Peter Howard Movies

Stepping Out might be considered a textbook exercise in screenwriting cliche: take Mavis Turner (Liza Minnelli), a woman who "coulda been a contenda" had she pursued her dreams of appearing on Broadway; give her an evening job at a converted church teaching tap; mix in a motley crew of left-footed cardboard-cutouts too rhythmically challenged for her to train; add a charity performance organized by a snooty old ruler-of-the-world-type (Nora Dunn) who thinks they're too klutzy to participate; watch the motley crew turn into a well-oiled dance machine in time to steal the show, prove the snob wrong and overcome their personal problems along the way (not to mention Mavis')...and somehow, in spite of it all, it actually manages to be a rather entertaining film. The entire production is so cheesy and exaggeratedly "Broadway" that it provides more than its share of amusement, intentional or otherwise; the fact that Minnelli turns in an infectiously good-humored performance doesn't hurt, either. ~ Jeremy Beday, All Movie Guide

This family classic is adapted from the Broadway musical, which was based on the comic strip Little Orphan Annie. During the Great Depression in New York City, a plucky red-haired scrapper named Annie (Aileen Quinn) is the voice of hope for her fellow orphans who live under the supervision of drunken floozy Miss Hannigan (Carol Burnett). Annie's spirit is fueled by the belief that her real parents dropped her off at the orphanage with a half of a locket, promising to return for her with the other half. One day, the dingy orphanage is visited by the sophisticated Grace Farrell (Ann Reinking), personal secretary to conservative politician Oliver Warbucks (Albert Finney). In order to improve his image, Grace brings Annie to the Warbucks estate for a weeklong visit. Annie quickly wins the hearts of servants and politicians alike, eventually even bringing her song of hope, "Tomorrow," to President Roosevelt in Washington. Warbucks and Grace even go so far as to perform a public search for Annie's parents, creating an opportunity for Miss Hannigan, Rooster (Tim Curry), and Lily (Bernadette Peters) to scam their way to the reward money. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

Mary Martin originally starred in the Jules Styne/Carolyn Leigh/Comden & Green musical version of James M. Barrie's Peter Pan on Broadway in 1953. On March 7, 1955, Peter Pan was restaged for television, live and in color, on NBC's Producer's Showcase. The telecast was so popular that it was repeated, again live, the following year. Blessedly, Mary Martin returned to commit Peter Pan to videotape in 1960; this version was first telecast on December 8 of that year. Forty-seven years old at the time, Martin is utterly enchanting as Peter Pan, the little boy who won't grow up and who whisks Wendy Darling (Maureen Bailey) and her brothers Michael (Kent Fletcher) and John (Joey Trent) out of their London nursery and off to Never Never Land: "First star to the left, then straight on till morning." Song highlights include "I've Gotta Crow," "I'm Flying," "I Won't Grow Up," "Neverland," "Ugg-a-Wugg" and "Hook's Waltz." As with the Broadway version, the staging and choreography was in the more than capable hands of Jerome Robbins. Cyril Ritchard shamelessly hams it up as the wicked Captain Hook, and also doubles as the more benign Mr. Darling. Both Martin and Ritchard re-created their Broadway roles, as did Sondra Lee as the incongruously blonde Indian princess Tiger Lily. Martin's daughter Heller Halliday also appears in the minor role of Liza the maid, while the whole wonderful package is narrated by Lynn Fontanne. Repeated several times into the 1970s, this full-color version of Peter Pan was put into mothballs for several years, then retelecast (complete with the old NBC Peacock logo) in 1989. For this return engagement, the play was edited to accommodate extra commercials; happily, the complete version of the 1960 Peter Pan is now available on videocassette. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide