John Hubbard Movies

The Gathering stars Ed Asner as an ill-tempered executive who long ago walked out on his family. Just before Christmas, Asner is told that he has only a few weeks to live. He confides this information to his estranged wife Maureen Stapleton, who suggests that he call his four adult children (Gail Strickland, Gregory Harrison, Rebecca Balding, Lawrence Pressman) together for one last reunion. He agrees on the proviso that they not be told of his imminent death. Of the four offspring, Asner is most trepidatious about seeing Harrison, who was virtually disowned when he moved to Canada during the Vietnam War. But The Gathering is a Christmas movie, and does its best to stay heartwarming. Made for TV and first shown December 4, 1977, The Gathering was the pilot for a potential series--(presumably one without Ed Asner, unless his character suddenly experienced a miracle cure). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this uneven comedy, Abner (Don Knotts) is the editor of a bird-watching magazine who is the victim of a hostile corporate takeover by Osborn Tremaine (Edmond O'Brien). When Abner returns from a bird-watching excursion to Brazil, he finds his publication has been purchased for the fourth-class mailing permit. Osborn turns the publication into a girlie magazine and puts his wife Elanor (Maureen Arthur) on the front cover. Still listed as an editor, Abner becomes The Love God as the public perceives him as a Hugh Hefner-like character, epitomizing the life of a swinging bachelor playboy. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

Hoping to bond with his nephew Jody (Johnnie Whitaker), Bill (Brian Keith) takes the boy along on a business trip. Alas, Bill's efforts to entertain Jody, first with a baseball game and then with a fishing trip, come a-cropper. Although everything ends up going wrong, somehow Jody finds a way to make it all right for his flustered uncle. This episode marks the first appearance of John Williams as Nigel French, the brother and occasional replacement of Bill's butler Giles French (costar Sebastian Cabot had to temporarily leave the show due to illness, inspiring the writers to send Mr. French on a "special assignment" with the Royal Family!) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Aspiring to be a building engineer like his Uncle Bill (Brian Keith), Jody (Johnnie Whitaker) hangs around a construction site and befriends an affable middle-ager named Owny (Brian Donlevy), who wears the regulation hardhat and bib overalls. Impressed by Jody's enthusiasm, Owny sees to it that the boy is given a few minor jobs around the site. Meanwhile, Bill is anxiously trying to arrange a business deal with elusive millionaire architect Owen Pennington--and if you haven't yet figured out what's going to happen next, please note the similarity between the names "Owny" and "Owen"! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Feeling trapped by his new parental responsibilities, Bill (Brian Keith) takes the advice of his old pal Dave (Norman Alden) and leaves New York to accept a project in faraway Mexico. In Bill's absence, Mr. French (Sebastian Cabot) is suddenly taken ill, and the kids insist upon waiting on the poor fellow hand and foot. This crisis, coupled with Bill's inability to establish telephone contact between Mexico and his Manhattan apartment, leads him to regret his temporary "escape". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Buffy (Anissa Jones) and Cissy (Kathy Garver) arrive home to find that their bedroom has been completely redecorated by Nedra Walcott (Kathleen Crowley), the current amour of their Uncle Bill (Brian Keith). Cissy is thrilled, but Buffy hates all the changes--and she especially miffed that Cissy has her own telephone (a pink Princess model) and she doesn't. Trouble is, Buffy refuses to tell anyone why she is angry, leaving Bill in yet another quandary. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Frontier scout Jess Remsberg (James Garner) is crossing the desert when he spots a dead army scout and group of Apaches pursuing someone -- it turns out to be a white woman, Ellen Grange (Bibi Andersson); he gets her away from them and returns her to her home and her husband Willard (Dennis Weaver), who seems much more upset that the horse she was riding when she left is dead than he is glad that she is back. Ellen was kidnapped by the Apaches two years before and rescued a year after that, and had fled a town where her husband and everyone else had treated her as an outcast since her return. Apart from preventing her from being raped by some drunken townsmen, however, Remsberg barely has time to worry over what goes on between them, as he has a mission of his own -- tracking down the men who murdered his wife, a Comanche woman. A key clue is in the hands of the town marshal in Fort Conchos and to get there he has to scout for a cavalry unit bringing horses, ammunition, and fresh recruits to the fort, with Grange and his wife -- and the infant son she had by the Indian chieftain who took her as his squaw -- going along, with ex-buffalo soldier-turned-horse wrangler Toler (Sidney Poitier). Their party ends up under siege by Chata (John Hoyt), the Apache Indian chief and grandfather to Ellen Grange's baby, who has jumped the reservation; he wants his grandson back, and the ammunition the troop was carrying, and also intends on killing Ellen for inadvertently causing the death of his son. They all end up trapped in a box canyon while Remsberg tries to survive to get help from Fort Conchos. If this all sounds complicated, it's not, especially as told by director Nelson, in a straightforward, unpretentious, brisk, and decidedly violent fashion that anticipates his own Soldier Blue, made four years later. Every plot element links up neatly in this script, which quite effectively recalls (and weaves together) elements of the book and the movie Hondo as well as any number of revenge westerns of the 1960's. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide

Telly Savalas guest-stars as Charles Hackett, the richest man in the world. Accustomed to getting what he wants, Hackett now covets the Ponderosa. When Ben Cartwright refuses to sell, Hackett uses every method at his disposal-fair and foul-to force Ben off his own property. But in so doing, Hackett all but destroys the one person in the world he genuine cares about: his beloved wife Maria (Linda Lawson). Though not the final episode in which series regular Pernell Roberts appeared, this was the final one to be telecast, on April 18, 1965. "To Own the World" was written by Ed Adamson. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Publicly humiliated by town tough Al Mooney (Ron Foster), young Johnny Chapman (Guy Stockwell) asks his friend Joe Cartwright to teach him how to use a gun. Joe agrees, but eventually regrets this decision when Johnny becomes a cold-blooded bounty hunter. Making matters worse, Johnny has been hired to gun down his former girlfriend Olive (Valerie Allen)-and also Joe Cartwright. Written by Dan Ullman, "Invention of a Gunfighter" originally aired September 20, 1964, as the inaugural episode of Bonanza's sixth season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Suspense builds around the investigation of a plane crash that caused 53 deaths in this dramatic adaption of Ernest K. Gann's novel. Authorities systematically eliminate probable causes, finally placing blame on the pilot, who was seen drinking before the flight. The airline's director of flight operations, Sam McBane (Glen Ford), knowing the pilot's excellent WW II record, refuses to accept the authorities' conclusions and begins his own investigation. With the help of the only survivor, a stewardess (Suzanne Pleshette), McBane re-creates the events leading to the crash in an attempt to discover the true cause. The character of the incriminated pilot, Captain Jack Savage (Rod Taylor), is revealed through a series of flashbacks, from a wartime army camp (with a cameo by Jane Russell) to the climactic moment of the thrilling crash. Milton Krasner's crisp cinematography earned him an Oscar nomination. ~ Lucinda Ramsey, All Movie Guide

In his efforts to save enough money so that Eddie (Butch Patrick) can attend college, mortuary employee Herman (Fred Gwynne) moonlights as a pro wrestler called "The Masked Marvel." Alas, it looks as though Herman's grappling career will net him only a world of hurt: the big lug is too soft-hearted to try to defeat his formidable opponents. Several authentic wrestlers appear in this episode, including Count Billy Varga, The Great John L, Jay York, Matt Murphy and Gene LeBell. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Though he struck out rather spectacularly during his first visit to the Shady Rest, railroad troubleshooter Homer Bedloe (Charles Lane) has returned with a new scheme to put the Hooterville Cannonball out of commission. This time, Bedloe's fiendish plot involves a pair of VIPs, one of whom is played by veteran movie heavy John Hoyt, who later gained sitcom fame as the foxy grandpa on Gimme a Break. This episode has gained a latter-day prominence as being the first sitcom offering by the CBS network after its four-day coverage of the JFK assassination. Not surprisingly, the ratings were better than usual; viewers stunned by the tragedy of the previous weekend were certainly in the mood to forget about their troubles and have a good laugh! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide