Casey Siemaszko

Made for television, American Harvest is set in the heartland of Kansas. Two proud, stubborn families have not spoken to one another because of an incident in the distant past. Wayne Rogers, the patriarch of one of the families, is in danger of losing his wheat farm. He knows that his land will be saved if he patches things up with rival farmer Earl Holliman, but such a reconciliation is out of the question--at least, until the film's final twenty minutes. American Harvest premiered on January 16, 1987. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Things have barely settled from the excitement and resolve of the original Back to the Future, when in pops that crazy inventor Dr. Emmett Brown (Christopher Lloyd) with news that in order to prevent a series of events that could ruin the McFly name for posterity, Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox ) and his girlfriend are whisked into the future to the year 2015, where Marty must tangle with a teen rogue named Griff, who's obviously the descendant of Biff, the first Future film's bully. Marty foils Griff and his group when he jumps on an air-foil skateboard that flies him through town at rakish speeds with the loser bullies beaten again. Marty gets a money-making brainstorm before hopping in the time-traveling DeLorean, and he purchases a sports almanac. He figures that back in 1985 he'll be able to place sure-fire bets using the published sports scores of the games that are yet to happen. Unfortunately for Marty, Dr. Brown disapproves of his betting scheme -- he feels too much messing with time is very dangerous -- and he tosses the almanac. A hidden Biff overhears the discussion about the almanac, sees it get tossed out, and grabs it. Thus begins a time-traveling swirl to make the head spin. Biff swipes the DeLorean, heads back to 1955, and with the help of the unerring almanac, bets his way to power. The now-altered "Biff world" has turned into a nightmarish scene with Biff the mogul, residing in a Vegas-styled pleasure palace and running everything. It's all our hero Marty can do to pull the pieces together this time, as he must jump between three generations of intertwined time travel. The end of Back to the Future, Part 2 introduces its sequel as the zany professor has already time-dashed away to the Wild West of the late 1800s and invites Marty into a new adventure. ~ All Movie Guide

A provocative drama about sex, love, and trust, Bliss concerns Joseph (Craig Sheffer) and Maria (Sheryl Lee), a young married couple whose relationship is in serious trouble. While they love each other, Maria has difficulty opening up to Joseph, and, after six months of marriage, he makes the unhappy discovery that she's been unable to have an orgasm with him (though she's been willing to let him think otherwise). At work, Joseph and his co-workers notice a steady stream of beautiful women visiting an apartment across the street; the scuttlebutt around the office is that some sort of shady sex therapist works out of the building. One day, Joseph is shocked to see Maria visiting the apartment, and he bursts in and demands to know what's happening. The apartment does indeed house an unlicensed sex therapist, who goes by the name of Balthazar (Terence Stamp), and, before long, Joseph realizes that Balthazar's teaching are about the mind as much as the body, and that he's less concerned with orgasm than with "bliss," which he considers an emotional and spiritual as well as physical state. Before long, Joseph has convinced Balthazar to teach him what he knows about tantric healing and sex, in the hope that he can help heal Maria's emotional scars, as well as help himself become a better man. Bliss was the debut feature for writer/director Lance Young. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In this sequel to the made-for-TV sci-fi thriller Chameleon, Bobbie Phillips returns as Kam, a beautiful but deadly (and genetically altered) government agent who is called into action when a criminal genius stages a daring raid, taking the clientele of an exclusive casino hostage. Chameleon II: Death Match also stars Casey Siemaszko and Tasha Smith; it did well enough in the ratings to prompt a second sequel, Chameleon 3: Dark Angel. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Set in Washington D.C. during the Vietnam War era, Gardens of Stone concentrates on the trials and tribulations of the Arlington National Cemetery home guard. James Caan plays career soldier Sgt. Clell Hazard, who has come to the sad conclusion that Vietnam is unwinnable and that America should withdraw as soon as possible. His attitude is contrasted to that held by Private Jackie Willow (D.B. Sweeney), who wants nothing more in life than to go into battle for his country. Though Hazard cannot officially dissuade Willow from this yearning, he pulls a few surreptitious strings to change the lad's mind, including encouraging a renewed romance between Jackie and his former girlfriend Rachel (Mary Stuart Masterton). After so many big-budgeters, Coppola determined that Gardens would be a deliberately "small" picture, concentrating on personalities rather than opulence; the director's father, Carmine Coppola, supplied the music, while Peter Masterton and Carlyn Glynn, the real-life parents of Mary Stuart Masterton, play Mary's on-screen dad and mom. Gardens of Stone was adapted by Ronald Bass from the novel by Nicholas Proffitt. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Writer/director John Sayles once again takes his audience to a place they may never have been before (this time both psychologically and geographically). Joe Gastineau (David Strathairn) lives in Juneau, Alaska, where his life has been stuck in neutral for about 25 years. When he was young, Joe was involved in an accident on a fishing boat that led to the death of two crewmembers, and he's never recovered from the blow. When Joe meets Donna De Angelo (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio), however, he starts to come out of his shell. Donna is a lounge singer who goes from job to job, wherever she can get work. Her life has been built around being able to pick herself up when she falls and learning to be comfortable wherever she lands -- a gift that her teenage daughter, Noelle (Vanessa Martinez), does not share. Donna and Joe become attracted to each other, and her example leads Joe to take a job on a boat again. However, just as Joe's life is starting to get back on track, his ne'er-do-well half-brother Bobby (Casey Siemaszko) arrives to ask Joe a favor. One disaster leads to another, and Joe soon finds himself stranded on an island with Donna and Noelle, trying to hide from a group of men out to kill him. Shot on location in Alaska by award-winning cinematographer Haskell Wexler, Limbo also features a soundtrack with a new song by Bruce Springsteen, "Lift Me Up"; Sayles directed three Springsteen music videos in the 1980s. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

This made-for-TV movie was not, as has sometimes been reported, a remake of the 1938 Spencer Tracy film Boys Town. It was filmed on location at Father Flannagan's Nebraska-based home for troublesome and troubled youths, but the story is strictly contemporary. Art Carney stars as a crusty, outspoken priest on the verge of being forcibly retired. But before he is put out to pasture, Carney vows to provide comfort and guidance to a hostile new arrival at Boy's Town (Casey Siemaszko), who has been abandoned by his abusive, alcoholic mother. Miracle of the Heart: A Boys Town Story was syndicated to local TV stations beginning on March 31, 1986. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

John Clark Jr. (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) and Jennifer Devlin (Chandra West) spend the night together. Elsewhere on the romantic scene: in their efforts to get married without tipping off their superiors, Andy Sipowicz (Dennis Franz) and Connie McDowell (Charlotte Ross) agree to an outrageous but perfectly legal plan hatched by gay cop John Irvin (Bill Brochtrup). Back on the job, a crime investigation hinges upon whether or not a wheelchair-bound invalid is all that he claims to be. And after a violent showdown with vengeful IAB officer Fraker (Casey Siemaszko), the future -- and indeed the life -- of precinct skipper Tony Rodriguez (Esai Morales) hangs in the balance. This was the final episode of NYPD Blue's tenth season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The domestic problems between Andy (Dennis Franz) and Connie (Charlotte Ross), exacerbated by the resentful Theo (Austin Majors) and the colicky baby Michelle, spill over into their work at the 15th. Cases on this week's docket include the beating death of a woman in her own kitchen, and the discovery of a body in an SVU well stocked with picnic supplies. All of this pales into insignificance when Andy's partner, Detective John Clark Jr. (Mark-Paul Gosselaar), is arrested on a drug charge by the relentless Internal Affairs Bureau. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Abrasive cab driver Ryan Lipe (John Billingsley), who helped the 15th in a previous investigation, is the prime suspect in the deaths of three of his former fares. Offering to help an old friend, Rodriguez (Esai Morales) ends up being accused of taking bribes by the IAB -- and the whole affair smells suspiciously like a set-up. When John Clark Jr. (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) tells Officer Laughlin (Anthony Mangano) to stop hitting on Rita Ortiz (Jacqueline Obradors), Laughlin challenges John to a charity boxing match. Elsewhere, another pugilist denies killing an ex-ballet dancer, and gay cop John Irvin (Bill Brochtrup) reveals his past problems with his ailing father to a sympathetic Andy Sipowicz (Dennis Franz). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Andy Sipowicz (Dennis Franz) tries to persuade the nervous Officer Mike Shannon (James McBride) to provide the evidence needed to clear Andy's partner, John Clark Jr. (Mark-Paul Gosselaar), of a trumped-up drug charge. Meanwhile, Clark Sr.'s (Joe Spano) drinking problem gets worse, a bad cop gets his comeuppance, and the 15th investigates the murder of a community activist who worked with female gang members. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A judge and a lawyer receive suspicious-looking envelopes in the mail -- envelopes which both explode, revealing themselves to be full of nothing more than harmless white powder. Or maybe the powder isn't so harmless, since one of the recipients goes into cardiac arrest. As the 15th precinct investigates this case, Capt. Fraker (Casey Siemaszko) of the IAB offers to turn the heat off John Clark Jr. (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) in the matter of his dead prostitute informant -- provided that John turns up evidence to destroy his own partner, Andy Sipowicz (Dennis Franz). Meanwhile, John's detective father (Joe Spano) cuts a deal that bodes ill for the future, and gay cop John Irvin (Bill Brochtrup) makes plans to lavishly spend his huge inheritance. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide