Lynne Stewart Movies

In addition to being the title of a classic cult film directed by David Lynch, "Eraserhead" also happens to be the nickname of the character played by Paul Willson in this episode of Laverne and Shirley. Hoping to get even with her faithless boyfriend Carmine (Eddie Mekka), Shirley (Cindy Williams) accepts a blind date with the creepy "Eraserhead"--with truly surprising results. Linda Gillen, cast in a previous episode of the mentally challenged daughter of Shirley's landlady, is here seen in a radically different role. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The title of this episode is a gross understatement. Actually the 4077th is plagued with three deluges: rain, fire, and an overabundance of incoming wounded. An unexpected enemy offensive has exarcerbated the situation--and as the men and women of M*A*S*H go to work, it is with the realization that things could become far worse at any minute. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When Margaret (Loretta Swit) disappears, rumors begin spreading that she's been abducted by the North Koreans. Truth to tell, Margaret has ventured into enemy territory, but on an entirely voluntary mission of mercy. But neurotic CIA operative Colonel Flagg (Edward Winter) doesn't know this, and his ensuing "investigation" turns the 4077th inside out. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This time it is Radar's (Gary Burghoff) turn to recap the zany happenings at the 4077th in a letter home. Writing to his mother, Radar invokes such highlights as the camp's annual foot inspection, this year handled by a reluctant Hawkeye (Alan Alda). On a more delicate note, Radar recalls the shrapnel wound endured by Col. Potter (Harry Morgan)--an injury as embarrassing as it is painful. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

It's the last night of summer 1962, and the teenagers of Modesto, California, want to have some fun before adult responsibilities close in. Among them are Steve (Ron Howard) and Curt (Richard Dreyfuss), college-bound with mixed feelings about leaving home; nerdy Terry "The Toad" (Charles Martin Smith), who scores a dream date with blonde Debbie (Candy Clark); and John (Paul Le Mat ), a 22-year-old drag racer who wonders how much longer he can stay champion and how he got stuck with 13-year-old Carol (Mackenzie Phillips) in his deuce coupe. As D. J. Wolfman Jack spins 41 vintage tunes on the radio throughout the night, Steve ponders a future with girlfriend Laurie (Cindy Williams), Curt chases a mystery blonde, Terry tries to act cool, and Paul prepares for a race against Bob Falfa (Harrison Ford), but nothing can stop the next day from coming, and with it the vastly different future ushered in by the 1960s. Fresh off The Godfather (1972), producer Francis Ford Coppola had the clout to get his friend George Lucas's project made, but only for $750,000 on a 28-day shooting schedule. Despite technical obstacles, and having to shoot at night, cinematographer Haskell Wexler gave the film the neon-lit aura that Lucas wanted, evoking the authentic look of a suburban strip to go with the authentic sound of rock-n-roll. Universal, which wanted to call the film Another Slow Night in Modesto, thought it was unreleasable. But Lucas' period detail, co-writers Willard Huyck's and Gloria Katz's realistic dialogue, and the film's nostalgia for the pre-Vietnam years apparently appealed to a 1973 audience embroiled in cultural chaos: American Graffiti became the third most popular movie of 1973 (after The Exorcist and The Sting), establishing the reputations of Lucas (whose next film would be Star Wars) and his young cast, and furthering the onset of soundtrack-driven, youth-oriented movies. Although the film helped spark 1970s nostalgia for the 1950s, nothing else would capture the flavor of the era with the same humorous candor and latent sense of foreboding. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide