David Janssen Movies
Like Clark Gable, David Janssen lost quite a few film roles in the early stages of his career because his ears were "too big" and -- also like Gable-- he did pretty well for himself in the long run. The son of a former beauty queen-cum-stage mother, Janssen was virtually strong-armed into show business, appearing as a child actor on-stage and as a juvenile performer in such films as Swamp Fire (1946). Signed to a Universal contract in 1950, he showed up fleetingly in films both big-budget (To Hell and Back) and small (Francis Goes to West Point). Full stardom eluded Janssen until 1957, when he was personally selected by actor/producer Dick Powell to star in the TV version of Powell's radio series Richard Diamond, Private Detective. Though he didn't exactly become a millionaire (for several years he earned a beggarly 750 dollars per week), Janssen's saleability soared as a result of his three-year Diamond gig, and by 1960 he was earning top billing in such Allied Artists productions as King of the Roaring 20s (1960), in which he played gambler Arnold Rothstein, and Hell to Eternity (1960). In 1963, he landed his signature role of Dr. Richard Kimble on TV's The Fugitive. For the next four years, Janssen/Kimble perambulated throughout the country in search of the "one-armed man" who committed the murder for which Kimble was sentenced to death, all the while keeping one step ahead of his dogged pursuer, Lieutenant Gerard (Barry Morse). The final episode of The Fugitive, telecast in August of 1967, was for many years the highest-rated TV episode in history. There was little Janssen could do to top that, though he continued appearing in such films as Warning Shot (1967) and Green Berets (1969), and starring in such TV series as O'Hara, U.S. Treasury (1971) and Harry O (1974-1976). David Janssen died of a sudden heart attack at age 49, not long after completing his final TV movie, City in Fear (1980). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1980
High Ice is a made-for-television adventure thriller about an Army helicopter rescue team who has to race against time and the elements to save three mountain climbers who are stranded on a small, icy mountain ledge in Washington. Along the way, a lieutenant colonel and a forest ranger engage in a battle of wills, which only makes the rescue more difficult. High Ice has also been shown with the title Challenge of the High Ice. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- 1980
In his last appearance before the cameras, David Janssen plays an alcoholic journalist desperate for a comeback. Janssen hitches his star to ruthless publisher Robert Vaughn, who is exploiting a rash of brutal murders to sell papers. The danger here is that the unknown serial killer, who preys upon beautiful young women, is rapidly becoming a media celebrity--and may be prompted to continue killing just to see his name in print. Beyond its own potential for sensationalism, City in Fear raises several provocative questions about the responsibility (and culpability) of the press. For its March 30, 1980 premiere, City in Fear was given a two hour and fifty minute timeslot. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
An Anglo-American co-production, S.O.S. Titanic is a costly, 150-minute reenactment of the infamous sea disaster of 1912. Heading the cast is David Janssen as millionaire John Jacob Astor, who went down with the Titanic, and Cloris Leachman as raucous Denver dowager Molly Brown, who didn't (for the record, Leachman had previously played Brown on a 1957 episode of the TV anthology Telephone Time). Third-billed is Susan Saint James as fictional passenger Leigh Goodwin, who carries most of the dramatic load. Written by Hallmark Hall of Fame veteran James Costigan, the made-for-television S.O.S. Titanic premiered September 23, 1979. In subsequent network and syndicated showings, the film was pared down to 102 minutes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1979
Because the producers couldn't get clearance to film on the real Golden Gate bridge, The Golden Gate Murders is enacted upon a distressingly unconvincing studio mock-up. The film itself is far better than its backdrop: David Janssen stars as a detective investigating the supposed suicide of a priest. Susannah York portrays a nun who is anxious to save the priest's immortal soul by proving that his fatal plunge into San Francisco Bay was murder, not suicide. A curious, chaste romance develops between cop and nun, which turns out to be more interesting at times than the case at hand. Golden Gate Murders was released theatrically as Specter on the Bridge. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1978
Word is about the newly discovered text that is allegedly written by the younger brother of Jesus Christ. It the document is genuine, it would throw the world's theological community into chaos. David Janssen plays an archaeologist who travels to Italy to verify the document's origins. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
The longest (26-1/2 hours), most expensive ($25 million) and most complicated (four directors, five producers, five cinematographers, almost 100 speaking parts, several hundred extras) project made for television up to that time, Centennial was shown in two- and three-hour installments over a period of four months. An adaptation of James Michener's best-selling novel, it told the story of the settling of the American West by looking at the founding of the fictional town of Centennial, Colorado, from the settling of the area in the late 18th century to the present. Emmy-nominated for film editing and art direction, it boasts of sterling performances from Richard Chamberlain as frontiersman Alexander McKeag, Robert Conrad as the French-Canadian trapper Pasquinel, and a surprisingly powerful performance from former football star Alex Karras as compassionate but iron-willed immigrant farmer Hans Brumbaugh. ~ Brian Gusse, All Movie Guide
- 1978
In this suspenseful drama, an angry husband hatches an ingenious plot to get his avaricious wife and the pesky detective she has hired out of his life. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1977
In this crime drama, a watch commander becomes a father figure to the men he oversees. He helps them in all aspects, professional and personal, of their lives. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1977
We are told time and again in this 1977 TV movie that star David Janssen is the "sensitive, passionate man" of the title. But when Janssen, playing an aerospace engineer who loses his job, crawls into the booze bottle, there's little evidence that he's anything more than aloof and self-pitying. Angie Dickinson all but dons a wing and halo as Janssen's incredibly forgiving and understanding wife. The only people we truly care about in this film are the couple's children, played with a pleasing lack of affectation by Todd Lookinland and Justin Randi. As superficial as its title, A Sensitive, Passionate Man seems to argue that no matter how much emotional damage you incur, it's all OK if your family adores you. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
Richard Harris dodges bullets from stem to stern in this middling thriller, based on a novel by Alistair MacLean. The plot concerns high-sea hijinks aboard the Caribbean Star, a combination cargo ship and floating casino. In the midst of the high rollers and spinning roulette wheels appears Luis Carreras (John Vernon), an amoral mercenary who hijacks the ship. Taking his marching orders from a mysterious mastermind, he installs an atomic device mid-ship, holding both the passengers and the bomb hostage, hoping to exchange them for the gold bullion of an U.S. Treasury ship. All seems to be going according to Luis's plan until First Officer John Carter (Richard Harris), the attractive Susan Beresford (Ann Turkel), and Dr. Marston (Gordon Jackson) arrive to put a crimp in Luis's escapade. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Harris, Ann Turkel, (more)
- 1976
Mayday at 40,000 Feet is a regulation crisis-in-the-air TV movie distinguished by the accomplished direction of Robert (Hill Street Blues) Butler. David Janssen pilots a 747 chock full of guest stars, battling a snowstorm in order to find his way back to the airport. The plane develops engine trouble, threatening to dump its celebrity cargo in the icy drink. Adding to Janssen's growing list of problems is a maniac who goes on a shooting rampage in the first-class section. It's doubtful that anyone on November 12, 1976 stayed tuned to Mayday at 40,000 Feet upon discovering that its competition on another network was the John Travolta vehicle The Boy in the Plastic Bubble. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1976
An Americanized version of Truffaut's The Wild Child, this drama centers on the attempts of a behavioral psychologist to educate a boy, raised in the wilds by dogs, and teach him how to function in society. This film spawned a brief television series, Lucan. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1974
David Janssen stars as private eye Harry Orwell in the made-for-TV Smile, Jenny, You're Dead. Investigating the murder of his friend's son-in-law, Harry sizes up the dead man's wife Jenny (Andrea Marcovicci) as the most likely suspect. The actual killer--and we're really not giving anything away here--is Zalman King, a psycho photographer who carries a torch for Jenny. There's a particularly exciting rooftop climax in this one, made doubly so by Andrea Marcovicci's depiction of stark, raw, terror. First telecast February 3, 1974, Smile, Jenny, You're Dead served as the 72-minute pilot for the David Janssen TV series Harry O. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1974
In this s-s-suspenseful drama, a submarine carrying a load of poisonous snakes accidentally wedges itself amidst the rocks near the bottom of the sea. Now the crew must somehow avoid the unwanted slitherers and manage to extricate themselves. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1973
Though set in Wyoming, Pioneer Women was lensed in the unspoiled wilderness of Alberta, Canada. Joanna Pettet plays the title role, one of many Wyoming homesteaders of the post-Civil War era. Joanna endures the death of her husband (William Shatner), then must decide whether or not to make a go of her new home with only the help of her children. The supporting cast is dotted with past and future TV series stars: The Fugitive's David Janssen, Werewolf's Lance LeGault, and Mad About You's Helen Hunt, here cast as Pettet's 10-year-old daughter. Made for television, Pioneer Woman first aired December 19, 1973. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joanna Pettet, William Shatner, (more)
- 1973
Harry Walker (David Janssen) is a helicopter traffic reporter in Salt Lake City who's never quite gotten over the time he spent flying during World War II -- a former combat pilot, he sees the world passing him by amid complacency and his own life reduced to boredom and bittersweet nostalgia for the best of times, when he was working for a cause that mattered (and there were causes that mattered). He chances on a brutal armored car robbery and helps the police give chase, and suddenly finds himself in the thick of the action when the robbers -- who have taken a woman hostage -- switch from a getaway car to a chopper. And when the getaway chopper tries to ram him, that's all it takes to get Walker into a cross-country aerial pursuit into the Utah desert in a duel to the death. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
- 1973
When an attempt is made on his life, a private detective must retire due to the bullet lodged in his back. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1973
This pilot film for the TV series Harry-O was originally telecast under the title Smile, Jenny, You're Dead. David Janssen plays Harry Orwell, a seedy private eye investigating the murder of his friend's son-in-law. The principal suspect is the victim's wife Jenny (Andrea Marcovicci), a photographer's model. Since this is less a mystery than a suspense story, it isn't unfair to reveal that the real killer is a looney photographer (Zalman King, later a prolific producer of film erotica!), who is in love with Jenny and insanely jealous of anyone who gets in his way. The climax takes place on the roof of a high-rise. Guess what happens. The Harry-O series proper debuted in the fall of 1974, lasting two seasons. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1973
When the blame of murder is placed on his friend, a private detective attempts to clear his reputation in a small cattle community. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1973
Actually, Hijack has nothing to do with the Wild Blue Yonder: instead, the story involves two truckers (David Janssen, Keenan Wynn) hauling a mysterious cargo from LA to Houston. The U.S. government won't tell our heroes what they're carrying in their eight-wheeler, but someone knows what it is, and that someone is well armed and very dangerous. Hijack was first broadcast September 26, 1973, while most of the country was watching a Bob Hope special on a competing network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1972
The Longest Night is a harrowing made-for-TV movie based on a real-life kidnapping. Sallie Shockley is abducted from the home of her parents and held for ransom. Her captors entomb her in a box buried several feet underground, with an air hose as her only conduit to the outside world. As the police close in on the kidnappers and search for the girl, she desperately tries to stave off hysteria and to prevent the cutting off of her air supply. She is rescued comparatively early in the storyline, which then switches to the trackdown of the culprits. The Longest Night effectively conveys the claustrophobic atmosphere of the story, even though it runs out of gas before the end. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Filmed for television, this story concerns a series of killings in the Louisiana bayou. The sheriff on the case believes that a werewolf is behind the murders. The film was adapted from a book by Leslie H. Whitten. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
