George Hamilton Movies
Actor George Hamilton got his start in high school dramatics. Movie-star handsome, Hamilton played the lead in his very first film, Crime and Punishment USA (1959). While his acting talent was barely discernible in his earliest effort, Hamilton steadily improved in such MGM films as Home From the Hill (1960), Where the Boys Are (1960), Light in the Piazza (1961). He was at his best in a brace of biopics: in Warner Bros.' Act One (1963) he played aspiring playwright Moss Hart, while in Your Cheatin' Heart (1965), he registered well as self-destructive C&W singer Hank Williams. His much-publicized mid-1960s dating of President Johnson's daughter Lynda Bird was unfairly written off by some as mere opportunism, a calculated ploy to buoy up a flagging career. In fact, it did more harm than good to Hamilton: by 1969, movie roles had dried up, and he was compelled to accept his first TV-series role, playing jet-setter Duncan Carlyle in The Survivors. The following year, he starred as State Department functionary Jack Brennan in the weekly TV espionager Paris 7000. He staged a spectacular comeback as star and executive producer of Love at First Bite (1979), a screamingly funny "Dracula" take-off that won the actor a Golden Globe nomination. Even better was Zorro the Gay Blade (1980), which unfortunately failed to match the excellent box-office performance of First Bite but which still provided a much-needed shot in the arm to Hamilton's career. He went on to play such campish roles as villainous movie producer Joel Abrigor in TV's Dynasty (1985-86 season only) and jaded 007-type Ian Stone in the weekly Spies (1987). Throughout the thick and thin of his acting career, Hamilton remained highly visible on the international social scene, squiring such high-profile lovelies as Elizabeth Taylor and Imelda Marcos. He also remained financially solvent with his line of skin products and tanning salons. In 1995, George Hamilton hopped on the talk-show bandwagon, co-starring with his former wife Alana (who'd remarried rocker Rod Stewart) on a not-bad syndicated daily TV chatfest. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1987
We've been told that Poker Alice, a Boston-bred lady of means who managed a wild-west gambling hall and bordello in the 1870s, was based on a real person. She certainly seems real as portrayed by Elizabeth Taylor in this made-for-TV film (Taylor's first). After winning her house of ill repute in a five-card stud game, Taylor finds true love in the form of bounty hunter Tom Skeritt. Also in hand is George Hamilton as Taylor's slick partner "Cousin John" (the original ads for this film billed Hamilton and Taylor as "The King and Queen of Hearts"). In addition, Susan Tyrrell shows up for a down-and-dirty cat fight with the feisty Taylor. Poker Alice rode into TV land on May 22, 1987. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1986
A made-for-TV miniseries set during World War II, Monte Carlo features a Russian singer (Joan Collins) who works in the French city. She moonlights, however, as an Allied spy to retaliate against the Nazis who murdered her husband. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joan Collins, George Hamilton, (more)
- 1985
After their children have been murdered, two men intend to find the responsible parties in this made-for-TV movie. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- 1984
- R
In this mindless movie aping the 1960 hit about teens out for sun, surf, and sex, the "boys" are at the beach in Fort Lauderdale, Florida -- the destination of thousands of U.S. university students on their spring break and the destination of the four female protagonists here. After arriving, Jennie (Lisa Hartman) has to decide whether she really cares for Camden (Daniel McDonald), a nerdy musician, or the jock Scott (Russel Todd); Carole (Lorna Luft) has been unexpectedly followed to Lauderdale by a boyfriend; Sandra (Wendy Schaal) falls in love with a cop when she is arrested; and Laurie (Lynn-Holly Johnson) is simply out for a good time with anyone, or everyone. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lisa Hartman, Russell Todd, (more)
- 1983
Malibu is a two-part, four-hour adaptation of William Murray's best-selling novel. William Atherton and Susan Dey play a green-as-grass married couple from Milwaukee who take a vacation in Malibu. Amidst the elite and their million-dollar beach houses, Atherton starts up an affair with divorcee Valerie Perrine, while Dey fends off the attentions of TV star Steve Forrest before succumbing to the charms of tennis pro Chad Everett. Other Southern California satyrs and nymphs wandering in and out of Malibu include James Coburn, Eva Marie Saint, Ann Jillian, Kim Novak, Richard Mulligan, and (who else?) George Hamilton. The multiple story lines all come to a head during a climactic tennis match. Malibu is trash, true, but it's trash cultivated from the highest-quality refuse heaps. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
In this spoof, Don Diego Vega (George Hamilton) follows in his father's footsteps as he dons the identity of Zorro in an attempt to defend the weak and innocent from the ravages of the evil. However, when Vega falls victim to a debilitating injury, it is up to his gay twin brother, Bunny Wigglesworth (George Hamilton), to take up the mask and sword. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Hamilton, Lauren Hutton, (more)
- 1980
The made-for-TV Great Cash Giveaway Getaway offers a great deal of screen time to a brace of unknowns. David Kyle and Elissa Leeds play teenagers Jim and Hallie, who find themselves in possession of $250,000. The money belongs to drug kingpin Hightower (George Hamilton), who intends to reclaim the dough and bump off the kids. While escaping Hightower, Jim and Hallie begin arbitrarily giving away their money to total strangers. In so doing, they become minor-league folk heroes, which serves only to further anger the vengeful villain. The Great Cash Giveaway Getaway debuted April 21, 1980. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1979
The Seekers was the third and last TV movie based on John Jakes' Kent Family Chronicles (the others were The Bastard and The Rebels). Heading the huge all-star cast is Randolph Mantooth as Abraham Kent, son of elderly Revolutionary War vet Andrew Kent (played by Martin Milner, replacing the first two films' Andrew Stevens), who has resettled in the treacherous Northwest Territory. Part One of this two-part, four-hour production finds young Abraham trying out a series of occupations, while his brother Gilbert (George Deloy) goes into his father's publishing business. Part Two takes us up to the War of 1812, as seen through the eyes of Jarod and Amanda Kent (Timothy P. Murphy and Sarah Rush), who shortly thereafter head westward. Originally syndicated as part of the Operation Prime Time package, The Seekers made its debut during the week of December 2, 1979. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1979
Big-time movie director Kenneth Annakin called the shots in this TV pilot film. "Institute for Revenge" is the nickname for a computer known as IFR 7000 (voice by John Hillerman). The computer is employed by a large foundation dedicated to righting wrongs, albeit nonviolently. Sam Groom, Lauren Hutton and Robert Coote are the good guys who go after a charity swindler (special guest star George Hamilton). While it may sound a lot like a high-tech Mission: Impossible, Institute for Revenge bears a closer resemblance to the 1973 theatrical feature The Sting, a resemblance driven home by the presence of Sting costar Ray Walston in a supporting role. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
George Hamilton confounded his detractors by turning in a first-rate comic performance in Love at First Bite. Hamilton plays Count Dracula, who is evicted from his Transylvanian domicile when the Communist government decides to nationalize his castle. With faithful toady Renfield (Arte Johnson) at his side, Dracula heads for the Big Apple, where he finds the vampire pickings radically different from those on his home turf: for example, ol' Drac suffers the mother of all hangovers when his sinks his fangs into the neck of a wino. Klutzy Cindy Sondheim (Susan Saint James) falls in love with Dracula, not fully aware of his colorful background. But Cindy's stuffy fiance Dr. Jeff Rosenberg (Richard Benjamin), a descendant of Dracula's perennial foe Professor Van Helsing, knows what Dracula's up to and does his best to thwart the vampire's plan. This proves very difficult, since such time-honored remedies as the stake through the heart are frowned upon by the New York City authorities. So successful was Love at First Bite that Hamilton was encouraged to have a satiric go at another literary icon in 1982's Zorro, the Gay Blade. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Hamilton, Susan Saint James, (more)
- 1979
A nuclear-powered transcontinental train provides the setting for this television pilot from the mystery series Supertrain. The story concerns a shady agent who becomes the prime target for murder. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
The internationally produced From Hell to Victory is evocative of the works of Erich Maria Remarque. Several close friends of varying nationalities are separated by WW II. German Jurgen Dietrich (Horst Buchholz) is isolated from his old chums by his loyalty to the Fatherland. Still, he and his former comrades hold out hope for a happy reunion at war's end. George Peppard, George Hamilton and Capucine also appear. Despite some well-done battle sequences and a star-studded cast, From Hell to Victory never received an American theatrical release. In some prints, director Umberto Lenzi is billed as "Hank Milestone" (possibly an homage to All Quiet on the Western Front director Lewis Milestone). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Peppard, George Hamilton, (more)
- 1979
Former stuntman Hal Needham employed several of his old professional comrades in his made-for-TV Death Car on the Freeway. Shelley Hack plays a TV reporter investigating a series of freeway murders. Some demented van driver is swerving around and about, killing female motorists. This being Los Angeles, Shelley has at least a million suspects-daily-to choose from. This otherwise standard thriller is pepped up by the presence of several TV veterans, including George Hamilton, Frank Gorshin, Peter Graves, Dinah Shore, Harriet Nelson, BarbaraRush and Abe Vigoda. Director Needham also turns up in a cute supporting role. Death Car on the Freeway first aired September 25, 1979. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1979
The world's most luxurious train embarks upon its maiden run and mayhem ensues in this drama. The trouble begins when two of the passengers find themselves embroiled in a murder. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1978
In this murder mystery, a renegade attorney investigates the death of a prominent publisher. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Mae West (1892-1980) was perhaps the original comic sex goddess of American cinema. Originally a vaudeville performer, she became a national sensation following her 1926 Broadway show Sex, which she wrote, produced, directed and starred in. She continued to outrage the sensibilities of her time on Broadway before coming to Hollywood and doing the same there throughout the 1930s. She perfected her double entendre humor onscreen and gradually fell out of favor with an increasingly prudish film-going public, though her career underwent several brief revivals. Even as an extremely old woman, she affected the manners and dress of a reigning sex queen. The 1978 release of Sextette, based on her own original scenario, marked her final screen appearance. It was not well received by critics nor the public, and was an undignified note on which to end her sensational career. In this farcical and star-studded film, West plays the fading movie star Marlo Manners, whose attempts to consummate her marriage to Sir Michael Barrington (Timothy Dalton), her sixth husband, are humorously interrupted by the preceding five. Marlo is also dictating the unexpurgated story of her life, and when one of the tapes goes missing, it threatens to cause an international incident, as well as ruining a number of reputations (including her own). ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mae West, Timothy Dalton, (more)
- 1977
In this made-for-TV thriller, a group of tourists aboard a cruise ship must be quarantined after they become afflicted with a lethal virus. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- 1977
A perfectly coherent Richard Matheson script is muddied by Gordon Hessler's kaleidoscopic direction in the made-for-TV The Strange Possession of Mrs. Oliver. Karen Black plays the title role, a dowdy, downtrodden housewife plagued by recurring nightmares. Seeking an escape from her stifling lifestyle, Black dons a blonde wig, garish makeup, and a new identity. But it turns out that the woman Black pretends to be may actually exist--and may have more than a passing knowledge of the Occult. Karen Black's fingernails-on-the-blackboard performance is but one of many detriments to the full enjoyment of Strang Possession of Mrs. Oliver. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
- R
When a sex scandal threatens to blow the top off Washington politics, celebrated madame and advice columnist Xaviera Hollander (Joey Heatherton) is drawn into the fray. The hooker at the center of the controversy is a friend, and when the girl conveniently disappears, Xaviera is outraged. Meanwhile, a group of senators attempts to deflect public attention from themselves by holding a series of hearings on sexual excesses in American society. They decide to scapegoat "The Happy Hooker" for her well-publicized exploits, and she is subpoenaed as a hostile witness in their crusade against loose values. Though Xaviera isn’t concerned, her attorney (George Hamilton) warns her that vital issues of censorship and personal freedom are at stake. They fly to Washington D.C., where Xaviera’s irreverent testimony breathes some life into the stuffy proceedings. She tweaks the sensibilities of the senators (David White, Phil Foster, Jack Carter and Ray Walston) and holds their hypocrisy up to the daylight. Halfway through the hearings, Xaviera is kidnapped by an undercover CIA agent (Billy Barty) and pressed into service for her country. She is secretly sent to Miami to seduce a politically important (and impotent) Arabian sheik (Jerry Fischer), and while doing her duty discovers the missing hooker among his harem. Xaviera returns to Washington and triumphantly discredits the senate sub-committee by exposing its members as perverts and white slavers, thus saving erotic freedom for Americans everywhere. Joe E. Ross, Larry Storch and Rip Taylor are among the celebrities who make cameos in this mild ribaldry. ~ Fred Beldin, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joey Heatherton, George Hamilton, (more)
- 1975
- R
In this high-suds potboiler based on the best-selling novel by Jacqueline Susann, Mike Wayne (Kirk Douglas) is a past-his-prime movie producer who lives to make his college-age daughter January (Deborah Raffin) happy. January is also very fond of her father, perhaps more so than would seem healthy to the casual observer. Desperate to keep financing the good life for his daughter, Mike weds Deidre Granger (Alexis Smith), a wealthy bisexual who isn't about to give up her long-term relationship with Karla (Melina Mercouri). January finds herself pursued by suave playboy David Milford (George Hamilton), but she's more strongly attracted to Tom Colt (David Janssen), a middle-aged alcoholic novelist who reminds January of her father. Brenda Vaccaro won a Golden Globe award (and received an Oscar nomination) for her supporting performance as the man-crazy editor of a fashion magazine. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kirk Douglas, Alexis Smith, (more)
- 1975
This interesting made-for-TV period gangster-horror piece -- written by Psycho author Robert Bloch -- stars George Hamilton as a military man in 1930s Chicago who pounds the pavement in search of answers after his brother's wrongful execution. His investigations plunge him into a dark world even more sinister than the gangland circles he is forced to penetrate, leading him to the domain of a diabolical scientist, Varek (Ray Milland), who is plotting to seize control of the entire city with his army of walking dead. Directed by horror veteran Curtis Harrington, this plays very much like a '30s pulp novel come to life with plenty of menacing noir atmosphere, creepy monsters, and some well-mounted shocks. The Dead Don't Die is also enhanced by good uniform performances and the presence of the undeniably spooky Reggie Nalder. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
