Bill Wiley Movies
- 1994
Thanks to the Mather family trust fund, Lowell (Thomas Haden Church) suddenly finds himself in possession of 20,000 dollars. But he isn't going to spend the money foolishly, oh no. He's going to invest the cash in a once-thriving Nantucket wax museum that has been in state of disrepair of decades. As it turns out, "Lowell Mathers' House of Wax" does prove to be a moneymaker -- but not in the way that Lowell had expected. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1993
This made-for-cable version of Arthur Miller's play The American Clock was adapted for television by Frank Galati. Inspired partly by Studs Terkel's oral history Hard Times, and partly by Miller's own recollections, the film is set at the beginning of the Depression. When the stock market crashes, the well-to-do Baumler family (John Rubinstein, Mary McDonnell, Loren Dean) loses everything. The Baumlers are forced to move from their plush penthouse apartment to the less-attractive Brooklyn digs of Mrs. Baumler's sister (Joanna Miles). Twelve-year-old Lee Baumler (Dean), the Arthur Miller counterpart, hits the road to find out how others are coping with the Long National Nightmare. The alternately depressing and uplifting storyline moves along briskly to a surprisingly abrupt climax. Kelly Preston, David Strathairn, Eddie Bracken, Darren McGavin, and Estelle Parson co-star in The American Clock, which premiered over the TNT Cable Network on August 23, 1993. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1989
Having been the "alien who cried wolf" too often, ALF can't get the Tanners to believe that he got a call from an extortionist, threatening to turn him over to the immigration authorities unless he coughs up three thousand dollars. This leaves ALF with only three choices: He can either earn the money himself and make "the drop"; he can surrender to the authorities; or he can run for the hills. Guess which one he chooses? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1988
- R
A transit engineer and his family must face the gargantuan task of moving from New Jersey to Boise, Idaho in this lively comedy starring Richard Pryor. It all begins after he gets a really great job out West. Unfortunately, his family is less than thrilled with the prospect. The furniture movers, who prove to be crooks, and their crazy neighbors conspire to make matters all the worse. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Pryor, Beverly Todd, (more)
- 1988
"It's the craziest wedding of the year!" promised the ads for the TV movie Going to the Chapel. Well, maybe not the craziest, but certainly the silliest. The thinnish plot concerns the roadblocks standing in the way of the impending wedding of Scott Valentine and Michelle Greene. As a means to sustain audience interest, the producers populated the supporting cast with a veritable village full of top TV names: Cloris Leachman, John Ratzenberger, Max Wright, Dick Van Patten, Eileen Brennan and Barbara Billingsley. First shown October 9, 1988, Going to the Chapel died in the ratings opposite the blockbuster biopic Liberace: Behind the Music. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1988
When "Wake Up San Francisco" goes on location to a horse farm, host Danny (Bob Saget) brings daughter DJ (Candace Cameron) along. Upon arrival, DJ is enchanted by an elderly horse named Rocket. Determined to have Rocket for herself, DJ and her friend Kimmy (Andrea Barber) secretly make arrangements to earn enough money to buy the horse; then, and only then, will she tell her dad about the purchase. Unfortunately, this requires DJ to spin a web of falsehoods to prevent Danny from finding out what she's up to. Nathan Nishiguchi makes his first series appearance as Stephanie's friend Harry Takyama, who insists upon calling her "Chief." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1983
- R
The real world once more takes a back seat to a caricature of itself as the same Florida high-school teens who grossed profits in Porky's by grossing out, have to band together to stop their Shakespeare festival (!!) from being cancelled, due to a crusading, right-wing reverend's attack on the bard's "lewd" content. The reverend is joined by Miss Balbricker(Nancy Parsons) the girls' gym teacher and also the Ku Klux Klan who object to Romeo being played by an Indian. These unlikely allies come up against the libido-laden teens who strip the Ku Klux Klanners and send them running through town naked. Similar styles of revenge are taken to handle Miss Balbrick and the right-wing reverend -- apparently all's well that ends well at the box office. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dan Monahan, Mark Herrier, (more)
- 1982
Normally, it wouldn't bother Coach (Nicholas Colasanto) one bit that Sam (Ted Danson) is attracted to Coach's sexy new neighbor Nina (Murphy Cross). Trouble is, Coach is carrying a torch for the lady himself. The only person to whom Coach admits his infatuation is Diane (Shelley Long) -- whom he immediately swears to secrecy. Meanwhile, Carla (Rhea Perlman) tries her hand at plumbing -- with disastrous results. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1981
In her first TV-movie appearance, Genevieve Bujold plays Elizabeth, an attractive heiress from the North who becomes the second wife of aristocratic Creole plantation owner Charlie Beaufort (Chad Everett) in the mid-19th century. As the new "Mistress of Paradise," Elizabeth immediately finds herself fending off the amorous advances of neighboring plantation master Buckley (Anthony Andrews). Worse still, the heroine begins to suspect that the official story of the death of the first Mrs. Beaufort may not be entirely true. Brazenly borrowing story elements from both Gone With the Wind and Jane Eyre, the Mississippi-filmed Mistress of Paradise debuted October 4, 1981, on ABC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1981
In the first episode of a two-part story, the Sunshine Cab Company goes out of business forcing the cabbies to seek employment elsewhere. One month later, Sunshine is up and running again, and the drivers get together to recount their experiences in their new (and very temporary) "outside" jobs. Highlights of this episode include Tony's (Tony Danza) brief and involuntary career as a collector for a bookie, Elaine's (Marilu Henner) misadventures in the secretarial pool, and Jim's (Christopher Lloyd) perambulations as a door-to-door salesman -- without even knowing what it is that he's selling. ~ All Movie Guide
