Frank Overton Movies

Both Linda Roberts (Judi Meredith) and Amos Crenshaw (Frank Overton) have sworn vengeance against Joe Cartwright. Linda thinks that Joe killed her brother, while Amos' son was shot by Joe in self-defense. The tension reaches the boiling point when Linda hires a man to assassinate Joe, then changes her mind-only to realize that she doesn't know the true identity of the killer. Cowritten by Bonanza star Michael Landon and Joy Dexter, "The Wormwood Cup" (a title explained in the context of the episode) first aired on April 23, 1967. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The first season of this World War II series -- which was based on the 1949 feature film starring Gregory Peck and Dean Jagger (who won the Oscar) -- starred Robert Lansing as Brigadier General Frank Savage (the role played by Peck in the movie), the commander of the 918th Heavy Bombardment Group, based at Archbury. That season hewed the most closely to the film in terms of characters, with Frank Overton in the recurring role of Adjutant Major Harvey Stovall (the Dean Jagger role), and, as regular, recurring characters, Lew Gallo as Major Cobb, Barney Phillips as Major Kaiser ("Doc Kaiser"), the group medical officer, John Larkin as Savage's commanding officer, Major General Wiley Crowe (later succeeded by John Zaremba as Major General Stoneman); and Paul Newland as his superior officer, Lieutenant General Pritchard. The series was based, like the movie, on the novel of the same name by Sy Bartlett and Beirne Lay, Jr. (who also wrote the screenplay), who were listed as creators of the program, and based their work on the real-life story of General Frank Armstrong, commander of the 306th Bomb Group. As one would expect, the series concentrated initially on airborne stories. The fact that the series was originally in black-and-white made it possible to use a large amount of actual World War II footage -- although, as with the original film, it was the men's lives on the ground that were the main substance of the scripts. As with most dramatic series of this era, faced with producing over 30+ episodes each season, the series' output was somewhat uneven, in the writing as well as the direction, though the acting was consistently good. To the viewer, the difficulty with the first season was that the scripts got a little repetitive early on -- one can wonder, for example, looking at the series four or five decades on, how many nests (or potential nests) of spies, and how many women with agendas of their own, would a combat officer such as Frank Savage cross paths with in real life?

The real problems with the first season were more internal, and mostly concerned the star, Robert Lansing, a method-trained actor with theatrical experience who was reputed to be very difficult to work with. Producer Quinn Martin apparently decided early on that his role might have to be written out and the actor replaced. In the very first episode, the writers introduced the character of Joseph Gallagher, the son of an Army Air Force lieutenant general, played by Paul Burke -- a leading man who had just come off of the series The Naked City -- initially as a captain. Gallagher reappears in the 24th episode as a major and squadron commander, setting the stage for his replacing Savage in the first episode of the second season. Officially, the reason that Lansing was leaving the series was a result of his lack of appeal to female viewers (though how many female viewers were watching a series such as this was questionable), and the fact that the producers wanted a younger man, though Burke was actually two years older than Lansing, but was a more conventionally handsome man and looked younger.

The series' first season is generally by fans as the best, despite the internal strains behind the scenes. The scripts delved into the dark side of the psyche, on the part of pilots, their commanders, and the people around them (including women); and if one could get past moments of incredulity, the suspense level in some of the stories was most bracing and effective. In "The Hours Before Dawn", for example -- a show that seems to have borrowed its title and part of its content from a Somerset Maugham wartime story -- Savage is the only man with details of a vital mission, and finds himself trapped during a German bombing raid in a house with a woman (Glynis Johns) who has retreated from all contact with the war or the outside world, and a downed German colonel (Fritz Weaver), who plans on capturing or killing Savage.

As a result of the fact that a lot of the drama was set on the ground, 12 O'Clock High was able to feature a much larger female presence than most World War II series of its era. This obviously pleased the sponsors and the network, though at times it also made the program seem a little too much like a soap opera for modern tastes. The series was successful enough to be renewed for a second season, but not without a lot of vast changes in store for the cast, more than was typical of television during this period. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide

Hoping to arrange a profitable marriage between his son Al (Don Galloway) and wealthy vineyard owner Kitty Norris (Laura Devon), wine merchant Luis Aguilar (Gilbert Roland) ends up disowning Al when the boy insists upon marrying another girl. Later on, Al's wife becomes pregnant, compelling him to return home and beg his father for money. Luis agrees -- but only if Al can outdrink Luis in an all-night binge. Inevitably, this "wager" ends in murder, with Luis' long-suffering secretary, Ruth (Laraine Day), taking a hand in matters. (Incidentally, Ruth is not the "Joyful Woman" of the title.) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Scripted by Richard Matheson from his own short story, this episode stars 13-year-old Ann Jillian as the title character, a nonverbal young girl named Ilse Nielsen. Apparently the sole survivor of a fire, Ilse is unofficially adopted by Harry and Cora Wheeler (Frank Overton and Barbara Baxley), who cannot understand why such an intelligent child lacks the power of speech. What the viewer knows, but the Wheelers don't, is that Ilsa is telepathic, raised by telepathic parents -- and her special powers may cause her more harm than good. This 60-minute Twilight Zone episode was first seen on January 31, 1963. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning autobiographical novel was translated to film in 1962 by Horton Foote and the producer/director team of Robert Mulligan and Alan J. Pakula. Set a small Alabama town in the 1930s, the story focuses on scrupulously honest, highly respected lawyer Atticus Finch, magnificently embodied by Gregory Peck. Finch puts his career on the line when he agrees to represent Tom Robinson (Brock Peters), a black man accused of rape. The trial and the events surrounding it are seen through the eyes of Finch's six-year-old daughter Scout (Mary Badham). While Robinson's trial gives the film its momentum, there are plenty of anecdotal occurrences before and after the court date: Scout's ever-strengthening bond with older brother Jem (Philip Alford), her friendship with precocious young Dill Harris (a character based on Lee's childhood chum Truman Capote and played by John Megna), her father's no-nonsense reactions to such life-and-death crises as a rampaging mad dog, and especially Scout's reactions to, and relationship with, Boo Radley (Robert Duvall in his movie debut), the reclusive "village idiot" who turns out to be her salvation when she is attacked by a venomous bigot. To Kill a Mockingbird won Academy Awards for Best Actor (Peck), Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Art Direction. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Journalist Lawrence Vander (Paul Lambert) is murdered during a weekend retreat for the employees of Space Associates Ltd, a major defense contractor. It turns out that Vander was trying to track down ex-Nazi Max Keinermann, who may be working for Space Associates under an alias.. Accused of the murder is Harlan Merill (Dick Foran), who has a rather unsavory past of his own. Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) dedicates himself to clearing Merrill's name--actually two names, since he is also using an alias--and solving the murder. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Audie Murphy plays a gunslinger put in charge of a posse. His quarry is a four-man bandit gang that has robbed the local bank, killed several citizens and abducted leading lady Zohra Lampert. Though Lampert is obviously a New York-based actress, it is John Saxon who plays the tenderfoot Manhattanite posse member, unaccustomed to the Wild West. It's nip and tuck for a while, but Audie Murphy successfully completes his mission and rescues the hostage. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Filmed on location in the Tennessee Valley, Wild River is set in the early 1930s. Montgomery Clift plays an idealistic TVA agent, assigned to convince the locals to move from their property so that a beneficial dam can be built. The principal holdout is feisty octogenarian Jo Van Fleet, who refuses to budge from her land, convinced that she will die if she ever gives an inch. Her prophecy turns out to be true, as Van Fleet becomes yet another sacrifice to progress. Clift also runs into opposition because of his fair treatment of the local black population. Lee Remick costars as Van Fleet's granddaughter, who comes to love and understand the sensitive Clift. Some dated fuzzy-headed liberalism aside, Wild River is a masterful recreation of a difficult, complex period in American history. Watch for an uncredited Bruce Dern in his film debut. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

One the finest of all Twilight Zone episodes, "Walking Distance" benefits not only from a superb Rod Serling script and a magnificent starring performance by Gig Young, but also from an evocative musical score by Bernard Herrmann (which would be cannibalized many times on subsequent episodes). Young is cast as 35-year-old businessman Martin Sloan, who, while waiting for his car to be repaired, takes a sentimental journey to his home town of Homewood. Gradually, Martin begins to realize that the town has not changed one bit in 25 years: In fact, his parents are still alive, and there's a young boy running around who is the living image of 10-year-old Martin Sloan. Watch for Ron Howard in a three-line bit role. "Walking Distance" was first telecast October 30, 1959. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Director Delbert Mann and screenwriter Irwin Shaw adapt Eugene O'Neill's 20th-century version of a Greek tragedy to the screen with a bit more discretion than need be. The story takes place in the New England of the 1840s. Emotionally cool but passionately hot farmer Burl Ives the smoldering Sophia Loren as his third wife. Anthony Perkins arrives to ignite this powder keg of pent-up lust, with Perkins and Loren engaging in a semi-incestuous love affair. When Loren becomes pregnant, Ives thinks the child is his own and the heat it turned up considerably. And with Eugene O'Neill aping Greek tragedy, could infanticide be far behind? ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

This 28 1/2-minute drama was produced by the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai Brith. Based on a true story, the film demonstrates the insidious evil of racial prejudice. A young girl's life is thrown into turmoil when her neighbors mistakenly assume that she's Jewish. As in the 1947 Gentlemen's Agreement, the moral of the story seems to be that it requires a Gentile to awaken others to the wickedness of anti-Semitism. The cast is populated by several top New York talents, including Frank Overton, Audra Lindley, and 12-year-old Patty Duke. American Girl was the 16th in a series of films prepared for simultaneous TV and theatrical release by the Anti-Defamation league. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Irregularly scheduled on NBC from 1954 through 1957, Producers' Showcase was a series of lavish, full-color 90 minute specials, bringing the best of Broadway to the 21 inch screen. The series' May 28, 1956 presentation was an adaptation of the hit Broadway musical Bloomer Girl, which originally played for 654 performances during the 1944-45. Composer Harold Arlen and lyricist E.Y. Harburg were clearly under the influence of Oklahoma when they concocted this "integrated" musical (in every sense of the word), wherein the songs flowed naturally from the story and the characters, a relatively new concept back then. Originally starring Celeste Holm, David Brooks, Joan McCracken and Dooley Wilson ("Sam" of Casablanca fame), the show was set in the town of Cicero Falls, New York in the waning months of the American Civil War. The heroine, Evelina Applegate (here played by Barbara Cook, twixt and tween her Broadway stints in Candide and The Music Man, is the daughter of the town's richest man, a manufacturer of women's hoop skirts. Rebelling against the notion of marrying the man of her dad's choosing, Evelina gravitates to her freewheeling aunt, Dolly Bloomer (Carmen Mathews), a pioneering Feminist whose insistence upon wearing the undergarments bearing her name ("bloomers", that is), strikes a blow against the "confinement" represented by the mounds of petticoats usually worn by the proper ladies of the period. In addition to donning her own pair of liberating bloomers, Evalina also joins Dolly in her abolitionist activities, helping slaves escape to the freedom by way of the Underground Railroad. The songs include "Right as the Rain", "When the Boys Come Home", "Got a Song", "Never Was Born", "Evalina", and "The Eagle and Me", a showstopper performed by the previously enslaved Pompey (Roy Spearman). Because Bloomer Girl was never filmed by Hollywood, this Producer's Showcase version is the only known visual record of the popular musical--if, indeed, any kinescopes exist outside of private collections. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide