Byron Keith Movies
Character actor Byron Keith's movie career spanned over two decades. He made his film debut in The Stranger (1946). Keith also worked on television; lovers of the campy '60s series Batman may remember him for playing Mayor Linseed. Other television appearances include Bewitched, 77 Sunset Strip, and The Invaders. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide- 1973
While off duty, Pete Malloy (Martin Milner) stops a robbery in progress and shoots down a holdup man who turns out to be unarmed. When the man later dies, Pete is suspended pending a departmental investigation--and it's as nerve-wracking a procedure as the shooting itself. This episode marks one of the few on-camera appearances by Shaaron Claridge, normally heard but not seen as Rampart's ubiquitous police dispatcher ("One Adam-12...One Adam-12...") ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1971
Generally cast as a villain in such series as the F.B.I., Richard Kiley is herein seen as the victim. Kidnapped by three homicidal extortionists, pediatrician Herbert Barth (Kiley) manages to break free and escapes into the wilderness. The rest of the episode is a variation on the old "Most Dangerous Game" theme, as Barth is hunted down like an animal by expert marksman James Vaughn (Jerry Ayres). This episode was filmed on location in the forests of Utah and Washington State. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1970
"One Adam-12. One Adam 12". That's the call which summons Officers Reed (Kent McCord) and Malloy (Martin Milner) to a daunting array of tense situations in tonight's episode. The case load ranges from freeing an elderly couple from a wall safe, to pursuing a gang of robbers--a task that finds the two officers joining forces with an elite police helicopter squad. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1969
- PG
In this western comedy, a bogus evangelist and his assistant travel to the town of Friendly and endeavor to rob the West's purportedly most unrobbable bank. Unfortunately, they are not the only bandits planning to rob the bank. Their rivals in robbery include a Mexican bandido and his dullard son. A gunman and his assistant also want to attempt a heist. To make things even more confusing, a Texas Ranger and his six Chinese-American G-men pose as laundrymen to investigate a crooked mayor. They all converge on Friendly at the same time and chaos ensues when they meet. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Zero Mostel, Kim Novak, (more)
- 1968
Racketeer Lewis Parma (Vincent Gardenia) intends to take control of the food distribution industry and pose exorbitant consumer prices. To destroy Parma, the IMF agents must extract information from the gang leader's most trusted lieutenant, a man named Ducho (Luke Askew). The plan hinges upon a terrifyingly realistic gas-chamber execution--with Rollin as the condemned man. Written by William Read Woodfield and Allen Balter, "The Execution" originally aired November 10 1968. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Graves, Barbara Bain, (more)
- 1967
The FBI's search for escaped confict Charles Nyack (Scott Marlowe) is stymied by a massive power blackout. Meanwhile, Nyack commits murder in his efforts to cover his tracks. Unless Inspector Erskine (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) can (literally!) shed light on the case, Nyack's next victim will be Virginia Lambeth (Diana Hyland), the woman who had originally turned him over to the authorities. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
In one of those bizarre twists of fate so beloved by the writers of The Fugitive, both Richard Kimble (David Janssen) and the elusive "one-armed man" Fred Johnson (Bill Raisch) are seriously injured in an explosion--and both end up in the same hospital. Temporarily blinded in the blast, Kimble must rely on young freelance photographer Howey's Keever (Tim Considine) to help him evade arrest long enough to bring Johnson to justice. But Kimble's efforts may come to naught thanks to Howey's uncle, who is all for turning the fugitive over to the police--thus allowing the murderous Johnson to escape scot-free again. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1964
Christopher Lee is sublimely typecast as Karl Jorla, a European horror film star who has arrived in Hollywood to make his first American picture. But Jorla has no intention of drawing attention to himself; he not only keeps his production schedule secret, but he also refuses to let anyone know where he is living during his Hollywood stay. The reason? Jorla has run afoul of a cult of devil worshippers, who fear that he intends to expose them in his upcoming film -- and who will stop at nothing to prevent this. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Christopher Lee, Gia Scala, (more)
- 1964
Jimmy Mathers, younger brother of Leave It to Beaver star Jerry Mathers, appears on this episode. Samantha decides to offer a helping hand when insecure ten-year-old Marshall Burns (Mathers) tries out for the neighborhood league baseball team. Unfortunately, Sam's "assistance" consists largely of witchcraft -- and as usual, she has to cook up a story to hide the fact that she possesses magical powers. Also appearing is another 1960s TV icon, June Lockhart, as Marshall's overproctective mother. Written by Barbara Avedon, "Little Pitchers Have Big Ears" first aired on October 22, 1964. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York, (more)
- 1955
The best thing that can be said about Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops is that it's better than the team's previous outing Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Set in 1912, the film casts Bud Abbott and Lou Costello as a couple of New Yorkers who are swindled out of their life savings by a crooked lout (Fred Clark). Pursuing the villain to Hollywood, the boys discover that the double-dealer is now posing as an autocratic Russian film director. To put A&C out of the way, the crook and his partner in crime (Lynn Bari) hire the boys as stunt men, intending to kill them off at the first opportunity. But the comic duo save the day when they enlist the aid of the Keystone Kops in capturing the fleeing villain, who has absconded with the studio payroll. Pretty dull stuff for most of its 78 minutes, Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops finally comes to life during the climactic chase, which is every bit as funny and thrilling as anything put together in the silent era. Though the film is rife with anachronisms, a measure of authenticity is achieved by such silent-era guest stars as Mack Sennett (who gets to throw a pie at Costello), Heinie Conklin, Herold Goodwyn and Hank Mann. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, (more)
- 1952
Not so much produced as stitched together, The Black Lash was ostensibly a sequel, with plenty of stock footage, to Frontier Revenge (1948). Duce Rago (Ray Bennett), whom Marshal (Al "Lash" LaRue) had shipped off to prison in the earlier adventure, is back but his stagecoach and train robberies leave a bit to be desired due to the stupidity of the hired help. Lawyer Bill Leonard (Byron Keith) suggests that they get some "heavy artillery," meaning good ol' Lash, who apparently was so disgusted with Rago only receiving a slap on the wrist for his previous crimes that he abandoned law enforcement for good. Naturally, our black-clad hero is working undercover with Cattlemen's Association agent Lem Woodruff (Kermit Maynard) and this time he manages to send Duce up the river for more than six months. Bennett, Sarah Padden, and Jim Bannon all repeated their roles from the earlier film; actually, the latter was apparently unavailable and a double was rather noticeably employed in all the new footage. Leading lady Peggy Stewart was also back, but her character had changed from an undercover agent in Frontier Revenge to a villainess in the return engagement. (Both Stewart and Ray Bennett visibly age from one scene to another.) Walter Greene's intrusive score is kept at a high pitch throughout even though not much is happening onscreen and the film's running time is stretched to an interminable length with seemingly endless chases on horseback, a sure sign of economy in scripting and execution. The fact that producers Ron Ormond and June Carr (Mrs. Ormond) stretched the Lash LaRue series well beyond the saturation point can only be explained by the popularity of LaRue's sidekick, Al St. John, whose Fuzzy Q. Jones character proved a perennial favorite with the small fry. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lash LaRue, Fuzzy St. John, (more)
- 1951
Minister Sterling Hayden is able to tend to the needs of his flock, but can do nothing for his alcoholic wife. She kills herself, whereupon the anguished minister turns his back on his calling. He ends up a skid-row derelict and is thrown into the drunk tank. An elderly preacher (Ludwig Donath) takes it upon himself to regenerate the dissipated Hayden. He succeeds with the help of his blind daughter (Viveca Lindfors), who falls in love with the ex-minister. Journey Into Light unfortunately compromises its compelling storyline by moving at a snail's pace. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sterling Hayden, Viveca Lindfors, (more)
- 1951
The genesis for Queen for a Day was the Dorothy Parker short story Horsie, all about a homely woman who takes a job as a nanny in the household of a selfish, insensitive couple. Months later, the husband receives a gift of an electric razor from "Horsie," out of gratitude for his kindnesses -- kindnesses which, of course, he never consciously extended. "Horsie" ended up as one of three short stories adapted to film by producer Robert Stillman in 1951. The unifying theme of the film was that each of the three female protagonists were contestants on the TV series Queen for a Day. You may remember that this long-running program was hosted by Jack Bailey, who on a daily basis selected one of three deserving women to be the recipient of fabulous prizes, the decision, which was made by the audience (there was an "applause meter" on the set), was predicated upon which of the three ladies had the saddest or most fascinating life story to tell. In addition to "Horsie," aka Miss Wilmarth (Edith Meiser), the other contestants in the film are Phyllis Avery and Kasia Orzazewski. Avery stars in the vignette titled "The Gossamer World," based on a John Answorth story, this episode concerns Avery's son Rudy Lee, a victim of polio. Orzazewski figures into the Faith Baldwyn story "High Diver," wherein she plays the immigrant mother of a college-bound boy (Adam Williams) who takes a job at a carnival to make ends meet. Queen for a Day was originally released as Horsie, until it was decided that the TV series' title was more saleable. (It wasn't, despite an aggressive ad campaign conducted on the Queen for a Day television program.) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Phyllis Avery, Darren McGavin, (more)
- 1950
With Dallas, Gary Cooper revived his long-dormant association with westerns. Cooper plays ex-Confederate officer Blayde Hollister, who rides into Dallas in search of the men who killed his family and stole his land. Because he is considered to be an outlaw by the authorities, Hollister is compelled to switch identities with U.S. marshal Martin Wetherby (Leif Erickson). This ruse requires Hollister to explain his plan to Wetherby's lady friend, Tonia Robles (Ruth Roman). One by one, Hollister gets rid of the men responsible for the murders of his loved ones. The most formidable of his enemies, Will Marlow (Raymond Massey), proves to be a bit too clever to fall into Hollister's trap...at least until Marlow shows his hand in the final scene. There's more talk than action in Dallas, but Gary Cooper's laconic performance holds the audience's interest throughout. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Cooper, Ruth Roman, (more)
The Stranger is often considered Orson Welles' most "traditional" Hollywood-style directorial effort. Welles plays a college professor named Charles Rankin, who lives in a pastoral Connecticut town with his lovely wife Mary (Loretta Young). One afternoon, an extremely nervous German gentleman named Meineke (Konstantin Shayne) arrives in town. Professor Rankin seems disturbed--but not unduly so--by Meineke's presence. He invites the stranger for a walk in the woods, and as they journey farther and farther away from the center of town, we learn that kindly professor Rankin is actually notorious Nazi war criminal Franz Kindler. Conscience-stricken by his own genocidal wartime activities, Meineke has come to town to beg his ex-superior Kindler to give himself up. The professor responds by brutally murdering his old associate. If Kindler believes himself safe--and he has every reason to do so, since no one in town, especially Mary, has any inkling of his previous life--he will change his mind in a hurry when mild-mannered war crimes commissioner Wilson (Edward G. Robinson) pays a visit, posing as an antiques dealer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Orson Welles, Edward G. Robinson, (more)
