Debby Boone Movies

Like many other made-for-TV biopics inspired by popular television series of yore, Come on Get Happy: The Partridge Family Story offers the spectacle of actors playing other actors playing different characters--and as such, those "characters" come off as more interesting than the "real" actors. Focusing exclusively on the five years (1970-1974) that The Partridge Family was in production, the story is told from the viewpoint of Danny Bonaduce (played by a pre-Desperate Housewives) Shawn Pyfrom), and accordingly is colored by the sentiments so often expressed by the real, irrepressibly outspoken Bonaduce. Upon landing the coveted role of Danny Partridge, young Bonaduce must contend with the jealousy of his abusive father Joseph (William Russ); all the while, Danny is a sidelines observer of the effect that overnight stardom has on his coworker David Cassidy (Keith Partridge), who (it says here) despises all the idolatry and yearns for a normal life. Rather touchingly, the film recounts the surrogate son-surrogate father relationship between Danny and actor Dave Madden (Michael Chieffo), who was genuinely fond of his younger costars despite the kid-hating irascibility of his "Reuben Kincaid" character. The film's highlight, which would be impossible to belief if it wasn't corroborated by witnesses, is the episode wherein Cassidy impulsively "kidnaps" Danny, whereupon both boys head off on a short journey of self-discovery; less easy to swallow is the scene which contrives a feud between the "Partridge" cast and the actors on the rival series The Brady Bunch (who are, interestingly enough, identified only by their character names and not their real names). Come on Get Happy: The Partridge Family Story made its ABC network bow on November 13, 1999. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The animal movie Hollywood Safari features a case of mistaken identity. Kensho, a trained lion used on film sets, is mistaken for a mountain lion that has killed people after he becomes separated from his handlers and goes into the wild. Troy and Jane, the animal trainers who control Kensho, realize what is happening and must, with the help of their sons, stop an overly enthusiastic deputy from killing the wrong creature. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

Aimed at children, this tuneful animated video is designed to teach children about the Ten Commandments via the lively Kingdom Chums, a group of Christian pop singers. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Debby Boone sings songs for children in this second volume of music. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide

Hurray for Betty Boop is a compilation of 35 poorly colorized Betty Boop cartoon shorts edited together with new narration and voices. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide

Son-Rise: A Miracle of Love is the true story of Barry and Suzi Kaufman and their autistic 3-year-old son Ruan. The boy is high-functioning but erratic, with long periods of hyperactivity followed by lengthy interludes of withdrawal. The "experts" give up, but the Kaufmans don't. They decide to monitor their son 24 hours a day to figure out what makes him tick, to discern his likes and dislikes, and to try to find some means of breaking into his nearly impenetrable private world. The superlative performances of James Farentino and Kathryn Harrold as the Kaufmans are matched by the portrayal of Ruan by twin child actors Michael and Casey Adams (the grandchildren of famed film director King Vidor). Son-Rise: A Miracle of Love was originally telecast as an "NBC Theater" presentation, as part of the network's 1978 "Year of the Child" celebration. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide