James Olson Movies
A graduate of Northwestern University, actor James Olson did stage work in and around Chicago before his 1956 film bow in The Sharkfighters. Angular and sandy-haired, Olson was well suited to classical stage roles. In films and on television, it was his lot to portray a long line of understanding husbands, doubting doctors, mystery killers and corporate bigwigs. James Olson garnered some of his best reviews for his performance as Joanne Woodward's autumn romance in Rachel, Rachel (1967), under the direction of Paul Newman. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1974
Betty Smith's best selling novel A Tree Grows in Brooklyn inspired an Oscar-winning 1945 film, a play and a Broadway musical; this 1974 73-minute telefilm - a pilot for a weekly series drama -- represents the fourth incarnation. Cliff Robertson plays Johnny Nolan, a bibulous waiter living in turn-of-the-century Brooklyn. When Nolan dies, it is up to his widow Katie (Diane Baker) to carve out an existence for herself and her children Francie (Pamelyn Ferdin) and Neely (Michael James Wixted). Ultimately, Katie marries kindly Brooklyn cop McShane (James Olson). Nancy Malone costars as Katie's promiscuous sister Sissy. First telecast March 27, 1974, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn failed to generate high enough ratings for a regular series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Delving into the horrific history of the infamous Long Island haunted house, this prequel to 1979's popular chiller The Amityville Horror is loosely based on the DeFeo murders but is at heart a straightforward horror-exploitation film with an Exorcist twist. When the violently dysfunctional Montelli family moves into the rustic abode (claimed to have been built on an Indian burial ground), the standard haunted-house clichés (bleeding walls, swarms of flies, bubbling black goop) give way to a more direct demonic attack on the eldest son -- who develops an unhealthy interest in his nubile younger sister, followed by a much more lethal attraction to dad's shotgun. In a desperate attempt to purge the evil, the local priest tries to perform an exorcism...with unexpected results. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Burt Young, Rutanya Alda, (more)
- 1978
In the first episode of a two-part story, the Galactica is again attacked by a fleet of Cylon fighters. The crew's only hope of escape is through a space corridor past the ice planet Arcta--which is guarded by a Cylon pulsar cannon. Commander Adama (Lorne Greene) is ultimately forced to place the future of his space vessel in the hards of an army of criminals, led by Adama's son Apollo (Richard Hatch) and Apollo's best friend Starbuck (Richard Hatch). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Hatch, Dirk Benedict, (more)
- 1978
In the conclusion of a two-part story, the fate of the Galactica rests in the hands of an army of criminals and misfits, under the command of Apollo (Richard Hatch) and Starbuck (Dirk Benedict). This ragtag band must destroy the Cylon pulsar cannon mounted on the ice planet Arcta. Can they depend upon the help of a race of clone miners, who have as much reason to hate the Cylons as anyone in the universe -- but who may not be willing or able to fight? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Hatch, Dirk Benedict, (more)
- 1972
Sian Barbara Allen guest-stars as the tenacious-and very pregnant-Teresa Burnside. Despite the imminent birth of her child, Teresa defiantly stands up to a gang of outlaws, who plan to use her as a pawn in a holdup scheme. As the crooks hold Teresa's husband Vance (James Olson) hostage, Ben Cartwright assumes the responsibility of delivering her baby. Also in the cast are Murray McLeod as Zachariah and Albert Salmi as Stretch. First shown on October 24, 1972, "Ambush at Rio Lobo" was written by Joel Murcott. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1969
Joan Van Ark made an early TV starring appearance in this January 5, 1969 episode of Bonanza. The actress is cast as Laurie Adams, who is desperate to break off her relationship with her fugitive-outlaw husband Kelly Adams (James Olson). Hoss Cartwright tries to help Laurie, a task made difficult when her misguided pride prohibits her from revealing her husband's whereabouts. Written by John Hawkins, Kay Lenard, Jess Carneol and Jackson Gillis, "Sweet Annie Laurie" was one of several 1960s Bonanza installments chosen by NBC for "encore" presentations in the summer of 1972. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
An overweight, childish pizza delivery boy (Vic Dunlop, who wrote the movie) desperately wants to become a stand-up comic. One day he swallows a tiny alien who had become stuck in his cereal, and he becomes a popular Sam Kinison/Don Rickles-type insult comic. He also becomes a coke-snorting alcoholic and eventually turns into a slimy, murderous monster. Believe it or not, this is a comedy! ~ Brian Gusse, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vic Dunlop, John Hazelwood, (more)
- 1979
You'd think that Irwin Allen had exhausted the "disaster" genre by 1979. Think again: 1979 was the year that Allen put together the made-for-TV movie Cave-In. Once again, a diverse group is trapped in a perilous situation; this time they're caught in an underground cave-in in an anonymous national park. The dramatis personae includes park ranger Dennis Cole, Cole's ex-lover (and state senator) Susan Sullivan, and fugitive convict James Olson. Also ensconsed in the subterranean tomb are Leslie Nielsen, Julie Sommars and Ray Milland. Cave-In was shelved for nearly four years after its completion: it was finally given a network showing on June 19, 1983. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Shortly after The Terminator wrote his name in bold neon lights across box-office grosses, this action thriller took advantage of the hitherto (almost) unexploited comic side of star Arnold Schwarzenegger and paired him with Rae Dawn Chong. Colonel Matrix (Schwarzenegger) is retired and living peaceably with his 10-year-old daughter when she is kidnapped by the henchmen of an exiled Latin American dictator. The dictator's plan is to reinstate himself in power by eliminating the president of his country, using Matrix to kill him (or he will kill the kidnapped daughter). Matrix escapes from the plane that is supposed to be carrying him to his mission and then proceeds to go from one violent confrontation to the next as he hunts down the dictator and moves to rescue his daughter. Helping him is Cindy (Chong), who has her own reasons for wanting the dictator dead. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rae Dawn Chong, (more)
- 1969
- PG
In this horror film, an American graduate student travels to southern France to research her thesis. She is writing about a famed composer who recently died. She stays with his widow and his son, a disabled drug-addict. She becomes more involved in the family than she wanted after she finds the composer's crazy twin, hidden away in the attic. She almost dies trying to escape. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1958
During a stopover in Wyoming, Paladin saves the life of Sheriff Owen Deaver (James Olson)--only to be arrested by Deaver for gunfighting in public. Paladin soon learns that the idealistic young sheriff is the son of an old friend, a legendary lawman. Educated in Philadelphia, Owen Deaver has returned to the west determine to rigidly adhere to the letter of the law as prescribed in the five law books which he has displayed in his office. Although Deaver's one-size-fits-all approach is effective, it has alienated him from everybody in town--including his own mother (Lurene Tuttle). It falls to Paladin to prove to the well-meaning but misguided Deaver that the administration of justice must sometimes be tempered with mercy...and common sense. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1972
This TV movie was the pilot for a series that would have been titled The Prosecutors...had it sold. David Canary and Robert Pine play two green law school graduates, sent to work at the Department of Justice's office in Manhattan. The standard-issue "gruff but lovable" father figure is US attorney James Olson (who would have been the star of the subsequent series). The first case-load: Getting the goods on a mafia boss, while simultaneously exposing City Hall corruption and tracking down a narcotics operation. Richard Castellano, late of The Godfather, shows up as a minor mafioso. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1971
Scheduled to give evidence in a Federal trial, Chief Ironside (Raymond Burr) is all too aware that there are those who hope to silence him before he can appear in court. In fact, the Chief gets word from the grapevine that a professional assassin has been hired to shut him up permanently. What makes this episode unique is that the coldblooded, super-efficient contract killer (James Olson) is depicted in his "off-hours" as a warm and loving family man (whose wife, incidentally, is played by future Happy Days costar Marion Ross). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1973
A startled Ironside (Raymond Burr) is accosted by lawyer David Wills (James Olson), who claims to be suffering from amnesia. All Wills can recall from the last 72 hours is a fragmentary story of an unconscious man on a sinking boat. Racing against time, Ironside scours the streets and docks of San Francisco to find out which man, what boat--and where. But is Wills truly telling the Chief everything that he knows? Featured as the hapless attorney's wife is Lorraine Gary, two years shy of her film stardom vis-à-vis Jaws. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1976
Former policewoman Dorothy Uhnak wrote the book upon which this 150-minute TV movie was based. The central characters of Law and Order are the male members of an Irish-American family--three generations of police officers. The bulk of the drama concerns the conflicts between Deputy Chief of Public Affairs Brian O'Malley (Darren McGavin) and his Vietnam-vet son (Art Hindle), who has become a beat cop. In addition to his problems at home, Chief O'Malley must contend with rumors of departmental corruption. Law and Order was designed as the pilot film for a Police Story-style series with a family slant. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1979
James Olson guest stars as "Reverend" Edward Danforth, a bombastic faith healer who descends upon Walnut Grove. So persuasive is Danforth's rhetoric and his laying-on-of-hands technique that soon both Rev. Alden (Dabbs Greer) and Doc Baker (Kevin Hagen) are shunned by the community as being hopelessly old-fashioned. But Danforth is exposed as a fraud when tragedy strikes in the home of a boy suffering from a ruptured appendix. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, (more)
- 1975
Man on the Outside was the pilot film for the weekly ABC TV series Griff. Lorne Greene stars as retired police captain Wade "Griff" Griffin, who is galvanized back into active duty when his police-officer son is murdered before his eyes, and his grandson is kidnapped by a mob functionary. None of the supporting cast of the subsequent series (Ben Murphy, Patricia Stich, Vic Tayback, et al.) was seen in this pilot episode; instead, future Jaws costar Lorraine Gary, cast as Griff's daughter-in-law, acted as his assistant. Curiously, Man on the Outside did not air until June 29, 1975, a full year and a half after the cancellation of Griff. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The syndicated TV sci-fi series Rocky Jones, Space Ranger (1953) was dual-purposed. Though running 39 episodes, the series consisted of thirteen serialized continuities, each running three weeks. These adventures were later assembled into ersatz "feature films" for theatrical release. One such three-part adventure was Manhunt in Space, in which Rocky Jones and his space rangers battled a group of extraterrestrial desperadoes from the planet Prah. Scotty Beckett, Sally Mansfield and Maurice Cass costar in this low-budget but highly imaginative effort. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1969
A spaceman -- with a raygun -- for hire takes on a crooked land baron in this drama that moves Western themes into outer space. In the year 2021, Bill Kemp (James Olson), the first man to walk on Mars, is an astronaut for hire, renting his services to the highest bidder. J.J. Hubbard (Warren Mitchell) is a multi-millionaire who pays Kemp to help blast an oncoming asteroid out of its orbit so that it will avoid the Earth and crash into the moon. However, Hubbard's goal is hardly benevolent. The moon is being excavated for mineral resources, and since fragments of the asteroid in question resemble jewels, it will allow Hubbard to fraudulently jack up land prices on the lunar surface. Kemp also learns that Hubbard was responsible for the death of the brother of Clementine Taplin (Catherine Schell), the woman he loves. Kemp realizes that he can no longer do business with Hubbard, and he sets out to foil Hubbard's schemes before it's too late. Moon Zero Two was directed by Roy Thomas Baker, who also made a number of pictures for Hammer Films, including the respected sci-fi cult film Quatermass and the Pit. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Olson, Catherine Schell, (more)
- 1990
The ladies of Cabot Cove are enchanted by a newcomer to the community, handsome gym instructor Wayne Bennett (Jason Beghe). Especially fascinated by Bennett is Eve Simpson (Julie Adams), who naturally is an old friend of Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury). When Bennett's onetime partner, con artist Fred Kepper (Hugh O'Brien), turns up dead in Eve's bedroom, Jessica can't bring herself to believe that her friend had anything to do with this awkward turn of events--and as always, Jessica knows best. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1985
In this socially conscious drama, an ex-con meets constant opposition from avaricious land owners who want the land on which he has set up a ranch-style juvenile correctional facility. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1986
Robert Conrad stars in One Police Plaza as a New York homicide detective. A case on which he's working, involving the murder of a beautiful woman, is ordered closed by Conrad's superiors. Refusing to give up, the detective probes deeper, and unearths a hotbed of crooked cops, dirty "brass" and illegal weapons. Made for television, One Police Plaza was initially telecast on November 29, 1986, easily outrating a Jack Paar "comeback" special. The film was based on the bestselling novel by William J. Caunitz. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1978
A schizophrenic runaway provides the focus of this drama, set in San Francisco. She is followed by a caring psychologist who discovers that her illness has led her to believe that she is a hooker. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
