William Bakewell Movies

Having decided to marry his sweetie Darlene (Judith McConnell), handyman Eb (Tom Lester) decides to buy a house as well. Unfortunately, his "collateral" consists of a turtle, a pocket knife, a bag of marbles, and an autographed picture of Ozzie and Harriet Nelson. In his efforts to scare up more money, Eb banks heavily on the largess of Oliver (Eddie Albert) and Lisa (Eva Gabor) -- and in so doing, he not only introduces the Douglases as his birth parents, but also transforms their into a reasonable facsimile of the city dump! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Jeannie (Barbara Eden) creates a "miracle" spot remover to clean a stain on Tony's jacket. The result: the jacket proves to be indestructible, leading Gen. Peterson (Barton MacLane) to demand that Tony (Larry Hagman) give another demonstration of the remarkable remover--a demonstration so disastrous that it nearly gets one of the regular characters permanently transferred to Iceland. (PS: Want to know who makes a cameo appearance at the end of this episode? Just say the secret word!) ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Meredith MacRae joins the cast as the third (and final) actress to assume the role of Billie Jo Bradley as Petticoat Junction launches its fourth season. Ever on the lookout for a fast buck, Uncle Joe (Edgar Buchanan) tries to drum up business at the Shady Rest Hotel with a "Free Wedding and Honeymoon Contest". Without further elaboration, it can be noted that the supporting cast includes veteran character actors Ernest Truex and Sylvia Field, husband and wife in real life. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Homer Bedloe (Charles Lane) once again shows up at the Shady Rest, a battered and tattered shell of his former self. Claiming to be broke and ruined because of his failure to put the Hooterville Cannonball out of business, Homer begs his longtime nemesis Kate (Bea Benaderet) for a place to stay until he can get back on his feet. Shortly thereafter, Homer's successor, Wilbur Goodfellow (Donald Curtis), shows up...and thus the wheels start turning in another master scheme to foil Kate and scuttle the Cannonball for keeps. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Beaver (Jerry Mathers) makes the acquaintance of Kenneth Purcell (Gil Rogers), a new kid in school who seems desperate for friendship. Not long afterward, things start disappearing from Beaver's classroom. June (Barbara Billingsley) finds the missing items under Beaver's bed, and jumps to the obvious conclusion. Of course, by this time the viewer has figured out that Kenneth and not Beaver is the thief -- but the story isn't quite over yet. Jean Vander Pyl, best known as the voice of Wilma Flintstone, is here seen as Mrs. Thompson. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Cashing in on the surprise success of his 1954 Davy Crockett TV miniseries (first presented on the weekly anthology Disneyland), Walt Disney assembled the three hour-long "Crockett" episodes into a 93 minute theatrical feature. While the re-editing process has created a few noticeable continuity gaps, the results are by and large satisfying: certainly audiences in 1955 were satisfied, if box office returns are any indication (and, of course, they are). Fess Parker plays Davy Crockett, Tennessee-born frontiersman, while Buddy Ebsen (Disney's original choice for Crockett) co-stars as Davy's sidekick George Russell. The film is divided into three long episodes, each separated by a title card. Part one shows Crockett the Indian fighter (politically correct? Of course not!); part two finds Davy winning a seat in the Nashville legislature, where his heroism is rather cynically exploited by presidential candidate Andrew Jackson (Basil Ruysdael); and part three concludes at the Alamo, with a discreet cutaway just before Davy meets his doom at the hands of Mexican general Santa Anna. Also appearing in this jerry-built film are Hans Conried as Thimblerig and Helene Stanley as Davy's wife Polly. And who could forget "The Ballad of Davy Crockett"--not to mention those neato coonskin caps? Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier was followed in 1956 by a "prequel" (likewise cobbled together from three Disneyland episodes), Davy Crockett and the River Pirates. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Lucky Me is a mixed-bag musical from Warner Bros., adhering to a tried-and-true formula that was wearing just a bit thin in 1954. Candy (Doris Day), Hap (Phil Silvers), Duke (Eddie Foy Jr.) and Flo (Nancy Walker) are four small-time performers who find themselves stranded in Miami. Forced to take domestic jobs in a fancy hotel, the foursomes's spirits are lifted when songwriter Dick (Bob Cummings) checks in. On the verge of writing a big-time Broadway show, Dick invites the four entertainers to participate. The hitch: In order to bankroll the show, Dick must woo and win the daughter (Martha Hyer) of a Texas oil magnate. . .and Candy has fallen in love with Dick. Sharp-eyed viewers will spot Angie Dickinson making her uncredited feature-film debut. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In the second of Republic Pictures' three "Rocket Man" serials, the government assigns Commando Cody (George Wallace) to look into a series of strange atomic explosions threatening the United States' defense systems. As Cody discovers, the threat comes from the Moon, whose ruler, Retik (Roy Barcroft), is planning an invasion of Mother Earth due to a severe lack of atmosphere on his own planet. Retik works through Krog (Peter Brocco), an inter-planetary henchman who does all the financing and hiring on Earth. Unfortunately, the hooded lunar visitor fails miserably on both fronts: the preparations for the invasion are severely under funded and the hired guns, such as former prison inmate Graber (Clayton Moore), less than competent. But despite these caveats, Commando Cody and his fellow space travelers, Joan Gilbert (Aline Towne) and Ted Richards (William Bakewell), have to suffer through 12 chapters before finally destroying the threat from the planet Moon. Radar Men From the Moon was filmed between October 17, 1951, and November 6, 1951, on a budget of $172,840. Most location filming, not excluding plenty of stock footage from earlier Republic serials, was done at the Iverson Ranch in Chatsworth, California. The serial was followed by a brief television series, Commando Cody: Sky Marshal, which retained Aline Towne as Joan Gilbert but replaced George Wallace and William Bakewell with Judd Holdren and William Schallert. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi

Retik, the Moon Menace is a feature-length abdridgement of the 12-part Republic Serial Radar Men From the Moon. George Wallace stars as Commando Cody, "sky marshal of the universe". Donning his neato helmet and stepping into his wonderful flying suit (complete with knobs on the chest reading "Up" and "Down"), Cody faces the challenge posted by Retik (Roy Barcroft), ruler of the moon. He is aided by two assistants, Joan (Aline Towne) and Ted (William Bakewell), who have a bad habit of being kidnapped every other day. Shuttling between the earth and the moon, Cody scuttles Retik's plans to fashion a deadly atomic weapon out of a substance called Lunarium. Festooned with stock footage from early Republic chapter plays, Radar Men From the Moon was itself extensively cannibalized for the spinoff TV series Commando Cody. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

When the Redskins Rode is set during the French and Indian Wars of the mid-18th century. Jon Hall stars as Prince Lennoc, the son of Delaware-chief Shingiss (Pedro de Cordoba). The English are on the verge of signing an alliance with Shingiss, but their efforts are stymied by alluring French spy Elizabeth (Mary Castle). As part of her strategy, Elizabeth romances Lennoc, who almost falls for her seductive wiles. The film finally delivers the goods actionwise in an exciting climactic battle. Producer Sam Katzman, a man not known for lavish budgets, manages to make When the Redskins Rode seem far more expensive than it really was. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Originally designed for church showings, Messenger of Peace was blown up from 16mm to 35mm and given a brief theatrical distribution early in 1950. Told in flashback, this is the inspirational story of Pastor Armin Ritter (John Beal), whose faith remains unshakable despite the most extreme forms of personal tragedy. Peggy Stewart co-stars as Ritter's ever-supportive wife, while Paul Guilfoyle has a plum role as an alcoholic who "sees the light." Though excessively hokey at times, the film scores on its obvious sincerity. Messenger of Peace was filmed by Roland Reed Productions, the same firm responsible for TV's religious weekly This is the Life. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this entry in the long-running western series, Cisco and Pancho must clear the Kid's name after he is blamed for recent stagecoach robberies. In reality the robber is another disguised as the Kid. Meanwhile Cisco is captured by U.S. Marshals. Fortunately, he escapes them, captures the real crook, and clears his name. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi