Maggie Mahoney Movies

Joe Cartwright is a member of the jury that must determine whether or not Terence O'Toole (Liam Sullivan is guilty of robbery and murder. The jury votes eleven to one to conviction-with Joe, naturally, as the sole holdout. The story's unexpected climax proves to be yet another growing experience for the youngest member of the Cartwright clan, who by the time this episode aired on January 2, 1966, was "Little" Joe no longer. Also in the cast are Maggie Mahoney (the mother of Sally Field as Molly and Tim McIntire as Jeb. "A Dublin Lad" was written by Mort Thaw. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Raymond Burr was already three years into Perry Mason when he decided to return to his movie-villain roots with Desire in the Dust. Burr, playing the patriarch of a Southern family, befriends the ex-convict (Ken Scott) who'd supposedly killed Burr's son in an auto accident. Actually the accident was caused by Burr's daughter (Martha Hyer), who hopes that she can buy the accused man's silence and thus secure her daddy's political future. The ex-con goes along with the deception, having fallen in love with the daughter, but soon learns that Burr plans to double-cross him. Based on a novel by Harry Whittington. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Much to her astonishment, Eva Martell (played by Maggie Mahoney, the mother of Oscar-winning actress Sally Field) is paid $100 a day and installed in a luxurious apartment: all she has to do is impersonate another woman named Helen Reynolds (Paula Raymond). Eva and her Aunt Agnes (Sheila Bromley) begin to smell a rat when they notice that the apartment is being watched day and night by seedy private eye Melvin Slater (Joe De Santis). Investigating of Eva's behalf, Perry (Raymond Burr) is assured by the real Helen Reynolds that everything is on the up-and-up, though she won't reveal the reasons for the deception. Things take a really sinister turn when Slater is murdered and Aunt Agnes is arrested for the crime. This episode is based on a 1946 novel by Perry Mason creator Erle Stanley Gardner. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This parody of Hollywood westerns centers on a boorish hellion of a cowboy star who makes life for the studio people around him a waking nightmare. His press agent is particularly beleaguered as she has been assigned to try to keep the errant star in line. She really has her work cut out for her when a little boy wins a national contest and gets to spend a month in the cowboy's home. Now the agent must conceal her difficult charge's true nature from the innocent boy. Fortunately, the lad has a good effect on the star and helps him settle down and become a decent fellow. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

My Friend Irma was supposed to be a straightforward adaptation of the popular radio sitcom of the same name. The film's focus therefore was supposed to be on air-headed Irma Peterson (Marie Wilson), her levelheaded roommate, Jane Stacy (Diana Lynn, taking over from the radio series' Cathy Lewis), and their various romantic misadventures. But the audience tended to ignore Irma, Jane, and the others in favor of two movie newcomers: Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, cast respectively as would-be singer Steve Laird and dumb-dumb restaurant employee Seymour. Having risen to the top of the heap in the nightclub world, Martin and Lewis were discovered for films by producer Hal Wallis, who decided to test the boys out in secondary roles in an established property. Wallis felt that while Martin had potential as a singing star, Lewis was hopelessly inept as an actor. As the whole world knows by now, it was Lewis who ended up as the team's main attraction with his own inimitable brand of wacko humor. Even as early as Irma, Lewis manages to dominate every scene he's in, often by sheer force of will. Pretty soon, the viewer has forgotten the gossamer-thin plot (Irma's Runyonesque boyfriend, Al, played by John Lund, tries to promote Dino into stardom) and is waiting anxiously to get back to Jerry. When time came for the 1950 sequel, My Friend Irma Goes West, virtually the entire plot revolved around Martin and Lewis, with the official "stars" relegated to supporting roles. Like Marie Wilson, several of the My Friend Irma cast members were holdovers from the radio series, including Hans Conried as Professor Kropotkin. Felix Bressart had originally been slated to play Kropotkin on film, but when he died during shooting, Conried was brought in to complete his scenes (Bressart can still be glimpsed in a few medium and long shots). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi