Ann Sothern
A once-in-a-lifetime cast of veterans performs David Berry's play about Libby Strong (Bette Davis) and Sarah Webber (Lillian Gish), widowed sisters vacationing on a Philadelphia island for their 60th consecutive summer. Libby is blind and embittered, while Sarah is healthy, supportive, and almost annoyingly chipper. Their neighbor Tisha (Ann Sothern) tries to convince Sarah to put Libby in the care of her daughter, but Sarah hasn't forgotten Libby's moral support when her own husband died, and she won't entertain such notions -- until she is swept off her feet by an aging roué (Vincent Price). When Libby spitefully sabotages this romance, an infuriated Sarah decides that gratitude has its limits. But when it actually comes down to selling their summer house and sending Libby packing, Sarah can't do it. In the film's flashback sequences, Libby is played by Margaret Ladd, Sarah by Mary Steenburgen, and Tisha by Ann Sothern's real-life daughter Tisha Sterling. Another film personality of long standing, Harry Carey Jr., is well cast as the sisters' handyman. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bette Davis, Lillian Gish, (more)
- 1985
Made for television, A Letter to Three Wives is a modernized version of the classic 1949 theatrical film of the same name. While on a charity picnic, the wives of three well-to-do men each receive a letter from a fourth woman, a flashy divorcée named Addie (who is never seen). With calculated sweetness and sympathy, Addie informs the ladies that she is about to run off with the husband of one of them. In flashback, each wife recalls her marriage, wondering if it is she who is about to be divested of her husband (and simultaneously asking herself why this might be happening). Loni Anderson, Michele Lee, and Stephanie Zimbalist star in the roles played by Linda Darnell, Ann Sothern, and Jeanne Crain (respectively) in the 1949 film. Ann Sothern herself is seen as the mother of Anderson's character, a part originally essayed by Connie Gilchrist. Johnny Mandel earned an Emmy nomination for his musical score, which is virtually the only real improvement on the 1949 version. A Letter to Three Wives first aired December 16, 1985, on NBC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1980
- PG
Preteen kung-fu masters are on the case when a young girl is kidnapped by hillbillies in this adventure for kids. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charles Lane, Ann Sothern, (more)
Low-budget horror director William Girdler's last film stars Susan Strasberg as Karen Tandy, a San Francisco woman who develops a strange growth on her neck. After an operation fails because the doctor is forced to cut his own hand, Karen seeks out an Indian shaman (Michael Ansara), who tells her that the thing on her neck is the fetus of a reincarnated witch doctor. Eventually, Karen goes to the hospital and gives "birth" to a silly-looking creature played by Cousin Itt himself, Felix Silla. It runs amok in the building until boyfriend Tony Curtis figures out that his love for Karen can boost the hospital's electrical supply to zap the pesky beast. Generally acknowledged as one of the silliest horror films ever made, The Manitou should please camp buffs more than serious fans. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tony Curtis, Michael Ansara, (more)
- 1976
One of four dramatic miniseries carried by NBC under the blanket title Best Sellers, Captains and the Kings was adapted from a novel by Taylor Caldwell. Covering a time span from 1857 to 1912, this was the saga of the Irish-immigrant Armagh clan, with emphasis on the rags-to-riches career of Joseph Armagh (Richard Jordan). Achieving fame and prominence (if not full-fledged social acceptance) through a Byzantine series of investments in the oil industry, the elder Armagh was obsessed with the notion of having one of his sons become the first Irish-Catholic President of the United States (does this story sound vaguely familiar?). Along the way, Joseph and his offspring indulged in innumerable romantic liaisons, extramarital and otherwise. Inevitably, the story came to a powerful conclusion with a high-profile political assassination. Featured in the all-star cast was Patty Duke Astin, who won an Emmy award for her portrayal of Bernadette Hennessey Armagh. Captains and the Kings was broadcast from September 30 to November 18, 1976 in seven installments, two of which ran 120 minutes, and the other six lasting 60 minutes -- a total of nine hours' air time in all. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Cloris Leachman stars as Melba, a woman with whom violence is a way of life, in Jonathan Demme's high-pitched "B"-movie Crazy Mama. The film spans three decades in the violent life of Melba, beginning in Jerusalem, Arkansas in 1932, when law enforcers kill her father (Clint Kimbrough), turning her mother Sheba (Ann Sothern) into a bitter widow. Mother and daughter take off to Long Beach, California, and the time jumps to 1958, when the two are thrown out of their beauty salon for non-payment of back rent. Melba now has an attractive (and pregnant) teenage daughter Cheryl (Linda Purl). The three generations take to the road, stealing cars and creating general mayhem across the United States, robbing a motorcycle racetrack box office and a bank. But in 1959, Melba and Cheryl are picked up again, running a Miami Beach snack bar, their lives wasted in free-living terror. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cloris Leachman, Stuart Whitman, (more)
- 1974
- PG
This martial arts film has an interesting twist. The conflict is over a mythical 30-inch-tall statue with very special properties. Protruding from the sculpture are seven golden needles. If the needles are inserted into a man's body in the precisely right positions, he will become a sexual superman. If the position is incorrect, the man will instantly die. Despite the risks, several men begin fighting over the precious object. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
This genuinely perverse horror film stars John Savage as a young man forced to participate in the beachfront gang rape of Sue Bernard by his nasty friends. After two years in jail, he returns to the boardinghouse run by his mother (Ann Sothern), who does things like kissing him on the mouth and photographing him in the shower. Before long, he freaks out and strangles a cat while peeping at a new tenant (Cindy Williams), then almost drowns the poor girl in the pool before slashing her panties with a razor and choking her in the bathtub. He forces Bernard's car off a cliff, then makes his lawyer (Ruth Roman) drink herself stupid at knifepoint before setting her on fire. Savage and Sothern are fabulous and Luana Anders is creepy as the librarian next door who keeps trying to seduce the disturbed man. Quite a twisted little chiller, with several priceless bizarre moments like a dream sequence featuring a diapered Savage in a crib on the beach surrounded by laughing neighbors. The ubiquitous Gary Graver did 2nd unit photography. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Savage, Ann Sothern, (more)
- 1972
Weekend Nun was an unsold TV pilot film based on the life and career of Louisiana nun Sister Fabian (real name: Joyce Duco). Joanna Pettet stars as Sister Mary Damien (aka: Marjorie Walker), who on weekdays holds down a job as a probation officer (she even packs a gun). The schism between the outside world and Sister Fabian's religious calling is brought sharply into focus when tragedy strikes. Vic Morrow costars as the sister's probation department associate, while Ann Sothern appears as the head nun. The real Sister Fabian/Joyce Duco, who had left the Order long before this film was made, acted as technical adviser on Weekend Nun. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1971
We know that Bill Bixby plays a swinging bachelor because he wears bell-bottoms. Opening the door of his bachelor pad one evening, Bixby is surprised to meet a personable young man claiming to be his son. He is further surprised that the young man is fully grown, the result of an indiscretion some twenty years earlier. Karen Jensen plays Bixby's girl friend, none too thrilled that she has a potential younger brother. Mixing in some reasonably touching moments with its standard comedy setpieces, Congratulations, It's a Boy is a satisfying effort from ABC's Movie of the Week series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1971
In this comedy-drama, President Lincoln temporarily abandons his inaugural tour to visit a little girl who wrote him a letter asking him to grow a beard. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1971
Shelly Winters and John Randolph star in Death of Innocence as distraught small-town parents who learn that their estranged daughter is on trial for murder. They journey to New York City and attend the girl's trial, where the mother learns several details of her daughter's recent life that she'd rather not know. Filmed at the height of the "generation gap" era, Death of Innocence was based on a novel by Zelda Popkin. One of the better TV movies of 1971, the film was first telecast opposite a George Plimpton "wish fulfillment" special, thereby losing out on the large audience it deserved. Casting note: Kim Stanley was to have played the principal juror, but fell ill before shooting. She was replaced by Ann Sothern--the mother of Tisha Sterling, who plays the defendant in the case! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1968
Chubasco (Christopher Jones) is a wayward youth who is given a choice by the presiding judge. His choices are go to jail or take an honest job on a fishing boat. He chooses to set sail, leaving behind his girl Bunny (Susan Strasberg) and her father Sebastian (Richard Egan), who obviously has it out for the wayward teen. He works on a tuna boat, learning to break free of a life of crime. He also meets a bordello madame named Angela (Ann Sothern) who may or may not be his mother. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Egan, Christopher Jones, (more)
- 1968
Ann Sothern guests as Florence Cahill, a former flame of Mr. French (Sebastian Cabot). Now widowed, Florence dreams of opening a gourmet restaurant--and she persuades French that being a restauranteur is something that he has always wanted as well. The question: Will French opt to leave the service of longtime employer Bill Davis (Brian Keith)? And if so, will the kids ever warm up to French's replacement, the strict, severe Mr. Smyser (Laurie Main). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1967
The Outsider is a refreshingly cynical TV detective drama, starring master cynic Darren McGavin. McGavin plays David Ross, a John MacDonaldesque private eye who virtually lives in his beat-up car and who spends most of his time eluding creditors. An ex-convict, Ross is prohibited from carrying a gun, which means that he gets beaten up on an average of once every ten minutes. Ross is hired by a theatre manager who suspects a female employee of embezzlement; the employee winds up dead, and Ross winds up Suspect Number One. Capped with an twist ending right out of Mickey Spillane, The Outsider was an excellent intro for the weekly TV series which followed. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
Still under the spell of the James Bond movie they've just seen, Lucy (Lucille Ball) and the countess (Ann Sothern) spot a pair of sinister-looking men at a restaurant. Jumping to the conclusion that the two men are enemy spies, the ladies trail them to a deserted warehouse, with a reluctant Mooney (Gale Gordon) in tow. This broad spoof of the mid-'60s "spy craze" features Jack Cassidy as a bearded gentleman who talks into a Man From U.N.C.L.E.-style miniature phone ("Napoleon who? You've got the wrong number!") and is capped by Lucy's hilarious imitation of Carol Channing. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Sothern, Jack Cassidy, (more)
- 1965
This episode is not only a reworking of The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour featuring Betty Grable and Harry James, but it also represents the first season-four appearance of Ann Sothern as the Countess Framboise, otherwise known as Lucy's old school pal Rosie Hannigan. Showing up at Lucy's doorstep with plenty of luggage but no money, the countess confesses that her sole possession is a pregnant race horse named Oil Well left to her by her late husband. Instantly, Lucy (Lucille Ball) hatches a scheme to help both the countess and the horse -- with the unwitting aid of Mr. Mooney (Gale Gordon). (William Frawley), the immortal Fred Mertz of I Love Lucy fame, makes his last-ever TV appearance in this episode. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Sothern, William Frawley, (more)
- 1965
Ann Sothern makes the first of several Lucy Show appearances as the Countess Framboise. Although Mr. Mooney (Gale Gordon) is enchanted by the notion of royalty in humble Danfield, Lucy (Lucille Ball) easily recognizes the widowed countess as her old school pal Rosie Hannigan. Their friendship takes quite a battering when Lucy and the Countess attend a fancy wine-tasting party--then proceed to get thoroughly smashed! This episode's classic drunk scene is a replay of a sequence that Lucille Ball and Ann Sothern had previously enacted in a 1957 "Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour" special, as well as an episode of The Ann Sothern Show. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Sothern, Carole Cook, (more)
- 1965
Carroll Baker, the Sharon Stone of the sixties, plays another classy-looking blonde with a sordid background in Sylvia. Millionaire Peter Lawford is about to marry the glamorous but secretive Sylvia (Baker). Before taking the plunge, he hires private eye George Maharis to do a background check on the girl. Whew, what he finds out! Apparently the only sin Sylvia doesn't commit is robbing parking meters, but we have no idea what might happen after the final fadeout. Shortly before it opened, Sylvia was the subject of several magazine articles, trumpeting the fact that Carroll Baker had conducted extensive interviews with real-life prostitutes in order to prepare herself for her role. This apparently left her no time to consult an acting coach. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carroll Baker, George Maharis, (more)
- 1965
Mr. Mooney (Gale Gordon) fears for his future when an investment in a health farm turns sour. To help Mooney recoup his investment, Lucy (Lucille Ball) and the Countess (Ann Sothern) offer to publicize the farm. Unfortunately, this requires the ladies to undergo a grueling weight-loss regimen--and before long, our heroines are scheming to go "over the wall" before their treatment is complete. Watch this episode and you'll see why so many people compare The Lucy Show to Laverne and Shirley. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Sothern, Norman Leavitt, (more)
- 1965
Returning to town after a four-week (and four-episode) absence, Viv (Vivian Vance) is introduced to Lucy's old school chum Rosie Hannigan (Ann Sothern), now known as the Countess Framboise. No sooner has this happened than Viv is embroiled in a plan concocted by Lucy (Lucille Ball) to help the Countess impress some visiting royalty. That plan involves a crumbling old mansion which Lucy intends to "fix up" for a fancy party--and we all know what happens whenever Lucy tries to fix up anything! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Sothern, Lester Matthews, (more)
- 1965
The Countess Framboise (Ann Sothern), aka Lucy's old school chum Rosie Hannigan, is now selling real estate. Lucy (Lucille Ball) tries to help her friend land a big commission by inveigling Mooney (Gale Gordon) into renting an "ultra-modern" apartment. Unfortunately, the apartment's door locks automatically for the weekend, leaving Lucy, the countess, and Mooney trapped with no food or water for three days! This episode actually marked the first of three appearances this season of Ann Sothern as the countess, but was telecast second for the sake of continuity. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Sothern, Karen Norris, (more)
- 1965
Lucy's old school pal Rosie Hannigan (Ann Sothern), now known as the Countess Framboise, would like to open a charm school in Danfield. Unfortunately, despite her lofty title, the Countess is flat broke, thus she conspires with Lucy (Lucille Ball) to entice a pair of wealthy patrons, Mr. and Mr. Dunbar (Reta Shaw, Byron Foulger), into bankrolling the school. This scheme entails a lengthy takeoff of "My Fair Lady" wherein the Countess endeavors to "transform" a dowdy scrubwoman named Liza Lumpwhomper (actually Lucy in disguise) into a society debutante. Alas, when Liza/Lucy attends a soiree held by the Dunbars, she completely forgets that she is violently allergic to caviar! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Sothern, Reta Shaw, (more)
Olivia de Havilland stars in this sensationalistic shocker as Mrs. Halyard, a wealthy widow recuperating from a broken hip. Inside her mansion, she becomes trapped between floors in her elevator. She activates an emergency alarm but succeeds only in attracting the attention of the wino (Jeff Corey), who steals goods from her house and sells them to a fence. The wino visits Sade (Ann Sothern), a prostitute, who spreads the plight of Mrs. Hilyard's dilemma to three young hoods, Randall (James Caan), Elaine (Jennifer Billingsley), and Essie (Rafael Campos). The trio follows the wino and the hooker back to the mansion, where they have an orgy, kill the wino, and lock Sade in a closet. Randall taunts Mrs. Hilyard and confronts her with a nasty suicide note from her son, Malcolm (William Swan). Mrs. Hilyard, mustering up her strength, attempts to fight back against Randall and the two other goons. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Olivia de Havilland, Ann Sothern, (more)
- 1964
The moment he is sprung from prison, smooth-talking Rusty Connors (John Cassavetes) pays a visit to Helen Krause (Ann Sothern), the dowdy widow of Rusty's late cellmate Miles Krause. It seems that Krause had hidden a huge amount of money before he was arrested, and Rusty hopes to persuade Helen to lead him to the loot. Unfortunately, Helen has no idea where the money is, so the two of them piece together the existing clues in order to share the cash once they locate it. Trouble is, Rusty can't be trusted as far as he can be thrown...and neither can Helen. The "Grand Guignol" climax of this episode is made doubly creepy by Bernard Herrmann's chillingly evocative musical score. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Sothern, John Cassavetes, (more)
