Steven Geray

Comedian Godfrey Cambridge guest stars as federal agent Bond -- Harry Bond, that is -- who has been assigned to locate a supposedly deported gambler. It turns out that the best location for Bond's stakeout is the bedroom of Ritchie Petrie (Larry Mathews), meaning that Ritchie's dad Rob (Dick Van Dyke) must permit the government surveillance to be headquartered in his home. Though he has promised to stay out of the way of the feds, Rob cannot help but make a nuisance of himself as he expresses amazement and admiration over agent Bond's arsenal of high-tech gadgetry -- and as result, Bond's target may very well escape detection. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Although Tony is by now accustomed to Jeannie, it embarrasses him to have her waiting on him hand and foot like a slave--harem outfit and all. Ever anxious to please her Master, Jeannie decides to become a 100% American Woman, using information gleaned from a magazine article. Naturally, in her eagerness to do everything right, our heroine succeeds primarily in doing everything wrong, beginning with her efforts to land an "ordinary" job. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The first person the audience sees in Ship of Fools is dwarf Michael Dunn, who speaks to viewers directly and acts as a Greek chorus throughout the film. It begins on the deck of an ocean liner travelling from Vera Cruz to Bremerhaven. The time is the 1930s, so close and yet so far from war. The cross-section of humanity on board includes ship's doctor Oscar Werner, Spanish political activist Simone Signoret, aging coquette Vivien Leigh, hedonistic baseball player Lee Marvin, philosophical Jew Heinz Ruhmann, a smattering of pro- and anti-Hitlerites (Jose Ferrer plays the nastiest and most vocal "pro") and young lovers George Segal and Elizabeth Ashley. Yes, it's Grand Hotel at sea, a feast for stargazers and an endurance test for those who aren't comfortable with non-stop speechmaking. Despite such lines as "What can the Nazis do? Kill all six million of us?," Ship of Fools manages to stay afloat throughout its 148 minutes. Michael Dunn was nominated for an Academy Award for his interlocutory characterization; the rest of the performances range from brilliant to merely filling up the room. Other Oscars were presented to cinematographer Ernest Lazslo and to the art-direction staff. Ship of Fools was adapted by Abby Mann from the novel by Katharine Ann Porter. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this comedy, a Yankee musician is working in Paris when he encounters a movie star chasing after her naughty French poodle Monsieur Cognac. The name is most apropos for the little doggy is quite the lush when it comes to booze. This suits the hard-drinking musician just fine and the two go out on a bender. Later the star and her father find the toasted twosome. The star begins falling in love with the musician. Despite her father's objections, the two get married. Unfortunately, Mr. Cognac accompanies them on the honeymoon. He becomes quite jealous of the woman's new husband and ruins their wedding night. Because she refuses to relinquish the dog, their new marriage is nearly destroyed. They separate until the husband manages to bring home Pink Poupee, a charming female poodle. Suddenly Mr. C forgets all about his jealousy. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The Seaview is called upon to investigate a series of bizarre deaths in the North Sea. They find a Norwegian village living in fear, and a few people who aren't telling what they know, and a murderer lurking somewhere nearby. They follow a trail of clues that leads them to an aging research scientist (Steve Geray) and his one-time assistant (Richard Carlson), and their experiments with marine life, which have created catfish as big as whales. But their biggest worry concerns the other creatures that those experiments have loosed into the ocean. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide

Dime with a Halo was designed in part as a showcase for MGM's new child actor Manuel Padilla, who was featured shortly afterward in the studio's The Young and the Brave (63) and as a regular on the Tarzan TV series. Director Boris Sagal transcends the cold-cash motives of Dime by fashioning a touching Mexican-based comedy centering around five street urchins. The oldest (Roger Mobley) leads the kids in stealing a dime from a church collection box; they bet this "windfall" on a horse race, using the winnings to jointly purchase a sweepstakes ticket. All their dreams of sudden luxury are dashed when they find they're too young to cash the ticket when it hits the jackpot. Manuel Padilla manages to steal focus from his formidable kiddie opposition, but Dime with a Halo didn't quite establish Padilla as the Mickey Rooney of the 1960s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Cartwrights take a hand in matters when bandits reportedly steal the $100,000 dowry intended for the wedding of Michele Dubois (Luciana Paluzzi), the daughter of self-proclaimed land baron Alexander Dubois (Steven Geray). While the Cartwright sons stand guard over the injured DuBois during his recuperation at the Ponderosa, Ben begins to wonder why the same outlaws repeatedly manage to track down DuBois and his money. Meanwhile, bride-to-be Michele deftly wraps Joe, Hoss, and Adam around her little finger. Lee Bergere costars as Ricardo Fernandez. First shown on April 29, 1962, "The Dowry" was written by Robert Vincent Wright. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Even their fellow hoodlums are in mortal terror of the Purple Gang, a Detroit-based operation led by Eddie Fletcher (Steve Cochran). Now the Gang has come up with racket that surpasses all their previous achievements: namely, kidnapping other mobsters and holding them for ransom, knowing full well that their victims can't go to the police. But Fletcher sets the stage for his own inevitable downfall when his boys snatch Jan Tornek (played by a pre-Hogan's Heroes) Werner Klemperer), a minor functionary of the Capone gang who is presently under surveillance by Elliot Ness (Robert Stack) and the Untouchables. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This routine drama is helped by good acting and well-known stars like Rossano Brazzi as an unfaithful French husband, Deborah Kerr as his faithful English wife, and Maurice Chevalier as the uncle who goes to bat for his nephew's loosely held views of marriage. What does not help the story is the viewpoint that the husband is right and deserves to be forgiven. The setting starts out during World War II when Charles-Edouard (Brazzi), an air force pilot, falls in love with Grace (Kerr), the daughter of an English parliamentarian. The two marry and Grace gives birth to their son Sigi (Martin Stephens) nine months later. Nine years later, Grace discovers that her husband has cultivated a string of paramours when he was a war-zone pilot in Southeast Asia and North Africa. The two argue and split. And while Sigi at first appreciates the added attention he gets during the turmoil, he later has his doubts. Between his actions and Charles-Edouard's uncle, Grace does not stand a chance. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Based on a novel by Francoise Sagan, A Certain Smile was a vehicle for Darryl F. Zanuck's latest protegee, Christine Carere. Parisian student Carere spats with her boyfriend Bradford Dillman, then impulsively agrees to accompany Dillman's worldly uncle Rossano Brazzi to the Riviera. At first thrilled at the prospect of an affair with the dashing Brazzi, Carere is disillusioned to discover that she is the latest in a long line of "diversions" for the old charmer. After a heart-to-heart with Brazzi's patient wife (Joan Fontaine), Christine returns to her boyfriend. The title song for A Certain Smile became a hit for Johnny Mathis, who sings the tune over the film's opening credits. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

It is easy to see why the US Army refused to cooperate in the production of Attack. Based on the Norman Brooks play The Fragile Fox, this searing war film is a powerful indictment against a military system which protects even its most incompetent of officers. Eddie Albert plays a posturing but hopelessly inept infantry captain, whose misdeeds are covered up by his colonel Lee Marvin. Albert has strong political connections in the US, and Marvin hopes to take advantage of this after the war. Lieutenant Jack Palance has sworn to kill Albert with his bare hands if the officer bungles another mission. Albert orders Palance and his men into an untenable position on the battlefields of Belgium--and then, true to character, is too cowardly to send backup troops, leaving Palance's men to their fate. By sheer strength of will, Palance, whose arm has been shattered by an enemy tank, drags himself to the cellar where Albert is billeted and attempts to rid the world of the terror-stricken captain. Palance dies before he can keep his promise, but when the craven Albert makes an effort to surrender himself and his men to the Germans, he is shot down by lieutenant William Smithers. The rest of the men conspire to cover up Smithers' "crime" by claiming that Albert died from enemy fire, but Smithers proves to be less willing to prevaricate than his fellow soldiers. Though most filmgoers are mesmerized by Eddie Albert's virtuoso performance as a snivelling yellow-belly, director Robert Aldrich claimed that Albert gave his best reading during rehearsals, and that what ended up on film was nowhere near as powerful as it might have been. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

New York Confidential is based on the Jack Lait-Lee Mortimer bestseller of the same name. Richard Conte plays Nick Magellan, a "torpedo" for Manhattan crime boss Charlie Lupo (Broderick Crawford). Pleased with Magellan's work, Charlie promotes him to the topmost rungs of the Syndicate. He regrets this act of largesse when the powers-that-be demand that Lupo be rubbed out. . .by good old Magellan. The most fascinating aspect of New York Confidential is that there isn't a sympathetic character in the bunch; even Anne Bancroft as Lupo's maladjusted daughter is a bit on the obnoxious side. The original Lait-Mortimer book was later adapted into a 1958 TV series, starring Lee Tracy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide