John Vickery Movies

The hectic early days of live television are spoofed in this irreverent made-for-cable movie. The story is told from the viewpoint of Audrey Drummond (Christina Hendricks), a naïve young script girl hired by the newly formed Empire Television Network in 1948. Among Audrey's colleagues are the network's owner, eccentric scientist Doc Powers (Christopher Lloyd); Doc's blonde, pneumatic young "trophy wife" Marion (Molly Ringwald); the Colonel (Dylan Baker), Empire's visionary programming chief; and Walt Kaplan (Michael B. Silver), a studio floor manager who aspires to be a director. The story revolves around Empire's efforts to stage the first live TV production of Thornton Wilder's Our Town, while trying desperately to adhere to Doc Powers' cast-in-stone broadcast edicts: "No profanity, no suicide, no cleavage." Amidst a flurry of missed cues, fainting actors, collapsing scenery, and malfunctioning equipment, the network also manages to outrage its sponsors by allowing a black musician (Sharif Atkins) to actually (gasp! egad!) speak directly into the camera. Co-executive produced by The West Wing's John Wells and ER's Carol Flint (who also wrote the script), The Big Time debuted October 21, 2002 on the TNT network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A series of holdups in massage parlors culminates in murder, with several precincts working together to crack the case before things get worse. As result, John Clark Jr. (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) is forced to team with his estranged father, John Clark Sr. (Joe Spano), bringing the bad blood between John Sr. and Andy Sipowicz (Dennis Franz) to a boil. In another case, a gang of thieves posing as exterminators prey upon elderly victims. After working hours, Andy tries to resist becoming permanent bodyguard for the eccentric Mrs. Hornby (Elmarie Wendel); Connie McDowell (Charlotte Ross) grows closer to Andy's son, Theo (Austin Majors); Valerie Haywood (Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon) is pregnant, and Baldwin Jones (Henry Simmons) is the father; and more ominously, new squad member Det. Rita Ortiz (Jacqueline Obradors) is harassed by her possessive husband, ADA Don Harrison (Stan Cahill). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Just before taking medical leave, Gibson (John F. O'Donohue) arranges for Andy (Dennis Franz) to moonlight as the bodyguard for a wealthy -- and very dotty -- old woman named Mrs. Hornby (Elmarie Wendel). In other developments, gay cop John Irvin (Bill Brochtrup) makes a new friend while investigating the theft of some valuable English bulldog puppies, and the squad investigates reports of recent INS screw-ups. Jacqueline Obradors joins the cast as Det. Rita Ortiz, the wife of Assistant DA Don Harrison, who at her husband's insistence is transferred out of Vice and into the 15th precinct, where she is immediately partnered with Det. Connie McDowell (Charlotte Ross) on a missing persons case. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Warrior leader Shakiri (Bart McCarthy) intensifies his aggression in the Minbari civil war. Hoping to resolve the crisis, Delenn prepares to make the ultimate sacrifice. And Psi Cop Bester (Walter Koening) tries to strike up an unusual bargain with telepath Lyta. Scott Adams, creator of the comic strip "Dilbert," makes a cameo appearance. Originally telecast during the week of May 19, 1997, "Moments of Transition" was written by J. Michael Straczynski. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Having agreed to take charge of the Rangers, Delenn risks death at the hands of a unknown adversary. And while exploring the inner regions of B5, Garibaldi stumbles across a secret level that has been sealed off for years. Robert Englund of "Freddy Kruger" fame is cast as cult leader Jeremiah. Written by J. Michael Straczynski, "Grey 17 is Missing" made its TV debut in the United Kingdom on August 26, 1996. The episode's American release was held up until October 7 of that same year. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Sheridan is kidnapped by aliens, just as General Hague (Robert Foxworth) arrives for an important conference with the B5 Commander. Left in charge, Ivanova is forced to make a fateful decision--and a potentially fatal journey towards an unknown source of "bright light and turbulence". Meanwhile, the "new" Delenn is expelled from the Grey Council. Originally telecast on February 15, 1995, "All Alone in the Night" was written by J. Michael Straczunski. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The body of a legendary Minbari war hero disappears during a brief stopover on Babylon 5. As the threat of retaliatory action hangs heavily of the space station, Ivanova risks another crisis by sheltering teenage telepathic Alisa Beldon (Grace Una from the Psi Corps. Scripted by D.C. Fontana, "Legacies" was the only first-season Babylon 5 episode not based on a premise by series creator J. Michael Straczynski. The episode first aired on July 20, 1994. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Jumping fairly late on the slasher-movie bandwagon, this stylish but hollow effort from director Manny Coto stars L.A. Law's Larry Drake as the psychopathic Evan Rendell, who fancies himself a misunderstood medical genius. In an inventive opening scene, Rendell performs a bit of impromptu surgery on his keepers at the asylum (who had given him the title nickname due to his fits of nervous laughter) and escapes to his hometown to set up his "practice." This medical mania seems to run in the family, as we are shown in flashback: Evan's daddy once butchered several local women in his search for a replacement heart for his wife, and although he was unable to save her, Pops managed to spirit away young Evan and keep him safe (in a very, very nasty hiding place) before being lynched by the locals. Hiding out in the abandoned family home, "Dr. Giggles" begins a random killing spree in town with his bag of medieval-looking surgical instruments... but he finds new purpose when he sees the medical records of young Jennifer (Holly Marie Combs), who is in line for a heart transplant, and vows to "cure" her himself. This film eschews the possibilities of its demented premise, choosing instead to serve up a flavorless hash of '80s slasher clichés (wisecracking killer, stupid teenage victims, virginal heroine, 20-years-later motif, etc.). The only truly inspired moment occurs in flashback, when we discover the actual hiding place the elder Dr. Rendell chose for his son. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide

Dispatched to rescue the endangered science vessel U.S.S. Britain, the crew discovers that all but one of the crew members have perished. The survivor, Andrus Hagan (John Vickery), is in a catatonic state, experiencing an acute case of dream deprivation. Before long, the Enterprise has fallen victim to the same malady, which goads its victims into acts of insanity, violence, and murder. Scripted by Pamela Douglas and Jeri Taylor from a story by Shari Goodhartz, "Night Terror" initially aired March 23, 1991. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on a true story, the two-part TV movie I Know My First Name Is Steven tells the tragic story of Steven Stayner. At age seven, Steven was kidnapped by two men who held him captive in a tiny shed for seven years. One of the men, a habitual child abuser named Kenneth Parnell, sexually assaulted Steven on an almost daily basis during the boy's ordeal. At age 14, Steven finally was able to escape and return to his family. But we are shown that Steven's safe return was far from the happy ending it appeared to be. He's forced to adjust to a family he'd never really known, to convince himself that his parents had never forgotten him, and to put his seven-year hell behind him. While I Know My First Name Is Steven ends on an upbeat note, the real Stayner died in a motorcycle accident only a few months after this film was first telecast in May 1989. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide