Ivan Bonar Movies

In this enjoyable, lighthearted "he's fallen for her" situational, a music professor finds a science department faculty member too deeply engrossed in her inter-species communication studies (she talks to chimps) to even notice him. Since he can't get her mind off her studies, he decides to work part-time for her in the university laboratory. In this way he becomes aware of her dilemma: she's found that her research funds are set to be axed. He's there to help her figure out a way to prove their worth, and maybe spike her interest in him at the same time. There's plenty of clean fun and a satisfying outcome to be had here. ~ All Movie Guide

This made-for-TV drama was inspired by the real-life Toughlove program, set up to help parents of kids with severe alcohol, drug and behavior problems. Lee Remick and Bruce Dern star as a middle-aged couple who have completely lost control of their teen-aged son Jason Patric. When all else fails, the couple joins Toughlove, adhering to the organization's policy of being cruel (but not abusive) in order to be kind. Their story alternates with the travails of Toughlove member Piper Laurie and her suicidal daughter DeDee Pfeiffer (sister of Michelle). Toughlove was originally telecast October 13, 1985. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This is a made-for-TV bio about the film star Rita Hayworth. Lynda Carter stars as the legendary star. ~ All Movie Guide

Jane Seymour stars in The Haunting Passion as Julia Evans, a woman forced to make a decision between two lovers. The gimmick here is that one of her suitors is an invisible--but very sexy--ghost. The other man in Julia's life is her neglectful husband Dan (Gerald McRaney), a former athlete who is trying to launch a sportscasting career. On the verge of surrending to her spectral romeo, Julia toys with the idea of committing suicide so that she'll be with him forever. . .while her grumpy ex-jock husband waits for her to come to her senses. Made for television, The Haunting Passion debuted October 24, 1983. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

While driving under the influence of alcohol, wealthy and influential attorney Preston Claymore (Charles Aidman) strikes and kills a pedestrian (Chevi Colton). Even though he has attempted to cover up his crime, the worst that Claymore will receive in court is a nominal fine and a slap on the wrist. Quincy (Jack Klugman) is outraged, but can do nothing: that's the way the legal system operates. Ultimately, outrage gives way to astonishment when, after performing an autopsy on the victim, Quincy uncovers evidence that this is something far more sinister than a mere drunk-driving accident. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Season eight of Little House on the Prairie is marked with the conspicuous absence of several familiar characters, among them Mary and Adam Kendall and Nellie and Percival Dalton, all of whom have moved from Walnut Grove to New York. Mooning over the departure of daughter Nellie, the insufferable Harriet Oleson (Katherine MacGregor) yearns for a replacement. Before long, the Olesons have adopted a little girl named Nancy (Allison Balson), who looks just like the younger Nellie -- and unfortunately acts like her as well. This is the first episode of a two-part story. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The sixth season of Quincy M.E. begins as pugnacious, compassionate medical examiner Quincy (Jack Klugman) shows up in a small mill town to lend a helping hand to his colleague Charles Volmer (William Daniels. No sooner has he arrived than Quincy finds himself waist-deep in a brace of ethical challenges. For starters, the father (Phillip Abbott) of a boy who has OD'ed on drugs is pressuring Volmer to alter the results of the autopsy so that the boy's mother will believe that her son has accidentally drowned. And in another part of town, a powerful industrialist (Warren Stevens) is arranging a coverup of his own to hide the fact that the safety standards in his textile mill aren't up to code--with tragic results. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When the drug craze of the '60s invades the straight-laced world of a military academy, a group of young cadets turn the school upside down. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

In the conclusion of a two-part story, Mary Ingalls (Melissa Sue Anderson) is in dire need of a life-saving operation. Lacking the necessary funds, Mary's father, Charles (Michael Landon), signs up for a high-paying -- and highly-dangerous -- new job. Working shoulder to shoulder with his neighbor Mr. Edwards (Victor French), Charles becomes a "powder monkey," part of a team blasting a tunnel for the railroad. Inevitably, disaster befalls Charles and Edwards in the form of a sudden cave-in. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Star Gregory Peck went into MacArthur disliking the title character that he was slated to play, but emerged from the experience with a deeper understanding and respect for this complex historical figure. The film is framed in flashback, with an octogenarian General
Douglas MacArthur (Peck) making his final address before his alma mater of West Point. We flash back to the fall of Corregidor in 1942, with MacArthur promising "I shall return" to the beleaguered (and eventually imprisoned) American and Filipino troops. The story follows MacArthur's subsequent victories in the South Pacific, occasionally pausing to show us the General's omnipresent sense of "showmanship" (e.g. his wading ashore on the beaches of the Philippines for the benefit of the newsreel cameras). The greater part of the film involves MacArthur's attempts to restore dignity to the defeated postwar Japan, and to keep the Russian Communists from overtaking the orient as they had Eastern Europe. MacArthur is eventually fired from his post by President Truman after the general defies orders during the Korean conflict. MacArthur was intended as Universal's "answer" to 20th Century-Fox's enormously successful Patton (1970), but box-office returns were disappointing. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Murray Hamilton guest stars as Barney Lujack, former partner of SFPD detective Mike Stone (Karl Malden). Barney returns to San Francisco after a long absence, but not for a reunion with his old pal Mike. Instead, Lujack intends to kill the hired gun (Burr DeBanning) who murdered his son--and he isn't about to let anyone, not even Mike, get in his way. Featured in the supporting cast is onetime child actor Tommy Cook. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In the first half of a two-part story (originally telecast as a single two-hour episode), John-Boy (Richard Thomas) is afforded the opportunity to qualify for a scholarship at Boatwright University--and, as icing on the cake, his former girlfriend Jenny (Sian Barbara Allen) is paying a return visit to Walton's Mountain. But joy turns to despair when John-Boy is injured in an accident, which may render him permanently blind. Meanwhile, Jason (Jon Walmsley) is beginning to have second thoughts about accepting a job from the dithery Baldwin Sisters (Mary Jackson, Helen Kleeb). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The fourteenth and final season of Bonanza began on September 12, 1972 with a special two-hour episode. As originally written by series star Michael Landon (who also directed), "Forever" was supposed to have focused on the ill-starred marriage between Hoss Cartwright (Dan Blocker) and Alice Harper (Bonnie Bedelia). The tragic death of Dan Blocker forced Landon to rewrite the story as vehicle for his own character, Joe Cartwright-and the result was one of the series' most heartbreakingly poignant episodes, not so much because of what was seen on camera, but because of the emotional baggage brought to the set by surviving Bonanza regulars Landon and Lorne Greene (Ben Cartwright). In the final version of "Forever," the happiness of the union between Joe and Alice is clouded by the fact that the girl is pregnant by another man-and by the criminal activities of her ne'er-do-well brother John Harper (Andy Robinson). Exquisitely photographed on location in the High Sierras, the episode was enhanced by David Rose's haunting musical score, elements of which were later heard in Landon's subsequent starring series Little House on the Prairie and Highway to Heaven. This episode also marked the return of Rose's original Bonanza main theme, after a two-season absence. The ending of "Forever", in which both Joe and Ben quietly weep over their respective losses, is guaranteed to move even the most jaded viewer to tears. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide