jesse James (John Lupton) stumbling into the decrepit lair of Maria Frankenstein (Narda Onyx) -- not the daughter but the granddaughter of the infamous monster-making Baron. Maria is, of course, following in Grandpa's footsteps by creating a creature of her own, transplanting the dormant but still-intact brain of Frankenstein's original monster into the body of one of James' cohorts. The lumbering, homicidal monster -- imaginatively dubbed "Igor" -- begins terrorizing townsfolk until the inevitable showdown between living and undead gunslingers. Though not as flamboyantly awful as its predecessor (mainly due to the absence of John Carradine), this is still worth a look for trash-movie completists. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide

Lately, everything Uncle Joe (Edgar Buchanan) does is wrong, and everything he touches has a tendency to break. Word spreads that Joe is a jinx, and as a result he is treated like a leper by the rest of the community. Kate (Bea Benadaret) takes it upon herself to prove that Joe is not a walking "disaster waiting to happen"--but it isn't easy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Hoping to purchase some fireworks from the Chinese Yiphee Trading Company, Hoss Cartwright gets his order scrambled, and as a result winds up with a "picture bride" named Tai Li (Marlo Thomas), aka Pink Cloud. Hardly the shy, retiring type, the feisty, outspoken Tai Li proceeds to make like miserable for Hoss, and also throws a monkey wrench in Virginia City's plans to build a railroad spur. The cast includes Benson Fong and Philip Ahn. Written by Lewis Clay, "A Pink Cloud Comes from Old Cathy" originally aired on April 12, 1964. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Although he no longer works for the insurance company that had hired him to track down the stolen Jokarta Diamond, shady private detective Jack Mallory (Michael Pate) has never given up the chase. Worming his way into the confidence of Katherine Stewart (Phyllis Hill), Mallory puts a tail on Katherine's husband Philip (Phillip Pine), recently released from prison after serving a manslaughter charge--and the primary suspect in the theft of the elusive diamond. After a confrontation in which he demands that Phillip reveal the diamond's whereabouts, Mallory is murdered--and Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) is hired to prevent "number one suspect" Phillip Stewart from going back to prison for keeps. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This comical farce is a lighthearted lampoon of Wall Street and the vibrant trading and selling on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Henry Tyroon (James Garner) is the chameleonic broker who changes his colors and ethical standards to fit every deal. Molly (Lee Remick) is the novice trader competing in a largely male profession who catches Henry's eye. Her boss is Bullard Bear (Jim Backus), the slick financial veteran Henry runs up against. Chill Wills, Phil Harris, and Charles Watts are the Texas triumvirate who play their parts of super rich good old boys to the pinnacle of stereotypical eccentricity. John Astin is the vigilant government agent just dying to uncover some dirt and blow the whistle at the slightest hint of impropriety. Louis Nye plays an abstract artist who wishes to expand his stock portfolio. Plenty of jabs are taken at Wall Street, Madison Avenue and idle rich blue bloods at the mercy of unscrupulous opportunists. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

In this sequel to the 1962 Bonanza episode "Inger, My Love," Ben Cartwright once again waxes nostalgic over his late second wife, Inger (again played by Inga Swenson). In a lengthy flashback, Ben and Inger head westward to a remote frontier outpost, where they are besieged by hostile Indians. In the course of the story, Inger's son Hoss is born (and, for the benefit of the viewer, it is explained that Hoss' name holds a special meaning in Inger's native country). Also in the cast are Johnny Stephens as five-year-old Adam Cartwright, Gene Evans as Lucas, Kevin Hagen as Simon, Dee Carroll as Rachel, Ken Lynch as Welks, John Frederick as Payne, Kathleen O'Malley as Mrs. Payne, and William Fawcett as Tulliver. Written by Anthony Lawrence, "Journey Remembered" was originally seen on November 10, 1963. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This Stephen Sondheim/Jules Styne/Arthur Laurents musical comedy Gypsy had been a Broadway smash with Ethel Merman in the lead. Based on the autobiography of striptease artist Gypsy Rose Lee, it centers on the antics of Mama Rose (here played by Rosalind Russell), the Stage Mother from Hell who prods and pushes her daughters June and Louise into a vaudeville career. Rose pins most of her hopes for fame on older daughter June (billed as "Dainty June"), while little Louise reluctantly goes along for the ride. Karl Malden plays the girls' agent, who falls in love with Rose but is ultimately turned off by her ruthless ambition. When June escapes the act to get married, Rose puts the unwilling Louise in the star spot, but vaudeville is dying and soon the only booking they can get is in a cheap burlesque house. The strippers take Louise under their wing and advise her that "You've gotta have a gimmick" to survive on the bump-and-grind circuit. The nervous Louise rises to stardom as stripper Gypsy Rose Lee, whose "gimmick" is to adopt a self-mocking attitude and to put on pseudo-sophisticated airs. Rose resents Gypsy's rise to the top, but a bravura eight-minute musical soliloquy reveals that Rose had forced her daughters on the stage because she wanted to live out her own dreams of stardom. Louise--aka Gypsy--is played by Diane Pace as a girl and by Natalie Wood as an adult; June (better known as June Havoc) is portrayal by Suzanne Cupito (later billed as Morgan Brittany) as a little girl and Ann Jillian as an adolescent. Most of the best songs, including "Let Me Entertain You," "Small World," and "Everything's Coming Up Roses," remain intact from the original Broadway production. Gypsy was remade for television in 1993, with Bette Midler as Rose. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In a variation on the classic Guy de Maupassant short story "Boule de Suif", gambler Bart Maverick (Jack Kelly) is ostracized by his more "respectable" fellow passengers during a stagecoach ride. But when the coach is held up by a vicious bandit, the passengers must literally put their lives in Bart's hands, as he plays a game of poker to determine the fate of the bandit's captives. There are some fascinating interracial tensions in this episode--all the more fascinating when one remembers that it was filmed way back in the censor- and sponsor-controlled 1960s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide