James Gavin Movies
- 1969
This episode takes place almost entirely in the cabin of a night plane travelling from Hawaii to San Francisco. Among the passengers are Chief Ironside (Raymond Burr), his assistants, and a federal witness whom they are escorting to testify against a racketeer. Unfortunately, also on board is a professional hit man, determined to bump off the witness before the plane lands--and worse,there may be more than one killer on the plane. Featured in the cast is Michael Sevareid,the son of celebrated TV journalist Eric Sevareid. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Clint Eastwood stars as Walt Coogan, an Arizona deputy sheriff who has been sent to New York City to extradite escaped killer James Ringerman (Don Stroud). On arrival, he's forced to wait by NYPD detective Lieutenant McElroy (Lee J. Cobb), who informs him that Ringerman is recovering from a bad acid trip at Bellevue Hospital. After briefly flirting with attractive probation officer Julie Roth (Susan Clark), Coogan heads for Bellevue, where he's able to con the hospital's staff into releasing the criminal. The cop and the fugitive are on the way to catch a flight back to Arizona, when Ringerman's hippie girlfriend Linny (Tisha Sterling) and a large accomplice spirit the killer away, leaving Coogan unconscious. Luckily, Julie is the girl's probation officer, and Coogan manages to get her address from the woman's files while getting to know her better. He tracks the girl to a popular psychedelic club, whereupon, deciding she likes the deputy, she takes him back to her apartment for further interrogation. The first in a series of films on which Eastwood would collaborate with director Don Siegel, it features a memorable scene in which a battle fought with billiard balls and cue sticks suggests the birth of a new martial art. Although its seemingly innocuous scenes of sex and violence drew criticism at the time, it served as the source for television's considerably more benign McCloud, starring Dennis Weaver as the laconic fish out of water. ~ Michael Costello, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clint Eastwood, Lee J. Cobb, (more)
- 1967
US Senator William Townsend (Kent Smith), the head of a right-wing extremist group, has been assassinated. Confessing to the crime is Andreas Solowiechek (David Sheiner), a member of a Communist Trade delegation, who insists that he was acting on orders from his own government. In truth, however, the assassination was engineered by Townsend's own followers, who hope to spark a dangerous international incident. It is up to the IMF to force Solowiechek to change his tune. First telecast on February 25, 1967, "The Confession" was written by William Read Woodfield and Allan Balter. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steven Hill, Barbara Bain, (more)
- 1966
Determined that his grandson Ed (Buck Taylor) will attend school rather than follow family tradition and become a miner, old Tom Rule (John McIntire) decides to sabotage the New Mexico mine where Ed works. What Tom doesn't know is that the mine is located near a huge deposit of tungsten, a mineral vital to the defense of the U.S. Thus, FBI Inspector Erskine (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) arrives on the scene when the booby-trapped mine caves in --leaving Tom trapped inside with Erskine's assistant Jim Rhodes (Stephen Brooks). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1961
After speculating on the possibility that a person can travel back in time and change history, Peter Corrigan (Russell Johnson) bids farewell to his friends and prepares to head home from his club. As he walks through the doors, he is unexpectedly transported from 1961 to 1865. Once he gets his bearings, Corrigan finds himself in a position to prevent the assassination of Abraham Lincoln -- but this "wrinkle in time" turns out to have entirely different results. Scripted by Rod Serling, "Back There" is one of the lesser offerings of Twilight Zone's 1960-61 season, though it does boast an excellent musical score by Jerry Goldsmith, which would remain in the standard TV stock-music repertoire throughout the 1960s and 1970s. The episode first aired January 13, 1961. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Russell Johnson, Bartlett Robinson, (more)
- 1960
Bart (Jack Kelly) is framed for crimes he didn't commit by sadistic sheriff Horace Hadley (Edgar Buchanan) and his equally odious deputy Jones (played by future Oscar winner George Kennedy). The two crooked lawmen specialize in hunting down and murdering innocent men, then claiming that their victims are outlaws in order to collect the reward. In his efforts to expose Hadley and Jones' racket, Bart turns bounty hunter and solicits the aid of several familiar Warner Bros. TV-series stars--who prove to be no help whatsoever. Appearing in cameo roles are Clint Walker from Cheyenne, Will Hutchins from Sugarfoot, John Russell and Peter Brown from Lawman, and Edd "Kookie" Byrnes from 77 Sunset Strip (a title given a cute "westernization" in the context of the story). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1959
Mr. and Mrs. Avery (Carol Hill and James Gavin) have been threatened with death by Mexican outlaw Manuel Garcia (Peter Coe). Asked to protect the Averys, Paladin (Richard Boone) discovers that they have adopted Garcia's son--and he wants the boy back at any cost. In the climax, the fate of everyone concerned is determined by the child's tormented biological mother Nita (Carol Thurston). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1959
A kick from an angry horse knocks out the town bully, but it is Bret Maverick who is given credit for the blow--and that's how Bret becomes the new sheriff of Duck 'N' Shoot. His contract calls for him to stay on the job for six months, but the locals give odds that Bret won't last the week. Surprisingly, Bret proves to be an efficient if somewhat unorthodox peacekeeper (thereby foreshadowing James Garner's similar role in the 1969 comedy western Support Your Local Sheriff), but ultimately he is toppled from his perch by beautiful-but-larcenous Melissa Maybrook (Peggy McCay) and ends up locked in his own jail. Fortunately, brother Bart (Jack Kelly) shows up to give Bret a helping hand...but there's a hefty price to pay for his services. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1959
Even with the guiding hand of talented action director Paul Wendkos, and good performances by the cast, this routine western unconvincingly tries to develop complex relationships in a 24-hour period. Mark Riley (Fred MacMurray) is in the middle of robbing a bank when his younger brother guns his way into the scene to stop him. In the process, he kills a deputy and is killed himself, while Mark takes off to save his own skin. He is now accused of the murder. Holing up in another town where he is a stranger, Mark falls in love with the sheriff's sister. Then he really gets into trouble when he decides to save the sheriff from imminent death -- he himself is caught out and captured. There is some hope for him because the sheriff he just rescued happens to be a lawyer. What a difference a day makes. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Fred MacMurray, Lin McCarthy, (more)
- 1958
Several Los Angeles supermarkets have been burglarized over the past few weeks. Friday (Jack Webb) and Smith (Ben Alexander) have but one clue to go on: The burglar always leaves cracker crumbs scattered on the floor of the crime scene. Among the supporting players is Sid Melton, best remembered by baby-boomers as "Ichabod Mudd" on Captain Midnight and "Charlie Halper" on The Danny Thomas Show. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1957
In order to get rid of her husband Bruce's mistress Roxy Howard (Greta Thyssen), Sybil Granger hires Perry (Raymond Burr) to secretly help her gain a majority financial interest in Bruce's oil company. But someone else is apparently aware of what Sybil is up to, and that someone is old George Lutz (Richard Hale). After catching Sybil spying on Roxy, George is shot to death. Inasmuch as Sybil is already his client, Perry assumes the task of clearing her of a murder charge. This episode is based on a 1955 novel by Perry Mason creator Erle Stanley Gardner. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1957
It may be Christmastime, but there's no good cheer in the home of Nathaniel Beecher (Edward Binns), an embittered rancher whose son was stolen by the Pawnees many years ago. Believing that he has finally tracked down the Pawnee chief responsible for the abduction, Beecher hires Paladin to track the suspect down--a task that turns out to have more than its share of heartwarming surprises. This episode is preceded by a pre-credits teaser than can only be described as Pirandellian, as Paladin offers the home viewers a unique "Christmas present"! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1956
Columbia's The Werewolf is not nearly as generic as its title would suggest: in fact, it is one of the better films of its kind. Steven Ritch plays Duncan Marsh, who after being seriously injured in a car wreck is used as a guinea pig by a pair of none too scrupulous scientists (S. John Launer and George M. Lynn). Seeking a cure for radiation poisoning, the scientists inject Marsh with wolf serum (what this has to do with radiation poisioning is never fully explained). Before long, Marsh is a full-fledged lycanthrope, wreaking havoc in the Big Bear Lake region. Some truly startling vignettes--including one lulu of a sequence in a jail cell--lift this Sam Katzman production well above the norm. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steven Ritch, Don Megowan, (more)
