Alison La Placa Movies
Alison La Placa is a gifted comic actress who has been working steadily since the early '80s, including starring roles in several highly anticipated (but ultimately unsuccessful) television series. Born in New Jersey in 1959 and raised in Lincolnshire, IL, a suburb outside of Chicago, La Placa set her sights on an entertainment career and trained in musical theater. As a practical matter, however, her career has been much more oriented toward comedy, which she describes as being essentially musical theater without the music. Her first shot at stardom came in 1983, at age 23, when she portrayed Elyse in the television pilot spin-off of Barry Levinson's feature film Diner. That series failed to sell, and her subsequent work included parts in Fletch (1985) and Voyage of the Rock Aliens (1988). She also made appearances on Cheers and Remington Steele, and by the second half of the 1980s, she had found her firm niche in television, starting with the series Duet (1987) on the FOX network, which led to a starring role on the short-lived FOX series Open House (1989). After being cast in a few more failed series, including The Jackie Thomas Show (1992) and Tom (1994, in which she played Tom Arnold's wife), La Placa finally found success when she joined the cast of The John Larroquette Show in 1994. Since then, La Placa's most memorable work was seen on the 1997 season of the series Friends, as Rachel's boss Joanna, whose involvement with Matthew Perry's Chandler -- including a ferociously funny performance in the episode "The One With the 'Cuffs" -- led to some delightful comedic situations. With those credits behind her, La Placa bids fair to be seen in television comedy for years to come. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide- 2002
An already hectic day at the ER is made even more so when two children are brought in exhibiting symptoms of smallpox. With Weaver (Laura Innes) temporarily unavailable, Carter (Noah Wyle) orders a lockdown at County General to avoid an epidemic -- and avert a nationwide panic. Meanwhile, Lewis (Sherry Stringfield) encounters major problems while trying to get information about a smallpox vaccine from CDC; both Chen (Ming-Na) and Pratt (Mekhi Phifer) appear to have come down with the disease themselves; and a patient riot breaks out, one which may cause the epidemic to spread to the rest of Chicago. This final episode of ER's eighth season ends with a cliffhanger, the ingredients of which include a startling development in the relationship between Carter and Abby (Maura Tierney). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
Inheriting an antique dollhouse from her Aunt Silvia, Monica (Courteney Cox) doesn't want Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) anywhere near her "legacy," leading Phoebe to construct a little house of her own (and what a house!) Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) arranges a date between Chandler (Matthew Perry) and her boss, Joanna (Alison La Placa) -- then has second thoughts. And Joey gets serious about his co-star Kate (Dina Meyer). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
Chandler (Matthew Perry) and Ross (David Schwimmer) look forward to a reunion with their high-school chum Gandolf, aka "the party wizard." When Gandolf fails to show, the boys grimly vow to party on by themselves. Meanwhile, Rachel's (Jennifer Aniston) climb to the top is sidetracked by her boss, Joanna (Alison La Placa), and Monica (Courteney Cox) is given the opportunity to write a food-critic column -- which results in a conflict with two different people in her life. Oh, and did we mention the van with the flashing nipples? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
Monica (Courteney Cox) caters a party for her highly judgmental mom, Judy (Christina Pickles) -- only to lose one of her fake nails in the quiche. Joey (Matt LeBlanc) is huckstered by a fast-talking encyclopedia salesman (played by magician Penn Jillette). And Chandler (Matthew Perry) gets locked into an embarrassing situation by Rachel's (Jennifer Aniston) boss, Joanna (Alison La Placa). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
When a North Pole bookkeeping boo-boo threatens to destroy the magic of Christmas, poor Santa is left with very little time in which to find a suitable replacement. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lloyd Bridges, Michael Tucker, (more)
- 1990
- PG13
John Larroquette starred with Kirstie Alley in this comedy involving a couple's troubles with their starter home. An array of obstinate houseguests refuse to leave and provoke the anger of all involved. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Larroquette, Kirstie Alley, (more)
- 1987
- PG
When a collection of alien rock stars descend to earth, a young teenage couple finds themselves caught up in an unusual adventure. The film was shelved for quite some time, hence the presence of octogenarian Ruth Gordon, who died in 1985. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pia Zadora, Tom Nolan, (more)
- 1986
Second Serve is that rare TV movie which refuses to sensationalize its so-called "sensational" material. This is the true story of Richard Raskind (here named Richard Radley): Yale grad, Naval officer, brilliant surgeon and tennis champ. What Richard has successfully hidden from practically everyone is the fact that he feels like a woman trapped in a man's body. In 1975, he goes so far as to endure a sex-change operation, emerging as Renee Richards. The film is not so much about this "alteration" as its ramifications, particularly the fierce opposition from the US Tennis Association when Renee wants to qualify as a female pro player. Rather than cast two actors to play the "before and after" protagonist, Vanessa Redgrave plays both Richard and Renee. While it's no great shock to see Ms. Redgrave with short hair, her performance as a man in Second Serve is the sort of work for which the phrase "tour de force" was coined. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1985
Murder: By Reason of Insanity was inspired by a disastrous series of events occurring in New York State in 1979. Candice Bergen portrays a Polish immigrant housewife whose husband Jurgen Prochnow has subjected her to years of physical abuse. At first, she tells herself that he is acting out of frustration over his business failures, but the attacks become increasingly life-threatening. Adjudged mentally unbalanced, Prochnow cannot be sent to prison, but instead is checked into a hospital. Thanks to bureaucratic oversights and sheer laxity, Prochnow walks out of the hospital, fully intending to carry out his death threat against his wife. Despite her frenzied phone calls to the authorities, and the many empty restraining orders issued by the courts, Ms. Bergen's ultimate fate is inexorable. Made for television, Murder: By Reason of Insanity has been released to videocassette under the irresponsibly antiseptic title My Sweet Victim. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1985
While researching a story on the Boston singles scene, sexy journalist Paula Nelson (Alison La Placa) sashays into Cheers for an interview with Sam Malone (Ted Danson). Sam immediately puts the moves on Paula, only to find out that the woman has heard every come-on line in the world and is impervious to Sam's charms. Rising to the challenge, Sam redoubles his efforts -- whereupon Diane (Shelley Long) is mistakenly convinced that his tender overtures are meant for her. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Chevy Chase added a classic comic hero to the film landscape with Fletch, one of his few truly popular star vehicles in a famously misguided post-Saturday Night Live career. Chase plays Irwin M. Fletcher, known to everyone as Fletch, a Los Angeles Lakers-loving investigative reporter with a gleeful disdain for deadlines and a knack for pushing the buttons of his frustrated editor (Richard Libertini). He's also known for donning numerous disguises and assuming zany false identities to help gain information. While pursuing an ongoing story about a powerful drug dealer who operates from Venice Beach, he comes across an intriguing offshoot in which he becomes intimately involved. Aviation executive Alan Stanwyk (Tim Matheson) has an unusual proposition for Fletch: If Fletch agrees to an elaborate plan to kill him, for reasons Stanwyk refuses to divulge beyond explaining that he has bone cancer, Fletch will walk away with a healthy sum of money and a plane ticket to Brazil. Curious yet suspicious by profession, Fletch begins investigating Stanwyk's true motives, which leads him through numerous misadventures. Among them are a visit to a stuffy country club; a high-speed car chase with an unwitting passenger; repeat encounters with Stanwyk's wife (Dana Wheeler-Nicholson), although she may not be his only one; and a trip to Provo -- that's Utah, not Spain. Inspired by a novel of the same name by Gregory McDonald, Fletch went from thriller to comedy as it was adapted into a vehicle for Chase. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Chevy Chase, Dana Wheeler-Nicholson, (more)
