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
- 1974
Connie Stevens appears both with and without clothing in this made-for-TV a clef version of the Marilyn Monroe saga. The script, based on Alvah Bessie's novel The Symbol, contrives to have Stevens portray La Monroe in everything but name, right down to entering into a marriage with a famous sports figure (also given a fictitious name). ABC was threatened with legal action by several interested parties upon announcing plans to telecast Sex Symbol. The film was ultimately shown, albeit with several minutes of nudity and profanity trimmed (this was 1974, not 1994), though the missing footage was well documented in the press. The full "director's cut" version was shown theatrically in Europe, but has yet to be released on videotape. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Connie Stevens, Shelley Winters, (more)
- 1974
Escaped convict Frankie Geller (Michael Tolan) wants to make up for the many years that he neglected his daughter Valerie (Suzanne Arnold). Geller hopes to win back the girl's affections by raising some quick money in the only way he knows how--by selling Mob information to the highest bidder. As a result, Geller finds himself on the lam not only from the FBI but also from his vengeful former associates. Featured in a supporting role is Robert Quarry of Count Yorga, Vampire fame. ~ 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
- 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
- 1972
- PG
Filmed in Canada, The Groundstar Conspiracy was adapted from L.P. Davies' novel The Alien. Michael Sarrazin plays a research scientist who is the sole survivor when his secret laboratory in Vancouver is destroyed by an explosion. Assuming that Sarrazin has engineered the explosion so that he can escape with vital space-program secrets, the government dispatches special-agent George Peppard to track down the fugitive scientist. Sarrazin can remember nothing that happened before the tragedy, but Peppard doesn't buy this story. Only when it becomes obvious that Sarrazin has been targeted for assassination by Persons Unknown does Peppard believe in Sarrazin's innocence, and that a sinister conspiracy may be at the bottom of this whole affair. Christine Belford co-stars as a reluctant cohort of Sarrazin's, though she may not be all that she seems either. Groundstar Conspiracy was produced by the Hal Roach company. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Peppard, Michael Sarrazin, (more)
- 1972
Janice Rule guest stars as prostitute Beverly Landau, who after leaving her latest "John" is attacked and knifed by a religious fanatic who preys on San Francisco's "working girls" in a perverse attempt to save their souls. Three women have already been murdered by the fanatic, and as the sole survivor Beverly is placed under protective custody at the Hotel Kennedy, with Inspector Steve Keller (Michael Douglas) determined to keep the woman alive long enough to testify--if indeed she intends to do so. Among the locations utilized in this episode are Fisherman's Wharf and Ghiradelli Square. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 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)
- 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
- 1971
"A computer can only give back what the human mind has put into it." So explained screenwriter James D. Buchanan when discussing the made-for-TV melodrama Paper Man. A group of five bright college students decide to take advantage of a computer glitch. Partly as a social experiment, partly as a prank, but mostly out of sheer boredom, the students feed phony data into the faulty computer, creating a human being who doesn't exist--complete with biographical background and credit-card history. Unfortunately, the computer spews forth the embodiment of Pure Evil--and by the end of the film, three of the five pranksters lie dead. An early example of the technothriller genre, Paper Man originally aired on October 12, 1971. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The "Andromeda Strain" is a deadly extraterrestrial virus. It is brought to Earth when a research satellite crashes near a tiny Arizona town. Everyone in the community dies within days, except for a baby and an "insulated" drunkard. Recruited from labs all over North America, doctors Charles Dutton (David Wayne), Jeremy Stone (Arthur Hill), Ruth Leavitt (Kate Reid), and Mark Hall (James Olson) don radiation suits and race against time to isolate and destroy the virus. The film is based on a novel by Michael Crichton. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arthur Hill, David Wayne, (more)
- 1971
- PG
If you want to know what The Wild Bunch would have looked like with Blake Edwards rather than Sam Peckinpah in the director's chair, we submit for your approval Wild Rovers. William Holden and Ryan O'Neal play a couple of shiftless ranch hands who impulsively decide to rob a bank. They manage to make off with the money, but also incur the wrath of their former boss Karl Malden, who sends his two sons Tom Skerritt and Joe Don Baker out to bring back Holden and O'Neal, preferably dead. The film's climax is surprisingly melancholy for an Edwards film, but one can't deny that the ending grows logically from the events leading up to it. Severely edited by its distributor Warner Bros, Wild Rovers doesn't make a lot of sense in its release version; the director's cut, incorporated 30 minutes' worth of extra footage, is fortunately available on video. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Holden, Ryan O'Neal, (more)
- 1970
The FBI is summoned to a ranching community to investigate a possible Civil Rights violation. Sheriff William Temple (James Olson) has been accused of excessive brutality and attempted murder by Peter Griffith (Bill Hickman), who has been arrested for smuggling illegal aliens. Faced with overwhelming evidence, Inspector Erskine (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) has no choice but to place Temple in custody--but Erskine can't shake the feeling that the sheriff is being framed by his longtime enemy, rancher Cliff Wyant (J.D. Cannon). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1970
Implicated in a major bond scam, George Breen (James Olson), an accountant in the employ of the Cosa Nostra, jumps bail and runs off to Portland with his wife Peggy (Linda Marsh) in tow. Complicating Breen's escape efforts is the fact that Peggy is pregnant, and due any moment. Worse still, a mob-connected relative is dogging the couple's trail, determined to kill George before the FBI can catch up with him. ~ 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)
- 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)
- 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
Paul Newman made his directorial debut and Newman's wife, Joanne Woodward, stars as Rachel Cameron, a 35-year-old unmarried schoolteacher who feels as though she's wasted her life. Rachel's best friend, Calla Mackie (Estelle Parsons), invites her to attend a religious revival meeting. Here Rachel is swept up in the emotional fervor orchestrated by a young guest preacher (Terry Kiser). This is the first of several cathartic incidents which convince Rachel to kick over the traces and express her own needs and emotions. She has a brief sexual liaison with an old family friend (James Olson), and is delighted at the notion that she might have become pregnant. Rachel ends up alone and childless (her "pregnancy" was nothing more than a benign cyst), but still determined to forge a new life for herself. Based the novel A Jest of God by Margaret Laurence, Rachel, Rachel won New York Film Critics awards for both Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman, and an Oscar nomination for Joanne Woodward. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joanne Woodward, James Olson, (more)
- 1965
The Three Sisters is a literal transcription of the 1965 Actor's Theatre production of the Chekhov drama. Kim Stanley, Geraldine Page and Shelley Winters play the title characters, all members of a wealthy but unhappy 19th-century Russian family. Stuck in a forsaken garrison town by their army-officer father, the sisters long to return to Moscow, a dream that, along with all their other dreams, is doomed to be unfulfilled. Featured in the cast are Kevin McCarthy and Sandy Dennis, the latter performer somewhat less mannered than usual. Originally lensed on videotape, The Three Sisters was transferred to 35 millimeter film for limited theatrical release. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Geraldine Page, Shelley Winters, (more)
- 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
- 1957
In his film debut, Ben Gazzara repeats his stage portrayal of Jocko De Paris, a manipulative psychotic who holds a Southern military school in thrall. With the help of his flunkies, cadets Harold Knoble (Pat Hingle) and Roger Gatt (James Olson), Jocko sadistically terrorizes the underclassmen, forcing them to do his bidding. Efforts made by Major Avery (Larry Gates) to expose Jocko are constantly thwarted by the students' conspiracy of silence and by Jocko's own efforts to destroy Avery. Finally, cadet Robert Marquales (George Peppard, likewise making his first film appearance) can stand no more: turning the tables on Jocko, Marquales reveals the monster for the snivveling coward he really is. This filmization of Calder Willingham's play and novel End as a Man almost didn't make it to the screen due to its pronounced homosexual subtext. The filmmakers managed to circumvent the censors by removing three minutes of allegedly offensive footage, and by making the film's most overtly gay character a slimy, repulsive creep (another implicitly homosexual character, played by Arthur Storch, is depicted as merely wimpish and withdrawn). As a box-office come-on, Calder Willingham added the superfluous character of good-time gal Rosebud (Julie Wilson). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ben Gazzara, Pat Hingle, (more)
- 1956
In this adventure, Navy researchers team up with marine biologists to create an effective shark repellent for WW II pilots who must fly over oceans. Unfortunately, the project is supervised by an unscrupulous scientist who wants to get the project finished and endeavors to have an inferior product given to the Navy. When his shoddy workmanship results in the death of an innocent young man, the scientist becomes genuinely committed to his task and even uses himself as a guinea pig with the final formula. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Victor Mature, Karen Steele, (more)
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
