Kim Hamilton Movies

Officers Jim Reed (Kent McCord) and Pete Malloy (Martin Milner) are intrigued when an off-duty officer makes a citizen's arrest of a female shoplifter (Pamela Jones). The woman insists that she has resorted to stealing in order to feed her starving baby. As it turns out, the woman is indeed caring for an infant--but it isn't hers. When all the facts come to light, Jim and Pete race against time to avert a tragedy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Saddled with paying huge alimony checks to his high-maintenance former wife, Edward Gibson (Robert Webber) seeks a legal method to rid himself of this burden. Enter Edward's pal Carl Seabrook (Jeremy Slate), who magnanimously offers to marry the ex-Mrs. Gibson himself -- for a 5,000-dollar fee. Little does Edward realize that he has been a "free man" for several hours...but, of course, Carl has known all along. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Lionel Jefferson's engagement party promises to be a fun occasion for everyone but Archie, who discovers that Lionel's dad, George Jefferson, does not want to invite him. Even so, Archie attends, only to get into an argument with George's indomitable mother. The episode ends with Archie and George once more finding out they have more in common than either man would wish. Zara Cully makes her first appearance as Mother Jefferson, a role she would carry over into the All in the Family spin-off The Jeffersons. Written by Michael Ross and Bernie West, "Lionel's Engagement" originally aired on February 9, 1974. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Doctors' Private Lives was the 2-hour pilot film for the shortlived TV series of the same name. Ed Nelson and John Gavin star as, respectively, chief surgeon Dr. Michael Wise and cardiovascular unit chief Dr. Jeffrey Latimer. The drama arises from the ongoing clash of egos between these two medical giants. Nelson and Gavin were carried over to the series, as was Randolph Powell as Dr. Rick Calder. The guest cast includes Bettye Ackerman, who had ironically costarred in an earlier hospital series, Ben Casey (Ackerman was the wife of Sam "Dr. Zorba" Jaffee). Doctors' Private Lives premiered March 20, 1978; the series itself ran from April 5 to 28, 1979. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Heavy Traffic represents a follow-up to animator Ralph Bakshi's first feature film, Fritz the Cat (1972). The central character is Michael, the ingenuous son of an Italian father and Jewish mother. An aspiring cartoonist, Michael leaves home in a huff and outrages his family by conducting an affair with an African-American woman. Heavy Traffic was originally intended to be a cartoon adaptation of Hubert Selby's notorious novel Last Exit to Brooklyn, but negotiations fell through, and Bakshi was obliged to cook up a similar but not identical "mean streets" plotline. (Last Exit to Brooklyn was made as a live-action film in 1989.) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

For his only directorial effort, Jack Lemmon selected his old friend and habitual co-star Walter Matthau to play the central character. Joseph P. "Kotch" Kotcher (Walter Matthau) is an irksome 72-year-old who lives with his son (Charles Aidman) and daughter-in-law (played by Lemmon's wife Felicia Farr). Kotch is far from senile, but there are times that his family wishes he was a little more docile and doddering; he insists upon expressing his unwarranted opinions on all matters, both large and small, forever challenging his daughter-in-law's authority. When it is suggested that Kotch find himself a nice retirement home, the rebellious old man decides instead to take a long bus ride, hoping that his family will have cooled off by the time he returns. Before leaving, he tries to make amends with the family's former baby-sitter Erica (Deborah Winters), whose dismissal he has brought about. Upon learning that Erica is pregnant, Kotch loans her some money; and when she moves away to Palm Springs, he moves in with her, hoping to be of some help. As they get to know one another, Kotch and Erica discover that they're very much alike: both have been cast aside by their relatives due to their independent airs. Kotch was adapted by John Paxton from a novel by Katharine Topkins. Watch for director Jack Lemmon in a bit as a bus passenger. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Thirty years after being convicted on a stabbing-and-rape charge, the accused may be able to get a new trial. This is the result of fresh evidence unearthed by diligent detectives Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Logan (Benjamin Bratt). But the good news for the accused rapist is devastatingly bad news for his alleged victim, Cookie Costello (Anita Gillette), who is terrified that she will again be targeted for assault -- and possibly murder. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Harry Belafonte was both producer and star of this hard-edged film noir crime drama. Dave Burke (Ed Begley, Sr.) is an ex-cop who has been kicked off the force for refusing to inform on his colleagues to the State Crime Committee. Short on money, the former policeman jumps to the other side of the law and plans to knock over a bank in upstate New York. He'll need help, so Burke brings in two other men to assist him -- Johnny Ingram (Belafonte), a jazz musician with an addiction to gambling that's put him deep in debt to gangster Bacco (Will Kuluva), and Earl Slater (Robert Ryan), a disturbed war veteran who hasn't been able to find work after serving time for manslaughter. While their common greed and desperation has brought these men together, their differences threaten to tear them apart, especially when Slater's fear and hatred of black men rises to the surface. Blacklisted screenwriter Abraham Polonsky co-wrote the screenplay for Odds Against Tomorrow, using his friend John O. Killens as a "front." John Lewis of the Modern Jazz Quartet contributed a memorable musical score. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Once again, would-be Romeo Fred Sanford (Redd Foxx) loves neither wisely nor well, but too often. Inadvertently inviting both his fiancée Donna (Lynn Hamilton) and his new girlfriend Carol (Kim Hamilton) to dinner on the same evening, Fred must do some fancy "juggling" to avoid catastrophe. Loosely based on "Steptoe a la Carte," a 1964 episode of the British Sanford and Son forerunner Steptoe and Son, this installment was originally scheduled to air on November 24, 1972, but was bumped forward to December 15. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The literalism of writer-director Richard Brooks serves him well in this meticulously faithful adaptation of the Robert Ruark novel Something of Value. Filmed on location in Africa, this is the story of the Mau Mau uprising in Kenya, as seen through the eyes of a handful of protagonists. Virtually alone in a sea of racist British colonialism, gentleman farmer Peter McKenzie (Rock Hudson) strives to understand the demands of freedom and equality made by Kenya's black population in particular and his childhood friend Kimani (Sidney Poitier) in particular. Ultimately, however, McKenzie and Kimani find themselves on opposite sides of the fence when the latter aligns himself with the Mau Mau. Without advocating the terrorism of this controversial movement, the screenplay is careful to deal the ongoing iniquities and frustrations that forced men like Kimani to take arms against their white brethren. There were a few theatres in the American south who, feeling that the racial tensions inherent in Something of Value hit too close to home, refused to book this fascinating, thought-provoking, often startlingly brutal film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Kim Hamilton, who'd once played the role of Helen Willis on All in the Family, guest stars on The Jeffersons as Pauline, an old friend of the Jeffersons' housekeeper, Florence (Marla Gibbs). Having married into money, Pauline is now a much higher social plane than Florence. Hoping to impress her friend and not reveal her present financial state, Florence prevails upon George Jefferson (Sherman Hemsley) to pose as her husband -- and upon Louise Jefferson (Isabel Sanford) to pose as her maid. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A predominantly black cast appears in this episode of Twilight Zone, which was originally broadcast on April 8, 1960. Ivan Dixon stars as Bolie Jackson, an aging prizefighter. Hoping for a comeback. Bolie manages to win an important bout, only to discover that he scored his K.O. thanks to a "big tall wish" made by neighborhood kid Henry (Kim Hamilton). Unfortunately, Bolie does not believe in wishes -- and he suffers mightily because of his lack of faith. Also starring Kim Hamilton and Walter Burke, "The Big Tall Wish" was written by series creator Rod Serling. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide