James Griffith Movies
Sharp-featured character actor James Griffith set out in life to be a professional musician. He eased into acting instead, working the little-theatre route in his hometown of Los Angeles. In 1939, Griffith appeared in his first professional production, They Can't Get You Down. Following World War II service, he made his first film, Black Ice (1946). Steadily employed in westerns, James Griffith was generally cast as an outlaw, save for a few comparative good-guy assignments such as Sheriff Pat Garrett in The Law vs. Billy the Kid (1954). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1966
Fresh from a nearly decade-long stint as Jeff Stone on The Donna Reed Show, Paul Petersen appears in this episode as Johnny Eagle Eye, the nephew of Hekawi chief Wild Eagle (Frank De Kova). Aware of Johnny's prowess with a rifle, O'Rourke (Forrest Tucker) schemes to make a fortune by disguising the boy in a Cavalry uniform and entering him as F Troop's representative in an Army sharpshooting contest. Also in the cast is veteran radio actress Cathy Lewis as Johnny Eagle Eye's overbearing mother. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The action in A Big Hand for the Little Lady centers around a high-stake poker game. The participants include some of the wealthiest men in the West (among them Jason Robards Jr., Kevin McCarthy, Charles Bickford and Paul Ford). Into this rarefied atmosphere trudges impoverished farmer Henry Fonda, who despite the protests of his wife Joanne Woodward plunks down his last dollars to join the game. Halfway through the proceedings, Fonda falls ill. With quiet desperation, Woodward sits down daintily at the table and says in a firm voice, "Gentlemen, how do you play this game?" End of story? Not by a long shot! This O. Henry-style shaggy dog story is based on a Dupont Show of the Week TV presentation Big Deal at Laredo. Keep an eye out for two movie veterans in bit parts: silent screen comic Chester Conklin and 1930's leading lady Mae Clarke. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Henry Fonda, Joanne Woodward, (more)
- 1965
In her third and final Perry Mason appearance, Fay Wray is incongruously cast as voodoo dancer Mignon Germaine, the mother of DA Hamilton Burger's new assistant Larry (played by future talkshow host Gary Collins). Though Burger (William Talman) tries to warn Larry that the young man's girlfriend Carina (Karen Steele) is no good, Larry doesn't listen--and as a result, he finds himself the in the middle of a nasty conflict-of-interest situation which threatens to destroy his career. Holding Carina responsible for Larry's plight, Mignon places a voodoo curse on the girl's head. . .but when Carina ultimately dies, it is Larry who is charged with the murder. Though forced to prosecute his luckless assistant, Burger secretly hopes that his "friendly enemy" Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) can ultimately save the day. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
This exploitation film delivers the typically sadistic and fast-paced action expected from cult director Russ Meyer. Alex Rocco stars as veterinarian Corey Maddox, whose wife is raped by a motorcycle gang. The three hoods are led by Brahmin (Stephen Oliver), who was a Section 8 in Vietnam. They kill an old man and terrorize his wife Ruby (Haji) until she gets away and joins up with Maddox. Together, the two of them hunt down the gang. Brahmin shoots one of them himself, Ruby knifes another, and Maddox blows Brahmin to pieces with dynamite during a standoff at an abandoned mine. The rape scenes are brutal, though not explicit, and Meyer (who appears briefly as the local sheriff) leavens the film with enough campy humor to make it inoffensive. It would have been odious in other hands, but Meyer is somehow able to present scenes in the worst possible taste and still leave viewers smiling. He made better films than this one, but it is still superior to most similar efforts of the time. Coleman Francis and George Costello also appear. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steven Oliver, Haji, (more)
- 1964
On the run from both Lt. Gerard (Barry Morse) and a rural sheriff (Dabbs Greer), Kimble (David Janssen) ends up on a patch of land controlled by a family of murderous moonshiners. The Sheriff refuses to venture any further in their pursuit of Kimble, warning Gerard of terrible consequences should he cross the path of Tully (R.G. Armstrong), the family's brutish patriarch. When Tully's daughter Elvy (Sharon Farrell) is found beaten, Gerard is falsely accused of the crime, kidnapped, and subjected to a kangaroo court. Having won the family's trust by saving the life of eldest son Cody (Bruce Dern), Kimble is now the only person capable of preventing the "execution" of his worst enemy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1964
Union Colonel Brackenby (Melvyn Douglas) and his second-in-command, Captain Heath (Glenn Ford), attempt to command a rather inept cavalry unit during the Civil War. General Willoughby (Jim Backus) heads them out West on assignment rather than allowing them to foul things up where it counts. They soon get involved with Martha Lou, a confederate spy (Stella Stevens) posing as a prostitute, and her boss, Jenny (Joan Blondell) as well as a group of renegades and an Indian chief. In spite of their ridiculous slapstick antics, they manage to carry out their mission. This comedy was based on Company of Cowards, a novel by Jack Schaefer. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glenn Ford, Stella Stevens, (more)
- 1964
Eluding the local authorities, Richard Kimble (David Janssen)--aka "Peter Broderick"--hops a freight car containing three other passengers: A hobo named Preacher (Royal Dano), a woman named Carol (Diana Hyland), and a little baby. Carol claims to be the infant's mother, and further insists that she is searching for her husband. But it soon turns out that the woman has been mentally unbalanced since becoming a widow--and that she has kidnapped the baby. Kimble's efforts to help Carol and return the baby to its parents are complicated by the child's precarious health...to say nothing of the treacherous Preacher. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1963
Holly Westra (Charles McGraw) has been chief "enforcer" for gangster Victor Kurtz (John Anderson) for years, but age and infirmity may be catching up with the old gunman. In fact, there's a strong possibility that Holly may not have enough nerve to defend Kurtz from a rival gangster--especially since he has fallen in love with a girl named Rita (Gail Kobe), who abhors violence. Elliot Ness (Robert Stack) hopes to exploit the friction between Holly and Kurtz by making it appear that the old "torpedo" is on the verge of double-crossing his boss. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1963
A French art collector named Pireaux (Patric Knowles) is anxious to meet a reclusive English sculptor named Spencer (James Griffith). Paladin (Richard Boone) is called upon to escort Pireaux to Spencer's hideaway, somewhere in the far wilderness. Complicating matters is the presence of Pireaux's childlike daughter Gina (Judi Meredith), who of course ends up a pivotal figure in this Gene Roddenberry-scripted episode. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1963
Kimble (David Jansen) takes on the alias "David Benson" when he goes to work for Allan Pruitt (Richard Carlson) and Pruitt's second wife Dorina (Gloria Grahame). At the same time, Mr. Pruitt's troubled daughter Janice (Shirley Knight) returns home from a long hospital stay, having suffered a nervous breakdown after a child in her care was killed by her pet dog. Resenting Janice's presence, Dorina devises an elaborate scheme to drive the girl insane--and when Kimble tries to help Janice, Dorina adds him to her list of victims. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1962
All previous lawmen hired to escort the outlaw Wilder brothers (James Griffith, Harry Dean Stanton) to their hanging in Dakota territory have been murdered by the brothers' friends. Now Paladin (Richard Boone) has been engaged to take on the daunting task of seeing that the Wilders are brought to justice. En route to the Dakotas, Paladin and his prisoners cross the paths of several strangers--but which one has been chosen as Paladin's assassin? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1962
Fulfilling his latest assignment, Paladin captures a cruel and crafty killer named John Tyree (Richard Jaeckel). But that is hardly the end of the story: Now Paladin and his prisoner must embark upon a long and thirsty trek through the desert in order to bring Tyree to trial. In search of water, the two men come across an isolated shack inhabited by a brother and sister (Elen Willard, Lester Maxwell)--which will soon be under siege by a band of marauders, with whom Tyree hopes to strike a diabolical deal. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Filmed in panoramic Cinerama, this star-studded, epic Western adventure is a true cinematic classic. Three legendary directors (Henry Hathaway, John Ford, and George Marshall) combine their skills to tell the story of three families and their travels from the Erie Canal to California between 1839 and 1889. Spencer Tracy narrates the film, which cost an estimated 15 million dollars to complete. In the first segment, "The Rivers," pioneer Zebulon Prescott (Karl Malden) sets out to settle in the West with his wife (Agnes Moorehead) and their four children. Along with other settlers and river pirates, they run into mountain man Linus Rawlings (James Stewart), who sells animal hides. The Prescotts try to raft down the Ohio River in a raft, but only daughters Lilith (Debbie Reynolds) and Eve (Carroll Baker) survive. Eve and Linus get married, while Lilith continues on. In the second segment, "The Plains," Lilith ends up singing in a saloon in St. Louis, but she really wants to head west in a wagon train led by Roger Morgan (Robert Preston). Along the way, she's accompanied by the roguish gambler Cleve Van Valen (Gregory Peck), who claims he can protect her. After he saves her life during an Indian attack, they get married and move to San Francisco. In the third segment, "The Civil War," Eve and Linus' son, Zeb (George Peppard), fights for the Union. After he's forced to kill his Confederate friend, he returns home and gives the family farm to his brother. In the fourth segment, "The Railroads," Zeb fights with his railroad boss (Richard Widmark), who wants to cut straight through Indian territory. Zeb's co-worker Jethro (Henry Fonda) refuses to cut through the land, so he quits and moves to the mountains. After the railway camp is destroyed, Zeb heads for the mountains to visit him. In the fifth segment, "The Outlaws," Lilith is an old widow traveling from California to Arizona to stay with her nephew Zeb on his ranch. However, he has to fight a gang of desperadoes first. How the West Was Won garnered three Oscars, for screenplay, film editing, and sound production. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Stewart, Henry Fonda, (more)
- 1961
Con artists Morgan (Wally Brown) and Axe (Dave Willock) flimflam Clementine Hawkins (Beatrice Kay), a former dance-hall girl turned boarding-house keeper, with an elaborate scam involving "The Burma Rarity", a priceless emerald. Inasmuch as Ben Cartwright introduced Clementine to the crooks, he figures it is his responsibility to recover her money. To that end, Ben puts together a "sting" operation-which backfires so spectacularly that Ben may well have to marry Clementine to make amends! Written by N.B. Stone,"The Burma Rarity" originally aired October 22, 1961. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, (more)
- 1961
The plot gets under way when artist Jack Culross (Britt Lomond) fakes his own suicide so that his paintings will increase in value. Upon discovering that her husband is still alive, Culross' wife Edna (Lori March) tracks him down and angrily confronts him. Not long afterward, Culross is found dead for real, and Edna is charged with the crime. Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) must find out who else knew of Culross' phony suicide--and who else hated him enough to kill him. With this episode, Wesley Lau becomes a regular as Lt. Anderson, though in many episodes he is still billed among the supporting players. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Those familiar only with Johnny Horton's song hit North to Alaska might not be aware that the song came equipped with a movie. John Wayne and Stewart Granger star as a couple of lucky miners in Alaska Territory during the '98 gold rush. Since the Duke is the only man he can trust, Granger sends his pal to Seattle to fetch his fiance. Fabian appears in the cast (playing Granger's brother) primarily to attract teenage filmgoers; he gets to sing, of course, but he's better than usual. The film's centerpiece, an outsized brawl in the muddy streets of Nome, was repeated with several variations in Wayne's subsequent McLintock (1963). North to Alaska was based on a considerably more genteel stage play, Laszlo Fodor's Birthday Gift. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Wayne, Stewart Granger, (more)
This appallingly bad sci-fi film about an invisible bank-robber (Douglas Kennedy) was shot back-to-back with Beyond the Time Barrier on the grounds of the Texas State Fair in Dallas. The usual cackling and crime is included, most of which was done better in The Invisible Man. Marguerite Chapman is the film's one bright spot as Kennedy's lowlife girlfriend, but the rest of the characters are annoying and unsympathetic. Unpleasant, downbeat, and badly produced, it is hard to see the appeal of this one, even for genre completists. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Stella Stevens guest-stars as Ann Croft, a sheltered deaf-mute girl. Joe Cartwright tries to teach Ann sign language, only to be thwarted by the girl's fiercely overprotective father Albie (Albert Salmi). In the course of John Furia Jr.'s teleplay, Ann ends up saving her father's life, and also falls in love with Joe (the kiss of death for any Bonanza leading lady!) Also appearing are Kenneth McKenna as Sam, James Griffith as the Preacher, Sherwood Price as Eb and Harry Swoger as Tom. Originally telecast on December 10, 1960, "Silent Thunder" was the first of of several Bonanza episodes directed by Robert Altman. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, (more)
Spartacus (Kirk Douglas) is a rebellious slave purchased by Lentulus Batiatus (Peter Ustinov), owner of a school for gladiators. For the entertainment of corrupt Roman senator Marcus Licinius Crassus (Laurence Olivier), Batiatus' gladiators are to stage a fight to the death. On the night before the event, the enslaved trainees are "rewarded" with female companionship. Spartacus' companion for the evening is Varinia (Jean Simmons), a slave from Brittania. When Spartacus later learns that Varinia has been sold to Crassus, he leads 78 fellow gladiators in revolt. Word of the rebellion spreads like wildfire, and soon Spartacus' army numbers in the hundreds. Escaping to join his cause is Varinia, who has fallen in love with Spartacus, and another of Crassus' house slaves, the sensitive Antoninus (Tony Curtis). The revolt becomes the principal cog in the wheel of a political struggle between Crassus and a more temperate senator named Gracchus (Charles Laughton). Anthony Mann was the original director of Spartacus, eventually replaced by Stanley Kubrick, who'd previously guided Douglas through Paths of Glory. The film received 4 Academy Awards, including Best Supporting Actor for Ustinov. A crucial scene between Olivier and Curtis, removed from the 1967 reissue because of its subtle homosexual implications, was restored in 1991, with a newly recorded soundtrack featuring Curtis as his younger self and Anthony Hopkins standing in for the deceased Olivier. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kirk Douglas, Laurence Olivier, (more)
- 1959
The lush romanticism of director Frank Borzage (Seventh Heaven, Street Angel) is subsumed by the plodding reverence of producer Rowland V. Lee's screenplay (co-written with Howard Estabrook), based on the best-selling novel by Lloyd C. Douglas. Howard Keel stars as a stalwart Simon-Peter, the apostle of Christ called "the fisher of men" and the "Rock" upon whom the Christian Church was founded. The film, on the surface, deals with Simon-Peter's conversion from a self-sufficient fisherman to a believer in the inspirational teachings of Christianity. Simon-Peter also serves the needs of the real story: how Simon-Peter succeeds in joining together two lovers from the other side of the tracks. John Saxon is Voldi, an Arab prince who wants to follow in his father's footsteps as the chief of an Arab tribe and marry his beloved, Fara (Susan Kohner). But Fara, wants to see her father, Herod Antipas (Herbert Lom), dead for the misery he has inflicted upon her mother -- abandoning her for the lustful Herodias (Martha Hyer). When Voldi and Fara hear the teachings of Christ, they realize that their love must be put in abeyance to their Christian beliefs. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Howard Keel, Susan Kohner, (more)
- 1959
Long before their teaming in the 1998 theatrical feature Space Cowboys, James Garner and Clint Eastwood shared screen time in this hilarious Maverick episode. As a favor to his old friend Jed Christiansen (Edgar Buchanan), Bret Maverick (Garner) agrees to break up the romance between Jed's daughter Carrie (Abby Dalton) and her shiftless cowpoke boyfriend Red Hardigan (Eastwood). Unfortunately, Red has a reputation of being the fastest gun in town, which puts something of a damper in Bret's original plan to expose Red as a coward in fromt of Carrie. Quickly reverting to Plan Two, our hero claims that he will be unable to shoot it out with Red until he settles a score with the notorious gunslinger John Wesley Hardin...who bears a startling resemblance to Bret's brother Bart (Jack Kelly). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1958
A routine stagecoach ride becomes a terrifying experience when it is ambushed by desperadoes who hold the passengers hostage while trying to figure out how to rob a shipment of gold. Rootin' tootin' western action ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1958
In this western, a trigger happy sheriff is asked to step down by the townsfolk who want to have a quieter, safer town. He obliges and then travels to Sundown where he and a war buddy team up and drive all the criminals out of the town. When the streets are safe, he then falls in with a saloon girl. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Montgomery, Randy Stuart, (more)
- 1958
In this western, a convict escapes from prison to search for the considerable loot he and his gang had stolen off a stage coach 11 years before. Before heading for the pokey, the outlaw left the loot with his boozy brother. Originally, the plan had been to split the cash with his two cohorts. Unbeknownst to him, the two are plotting to kill him once they get the dough. Unfortunately for all of them, the drunken brother has gambled their money away. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Philip Carey, Catherine McLeod, (more)
- 1958
3DFrontier Gun3D is another of the moderately interesting low-budget westerns turned out by 20th Century-Fox's Regal Films subsidiary in the late 1950s. John Agar plays Jim Crayle, who offers his services as voluntary marshal when crazed gunman Yubo (Robert Strauss) inaugurates a reign of terror. Unfortunately, Crayle is unable to outdraw Yubo due to a wrist injury, leading the townsfolk to assume that their new marshal is yellow. Only when his argument with Yubo becomes personal does Crayle truly rise to the occasion. John Agar does his best in an unsually cerebral role, but his passive character-and characterization-works against the film's suspense. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Agar, Joyce Meadows, (more)
