Mel Friedman Movies

Barry Bostwick plays the Father of Our Country in this 3-part, eight-hour TV miniseries. The Richard Fielder/Jon Boothe teleplay, based on a book by James Thomas Flexner, covers the years 1743 through 1783, tracing Washington from age 11 to his farewell to the troops at Valley Forge. A great deal of screen time is devoted to Washington's alleged early romance with Sally Fairfax (Jaclyn Smith), the wife of George's best friend (David Dukes). Martha Washington, who never goes anywhere near a candy store during the film, is played by Patty Duke Astin. Filmed on the actual locations where the Washington saga occurred, the production earned five Emmy Award nominations. Originally telecast April 8, 10 and 11, 1984, George Washington was followed in 1986 by George Washington II: The Forging of a Nation (see entry 82309) ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Adapted from the phenomenally popular best-seller by Jeffrey Archer, the three-part, seven-hour CBS miniseries Kane & Abel is the tale of two tycoons -- one a self-made man, one born into wealth -- who both came into the world on the very same day. The illegitimate son of a Polish baron, Abel Rosnovski (Peter Strauss) is forced to fend for himself from childhood. Escaping from Siberia during WWI, Abel emigrates to America, where he builds up a multimillion-dollar hotel business. Meanwhile, Boston brahmin William Lowell Kane (Sam Neill) is carefully groomed to take his place in both society and the financial world, succeeding on both counts in the banking business. Though Abel and Kane might have become friends in any other circumstances, an accidental slight on Kane's part earns him the undying enmity of a vengeful Abel -- and thus is set in motion a tense, feud-driven power struggle that will consume both their lives for the next 25 years. Filmed on-location in Canada, England, and France, Kane & Abel originally aired from November 17 to 19, 1985. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Lots of kids have to put up with their younger siblings, but two children have to help out their younger parents in this sci-fi comedy produced for The Disney Channel. Eddie and Marie are two seemingly ordinary kids whose parents are extremely gifted inventors. However, not every one of their inventions works just as they hoped, and while working on a machine that would allow them to travel through time, they hit a snag and instead end up with a device that simply makes them younger. What's more, they can't seem to stop the age reversal process, and unless the machine can somehow be stopped, they'll soon hit "the poof point" and simply disappear. Eddie and Marie aren't eager to be on their own just yet (and having folks younger than they are is a bit embarrassing), and they start brainstorming to bring their parents back to their proper age before it's too late. Based on the children's book by Ellen Weiss and Mel Friedman, The Poof Point stars Mark Curry, Tahj Mowry, and Dawnn Lewis. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi