Russell Johnson Movies

The many emotional scars left by South Africa's history of institutionalized racism come under the microscope in this drama. As South Africa comes to terms with the legacy of apartheid, their government has created the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, in which the perpetrators of racial violence and injustice must come face to face with their victims if they are to be forgiven for their crimes. Langston Whitfield (Samuel L. Jackson) is an African-American journalist who is assigned to cover these hearings by The Washington Post; Whitfield doubts the efficacy of this process, and sets out to interview Col. De Jager (Brendan Gleeson), a notorious former officer of the South African police who was famous for his violence against blacks in order to put this method to the test. While in South Africa, Whitfield meets Anna Malan (Juliette Binoche), an Afrikaner poet who is covering the hearing for a radio station and is both appalled and disturbed by the details of the violence inflicted against her countrymen. After striking up a friendship, Whitfield and Malan become romantically involved as they try to come to terms with their feelings about what they've learned. Also screened under the title Country of My Skull, In My Country was adapted from a book by South African author Antjie Krog. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

In the process of trying to rediscover her identity, a young amnesiac leads herself and her employer on an investigation into her past that leads them into danger. ~ Tana Hobart, Rovi

ALF's fondness for the old sitcom Gilligan's Island has turned into an obsession, culminating with ALF reconstructing the seven castaways' familiar lagoon in the Tanners' backyard. This inevitably leads to a dream sequence in which ALF meets the Gilligan's Island cast--and learns the hard way that there's a wide gap between sitcom life and real life. Recreating their roles as Gilligan, The Skipper, The Professor and Mary Ann are Bob Denver, Alan Hale Jr., Russell Johnson and Dawn Wells). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In the first episode of a two-part story, Louise (Isabel Sanford) books George (Sherman Hemsley), Florence (Marla Gibbs), and herself on a murder-mystery cruise ship. To get a discount, George pretends to be a mystery novelist, just like the rest of the passengers. This pose may well prove to be his undoing when a genuine murder apparently occurs. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The seven stranded castaways find comical chaos when an insane scientist, his trusty sidekick and the title basketball tricksters, playing robots visit their tropic island nest in this third in a series of made-for-television films based on the enduring early '60s sitcom. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Robert Gribbin stars as Howard, a dry cleaning delivery van driver and pampered mama's boy who goes over the deep end in this violent exploitation thriller. Howard is mild-mannered and slightly simple-minded, with a habit of picking up teenage hitchhikers while driving his delivery routes. Sometimes the girls admit to being runaways, and if they claim to hate their mothers it drives Howard into a violent frenzy; his sister ran away from home years ago and was never heard from again, causing his desperate, addled mother to tighten her hold on him. Howard never remembers raping his victims or strangling them with wire coat hangers, though his boss does notice missed deliveries and late arrivals. He becomes increasingly careless during these violent fits, strewing clues that the police are unable to piece together. The crime spree is investigated by Captain Shaw (Russell Johnson), who hopes that this "mental case" doesn't turn out to be another Zodiac Killer. Howard starts feeling sick and uneasy but can't understand why, suffering nightmares and headaches. His job is in jeopardy and the stress overwhelms him, so when he picks up an 11-year-old girl alone on the interstate, he makes a final mistake. ~ Fred Beldin, Rovi

Based on a book by John C. Fuller, the made-for-TV Ghost of Flight 401 is predicated on the "actual events" surrounding a real-life plane crash. In December of 1972, Flight 401 nose-dived into the Florida Everglades, killing its flight officer (played herein by Ernest Borgnine). Though damaged beyond repair, the plane is cannibalized for its parts, which are recycled to newly built aircraft. On each of these new planes, it is reported that the ghost of 401's flight officer has made unexpected appearances, to warn the crews of impending disasters. OoooOOOOOOoooooooo..... Those who dared first watched The Ghost of Flight 401 on February 18, 1978. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Star Gregory Peck went into MacArthur disliking the title character that he was slated to play, but emerged from the experience with a deeper understanding and respect for this complex historical figure. The film is framed in flashback, with an octogenarian General
Douglas MacArthur (Peck) making his final address before his alma mater of West Point. We flash back to the fall of Corregidor in 1942, with MacArthur promising "I shall return" to the beleaguered (and eventually imprisoned) American and Filipino troops. The story follows MacArthur's subsequent victories in the South Pacific, occasionally pausing to show us the General's omnipresent sense of "showmanship" (e.g. his wading ashore on the beaches of the Philippines for the benefit of the newsreel cameras). The greater part of the film involves MacArthur's attempts to restore dignity to the defeated postwar Japan, and to keep the Russian Communists from overtaking the orient as they had Eastern Europe. MacArthur is eventually fired from his post by President Truman after the general defies orders during the Korean conflict. MacArthur was intended as Universal's "answer" to 20th Century-Fox's enormously successful Patton (1970), but box-office returns were disappointing. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The Queen is a luxury cruise ship, "played" by the Queen Mary in this made-for-TV thriller. The villain has it in for one of the ship's millionaire passengers. Accordingly, he (or she-we're not telling) plans to destroy the vessel and everyone on board. The producer of this all-star disasterfest was-drum roll, please-Irwin Allen. TV movie "regulars" John Gay and David Lowell Rich served as scripter and director, respectively, for Adventures of the Queen, which first sailed into American homes on February 14, 1975. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rule of thumb: if David Lowell Rich directed it, it's probably a TV movie. Beg, Borrow or Steal stars Mike Connors, Michael Cole and Kent McCord as three ex-cops, disabled while on duty. Having trouble finding regular work, the three men team up to steal a valuable statue from a museum. Connors has no legs, Cole no hands, and McCord is blind: but when they're working together, they're a lean mean stealing machine. Beg, Borrow or Steal is as tasteless as it sounds, but at least it has the novelty of three popular TV detective-show stars pooling their resources on the opposite side of the law. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Featuring a smorgasbord of has-beens and never-weres only a Love Boat casting director could love, this silly '70s movie-of-the-week involves a demonically-possessed Druid artifact from an English monastery coming to supernatural life aboard a transatlantic airline flight, taking control of one of the passengers, and causing lots of made-for-TV mayhem. Panicked personnel include William Shatner as a besotted former priest, Buddy Ebsen as a boisterous tycoon and Chuck Connors as the gung-ho pilot. Even Gilligan's Island alum Russell Johnson is along for the ride. Shatner's performance falls a bit short of his eye-popping histrionics as another terrorized air traveler on an episode of The Twilight Zone. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi

Posing as a magazine writer, Erskine (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) dogs the trail of celebrated Parisian ballet dancer Danielle Chabrol (Claudine Longet), whom the Feds suspect of being a Communist spy. At present, Danielle is a guest at the Hawaiian estate of retired US diplomat Eric Reeverson (Michael Rennie). Her plan is to romance Reeverson and extract some top-secret information, which she will then relay to her Hawaiian contact James Kellogg (Russell Johnson)--who, conveniently, is Reeverson's next-door neighbor. But this scheme takes a deadly turn when Reeverson's son Glen (played by a young Harrison Ford) falls for Danielle himself. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Season three of Gilligan's Island finds those seven stranded castaways still marooned on a tropical island, still making the best of things (it's an uphill climb!), and still seeking out any and all methods of escape. The only change during the third season is a cosmetic one; now, most of the 30 episodes open with a pre-credits "teaser," setting up the episode's premise -- and of course, re-introducing Gilligan (Bob Denver), the Skipper (Alan Hale Jr.), Mr. and Mrs. Howell (Jim Backus, Natalie Schafer), Ginger (Tina Louise), Mary Ann (Dawn Wells), and the Professor (Russell Johnson). Fans of the series consider this season the best ever, with some truly unforgettable episodes. Among these are "All About Eva," featuring Tina Louise in a dual role as Ginger and her drab lookalike Eva Grubb, and "The Second Ginger Grant," in which a bump on the head causes Mary Ann to take on the voice and personality of Ginger (a true tour de force for the talented Dawn Wells). Perhaps the best episode of the lot is "The Producer," guest-starring Phil Silvers as Hollywood mogul Harold Hecuba, who takes over production of the castaway's own musical version of Hamlet -- and plays all the parts in the process! Other noteworthy guest performers this season include John McGiver as eccentric butterfly collector Lord Waterford, Rory Calhoun as crazed big-game hunter Jonathan Kincaid, Strother Martin as befuddled "take-a-dare" game contestant George Barkley, Don Rickles as inept kidnapper Norbert Wiley, and Vito Scotti in a return engagement as mad scientist Dr. Boris Balinkoff. ~ Rovi