Glynn E. Turman Movies
African American character actor Glynn E. Turman was first introduced to the general public as Lew Miles, teen-aged son of Dr. Harry Miles (Percy Rodriguez) and his wife Alma (Ruby Dee), during the 1968-69 season of the prime-time TV soap opera Peyton Place. Turman went on to star as Chicago high schooler "Preacher" in the 1975 film sleeper Cooley High. Settling into character roles in the 1980s, Turman has most often been seen as judges, military officers, police detectives, and well-to-do patriarches. A departure from these "establishment" assignments was Turman's star turn in the 1981 TV-movie Thornwell, in which he portrayed real-life soldier James Thornwell, who accused the U.S. Army of subjecting him to illegal mind-controlling drugs. Glynn E. Turman's weekly-series roles have included Secretary of State LaRue Hawkes in 1987's Hail to the Chief, and Colonel Clayton Taylor, aka "Dr. War" in the popular Cosby Show spin-off A Different World (1988-93); he also appeared in the 1983 pilot episode of Manimal as Ty Earle, a role essayed by Michael D. Roberts in the series proper. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Five on the Black Hand Side was released at a time when most black-oriented films were bloody action fests. In contrast, this low-budget effort, coproduced by actors Brock Peters and Michael Tolan, eschews exploitation for humanity and domestic drama. Leonard Jackson plays a barber who is also the domineering head of a middle-class African American family. Jackson is forced to rethink his values when his previously docile wife (Clarice Taylor) joins their three children in rebelling against her husband's retrogressive behavior. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clarice Taylor, Leonard Jackson, (more)
- 1972
Three American soldiers go AWOL while stationed in Sweden. Our heroes are played by Glynn E. Turman, Lenny Baker and Russ Thacker, at least two of whom were on the verge of bigger things acting-wise. While drinking in the Scandanavian sights, the threesome gets mixed up with beautiful actress Isabella Kaliff. AWOL was lensed on location by American director Herb Freed, whose first film this (apparently) was. Freed later turned his attentions to such shockfests as The Haunted and Beyond Evil. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The producers of In Search of America never declared outright that the made-for-TV film was intended as a series pilot, but there sure are plenty of loose plot ends. Carl Betz and Vera Miles play the parents of shaggy-haired college dropout Jeff Bridges. At the boy's suggestion, Betz and Miles pack their family--including grandma Ruth McDevitt--into a 1928 Greyhound bus and hit the road, in search of you-know-where. The picaresque plotline brings the family in contact with a variety of colorful characters. Written by Lewis John Carlino, a name that would mean a lot more to filmgoers after The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea (1976), In Search of America was first telecast March 23, 1971. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vera Miles, Carl Betz, (more)
With The Mod Squad sweeping the Tuesday night TV ratings in 1968, producers Aaron Spelling and Danny Thomas hoped to get another multiracial adventure series on the air A.S.A.P. Carter's Army was the 72-minute pilot for this project. Set during World War II, the film stars Stephen Boyd as an Army captain who doesn't exactly dislike African Americans-it's just that he holds no special fondness for them. Naturally, Boyd is assigned an all-black company, and is forced to share his command with lieutenant Robert Hooks. Despite seething racial tensions, everyone pulls together to destroy an enemy dam. Originally telecast January 27, 1970, Carter's Army failed to spawn the planned series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
