Peter Mark Richman Movies
One of four children of a South Philadelphia contractor/paperhanger, Peter Mark Richman excelled in sports and the arts while attending high school. After war service, Richman played semipro football, then attended the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science before finally settling on acting as a vocation. After stock experience, Richman was cast in such New York productions as End As a Man, The Rainmaker, A Hatful of Rain, and The Zoo Story. His first film appearance was in 1956's Friendly Persuasion, as the boyfriend of ingénue Phyllis Love. Though he had the looks and bearing of a romantic lead, Richman considered himself a journeyman character actor until he was cast as the hard-hitting lawyer hero of the 1961 racket-busting TV series Cain's Hundred, in which he was billed as plain Mark Richman. Since that time, Peter Mark Richman (as he is now billed) has been a regular on the weekly shows Longstreet and Dynasty, and a reliable white-collar villain in many another television series and theatrical-movie releases. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1988
Star Trek: The Next Generation wrapped up its first season with this, its 26th episode. While investigating a derelict 20th century Earth satellite, Captain Picard and the crew come across the cryogenically preserved bodies of three space travellers. Before they can take further action, Picard and company are summoned to the Neutral Zone to quell a band of hostile Romulans. As the final showdown approaches, the three Earthlings revive, leading to a climax which neatly blends pathos and thrills. Cowritten by Deborah McIntyre, Mona Glee and Maurice Hurley, "The Neutral Zone" was first seen May 21, 1988. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1988
- PG
Shot in the Philippines, this campy but enjoyably surreal occult thriller finds a quartet of wayward college kids trapped in the cursed village of Santana, a town whose founders made a pact with Satan centuries ago to spare themselves from a plague epidemic. It seems the villagers' end of the bargain allowed for the Devil's return each year to pick up a handful of fresh souls free of charge... and it's no surprise who's on Ol' Scratch's list this time around. Writer-director Ferde Grofe, Jr. makes good use of some rustic locations, and the scenes of demonic hordes swarming through the streets are quite chilling. Also a plus: the young protagonists are presented as fairly well-rounded and intelligent, instead of mere cyphers waiting their turn to become demon-fodder. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ken McLeod, Dave Smith, (more)
- 1986
Eugene Roche is cast as veteran reporter Billy Simms, yet another longtime friend of Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury). While recovering from a heart attack, Billy expresses the wish that something very, very bad would happen to the slimy publisher who took over Billy's former newspaper and turned it into a trashy tabloid. Sure enough, the publisher is murdered, casting suspicion not only on Billy but also Jessica, whose reputation had recently been slimed by the newspaper. Gretchen Corbett delivers a sharply honed performance as aggressive police investigator Lt. Caruso. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Dempsey is the TV biopic of boxer William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey, a.k.a. Manassa Mauler. The film opens in Utah in 1911, where the teenage Dempsey works out in hopes of cracking the big time. Eight years later, Dempsey enters into his famous bout with reigning champ Jess Willard. From 1919 through 1926, Dempsey is heavyweight champion; he also carries on a wild and profligate private life, including an expensive marriage to--and even more expensive divorce from--silent film star Estelle Taylor (Victoria Tennant). Sally Kellerman co-stars as the first of Dempsey's five wives. Dempsey star Treat Williams was trained by Al Silvani, who worked with Stallone on the earliest Rocky epics. Scripted by Edward di Lorenzo, Dempsey premiered on September 28, 1983. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1980
The title The PSI Factor refers to inexplicable events occuring to normal people. In this instance, our bastion of normality is a civilian researcher at NASA. Accustomed to a well-ordered existence, our hero doesn't quite know what to make of strange radio signals emanating from far-off planet Serius B. Before long, he realizes that the Earth may be in danger of invasion-or extinction. Peter Mark Richman and Gretchen Corbett star in this modest thriller. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1979
The 8-hour TV miniseries Blind Ambition was originally telecast May 20 through 23, 1979. This 105-minute feature-film version, prepared in 1982, seems a bit rushed at times, but overall does a credible and coherent job of storytelling. Based on John Dean's book Blind Ambition, with elements of Maureen Dean's Mo woven in by screenwriter Stanley R. Greenberg, this is the saga of the Watergate affair, as experienced by Dean (Martin Sheen) and hia wife Maureen (Theresa Russell). As the Nixon administration goes down in flames, the Deans' marriage is sorely tested-as is Dean's success-at-any-price credo. Rip Torn plays Nixon like something out of a Greek Tragedy; some viewers accepted his interpretation, others found it jarringly inaccurate. Others in the cast of "usual suspects" include Michael Callan as Charles Colson, Lonny Chapman as L. Patrick Gray, William Daniels as G. Gordon Liddy, Fred Grandy as Donald Segretti, Christopher Guest as Jeb Magruder, Lawrence Pressman as H. R. Haldeman, William Windom as Richard Kleindienst, James Greene as E. Howard Hunt, Logan Ramsey as J. Edgar Hoover, and Al Checco as judge John Sirica. Also known as The John Dean Story, Blind Ambition earned two Emmy nominations. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Martin Sheen, Theresa Russell, (more)
- 1978
Dennis Weaver plays a retired mainland lawyer who becomes a hotel owner in Honolulu. Despite his most strenuous efforts, Weaver can't resist playing detective from time to time. You're absolutely right: The Islander was the pilot for an unsold TV series. Weaver's first and last case involves a runaway grand-jury witness, a mobster, and a senator suspected of murder. The mobster is played by Sheldon Leonard, as ideally suited for his role as Robert Vaughn is perfect in the part of the senator. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
Quincy (Jack Klugman) is under pressure from an insurance company to determine the time of death of a patient who drowned in a bathtub at the Thalep Clinic, an "alternative" health spa. In the course of his investigation, Quincy uncovers evidence of gross medical negligence--and also butts heads with shifty attorney Walter Kingman (Peter Mark Richman), who specializes in shielding the clinic from negative publicity. Originally scheduled to air on September 30, 1977, this is one of a handful of second-season Quincy,M.E. episodes to be afforded two network rerun showings. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1976
Andrea Marcovicci guest stars as Sandra Fleming, an intrepid -- and somewhat obnoxious -- newspaper reporter. Undercover cop Tony Baretta (Robert Blake) is none too happy when Sandra begins tagging along on his latest investigation. If she isn't careful, Sandra will botch Baretta's efforts to solve the attempted robbery of 500,000 dollars in syndicate money -- and probably get herself bumped off in the bargain. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Blake, Edward Grover, (more)
- 1976
Raymond Burr stars again as a lawyer, this time named Arthur Mallory. No Perry Mason he, Mallory has been on the outs since being falsely accused of perjury. Eventually cleared, Mallory lives hand to mouth as a public defender, with a heightened sense of fair play when it comes to the downtrodden. In this pilot film for the never-sold TV series Mallory, the attorney defends a jailed car thief (Mark Hamill) who has been framed for the killing of another prisoner. The original network title for this two-hour TV movie is Mallory: Circumstantial Evidence. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1974
Sgt. Ed Brown (Don Galloway) goes undercover as a member of gangster Lew Parker's entourage. Angered over the death of one of his "boys", Parker (Peter Mark Richman) puts out a contract on Chief Ironside (Raymnd Burr)--and now Ed must prove his loyalty to Parker by murdering his own boss. Will he be able to warn Ironside before the fatal moment? And what will happen to Ed when his cover is blown during a robbery? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1974
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
- 1973
The SFPD's internal affairs division suspects that something is amiss when a witness under police protection is killed. Clearly, someone in the Department is a Syndicate informer--and everyone is under suspicion, even Stone (Karl Malden) and Keller (Michael Douglas). Written by Star Trek veteran D.C. Fontana, this episode's highlight is a compelling performance by Mariette Hartley as a harried female cop. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1972
Imprisoned mobster Gunther Schell (H.M. Wynant) is the only person who knows where a stolen cache of money is located. Before the IMF can reach Schell, he is sprung from jail by a mob-controlled "underground railroad", which specializes in robbing its clients before smuggling them out of the country. To put both Schell and the "underground" out of business --- and, incidentally, to recover the stolen millions --- Jim Phelps poses as a wanted murderer. Peter Mark Richman also appears in this episode as criminal mastermind Hargreaves. Originally aired on October 28, 1972, "Underground" was written by Leigh Vance. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Graves, Greg Morris, (more)
- 1972
In this crime drama, corporate thieves, plan to steal an experimental car that is being sent to Boston via rail. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1972
Mob functionary Harry Scheller (Rene Santoni) has stolen the incriminating ledger of loan shark Johnny Sutton (Peter Mark Richman). Scheller's plan is to use the document to fatten his wallet, but he may not live long enough to do so. FBI inspector Erskine (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) scrambles to catch up with Scheller before the Mob does. Among the supporting players is Arlene Golonka, fresh from a three-year stint as "Millie" on Mayberry RFD. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1971
Racketeer Rudy Walden (Peter Mark Richman) has managed to corrupt several members of a college basketball team, bribing them to shave points and "fix" certain games. By the time the FBI has gotten wind of Walden's activities, star player Billy Blaik (Anthony Costello) has been added to his list of potential accomplices. Before the story reaches its climax, the villains have resorted to kidnapping--with murder the next item on the menu. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1969
Little Heather Harrison plays the title character in the 90-minute TV drama Laurie Marie. When Laurie Marie gets lost on the vast country estate of millionaire industrialist Robert Coates (Mark Richman), he posts as $10,000 reward for anyone who can return the girl unharmed. This results in a stampede of mercenary characters who make a shambles of Coates' estate. Watching from the sidelines is reporter Jeff Dillon (Tony Franciosa) of Crime magazine, and Jeff's girl friday Peggy (Susan St. James). First telecast December 19, 1969, Laurie Marie originated as an episode of the weekly adventure series Name of the Game. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1967
Circumstantial evidence suggests that a murdered cop was supplementing his income as a blackmailer. Chief Ironside (Raymond Burr), an old friend of the dead man, is determined to prove otherwise. In the course of his investigation, Ironside reopens an unsolved homicide case in which the deceased officer's girlfriend Adrienne May (Jan Shepard) was a key player. Featured in the cast is Robert Alda, the father of future M*A*S*H star Alan Alda. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1963
In Volume 12 of a collection culled from the 1963-1965 science fiction anthology television series, scientists attempting to contact the spirit of a dead child are sucked into another dimension. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
