Roger Perry Movies
See if you can predict the ending of this one. John Ritter and Cassie Yates are the next-door neighbors of Penny Marshall and Bert Convy. Ritter and Marshall can't stand each other. But presto! Ritters' wife Yates runs off with Marshall's husband Convy. The two spurned spouses meet to bemoan their individual fates. Love Thy Neighbor is a TV-movie comedy with a TV-movie cast and a TV-movie denouement. The only surprise is the absence of a laugh track. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This lively film was made to cash in on the roller skating craze that swept Southern California in the late '70s. The story centers upon a poor-little-rich-girl runaway who heads for the Venice boardwalk to join the other hipsters on wheels. She and her new friends then team up to keep an avaricious developer from razing the local roller rink and putting a shopping mall in its stead. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Linda Blair, Jim Bray, (more)
In an episode clearly inspired by the legend of D.B. Cooper, the body of R.W. Collins, an infamous hijacker who bailed out of a plane with a suticase full of ransom money, is recovered five years after his disappearance. Examining Collins' remains, Quincy (Jack Klugman) discovers to his horror that the anthrax particles which Cooper was using as a "weapon" were released in his body--and presumably, also contaminated the money he was carrying. It is now up to Quincy and the authorities to track down the cash that is still missing--to say nothing of Cooper's unidentified accomplice--before a deadly epidemic ravages the Southwest. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
In this pilot for an unsold TV series, Bob Neill stars as high school teacher Eric Smith, the son of a space-alien father and an earthling mother. Having inherited his dad's psychic and telekinetic powers, Eric moonlights as a secret agent for the Government. In this capacity, he takes on the challenge of protecting a visiting Bengal princess (Persis Khambatta) from would-be assassins. The Man With the Power made its NBC debut on May 24, 1977. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Mixing humor and melodrama, this curiosity has a husband-and-wife detective duo investigating Satanic goings on in an American suburb, all the while bickering about their in-laws and other domestic problems. ~ Mark Hockley, All Movie Guide
Filling in for another psychologist, Bob finds out that his first patient is his best friend, Jerry. Initially reluctant to listen to Jerry's problems, Bob decides that his is not to reason why, etc. etc. Then Jerry confesses that he is secretly in love...with Bob's wife, Emily. Also in the cast are Roger Perry as Dr. Walker and Teri Garr as Mrs. Brennan. Written by Tom Patchett and Jay Tarses, "Confessions of an Orthodontist" first aired on February 23, 1974. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bob Newhart, Suzanne Pleshette, (more)
In the opening episode of Emergency!'s fourth season, comedian Shelley Berman guest stars as obnoxious screenwriter Art Frommich, who insists upon seeking "inspiration" by accompanying paramedics Roy (Kevin Tighe) and John (Randolph Mantooth) on their daily rounds. The emergency load this week includes a fire at a toy factory, a motorcycle crash, and an emergency birth. NFL Hall of Famer (Larry Csonka) appears as a factory worker who goes violently berserk after being exposed to toxic chemicals. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Hoping to escape the country, syndicate hit man Ben Silliman (Gary Lockwood) needs a lot of money in a hurry. To raise the cash, he blackmails William Braden (Peter Mark Richman), the "respectable" businessman who has enabled Silliman to rise to the top of his profession. Not to be confused with the same-named 1966 episode starring Charles Bronson, "The Animal" marks the final appearance of series regular William Reynolds as FBI assistant director Arthur Ward. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
In the conclusion of a two-part story, Ironside (Raymond Burr) has degenerated from a respected law enforcement officer to a seedy skid-row bum, apparently because 10-year-old murder witness Jerry Abbott (Lee H. Montgomery) was killed while in the Chief's protective custody. What even Ironside's loyal assistants are unaware of is that little Jerry is still alive, and that the Chief is only posing as a derelict to flush out the murderer. The situation reaches the crisis stage when two attempts are made on Ironside's alive--and the Chief can't summon the aid of his associates without blowing his cover. This episode features two original songs by David and Marty Paich: "Street Song", peformed by Carol Carmichael; and "Way Up Here", sung by Marty Paich. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
A familiar film noir plotline is dusted off and gussied up in this episode. A former convict hires hit man Alex Tanner (Richard Jordan) to kill the attorney who sent the ex-con to prison--but then has second thoughts. Unfortunately, the elusive assassin has no intention of breaking the contract, and as a result Inspector Lew Erskine (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) finds himself embarking on yet another "race against time." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Rule of thumb: if David Lowell Rich directed it, it's probably a TV movie. Beg, Borrow or Steal stars Mike Connors, Michael Cole and Kent McCord as three ex-cops, disabled while on duty. Having trouble finding regular work, the three men team up to steal a valuable statue from a museum. Connors has no legs, Cole no hands, and McCord is blind: but when they're working together, they're a lean mean stealing machine. Beg, Borrow or Steal is as tasteless as it sounds, but at least it has the novelty of three popular TV detective-show stars pooling their resources on the opposite side of the law. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mike Connors, Kent McCord, (more)
In the first half of a two-part story (originally telecast as a single two-hour episode), Chief Ironside is assigned to protect little Jerry Abbott, an autistic 10-year-old who has witnessed a murder. Not long afterward, the newspapers are reporting that Jerry himself has been killed--and that Ironside, tortured by guilt, has quit the force, crawled into a booze bottle, and ended up a derelict on Skid Row. But is this grim situation everything it appears to be? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Dr. Brackett (Robert Fuller suspects that a boy whom the paramedics have rescued from a deep hole is the victim of child abuse. The problem now is to convince the Court, a task made difficult by the hotshot attorney (Richard Jaeckel) hired by the boys' parents. Meanwhile, the station adopts a stray dog named Boot, who turns out to be a literal lifesaver. John Travolta makes his first network TV appearance as an imperiled hiker in this episode . ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The good campy fun in this sci-fi horror movie really begins when the head of a racist mad scientist (Ray Milland) is sewn onto the shoulders of a large black convict (Rosie Grier) and the two heads begin fighting--literally trying to punch each other out--to control their shared body. The whole mess begins because the brain surgeon suffers from terminal cancer. He reasons that he will survive if he can transplant his head onto the shoulders of another. He and his team begin experimenting. First he has his head sewn to a gorilla (featuring a simian created by fledgling make-up artist Rick Baker). Something goes terribly wrong, he goes into a coma and when he wakes up, he finds himself having a permanent tete-a-tete with the wrongfully convicted Grier. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ray Milland, Roosevelt Grier, (more)
In the conclusion of a two-part story (originally telecast as a single two-hour episode), Ironside (Raymond Burr) works in concert with attorney Ken Klaven (Cameron Mitchell) to secure the release of Walter Booth (William Campbell), whom the Chief had sent to prison on a manslaughter charge seven years before. Though now convinced of Booth's innocence, Ironside encounters a great deal of trouble persuading the DA's office. The Chief's only hope is to force a young woman to come forward with testimony she'd withheld during the original trial--but there are mysterious forces who are determined to silence both Ironside and his witness for keeps! Prominent in the supporting cast is Geraldine Brooks, who had played the sniper responsible for the Chief's confinement to a wheelchair in the original 1967 Ironside pilot film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
In the first half of a two-part story (originally telecast as a single two-hour episode), Ironside (Raymond Burr) begins to question his judgment in a manslaughter case which occurred seven years ago. At the time, the Chief rammed through the conviction of chief suspect Walter Booth (William Campbell). Now armed with new evidence, Ironside works hand and glove with Booth's attorney Ken Klaven (Cameron Mitchell) to secure the man's release--despite the formidable opposition of the DA's office, which is determined to keep Booth behind bars. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Diana Hyland guest stars as Pat Laner, the wife of hopeless drug addict Jim Laner (Roger Perry). To feed her husband's habit, Pat turns to theft, stealing securities from the brokerage firm where she works. Inasmuch as Pat's "customers" are members of the Mob--most prominently Phillip Derane, played by Robert Loggia--the beleagured woman falls under the scrutiny of the FBI operative Lew Erskine Efrem Zimbalist Jr.. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The killer of police officer Randy Keating (Roger Perry) is himself killed by Keating's partner Frank Carlson (David Carradine)--whereupon Carlson finds himself facing a murder charge. Inasmuch as he attended police academy with both Keating and Carlson, Sgt. Ed Brown (Don Galloway) takes a personal interest in the case. With the help of his boss Ironside (Raymond Burr), Ed slowly but surely figures out that Carlson has been framed--but by whom? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
With a title like The Feminist and the Fuzz, the TV-movie comedy could only have been produced in the swinging' seventies. Barbara Eden forsakes her "I Dream of Jeannie" obsequiousness to play dedicated feminist Dr. Jane Bowers. While engaging in a protest rally, Jane comes in contact with chauvinistic cop Jerry Frazer (David Hartman). The plot then contrives to force these two opposites to become roommates. The Feminist and the Fuzz debuted in 1971--January 26, to be exact. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Lonely vampire Count Yorga and his bloodthirsty cohorts begin living in a ramshackle mansion located near an orphanage. This slightly fang-in-cheek horror film chronicles what happens when the Count falls in love with a toothsome young woman and tries to make her his bride. Fortunately for her, her boy friend has other ideas. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Don Grady of My Three Sons fame guest stars as John McElroy, the irresponsible son of business executive Douglas McElroy (Murray Hamilton). After John inadvertently commits a crime on a government reservation, a mobster who witnessed the incident strongarms the boy's father into allowing his company to be taken over by the Mafia. Inspector Erskine (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) must not only bring John to justice for his crime, but also save the boy from becoming yet another Mob casualty. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Conspiracy to Kill was one of two pilot films for the Jack Webb-produced TV series The D.A. Robert Conrad stars as LA deputy district attorney Paul Ryan. This time around, Ryan reopens a case that he's already won. New evidence indicates that a supposedly victimized drugstore owner (William Conrad) was the brains behind a robbery and murder that occurred at his own establishment. The D.A. series proper ran from September 17, 1971, through January 7, 1972. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Centuries old Count Yorga (Robert Quarry) is a vampire that is given a ride to his gloomy mansion in the woods by Paul (Michael Murphy) and Donna (Judith Lang) in their Volkswagon van. On the way out of the woods, the vehicle becomes stuck in the mud, but the duo refuses to return to the creepy house. After the two make love, Donna is bitten by the Count. Paul becomes suspicious when she starts to devour cats and a seance reveals some uneasy feelings about the Count. Donna is examined by Dr. Hayes (Roger Perry), and the dedicated physician brings wooden stakes to the Volkswagon. While the demented demon looks on and shrieks with delight, a bevy of vampire beauties eats the doctor alive after he falls into the Count's trap. Unnecessary narration is employed to explain the action. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Quarry, Roger Perry, (more)
After several police drug busts go bad thanks to premature tip-offs, suspicion falls upon Ironside (Raymond Burr) who has been identified as a Syndicate informer by a captured dope pusher. A bad situation gets worse when Sgt. Ed Brown (Don Galloway) ordered to launch an investigation targetting Ironside. Though the rest of the Chief's team--especially Eve (Barbara Anderson)--are upset by this turn of events, Ironside himself remains surprisingly cool, calm and collected...almost as if he knows something that no one else does. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Jim Killian (Glenn Ford) is a reformed gunslinger who takes a job as a local preacher in Vinagaroon, Arizona. He arrives during a time of conflict between shepherds and cattlemen who are engaged in a bloody range war. When Coke Beck (David Carradine) hangs a local Indian, the victim's daughter Leloopa (Barbara Hershey) enlists the help of Killian. He tries to mediate the conflict in a meeting between the rival factions, but a member of the congregation exposes him as an ex-convict. He also enlists the help of the heart-of-gold saloon-operator Madge (Carolyn Jones). Killian and the townsfolk, women included, organize a march to the watering hole -- the center of the controversy. The cattlemen approach and draw their guns in what could be a potentially violent confrontation. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glenn Ford, Carolyn Jones, (more)

















