Barbara Feldon Movies
American actress Barbara Feldon claimed to be a lonely child, one whose escape from loneliness took the form of books and ballet. While studying drama at Carnegie Tech, she became an expert in Shakespeare, and in this capacity made her TV debut as a contestant on The $64,000 Question (kinescopes exist of this appearance; Barbara is instantly recognizable, though she hasn't quite lost all her baby fat). Feldon worked as a chorus girl in New York, then slimmed down considerably and became a high-priced fashion model. Commercials followed, in which Feldon pitched deodorant pads and--most famously--men's cologne. Few males who were going through adolescence in the early '60s will forget Feldon pitching Top Brass cologne to the "tigers" in the audience, staring into the camera with almost unbearable sultriness (the actress insisted that her come-hither glare was a result of nearsightedness).After doing the guest-star round on several TV dramatic programs, Feldon won the role of statuesque Agent 99 on the spy sitcom Get Smart. Part of the fun on this program was watching Feldon try to avoid revealing that she was a few inches taller than co-star Don Adams (in some scenes he was standing on an incline, as proven when the Nickelodeon cable network put together a montage of "who's taller?" scenes from Get Smart in the early '90s). Get Smart ran from 1965 through 1970, but Feldon has occasionally re-created Agent 99, once in a Smart TV-movie reunion, and more recently in a "return" series for the Fox Network, again starring with Don Adams. Feldon's film career has been less remarkable, save for her brilliant interpretation of a near-fanatic beauty contest organizer in the 1975 satirical comedy Smile. In the last few years, Barbara Feldon has distinguished herself as an expert voiceover artist in commercials and TV specials; she can be heard as the narrator of the PBS series Dinosaurs. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Four women who have successfully achieved high-status jobs usually held by men are featured in Paving the Way. Each encountered resistance to their goals, and overcame the tremendous odds against them. All four began their careers in the '50s, when women who aspired to high ranks in the military, the political arena, law, and religion were discouraged and subject to ridicule and discrimination. The four include Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Reverend Addie Wyatt, Major General Jeanne Holm, and Congresswoman Patsy Mink. Barbara Feldon narrates. ~ Alice Day, All Movie Guide
- 1967
When an aging philanthropist falls on hard times, her butler starts to rob the rich so that she can keep on giving to the poor in this comedy. Claude Fitzwilliam (Dick Van Dyke), known to his friends as "Fitzwilly," works as a butler for Victoria Woodworth (Edith Evans), who -- ever since the death of her husband -- has been using her inheritance to benefit her favorite charitable causes. However, no one has the heart to tell Mrs. Woodworth that she doesn't have much money left, and to compensate for the shortfall brought on by her philanthropy, Fitzwilly and his fellow domestics have been pulling a series of robberies at department stores. When Mrs. Woodworth gets the idea of compiling "A Dictionary for Dopes," which indexes phonetic spellings of commonly misspelled words, she hires Juliet Nowell (Barbara Feldon) to help on the project as a secretary. Juliet senses that there's something fishy about Fitzwilly, especially when she finds out that he has a college education but earns a meager salary as a butler, and she imagines the worst when she finds out about his criminal activities. Watch for Sam Waterston in a small role; this was his first film. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dick Van Dyke, Barbara Feldon, (more)
- 1971
In this drama, two middle-aged businessmen decide to chuck it all and get back to the land. Unfortunately, they too soon discover that living a "natural" life isn't all it is cracked up to be; they return to the rat race from whence they came. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1972
Filmed in London, Lady Killer stars American actress Barbara Feldon as a young newlywed. Her husband Robert Powell is outwardly a charmer, but inwardly a killer, with Feldon slated for early elimination. Feldon begins to have her suspicions; the problem lies in convincing anyone else. Is anything really what it seems to be in quickie TV mysteries like this? Originally produced in 1972, Lady Killer was given its first American showing one year later on ABC's Wide World Mystery. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1972
Alan Alda is divorced from Barbara Feldon. Doug McClure is divorced from Connie Stevens. While spending the weekend with their respective children, Alda and McClure meet and become fast friends. Then, surreptitiously, Alda begins squiring Stevens while McClure does the same with Feldon. More believable and three-dimensional than most quickie TV-movies of its ilk, Playmates benefits from the enthusiastic performances of its stars and the perceptive script by Richard Baer. The film originally aired October 3, 1972. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1973
In this comedy, a jealous wife tosses her husband out of the house after he spends the night at the home of a friend. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
The American beauty-contest ritual is skewered by screenwriter Jerry Belson and director Michael Ritchie in Smile. The film takes place during an annual pageant in Santa Rosa, CA. The event is supervised by local mover and shaker Brenda DiCarlo (Barbara Feldon), to whom the contest is the most important thing on earth. Nothing -- not even the violent backlash of her neglected husband, Andy (Nicholas Pryor) -- is allowed to interfere with her pet project. Choreographer Tommy French (Michael Kidd), outwardly nasty and cynical, takes money out of his own pocket to insure the safety of the contestants as they parade down a rickety stage runway; chief judge "Big Bob" Freelander (Bruce Dern) discovers that his son is a budding voyeur, information which leads to a silly "politically correct" consequence; and the various contestants scheme to upstage one another through a variety of means (one girl puts Vaseline on her teeth to assure a gleaming smile). Among the contestants are such stars-to-be as Colleen Camp, Denise Nickerson, Annette O'Toole, and Melanie Griffith. Though not a hit itself, Smile has developed a fervent cult following, which led to a Broadway musical version of the property in 1986, with songs by Marvin Hamlisch. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruce Dern, Barbara Feldon, (more)
- 1975
A made-for-TV domestic comedy, Let's Switch stars Barbara Eden as a homemaker and Barbara Feldon as her best friend, a glamorous magazine editor. Both are slightly jealous of each other's life style, so they decide to switch roles for a while. Feldon is consigned to the laundry and kitchen, while Eden makes the worldwide journalistic rounds. "There's no place like home...there's no place like home..." Let's Switch plays like an elongated half-hour sitcom, which in essence it is. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1975
The Big Rip-Off was the pilot film for Tony Curtis' shortlived TV series McCoy. Curtis plays a sly but basically decent con artist who is engaged to recover $250,000 in ransom money from a recent high-society kidnapping. In the tradition of The Sting, Curtis uses scam tactics to get the money back--all the while keeping one step ahead from his own mobster creditors. Roscoe Lee Browne costars as Curtis' loyal assistant, a nightclub comedian, while Brenda Vaccaro guests as an investigate reporter who assists in the sting. When McCoy graduated to series status in the fall of 1975, Curtis and Browne were back, but Vaccaro was off to her own series, Sara. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
In this Disney comedy, a pair of spoiled kids, bored by their filthy rich grandfather, decide they'd rather be with their mom who is in Hong Kong. In order to get her attention, they engineer their own kidnapping. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Niven, Darren McGavin, (more)
Attempting to get the attention of a 17-year-old rock musician, a 13-year-old pretends to be more mature and soon is faced with the dilemmas of an older teen. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- 1978
The made-for-TV Guide for the Married Woman was conceived by screenwriter Frank Tarloff as an "answer" to his frolicsome 1968 theatrical feature Guide for the Married Man. If the sequel isn't quite as much fun as the original, it may be because what was deemed "risque" in 1968 was kid's stuff in 1978. In her TV-movie debut, Cybill Shepherd plays a bored housewife who yearns for romance and excitement. With the help of a steady stream of celebrity guest stars, Shepherd is able to fantasize about extramarital hijinks to her heart's content. The supporting cast includes such luminaries as Peter Marshall, Eve Arden, John Beradino, John Byner, Bill Dana, Bonnie Franklin, George Gobel, Tom Poston, Barbara Feldon and Chuck Woolery (the guest-star list of the original Guide for the Married Man included Art Carney, Jack Benny, Lucille Ball, Carl Reiner, Terry-Thomas, Joey Bishop and Jayne Mansfield: guess which film had the bigger budget?) Guide for the Married Woman originally aired October 13, 1978. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1979
The "before" version of Patty Duke is obese and slovenly. Emerging from a "fat farm," the "after" version of Patty Duke discovers that her husband (Bradford Dillman) has been playing the field while she's been trying to shed her excess poundage. Duke then takes up with a handsome artist (Art Hindle), who gives her new incentive to lose weight, even though he's made it clear that her physical appearance isn't all that important to him. His jealousy aroused, Duke's hubby tries to win her back, but she soon learns that he hasn't really changed a bit. The made-for-TV Before and After was initially broadcast October 5, 1979. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patty Duke, Bradford Dillman, (more)
- 1979
A Vacation in Hell concerns four women and one man who are booked on a "dream vacation" at a tropical resort. All five become lost on a jungle island, forced to fend for themselves. An added peril: The jungle is not uninhabited. The dramatis personae consists of "love-starved" Andrea Marcovicci, "swinger" Priscilla Barnes, mother and daughter Barbara Feldon and Maureen McCormick, and musclebound Michael Brandon. While Brandon keeps most of his clothes on, at least two of the ladies don't, which should give you a good idea of the target audience for this made-for-TV programmer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1980
Originally made for television, the film concerns three divorces and the effect on the varied economic level present in each family. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Feldon, Greg Mullavey, (more)
- 1982
Amanda Plummer was preparing to star in the Broadway play Agnes of God (for which she ultimately won a Tony Award) when she was cast in this ABC Afterschool Special. Having never known her "late" father, 15-year-old Angela Dunoway (Plummer) is startled when she meets him by accident. Insisting upon learning the truth about her dad, Angela confronts her mother Karen (Barbara Feldon), who reluctantly reveals that Angela was born out of wedlock. Filmed on location in Long Island, The Unforgivable Secret is based on Hila Colman's novel Tell Me No Lies (in which, incidentally, the heroine is 12 years old, rather than 15). ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Amanda Plummer, Barbara Feldon, (more)
- 1983
This delightful animated feature has Ted E. Bear wanting to stay awake through Christmas...when all the other bears are ready to sleep for the winter. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1983
This bear is Ted E. Bear, who chooses not to sleep through this Christmas when he gets curious about all the big-time commotion surrounding the hallowed holiday. Mr. Bear's voice is played by Tommy Smothers; other well-known voices include those of Barbara Feldon and Arte Johnson. ~ All Movie Guide
The second feature-length revival of the Get Smart television series (1965-1970) of blessed memory, Get Smart Again reunited Don Adams as bumbling secret agent Maxwell Smart and Barbara Feldon as his wife, sultry "fellow" agent 99. Smart coerces 99 to drop her public-sector job and join him in thwarting the evil machinations of their old nemesis Siegfried (Bernie Kopell). Other alumni from the original TV series include Dick Gautier as Hymie the Robot, Robert Karvelas (Don Adams' cousin) as Larrabee, King Moody as Starker and Dave Ketchum as the ubiquitous Agent 13. A few concessions have been made to the passage of time (Smart's fabled shoe-phone now has "call waiting"), but the film scores highest on its nostalgic appeal, encapsulated by such catch-phrases as "Sorry about that", "Would you believe?" and "Missed it by that much." Get Smart, Again was first telecast February 26 (would you believe February 27?), 1989. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Don Adams, Barbara Feldon, (more)
- 1991
Narrated by Barbara Feldon, this PBS special focuses on the discovery of the first dinosaur fossils. See how real scientists tried to piece the dinosaurs back together to learn more about their extinct species. An animated segment goes back in time to when dinosaurs roamed the earth, allowing a look at the way dinosaurs probably moved, behaved, and looked. This special features real scientists working in the field as they try to bring these long-lost creatures to life. The end shows the discovery of real dinosaur eggs in China. Dinosaurs!: Monsters Emerge is part of a PBS series about dinosaur discoveries. ~ Beth Deki, All Movie Guide
