Douglas Kennedy Movies
American general-purpose actor Douglas Kennedy attended Deerfield Academy before trying his luck in Hollywood, using both his own name and his studio-imposed name Keith Douglas. He was able to secure contract-player status, first at Paramount and later at Warner Bros. Kennedy's Paramount years weren't what one could call distinguished, consisting mainly of unbilled bits (The Ghost Breakers [1940]) and supporting roles way down the cast list (Northwest Mounted Police [1940]); possibly he was handicapped by his close resemblance to Paramount leading man Fred MacMurray. Warner Bros., which picked up Kennedy after his war service with the OSS and Army Intelligence, gave the actor some better breaks with secondary roles in such A pictures as Nora Prentiss (1947), Dark Passage (1948), and The Adventures of Don Juan (1949). Still, Kennedy did not fill a role as much as he filled the room in the company of bigger stars. Chances are film buffs would have forgotten Kennedy altogether had it not been for his frequent appearances in such horror/fantasy features as Invaders from Mars (1953), The Alligator People (1959) and The Amazing Transparent Man (1960), playing the title role in the latter. Douglas Kennedy gain a modicum of fame and a fan following for his starring role in the well-circulated TV western series Steve Donovan, Western Marshal, which was filmed in 1952 and still posting a profit into the '60s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1968
National Intelligence Agent Dan Street (Richard Egan) is on the trail of some stolen laser rubies. It is assumed the agents will come after the raygun itself for their evil purposes. Count Romano (Michael Ansara) is the swimsuit-import mogul who tries to keep his head from going under while working for the enemy agents. The key to the mystery lies with Dutch (John Ericson), a Korean War veteran who fell into the hands of the brainwashing communists. Patricia Owens is Dan's love interest in this plodding suspense film. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Egan, Patricia Owens, (more)
- 1968
On trial for murder, Hoss Cartwright may well be sent to the gallows on circumstantial evidence. Worse still, Hoss is suffering from amnesia, and doesn't know if he is guilty or innocent. The only person willing to take Hoss' case is legendary Sacramento defense attorney Barney Sturgess (Albert Dekker)-who is now the town drunk. First telecast on May 12, 1968-seven days after the mysterious, sordid and still-unsolved death of guest star Albert Dekker-"The Bottle Fighter" was written by John Hawkins, Colin Mackenzie and S.H. Barnett. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1968
The must-be-seen-to-be-believed Fastest Guitar Alive offers singer Roy Orbison in his one and only movie starring role. Orbison plays Johnny Banner, a Confederate Spy who keeps a rifle hidden in his guitar. While on an espionage mission with partner Steve (Sammy Jackson), Johnny discovers that the war is over, and that now he and Steve are considered outlaws. Their many subsequent adventures include their involvement with dance-hall gals Flo (Maggie Pierce, co-star of the infamous TVer My Mother the Car) and Sue (Joan Freeman). Indicative of the general tone of seriousness in this film is the presence of veteran comedian Ben Lessy as a most urban-looking Indian. Though silly in the extreme, Fastest Guitar Alive is at least superficially better than most of the youth-oriented Sam Katzman productions of the period. And besides, you wouldn't want to pass up an opportunity to see Roy Orbison in his performing prime. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roy Orbison, Sammy Jackson, (more)
- 1967
The ninth season of Bonanza began on September 17, 1967 with the episode titled "Second Chance". Ben Cartwright joins an army patrol to rescue his sons Hoss and Joe, who are presently at the mercy of renegade Indians. The boys are pinned down with a wagon party, consisting almost exclusively of society's outcasts: A group of thieves, two women of checkered reputation, a dying man, and a coward (appropriately enough, this episode went into production as "The Losers"). Also in the cast are James Gregory as Mulvaney, Bettye Ackerman as Estelle, Joe De Santis as Dawson, Douglas Kennedy as Frazier, Zane Zachery as Anna, and Ken Drake as Breck. Written by John Hawkins and Paul Sneider, "Second Chance" was one of several "classic" episodes rebroadcast during the Spring and Summer of 1972. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1967
In this adventure, a commercial plane crashes in a remote South American jungle. All but one of the passengers survive. Unfortunately, he was the sheriff in charge of taking a dangerous criminal to the executioner. During the excitement of the crash, the prisoner killed the lawman. Among the other survivors is a famous singer, a washed-up funnyman, a mentally ill teacher, and a writer looking for his sister who married a missionary and is now living in the jungle. Amazingly, she is rumored to live fairly close to the crash sight. The survivors manage to make it to the isolated village where she resides. There the writer learns that his sister's husband has gone insane and that she is dead. The megalomaniacal missionary now believes himself king of the natives and is preparing the author and a few others to become human sacrifices when a neighboring tribe intervenes and saves them. The amiable natives then take the survivors back to the wreckage where navy rescue helicopters are preparing to land. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Egan, Harry Guardino, (more)
- 1966
Future movie-studio executive Tony Bill is cast as halfbreed Charlie Two, who has sworn to killi the Cartwrights to avenge the hanging of his father Charlie Monahan. Hoping to dissuade Charlie, Joe Cartwright adopts an alias and accompanies the boy on his journeys. In the course of events, the two men find that they have a lot more in common than meets the eye. First broadcast on November 20, 1966, "The Oath" was written by Sidney Ellis. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1965
Former child star Eddie Hodges is cast as Skeeter Dexter, who has the acute ability to communicate with animals. After releasing the furry victims of the traps set by his drunken lout of a stepfather, Skeeter is soundly beaten. Rescued from his stepdad's wrath by Hoss Cartwright, the boy is taken to the Ponderosa, where he forms a strong bond with veterinarian Dr. Woods (Karl Swenson). Jacqueline Scott and Douglas Kennedy also appear in this episode, which was written by William Blinn and Suzanne Clauser. "A Natural Wizard" originally aired on December 12, 1965. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1965
In her third and final Perry Mason appearance, Fay Wray is incongruously cast as voodoo dancer Mignon Germaine, the mother of DA Hamilton Burger's new assistant Larry (played by future talkshow host Gary Collins). Though Burger (William Talman) tries to warn Larry that the young man's girlfriend Carina (Karen Steele) is no good, Larry doesn't listen--and as a result, he finds himself the in the middle of a nasty conflict-of-interest situation which threatens to destroy his career. Holding Carina responsible for Larry's plight, Mignon places a voodoo curse on the girl's head. . .but when Carina ultimately dies, it is Larry who is charged with the murder. Though forced to prosecute his luckless assistant, Burger secretly hopes that his "friendly enemy" Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) can ultimately save the day. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
In Volume 47 of a collection culled from the 1963-1965 science fiction anthology television series, a computerized form of space travel is discovered. The hitch: a human brain is required before the system can be activated. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- 1961
The Woolner Brothers, ever on the cutting edge of cinema with rank imitations of popular hits, strike again with Flight of the Lost Balloon. In response to the upcoming release of Mysterious Island in 1961, the Woolners put together this cheapjack tale which, like Island, is partially set in a flying balloon. Doctor Faraday (Marshall Thompson) is an American adventurer living in Africa, who is sent to locate a scientist, missing since his plane went down in the wilderness. Since the area is inaccessible by motor flight, Faraday mans his balloon and takes off. Unfortunately, the film never does. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mala Powers, Marshall Thompson, (more)
This appallingly bad sci-fi film about an invisible bank-robber (Douglas Kennedy) was shot back-to-back with Beyond the Time Barrier on the grounds of the Texas State Fair in Dallas. The usual cackling and crime is included, most of which was done better in The Invisible Man. Marguerite Chapman is the film's one bright spot as Kennedy's lowlife girlfriend, but the rest of the characters are annoying and unsympathetic. Unpleasant, downbeat, and badly produced, it is hard to see the appeal of this one, even for genre completists. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Oilman Charles Houston (Byron Palmer) might have gotten away with murdering his wife had he not be "captured" on film by cagey wildlife photographer Robert Byrd (Harry Jackson). Before long, Houston is being blackmailed, and to add to his problems his sister-in-law Paula (Lori March) has been depleting his oil profits. It could be that Paula is also mixed up with blackmail--but before anything else can be revealed, Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) must save Paula from the gas chamber after she is discovered in a locked room with Houston's corpse! Watch for a young, pre-Mission: Impossible Barbara Bain in a key supporting role. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Paladin (Richard Boone) returns to his hotel room to find the dead body of his friend Charlie Blackburn. Strapping the murder victim to his horse, Paladin returns Charlie to his home town in the middle of timber country. It soons becomes obvious that no one in town is willing to claim the body--and it is increasingly apparent that the solution to Charlie's murder rests with ruthless timber baron Win Loring (Douglas Kennedy) and his psychopathic son Keith (Hampton Fancher). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1959
A routine western with a classic theme, the "lone Texan" of the title is Clint Banister (Willard Parker) who finds trouble at home when he returns after serving in the Union Army during the Civil War. Given his military history, he is hardly welcomed with open arms. In addition to the animosity of his former friends, he has to face an even more difficult issue. His lawless brother Greg (Grant Williams) is the town's sheriff, busy terrorizing the citizens, aided and abetted by his three chief deputies. Clint has no choice but to go against his brother, in spite of their family relationship and the town's attitude toward him. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Willard Parker, Grant Williams, (more)
A confused horror yarn set in the Deep South, Alligator People stars Richard Crane as a husband who becomes accidently separated from his new wife (Beverly Garland) during a train ride. She tracks him down to the swamplands surrounding his family mansion. Her reunion with her husband is tarnished by the fact that he's been partially transformed into an alligator! This is the handiwork of doctor George MacReady, who's been conducting curious experiments with gators and humans. Garland must figure out a way to save her mutated husband from both the scientist and a drunken alligator hunter (Lon Chaney Jr.). The story is told in flashback, as psychiatrists try to figure out what has driven Garland insane. The Alligator People was the last film directed by Roy Del Ruth, light years away from his glory days at Warner Bros. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Beverly Garland, George Macready, (more)
- 1959
Based on a classic exercise in existentialism by Ambrose Bierce, this episode is set during the Civil War. Condemned to death for his anti-Union sabotage activities, Southern gentleman Peyton Farquhar (Ronald Howard) is sentenced to be hanged from Owl Creek Bridge. Just as he plunges off the bridge, the noose miraculously breaks, and Farquhar is able to make a dash for freedom. While escaping his captors, Farquhar journeys through some mighty strange country, and meets some mighty strange people -- including his former slave Josh (Juano Hernandez), who is supposed to be dead. Fans of "fantastic" television will recall that a 1962 theatrical short-subject version of An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, filmed in France by director Robert Enrico, was adapted as a 1964 episode of The Twilight Zone. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1959
Bart (Jack Kelly) is hired to impersonate millionaire Cornelius Van Rensselaer Jr. (Wynn Pearce) at an important business conference in St. Louis. It seems that there are several powerful men who will stop at nothing to prevent Van Renssalaer from attending the meeting, so it's up to Bart to stop these men first...and keep himself alive in the bargain. This episode represents a reunion of sorts for the former stars of the TV western series Judge Roy Bean: Edgar Buchanan (aka "Uncle Joe" on Petticoat Junction) and Jack Beutel (previously "Billy the Kid" in the notorious Jane Russell western The Outlaw). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1959
The lives of two men, who under normal circumstances might never have even met, are inextricably intertwined in the 12 hours before the tragedy that will unite them both. One man is Will Jansen (Paul Richards), an outwardly respectable individual who storms out of his house after an argument with his wife Carol (Jean Allison)--an argument that seems curiously contrived. The other man is police sergeant Cooper (Douglas Kennedy), whose mounting debts have compelled him to participate in a nocturnal bank robbery. What bizarre twist of fate will force Jansen and Cooper into a fateful--and fatal--confrontation before the night is over? And how could Mrs. Jansen have prevented it? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1959
Unscrupulous trader Mike Wilson (Jack Warden molests two Paiute Indian women, then manages to place the blame on Adam Cartwright. This incident, added to others sparked by Wilson, mushrooms into a full-scale war between the Paiutes and the California Militia. In the thick of the hostilities, the Indians take Adam hostage. Also appearing are Anthony Caruso as Chief Winnemuca and Mike Forrest as the Chief's son. First telecast October 3, 1959, "The Paiute War" was written by Gene L. Coon. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, (more)
- 1958
Although the trial of young Theodore Balfour (Tyler MacDuff), who was accused of killing his father Lawrence (Bruce Bennett), had ended in a hung jury, Theodore's lawyer had advised him to plead to the lesser charge of involuntary manslaughter. Outraged that Theodore seems to have been railroaded into prison, his grandfather Addison (Richard Hale) asks Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) to reopen the case, clear the boy, and expose the real killer. This episode is based on a 1957 novel by Perry Mason creator Erle Stanley Gardner. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1958
Dorothy Provine gives her all to the title role in The Bonnie Parker Story. Billed in the picture's ad campaign as "the cigar-smoking she-devil of the thirties", the tommy-gun wielding Bonnie cuts quite a swath across the South after her husband (Richard Bakalyan) is sent to jail for life . Teaming up with a young bucko named Guy--not Clyde!--Barrow (Jack Hogan), Bonnie robs banks, kills people, and broods about the pointlessness of her existence. Put as charitably as possible, this isn't Bonnie and Clyde, not by a long shot. The Bonnie Parker Story was originally released on a double bill with Machine Gun Kelly. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dorothy Provine, Jack Hogan, (more)
- 1958
The distinguished CBS dramatic anthology Studio One moved from New York to Hollywood with this adaptation of David Karp's cautionary novel The Brotherhood of the Bell. In an indeterminate future, government agent James Waterson (Cameron Mitchell) must choose between friendship and blind loyalty. Years earlier, Waterson had joined a secret order called the Brotherhood of the Bell, which promised him a multitude of professional opportunities in exchange for certain favors. Now the Brotherhood wants Waterson to fire his assistant and close friend, Clark Sherrell (Tom Drake), and replace him with another member of the order. Now that things have gotten personal, Waterson's eyes are opened to the inescapable fact that the Brotherhood of the Bell will stop at nothing to achieve its goal of total world domination. Ten years after this 1958 Studio One telecast, The Brotherhood of the Bell was remade as a TV movie starring Glenn Ford as "Andrew Paterson," who had been transformed from a government functionary to a college professor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cameron Mitchell, Tom Drake, (more)
- 1958
This second theatrical-feature spin-off of TV's Lone Ranger series stars, as ever, Clayton Moore as the Masked Rider of the Plains and Jay Silverheels as his faithful Indian companion Tonto. This time around, the plot concerns five silver medallions. When placed together, these tiny hunks of silver reveal the location of the titular Lost City of Gold. The owners of three of the medallions have already been killed by the mystery villain; it's up to the Lone Ranger and Tonto to save the other two owners -- Douglas Kennedy and little Noreen Nash -- from harm. Unfortunately, the bloom was (temporarily) off the rose for the Lone Ranger franchise, and Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold ended up in the red. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clayton Moore, Jay Silverheels, (more)
- 1958
Bart (Jack Kelly) is one of several stagecoach passengers who are attacked by the Apaches. With their coach destroyed, the hapless passengers are left stranding in the desert, under a blazing sun. The others insists that Bart strike out on his own and seek out help--an assignment that borders on the suicidal. The supporting cast includes Whitney Blake, the mother of actress Meredith Baxter and later the cocreator (with husband Alan Manings) of the popular CBS sitcom One Day at a Time. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1957
Chicago Confidential may not have been the best of the late-1950s "expose" films, but it certainly boasted one of the most impressive casts. Based on the factual best-seller by Jack Lait and Lee Mortimer, the film stars Brian Keith as a State Attorney who vows to bring corrupt Chicago union officials to justice. It turns out that the union crooks are in cahoots with a gambling syndicate, conspiring to frame uncooperative union leader Dick Foran for murder. With the considerable assistance of his coworker-fiancee Beverly Garland, Keith strives to prove Foran's innocence and punish the genuine miscreants. Crucial to the plotline is nightclub comedian Buddy Lewis, cast as an impressionist who helps to frame the troublesome Foran; also in the cast are such crime-flick perennials as Elisha Cook Jr., Paul Langton, Douglas Kennedy, Jack Lambert, John Indrisano, Phyllis Coates, and Thomas B. Henry. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brian Keith, Beverly Garland, (more)
