Leeza Gibbons Movies

The brain-child of director and executive producer Straw Weisman, Man of the Year is billed as a reality/surveillance/improv/drama. In fact, the film was shot in one night, with no script and a cast of about 20 being followed around by an equal number of cameras. The story centers on Bill, a successful oil company executive played by John Ritter. At a party in honor of Bill, the audience is introduced to a number of people in Bill's life, including his wife, Carol (Heidi Mark); his bookie, Mickey (Dan Ponce); and his mistress, Vanessa (Khrystyne Haje). As the evening progresses, the mood of the party goes from festive to angry as all of the secrets in Bill's life become exposed, and his life begins to crumble around him. Suddenly, a gunshot is heard, someone is dead, and no one knows who the killer is. Completely improvised based on a loose story outline and a set of predetermined motivations for each character, Man of the Year premiered at the 2002 Method Film Festival in Pasadena, CA. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

Neal McDonough guest stars as Clive Walker, a famously eccentric rock star who bears more than a passing resemblance to a certain "Gloved One." Murphy is elated when she manages to land an interview with the reclusive Walker--until she comes down to earth and realizes that her journalistic integrity may be damaged by wasting her time with the "fluff" piece. The dilemma deepens when Murphy must choose between the Walker interview and a truly important news story. Entertainment Tonight's Leeza Gibbons makes a cameo appearance. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Robert Altman takes a scalpel to Hollywood ethics in the 1990s (or the lack thereof) in his acidic satire The Player, adapted from Michael Tolkin's novel. (Tolkin also wrote the screenplay.) The film concerns a sleek and smooth Hollywood studio executive who starts receiving death threats from a disgruntled writer because he has committed the ultimate Hollywood sin -- he promised the writer he would call him back and he never did. This is particularly ironic because the studio executive, Griffin Mill (Tim Robbins), is considered "writer-friendly," spending his days listening to pitches from such noted screenwriters as Buck Henry, who is pushing "The Graduate, Part II" and Alan Rudolph, who is hawking a Bruce Willis action film described as "Ghost meets The Manchurian Candidate." But The Player finds Griffin's comfortable life style in danger of collapse. He is trying to find a way to unload his girlfriend (Cynthia Stevenson) whose independence and intelligence make her a poor candidate for a trophy wife. More importantly, it seems that Larry Levy (Peter Gallagher), a slippery executive from Twentieth Century Fox, is angling for his job. And then there are those nasty postcards and faxes from a screenwriter threatening to kill him. Altman cast over 65 stars in cameo roles as texture for his scabrous tale. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Real-life sweethearts and film directors Ken Kwapis and Marisa Silver co-directed this throwback to the silver-screen romantic comedies of the 1940s, examining the different ways men and women view reality. Kwapis takes the male character's point of view, recalling a burgeoning relationship. Silver then takes a crack at the same story, recalling the same events from the woman character's point of view. Unfortunately, both perspectives are not that much different. Kevin Bacon and Elizabeth Perkins star as Dan Hanson and Lorie Bryer, two reporters from the Baltimore Sun who are assigned to share space on the editorial page debating opposing viewpoints. Dan is the conservative philanderer. Lorie is the sensitive liberal. The new column becomes a big hit -- a shop owner exclaims, "Hey, it's the people who argue!" Although originally antagonists, Dan and Lorie become lovers. As their relationship grows, so does their popularity, and they end up hosting a popular television program. But Lorie wants commitment, and Dan doesn't. Frustrated, Lorie shies a coffee cup off Dan's noggin live on the air. Their ratings soar. And then the whole routine is played out again. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

In the conclusion of Murphy Brown's two-part second season finale, Corky (Faith Ford) develops a bad case of pre-nuptual jitters on the eve of her marriage to Will Forrest (Scott Bryce). Yes, this will mean that she will soon be known as Corky Sherwood-Forrest--and this as much as anything is making her reconsider going through with the wedding. It is up to Murphy (Candice Bergen) to make sure that the ceremony proceeds as planned. . .though in all fairness, Murphy is given a bit of help by the soul-singing Temptations. Frances Bergen, real-life mother of Candice Bergen, appears as Will's mom, while Entertainment Tonight's Leeza Gibbons and John Tesh and telejournalist Kathleen Sullivan show up as "themselves." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this comedy, an ordinary woman finds herself sharing both her home and her body with a ghost who has a pronounced wild streak. Jan (Glenn Close) and Nick (Mandy Patinkin) are a couple moving into an apartment in an old Victorian house in San Francisco. Jan is a straight-laced secretary working for a Catholic bishop, while Nick deals in used books. While stripping some old wallpaper in their new home, they discover a message written on the wall, which their flaky landlady Mrs. Lavin (Ruth Gordon) informs them was written by Maxie, a high-spirited flapper who had a career in silent films before dying in a car wreck on her way to audition for D.W. Griffith. Out of curiosity, Jan and Nick rent a video of one of Maxie's films to see her in action, but it just so happens that Maxie's ghost still lives in the house -- and is looking for a human host. Maxie's spirit enters Jan's body and makes her presence known at the most inconvenient times; suddenly mild mannered Jan is kicking up her heels, swilling gin, starting arguements, and acting like a flaming youth straight out of the 1920s. Nick finds Maxie a good bit more exciting than Jan and even tries to launch Maxie back into a movie career by having her audition for a remake of Cleopatra opposite Harry Hamlin; Jan, however, just wants to have her body to herself again. Maxie proved to be one of the last screen appearances for veteran actress Ruth Gordon, who died several weeks before the film was released. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide