George Barrows Movies
Burly and athletic actor George Barrows seldom worried about being recognized on the street because he spent much of his long, busy career dressed up in a gorilla suit. Barrows created his first one shortly after doubling for Johnny Weismuller in Tarzan and His Mate (1934). When not performing in the gorilla suit himself, he rented it out to others. In one film, Robot Monster (1953), he put a diving helmet over his gorilla head to play a space alien. Other films in which Barrows played great apes include Gorilla at Large (1954), The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini (1966), and Hillbillies in the Haunted House (1967). He began performing professionally as a child, but his film career quickly petered out as his size increased. He grew to be a such a large man that after he returned to film in Cleopatra (1934) he was often relegated to playing heavies and, of course, gorillas. In addition to film work, Barrows frequently guest starred on television. He also appeared in made-for-TV films, such as The President's Plane Is Missing (1971) and Donner Pass: The Road to Survival (1978). ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Director Silvio Narizzano totes out a Sunday morning public affairs programming style in this it-could-happen-to-you drama about a popular high-school student who finds that he has what some consider a disability. Paul Carafotes plays a high-school student who loves to play football and music. But when the school doctor determines that he is partially deaf, he is barred from the football team. In order to hide his disappointment, the high schooler changes his outlook to one of disinterest, and he rapidly falls in with a tough gang that is making trouble around the high school. Demi Moore appears in a small supporting role in this film -- her first film role. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul Carafotes, Victor French, (more)
- 1970
This episode focuses on the LAPD's Special Weapons and Tactics unit, which had made a "guest" appearance in the previous Adam-12 installment "Log 43: Hostage". The S.W.A.T. team is called in to help Officers Malloy (Martin Milner) and Reed (Kent McCord) locate and neutralize a sniper, who is holed up on the roof of a theater. The inner workings of the team is detailed with clinical precision--and without giving away the entire ending, it can be noted that their methods are most effective. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
A murder investigation uncovers a plot that could destroy the world as we know it in this thriller. When a scientist doing research on nuclear weapons is murdered during a hospital stay, federal investigator Dave Pomeroy (Howard Duff) is called in to find out who killed him and why. With the help of Dr. Paula Stevens (Linda Cristal), the late scientist's assistant, Pomeroy learns that the scientist fell victim to a group of communist renegades whose members include two brilliant but unstable weapons experts, August Best (Nehemiah Persoff) and Myra Pryor (Anne Jeffreys). Pomeroy discovers that Best and Pryor have constructed an atomic bomb of their own -- and that they're threatening to use it to start World War III, forcing the detective to take swift action to prevent worldwide devastation. Panic in the City also features Dennis Hopper in the small role of Goff, just a year before Easy Rider would make him a star. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Howard Duff, Linda Cristal, (more)
Horror, comedy, and country corn combine when country singers Woody Weathrby and Boots Malone get caught in a big storm en route to the Nashville Jamboree and end up taking shelter in a creepy looking old mansion that is said to be haunted. Though plenty of spooky things go on there, the hapless hayseeds quickly figure out that the haunting has more to do with a ring of international agents led by the enigmatic and sly Madame Wong than it does the supernatural. The spies have made the abandoned building their headquarters as they endeavor to steal a valuable atomic secret. This was the final film of Basil Rathbone. It is also a sequel to Las Vegas Hillbillies (1966). ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Jethro has expressed the need for a pet gorilla. Hoping as always to give the Clampetts whatever their little hearts desire, banker Drysdale hires actor Tom Kelly (George Barrows) to don a gorilla suit and pose as a friendly simian named Herbie. The scheme backfires when Granny puts "Herbie" to work on the household chores. The first episode in a two-part story arc, "The Gorilla" was originally telecast on October 19, 1966. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
In the conclusion of a two-part story arc, the Clampetts have become accustomed to their new "pet," a gorilla named Herbie. In truth, however, Herbie is a gorilla-suited actor named Tom Kelly (George Barrows) -- and he's fed up with being forced to do all of Granny's harder chores. Banker Drysdale tries to figure out a way to mollify Kelly without revealing to the Clampetts that they've been hoodwinked by a phony monkey. "Come Back, Little Herby" originally aired on October 26, 1966. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
American-International's Beach Party series came to an abrupt end with Ghost in the Invisible Bikini. Because of such tangible reasons as contractual commitments, coupled with such intangibles as illness and death, most of the series "regulars" are absent. Deborah Walley and Aron Kinkaid fill the roles usually played by Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon, while Benny Rubin plays a comic-Indian role obviously intended for Buster Keaton. Only Harvey Lembeck, as the inimitable Eric von Zipper, is on hand from the good old days. The plot is set in motion by the ghostly Boris Karloff, a corpse who must perform one good deed before gaining entrance into the Hereafter. Together with a sexy spirit (Susan Hart) (the titular lass in the invisible bikini), the corpse attempts to save the heiress (Walley) from the murderous machinations of a greedy attorney (Basil Rathbone) and his cohorts (Rubin and Jesse White). Music is provided by such second-generation celebs as Nancy Sinatra and Claudia Martin, and with The Bobby Fuller Four lip-synching a pair of songs. The climax is a less-funny reworking of the final sequence in Beach Blanket Bingo, with the heroine (Walley) strapped to the longest buzzsaw plank in film history. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Deborah Walley, Tommy Kirk, (more)
- 1966
Charles Lane takes temporary leave from his "Homer Bedloe"duties to essay the similar role of Fort Courage banker Mr. McGuire. After the F Troop payroll is stolen by bandits, McGuire threatens to foreclose on the saloon owned by Sgt. O'Rourke (Forrest Tucker). To prevent this, O'Rourke and Agarn (Larry Storch) board the next payroll stage, determined to duke it out with the bad guys--or at least, to appeal to the villains' better nature! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
Lucy (Lucille Ball) and Viv (Vivian Vance) accompany their kids to see the latest chiller-diller at the local movie house. The youngsters, of course, are so jaded by their past moviegoing that they laugh uproariously during the scariest moments. Not so Lucy and Viv, who are so unnerved by the experience that they experience a joint nightmare in which they've been transformed into witches! Two of Hollywood's most prolific monster-makeup specialists, George Barrows and Bob Burns, appear in the dream sequence. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Barrows, Bob Burns, (more)
- 1960
Future Gunsmoke regular Ken Curtis makes a return appearance as Monk, the seedy, unkempt trail bum first introduced in the third-season episode "The Naked Gun". Arriving in San Francisco, Monk once again attaches himself to the reluctant Paladin (Richard Boone), once again seeking out the gunslinger's help. This time, Monk has inherited half of a Frisco saloon, and he wants to live long enough to enjoy his legacy--and, hopefully, to squire the beautiful Augusta (Lorna Thayer). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This glamorized remake of the 1934 film Imitation of Life bears only a passing resemblance to its source, the best-selling novel by Fannie Hurst. Originally, the heroine was a widowed mother who kept the wolf from the door by setting up a successful pancake business with her black housemaid. In the remake, Lana Turner stars as a would-be actress who is raising her daughter on her own. She chances to meet another single mother at the beach: African-American Juanita Moore. Moore goes to work as Turner's housekeeper, bringing her light-skinned daughter along. As Turner's stage career goes into high gear, Moore is saddled with the responsibility of raising both Turner's daughter and her own. Exposed to the advantages of the white world, Moore's grown-up daughter (Susan Kohner) passes for white, causing her mother a great deal of heartache. Meanwhile, Turner's grown daughter (Sandra Dee), neglected by her mother, seeks comfort in the arms of handsome photographer John Gavin. When Moore dies, her daughter realizes how selfish she's been; simultaneously, Turner awakens to the fact that she hasn't been much of a mother for her own daughter, whose romance has gone down the tubes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lana Turner, John Gavin, (more)
- 1959
Bret (James Garner) finds himself in the middle of a "convention" held by some of the west's most notorious outlaws, including Jesse James (William Shaw), Belle Starr (Jean Willes), Cole Younger (Gregory Walcott) and Black Bart (George Barrows). To keep himself from being perforated with bullets, Bret allows the desperadoes to mistake him for famous lawbreaker Foxy Smith, who has sent word ahead that he is planning the greatest hold-up in history. Covering himself, Bret claims that he plans to rob the Denver Mint, secure in the belief that the outlaws will merely laugh in his face--but they don't. Featured in the cast is a very young Joel Grey as a petulant, whiny Billy the Kid; and a pre-Beverly Hillbillies Nancy Kulp as a sentimental waitress. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Frankenstein's Daughter, a low-budget American horror movie badly directed by Richard E. Cunha, is another in a series of poorly made adaptations of Mary Shelley's classic horror novel. Here, the original Dr. Frankenstein's grandson, Oliver Frankenstein (Donald Murphy), now living in Los Angeles, creates a female version of the Monster from sweet teenage girl, Trudy (Sandra Knight) who then goes on a killing rampage. This thriller, with poor production values and bad sets, has some intentional humor, but little real horror. Also released as She Monster of the Night, Frankenstein's Daughter was featured in It Came from Hollywood, an amusing and loving tribute to horror films and their makers. Also, lovers of trivia should note that Sandra Knight, who plays Trudy, would later become the wife of actor Jack Nicholson. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
- 1957
Friday (Jack Webb) and Smith (Ben Alexander) are up against a well-organized gang of auto thieves, who seem to follow no pattern except for the make of the cars they've stolen. During a routine investigation of local auto-salvage shops, the detectives discover that one of the stolen vehicles has been camouflaged with the body of a wrecked car. The clue that breaks the case is an overlooked St. Christopher medal. This episode is based on the Dragnet radio broadcast of April 26, 1951. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1957
The 8-year-old "Ma and Pa Kettle Series" came to an end with The Kettles on Old MacDonald's Farm. In her last screen appearance, Marjorie Main is back as Ma Kettle, while Parker Fennelly replaces the defecting Percy Kilbride as Pa Kettle. This time, Ma and Pa try to smooth the path of romance for newlyweds Sally Flemming (Gloria Talbot) and Brad Johnson (John Smith). Despite her wealthy parents' objections, Sally intends to "rough it" with her back-to-the-soil husband by living on the Kettles' old, ramshackle farm. Ensuing comic complications include a set-to with a bunch of crooked loggers and a wild appearance at a rodeo. A worthwhile finale to this durable series, The Kettles on Old MacDonald's Farm was still making the second-run-theater rounds as late as 1960. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marjorie Main, Parker Fennelly, (more)
- 1957
In this dark drama, a schizophrenic is forced out of his hospital due to overcrowding, and his doctors tell him to avoid stressful situations. He goes to a beachside motel and likes both the area and the owner's daughter. Her father discovers that he is a mental patient and threatens to have him recommitted unless he leaves his daughter alone. The schizophrenic snaps momentarily, killing him, and he and the daughter flee down the beach. He tries to kill her by pushing her into the water, but comes to his senses and rescues her. He ends up turning himself in. ~ Steve Huey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ray Danton, Colleen Miller, (more)
- 1957
Famed Hollywood "little person" Billy Curtis guests in this episode as Mr. Zero, a diminutive, childlike Martian who has been exiled to earth. The ever-trusting Mr. Zero is led astray by crooked lawyer Georgie Glep (Herburt Vigran), who hopes to use the Martian's special talent--the ability to freeze people in place by touching them--for his own nefarious purposes. Perhaps it goes without saying that Superman (George Reeves) intervenes and sets Zero straight about Glep before the final fade-out. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1957
Friday (Jack Webb) and Smith (Ben Alexander) are on the prowl for a man suspected of pulling a holdup. An anonymous tip leads the two detectives to the Full Moon, a cocktail bar which the suspect is known to frequent. But will the crook be scared off by the presence of The Law? Featured in one of his standard old-codger characterizations is William Fawcett, best remembered by baby boomers as grizzled ranch-hand Pete ("who cut his teeth on a branding iron") in the TV series Fury. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1956
Behind the High Wall is a remake of the 1937 Jackie Cooper-Victor McLaglen film The Big Guy. Tom Tully plays prison warden Frank Carmichael, who is kidnapped during a jail break in which a policeman is killed. In an ensuing car crash, all the escapees are killed except young Johnny Hutchins (John Gavin). Though he knows that Hutchins had nothing to do with the cop's murder, Carmichael refuses to intervene when Johnny is condemned to death. It seems that the escaping convicts had been carrying $100,000 in stolen money with them, which Carmichael has hidden away for his own use. By eliminating Hutchins, the warden is also getting rid of the only potential witness to his own perfidy. Sylvia Sidney is pure venom as Carmichael's crippled, greedy wife, while Betty Lynn (who later played Thelma Lou on The Andy Griffith Show) also registers well as Johnny's agonizing fiancee. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Tully, Sylvia Sidney, (more)
- 1956
Ginger Rogers ended her 23-year association with RKO Radio with the indifferent musical comedy western The First Travelling Saleslady. Ginger and Broadway favorite Carol Channing (whose only starring film this was) play a pair of corset salespersons who head westward in 1897 to hawk their wares. Finding a limited market for corsets, the ladies switch to selling barbed wire, which rests not at all well with cattle baron James Arness. Rescuing Ginger and Carol from Arness' hired guns are horseless-carriage inventor Barry Nelson and callow young cowpoke Clint Eastwood. Whenever asked about First Travelling Saleslady in later years, Carol Channing would blithely refer to it as "the picture that killed RKO"; she wasn't too far wrong in this assessment. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ginger Rogers, Barry Nelson, (more)
- 1956
Tony Dumont (Rory Calhoun) is none too trustworthy at the beginning of Flight to Hong Kong. A dealer in contraband goods, Dumont is the bane of his girlfriend Jean Blake's (Dolores Donlon) existence. She wants him to go straight, but the other woman in his life, novelist Pamela Vincent (Barbara Rush), wants him to remain a crook--the better to provide material for a book she's writing. Dumont has a belated change of heart when he steps on the toes of the Mob once too often. Flight to Hong Kong also includes brief stopovers in San Francisco, Honolulu, Tangiers and Macao. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rory Calhoun, Barbara Rush, (more)
- 1955
Dale Robertson stars as the Son of Sinbad in this tongue-in-cheek Arabian Nights romp. Hoping to rescue Bagdad from the forces of the dreaded Tamerlaine, Sinbad Jr. enlists the aid of the Khalif (Leon Askin) by promising to deliver the secret of "Greek Fire". To expedite this, he enlists the aid of the lovely Kristina (Mari Blanchard), who has memorized said secret. When the bad guys threaten the safety of hero and heroine, slave girl Ameer (Sally Forrest), who heads the all-female descendants of the original Forty Thieves, come galloping to the rescue. Personally produced by Howard Hughes, Son of Sinbad seems to be a clearing house for all of Hughes' voyeuristic fetishes; at one point, stripteaser Lili St. Cyr performs an exotic (and erotic) dance wearing the equivalent of a postage stamp, earning a Condemned rating from the Catholic Legion of Decency. The overabundance of feminie pulchritude gets a little wearing after a while, and it is up to Vincent Price to steal the show as Omar the Tentmaker, improvising passages of his unpublished "Rubiyat" (with a few anachronistic Shakespearean quotes thrown in) as he tries to keep apace with the hero. Also on hand is an uncredited (and fully clothed) Kim Novak as a handmaiden. More silly than sexy when seen today, Son of Sinbad is acceptable nonthink entertainment. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dale Robertson, Sally Forrest, (more)
- 1954
Newcomer Kelly Ryan plays Kate, The Outlaw's Daughter, in this medium-scale western. Led astray by outlaw leader Jess (Bill Williams), Kate joins Jess' gang and follows in her dad's footsteps. Town marshal Dan (Jim Davis) tries his best to reform the girl, but this proves difficult inasmuch as Kate holds Dan responsible for her father's death. Only after most of the bad guys have been decimated by Dan does Kate discover the true identity of her dad's murderer. Having fallen in love with Kate, marshal Dan offers to let her escape prosecution, but she's made of sterner stuff than that. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bill Williams, Jim Davis, (more)
- 1953
Jalopy represents the first Bowery Boys film to be released by Allied Artists, though in essence it's still a Monogram "B"-picture. It all begins when Sach Jones (Huntz Hall) develops a new fuel formula that will enable a racing car to go around the track in 11 seconds! Sach's pal Slip Mahoney (Leo Gorcey) uses the formula to win several jalopy races, thereby allowing sweet-shop owner Louie (Bernard Gorcey) to pay his debts. Gamblers try to muscle in on the Bowery Boys' winning streak, but to no avail. On the day of the obligatory Big Race, Slip is forced to enter his jalopy without the precious fuel. At the last minute, Sach arrives with a new batch--which only works when the car is shifted in reverse! Heavily reliant upon stock footage from the concurrently produced Allied Artists feature Roar of the Crowd, Jalopy is a typically nonsensical Bowery Boys entry, right down to the surreal climactic gag. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leo Gorcey, Huntz Hall, (more)
