Gene Lebell Movies

In the first episode of a two-part story arc, Granny has become engrossed in TV wrestling shows, convinced that all the carefully rehearsed mayhem is for real. Granny's favorite grappler is Rebecca of Donnybrook Farm (Gayle Caldwell), whose great rival is the Boston Strong Girl (Jerry Randall). When it looks as if Rebecca is going to lose her latest bout to her opponent, Granny rushes down to the arena to "save" the brawny female wrestler. "The Rasslin' Clampetts" first aired on January 31, 1968. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A pair of crooks conspire to rob the ticket booth at the Los Angeles Coliseum during a Rams game. Before they can perform the heist, the two must find precisely the right henchmen to join them. Each potential gang member must undergo a rigorous test of skill. Thanks to care and precise planning, the caper comes off smoothly and afterward the gang leader (Jim Brown) hides the money in the apartment of his ex-wife (Diahann Carroll). She only agrees to keep the money on the provision that he reform so they can get back together. Unfortunately, the wife's lust-crazed landlord (James Whitmore) busts into her house the next day and tries to rape her. During the struggle he kills her and then takes the loot. Later a crooked cop (Gene Hackman) investigates. Meanwhile, when the gang members learn that the loot is missing, they suspect a double-cross and engage in a huge battle. The cop finds the money and at first keeps it for himself. The head crook eventually figures out that the cop has it and so goes to him to make a little deal. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

A man who fights his way to success learns the people who helped him may be his biggest enemies in this action drama. B.J. Hammer (Fred Williamson) is a dock worker who used to box in the Golden Gloves and still knows how to handle himself in a fight; when he gets into a brawl at work, he's seen in action by an associate of Davis (Bernie Hamilton), a flashy businessman who manages boxers. Davis thinks Hammer has potential, and offers him a contract. Soon Hammer is training with Professor (Mel Stewart, an experienced boxing coach, and begins romancing Lois (Vonetta McGee), one of Davis's secretaries. After easily winning several fights, Hammer's career is on the rise and he seems poised to become a championship contender. But Davis isn't just interested in boxing; he's an underworld kingpin who also traffics in drugs and prostitutes, and often uses washed-up fighters as pawns in his criminal games. Hammer soon learns just how Davis operates when his manager orders him to take a dive in an upcoming fight, and when Hammer refuses, both he and Lois could face deadly retribution. Also starring William Smith and D'Urville Martin, Hammer was a major box-office success that established Fred Williamson as one of the major stars of the 1970s blaxploitation boom; the film also included an original score from soul music legend Solomon Burke. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

A former Green Beret who set out to settle a score with the mob finds they don't give up easy in this action-packed blaxploitation drama. After killing the mobster who killed his parents in Mexico, Slaughter plans to return to a quiet life in Los Angeles, but police detective Reynolds (Brock Peters) warns him that his life is in danger -- it seems crime boss Duncan (Ed McMahon), an associate of the man Slaughter killed, isn't about to allow his killing to pass without retaliation. After an ambitious assassination attempt involving a World War I biplane fails dramatically, Duncan recruits a vicious new hit man, Kirk (Don Stroud), and one of Kirk's first assignments is to take care of Slaughter once and for all. Duncan also has ties to the L.A.P.D., and rather than put Slaughter in protective custody at Reynolds' suggestion, the war hero is put back on the street. However, as Slaughter tracks down the men who murdered his family and threatened the life of his girlfriend Marcia (Gloria Hendry), it looks as if the crooks may need protection from Slaughter more than he needs to be protected from them. A sequel of the successful Jim Brown vehicle Slaughter, Slaughter's Big Rip-Off included an original score by James Brown and his long-time musical partner Fred Wesley. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

The time is 1964, and the Beatles, already a hugely popular group, are about to go on the Ed Sullivan Show for the first time, an appearance that launched them into a worldwide phenomenon. Already, girls are fainting during their concerts from sheer excitement at being in the same theater with them. Pam Mitchell (Nancy Allen) is happy enough to be getting married but wants to bed one of the "Fab Four" before she does. Grace Corrigan (Theresa Saldana), a dedicated fan, is certain that if she can get some exclusive photos of the Beatles, her career as a photographer will be secured. And then there are two people who feel that the future of civilization as we know it depends on their efforts to ruin the Beatles' appearance on Ed Sullivan's show. In this madcap comedy, when these people (and others besides) descend on the New York hotel the Beatles are staying in, things begin hopping. This comedy was Robert Zemeckis' first feature. A protégé of Stephen Spielberg, he went on to direct Forrest Gump, Back to the Future, and Who Framed Roger Rabbit? among other popular features. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Marc Anthony Danza, real-life son of Taxi co-star Tony Danza (Tony Banta), is cast in this episode as Brian Sims, an invalid child in need of a kidney operation. When Tony is slated to be the opponent of former boxing champ Benny Foster (Armando Muniz) in the latter's comeback attempt, Tony is thrilled at the prospect of finally making his mark in the pugilistic world. But when it turns out that Benny is idolized by the ailing Brian Sims and that Benny is returning to the ring for the boy's sake, Tony worries that if he wins the big bout, little Brian will ultimately emerge the loser -- big time. ~ All Movie Guide

Having endured one too many hard knocks in the boxing ring, eTony Banta (Tony Danza) has elected to hang up his gloves and become a trainer. Spotting a young fighter named Terry Carver (Ernie Hudson), Tony immediately senses that the kid has potential. He then offers to become Terry's manager...and that's when the trouble starts. The highlight of this episode is Tony's one-on-one with the "Syndicate" (whose members include Taxi scriptwriters Howard Gewirtz and Ian Praiser). ~ All Movie Guide

In the first episode of Taxi's two-part season-four finale, Elaine (Marilu Henner) mulls over the opportunity to leave the Sunshine Cab Company for a job in Seattle. This inspires the other cabbies to recall the pivotal moments in their own lives. Louie (Danny DeVito) remembers his ascension from driver to dispatcher; Tony (Tony Danza) recollects the moment that he was offered big bucks to take a dive; and Reverend Jim (Christopher Lloyd) harks back to his days of cogency -- and cleanliness -- as a Harvard undergrad (Jim's druggie roomate is played by none other than Tom Hanks). ~ All Movie Guide

Anne de Salvo reprises her role as Vicki, the "date from hell" foisted upon Tony (Tony Danza) in the earlier fifth-season episode "The Shloogel Show." Now Vicki has returned to Tony's life with some startling news: She is pregnant -- and guess who the father is? Making things even dicier, Tony has received this news on the very night that he is to box with a ranked contender -- and the last thing he needs at this moment is the sort of emotional baggage piled on by Vicki. Watch for a few sly references to the Rod Serling drama "Requiem For a Heavyweight," notably the presence in the cast of veteran character actor Keenan Wynn. ~ All Movie Guide

This standard, tongue-in-cheek, gangsters and good guys saga is carried on the star power and screen presence of Clint Eastwood as Lt. Speer, a taciturn, tough, play-it-by-the-book cop, and on Burt Reynolds as Mike Murphy, Speer's old friend in the force, now turned private eye but still a captivating rogue at heart. With a sub-text of playing their well-known screen personas off each other, Eastwood and Reynolds provide more than a surface interpretation of the characters that made them famous. After Murphy's partner is murdered, he focuses on pitting one mob boss against another in an attempt to have both mobsters kill each other. In the meantime, Lt. Speer -- who has never approved of Murphy's private detective business -- does not really know if Murphy is for or against the two top gangsters. Set in the era of speakeasies and Prohibition, an added layer of "film noir" can be discerned under the complex plot, verbal repartée, and episodes of toned-down violence (a kind of parody in themselves). Although this may not be the best film either star has made, it is still interesting to see them together on screen. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Adapted from the "Destroyer" series of novels and comic books (not exactly the level of Ian Fleming), Remo Williams (Fred Ward) is a New York cop who works for a top-secret government agency accountable directly to the President of the U.S. After his reluctant induction into this agency, Remo is trained in a near-magical Korean martial arts form by Chiun (Joel Grey) in great sequences where walking on water is taken in stride. After his training, Remo goes after a corrupt arms manufacturer with connections in the U.S. military and acquires the necessary help-mate in the form of Major Rayner Fleming (Kate Mulgrew). Antics at the Statue of Liberty and other stunts enliven the action, but cannot make up for comic-book level characters. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

In this excellent thriller, crisply directed by Sidney Lumet, Alex Sternbergen (Jane Fonda), a washed-up, alcoholic actress who never quite made it, wakes up one morning in an unfamiliar, luxurious loft apartment, only to find the corpse of a stranger next to her in bed. Alex can remember nothing of the night before. In a panic, she tries to flee but is unable to get a flight out of Los Angeles, and short of cash, she hitches a ride with Turner Kendall (Jeff Bridges), a disabled former policeman who happens to be fixing his car in the airport parking lot. Alex tries to get rid of Turner and returns to the loft which she cleans in a futile attempt to get rid of her finger prints. Turner continues to take an unappreciated interest in Alex and keeps turning up unexpectedly, much to her annoyance. Finally, desperate and on the run, and never sure that she didn't commit the murder, Alex allows Turner to help her. Alex also confides in and is helped by her ex-husband and friend Joaquin Manero (Raul Julia), the only man she completely trusts. Despite Alex's suspicion of Turner, she slowly falls in love with him. The movie quickly moves to a surprising conclusion, and creates a good deal of suspense, particularly when Alex is confronted with a corpse that just won't stay put. The highlight of the film is the performance by Jane Fonda reminiscent of her magnificent performance as Bree Daniels in Klute. The Morning After never rises to the quality of Klute, but Fonda's performance was strong enough to earn her an Oscar nomination. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide