Glynn E. Turman Movies

David Simon's masterful social commentary went back to school, quite literally, in the fourth season, which focuses on Baltimore's crumbling education system. A relevant link to its first three seasons is supplied by Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski (Jim True-Frost), who left the police department to become a teacher at Edward Tilghman Middle School, a hardscrabble institution on life support that services a low-income, drug-infested neighborhood. (Incidentally, Prez's career path is similar to one of the series' producers, Ed Burns). His eighth-grade math class includes a close-knit quartet of friends -- Randy Wagstaff (Maestro Harrell), Michael Lee (Tristan Wilds), Duquan "Dukie" Weems (Jermaine Crawford) and Namond Brice (Julito McCullum). The wisecracking Brice is ignominiously selected to be part of a university experiment studying at-risk kids, which counts a former police commander, Bunny Colvin (Robert Wisdom), as a consultant. Out on the corners, Marlo Stanfield (Jamie Hector) strengthens his grip on the city's West Side narcotics trade once dominated by the Barksdale gang, and with his cold-blooded lieutenants, Chris (Gbenga Akinnagbe) and Snoop (Felicia Pearson), devises an ingenious method to hide the collateral damage of his ascent from the law. This sleight-of-hand bedevils detectives Freamon (Clarke Peters), Greggs (Sonja Sohn) and Bunk (Wendell Pierce). The trio are flummoxed by the lack of victims that would surely coincide with Marlo's ever-widening domain, a savage power grab that also threatens the relative peace of the New Day Co-Op under East Side pooh-bah Proposition Joe (Robert F. Chew). Meanwhile, the Democratic primary in the city's mayoral campaign pits the entrenched African-American incumbent, Clarence Royce (Glynn Turman), against Councilman Tommy Carcetti (Aidan Gillen), a scrappy politico with a savvy campaign manager in Norman Wilson (Reg E. Cathey), but a long shot to become Charm City's first white chief executive in years. ~ Joe Friedrich, All Movie Guide

Season three of The Wire continues the series' even-handed dissection of the Baltimore "drug wars," as seen through the eyes of both the police investigators and the drug lords. With charismatic hoodlum Stringer Bell (Idris Elba) emerging as the unofficial leader of the Barksdale drug empire, and with narcotics detective James McNulty (Dominic West) allowing his personal demons to catch up with him vis-à-vis an ever-increasing dependence upon booze, a curious dichotomy is established whereby Stringer often comes off as the more mentally stable and morally responsible of the two men. Even so, Stringer and McNulty are but two of the series' 40-plus recurring characters, meaning that their individual travails are never permitted to overwhelm the series' overall narrative thrust. Dictating the direction in which the 12 episodes of season three will follow is a burgeoning political-reform movement in Baltimore, with the ongoing drug investigation becoming a volatile campaign tool. Before long, "body counts" on both sides are being publicly tallied in a manner that dredges up grim memories of Vietnam. And though the story arcs have become more complex and multi-layered, there is still plenty of time to develop such quirky vignettes as the "trading" of drug-free urine from Baltimore's daycare centers. The season's final episode is titled "Mission Accomplished" -- as grotesquely ironic as when those same two words were prematurely applied to war in Iraq. The most startling development of the season-three finale is the sudden demise of one of the series' main players...with his greatest enemy becoming his biggest mourner. ~ All Movie Guide

This made-for-TV movie focuses on the grassroots efforts of a Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) to combat the entrenched racism of the segregated South. The film focuses on Owen Walker (Vicellus Reon Shannon), a youth who longs to address the injustices of his hometown in rural Mississippi. His father Will (Danny Glover) forswore his own previous attempts to organize local blacks. Owen resents his father, until he too realizes the true cost of protesting. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

A lengthy spell of calm weather may cost professional stormchaser Calvin (Randall Batinkoff) his job with the National Severe Storm Labs. Then, almost miraculously, Calvin's territory is struck by a series of devastating tornadoes. Trouble is, the locals are blaming God for all the destruction, meaning that Tess (Della Reese) is going to have to work overtime to defend her Boss. At the same time, Monica (Roma Downey) hopes to persuade Calvin to stop allowing anger and selfishness to govern his life--but it is a lost child in the center of a violent storm that ultimately puts Calvin on the right track. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Dean Davenport (Jenifer Lewis) assigns her students to write a hypothetical conversation between Martin Luther King and Malcolm X. Unfortunately, Terrell (Patrick Y. Malone) lowers the level of the assignment several degrees when, as a result of a previous run-in with a gang of punks, he brings a gun to class--and is nearly expelled on the spot. Elsewhere, Kim (Charnele Brown) hesitates at accepting Spencer's (Michael Ralph) marriage proposal (even though we've already seen her accept in an earlier episode). This final network telecast of A Different World was originally scheduled to air in February of 1993, then reshuffled to June and finally July. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Freddie (Cree Summer) is visited by a man (Victor Love) identifying himself as her prison pen-pal Jamal. Finding out that Jamal desperately needs a job, Ron (Darryl M. Bell) turns over his janitorial duties to him--an act of generosity both Ron and Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison) regret when Whitley (Jasmine Guy) falls for the former convict. As it turns out, Jamal is a fraud in more ways than one...but this does not in any way, shape or form result in a reunion between Dwayne and Whitley. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Whitley (Jasmine Guy) goes power-mad when placed in charge of the Alpha Delta Rho sorority pledges, prompting Kim (Charnele Brown) to lead a revolt against her. One thing leads to another, and before long Whitley and Kim have challenged each other to a fistfight. And while handling pledges for the Kappa Lamda Nu fraternity, Ron (Darryl M. Bell) must somehow "rehabilitate" the self-centered Terrence (Cory Tyler). This episode was directed by series regular Glynn Turman (Col. Taylor), who does not otherwise appear. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Part one of a set containing gospel performances. ~ All Movie Guide

As the third season of A Different World rolls around, Hillman College's venerable Gilbert Hall is now a coed dorm. Lettie Bostic has quit her job as dorm director, succeeded by local community-center leader Walter Oakes (Sinbad), with whom divorced, 28-year-old college senior Jaleesa (Dawnn Lewis) had fallen in love (Jaleesa is also now assistant resident advisor at the dorm). Spoiled, self-centered student Whitley Gilbert (Jasmine Guy) is surprised at how much her friend and fellow student Dwayne Wayne (Kadeem Hardison) has matured over the summer, but she still isn't ready to go beyond the platonic stage of their relationship. As for Whitley's tough-minded roommate Kim (Charnele Brown), she has made the first steps toward mending the fences between herself and her overprotective policeman father (played by none other than Mr. Shaft himself, Richard Roundtree). Making his first appearance this season is Julian (Dominic Hoffman), a South African exchange student who begins stirring up political consciousness at staid old Hillman -- and also begins to stir up something quite different within Whitley Gilbert. Although Whitley's romance with Julian is over virtually before it begins, he has succeeded in instilling a sense of responsibility and social awareness in the rich and pampered coed, who isn't quite as "me-oriented" at the end of the season as she was at the beginning. Season three ends with the graduation of Whitley and Jaleesa -- not to mention the two-part escapade "Getaway," in which all the leading characters become innocently involved with dangerous drug leaders who are searching for their ill-gotten loot! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Season two of A Different World finds the overall quality of the series improving immensely, which many insiders attributed to the fact that the multi-talented Debbie Allen had taken over as producer-director. Originally intended as a vehicle for former Cosby Show co-star Lisa Bonet in her familiar role as college student Denise Huxtable, the series would be forced to undergo a major format change when Bonet dropped out of the series due to her real-life pregnancy. Also gone from the cast is Marisa Tomei, who had played Denise's naïve white college roommate Maggie Lawton. With Bonet and Tomei gone, the emphasis shifts to Denise's former dorm-mates at Hillman College's Gilbert Hall: streetwise 27-year-old divorcée Jaleesa (Dawnn Lewis) and spoiled, haughty Whitley (Jasmine Guy). Likewise carried over from the first season are Gilbert Hall's worldly dorm director Lettie (Mary Alice), self-styled campus Romeo Dwayne Wayne (Kadeem Hardison), Dwayne's irresponsible roomie Ron (Darryl M. Bell), and local community-center leader Walter Oakes (Sinbad). New to the series are Whitley's new roommate, the iron-willed, slightly promiscuous pre-med student Kim Reese (Charnele Brown); fashion-challenged but cute and artistically gifted student Freddie Brooks (Cree Summer); and tough-as-nails calculus professor Col. Clayton "Dr. War" Taylor (played by Glynn Turnan, the husband of Aretha Franklin, who this year takes over from Phoebe Snow as the singer of the series' catchy theme tune). Major season two plot developments include the growing attraction between Whitley and Dwayne, although both continue dating others; the budding romance between Walter and Jaleesa; and the many benighted business schemes cooked up by Ron and Dwayne. Also, the characters begin spending more and more of their spare time at a local eatery called The Pit, presided over by philosophical chef Vernon Gaynes (Lou Myers). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The full title of this made-for-TV film is Charlotte Forten's Mission: Experiment in Freedom. But don't be put off by this 21-gun cognomen -- the film is a simple, austere tale of a pioneer African-American educator. Melba Moore plays Charlotte Forten, a northern black woman who heads to Port Royal, SC, in the midst of the Civil War. Charlotte intends to educate the newly freed slaves in this Union-held community. Her mission is complicated by a self-serving abolitionist (Bruce McGill) and the fact that the slaves mistrust her because of her lighter complexion and "fancy airs." Charlotte Forten's Mission was originally telecast February 25, 1985, on PBS' American Playhouse. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Previously titled Trick Eyes and Portrait of a John, this lurid made-for-TV movie is the story of Christopher Jordan (William Shatner), an aeronautical engineer who has been happily married for 12 years. Despite his domestic tranquility, Jordan is unable to forsake his kinky sexual compulsions. Unwilling to take a mistress, he begins frequenting prostitutes, then falls under the spell of an extremely expensive call girl (Cybill Shepherd). His insatiable desires ultimately ruin his life and his career, and very nearly land him in prison on a murder charge. An Anglo-Italian production filmed in Vancouver, Secrets of a Married Man debuted September 24, 1984 on NBC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Thornwell was based on a documentary directed by Harry Moses, which formed the nucleus of a 60 Minutes piece. Moses also directed this TV-movie dramatization of the incident, a truly shameful chapter in the history of the American military. James Thornwell (Glynn E. Turman), an African American soldier suspected in 1961 of being a spy, is subjected to an intense, painful, and humiliating interrogation. The Army's grilling tactics are within the accepted boundaries--until it is decided to use Thornwell as a guinea pig for the "mind-expanding" drug LSD. Once released, Thornwell suffers from mental and physical agony which he cannot fully comprehend, because he has no idea that he's been pumped full of the hallucinogenic drug. It is only 16 years later, thanks to the Freedom of Information act, that Thornwell learns what has been done to him. He is awarded a sizeable cash settlement by Congress, but Thornwell makes clear that this is inadequate compensation for two lost decades in a man's life. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide