Orville H. Hampton Movies
A woman looking for adventure finds romance, excitement and danger in her viewfinder in this action-packed comedy-drama. Friday Foster (Pam Grier) is a beautiful and ambitious young photographer who is working as an assistant at Glance Magazine, edited by the hard-boiled Monk Riley (Julius Harris). When Riley can't get in touch with his first-call photographer, he calls Foster with a very important New Year's Eve assignment -- reclusive billionaire Blake Tarr (Thalmus Rasulala), often called "the black Howard Hughes," is expected to be coming to Los Angeles, and Riley wants pictures of Tarr's arrival. But Foster gets more than she bargained for when Tarr is ambushed by a gang of assassins disguised as security guards. The next day, Foster is helping to shoot a fashion show introducing new creations from flamboyant designer Madame Rena (Eartha Kitt) when Clorils Boston (Rosalind Miles), a model who has known Friday since childhood, is stabled to death. Colt Hawkins (Yaphet Kotto), a private detective who is on the scene, offers to help Friday track down Clorils' killer after she notices that the same mysterious man (Carl Weathers) was present at both crimes. Foster and Hawkins discover the two killings are connected by a plot hatched by an underground group called "Black Widow" to kill off powerful and influential African-Americans. But who is behind the conspiracy, and can they be stopped in time? Also starring Godfrey Cambridge, Paul Benjamin, Scatman Crothers and Ted Lange, Friday Foster was based on the comic strip by Jim Lawrence and Jorge Longeron; running from 1970 to 1974, it was the first syndicated strip with an African-American woman as the leading character. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pam Grier, Yaphet Kotto, (more)
Titled Detroit Heat for video release, this blaxploitation flick concerns two Motor City detectives (Hari Rhodes, Alex Rocco) on the trail of a gang of thieves who attacked a political rally. Noted blaxploitation fan Quentin Tarantino sponsored a theatrical re-release in 1998, with a video reissue following. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- 1973
The IMF again invades the world of professional boxing to get the goods on crooked sports promoter Paul Mitchell (William Windom) and his Syndicate boss Jay Braddock (Joe Braddock). Terrified by Braddock's homicidal tendencies, Mitchell is on the verge of turning informer, but he needs a little dose of incentive. Thus, IMF agent Casey poses as Mitchell's daughter Susan (Jennifer Shaw) as part of a divide-and-conquer strategy aimed at utterly destroying Braddock. First broadcast on February 9, 1973, "The Fighter" was scripted by Stephen Kandel and Nicholas E. Bashr, from a story by Orville H. Hampton. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Graves, Greg Morris, (more)
- 1973
Not long after a close friend of Sgt. Ed Brown (Don Galloway) disappears, the friend's abandoned fishing boat, "The Dancing Doll", washes up on shore--bearing traces of blood and gunfire. The authorities conclude that the missing friend was somehow connected with a mob hit, which in turn is tied in with a gangster's convention being held in San Francisco. Though Ironside (Raymond Burr) warns Ed to stay off the case lest he let his heart rule his head, it is the Chief who ends up putting the pieces of the puzzle together. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1971
William Windom makes a return visit to Mission: Impossible, again in a villainous characterization. This time, Windom is cast as Stu Gorman, a music-industry executive fronting for the Syndicate. To get the goods on Gorman, IMF agents Barney and Casey pose as blues singers--with Casey taking her part of the charade to dangerous extremes. This episode is highlighted by Greg Morris' rendition of "Judy's Gone Now", a song specially written for the series by Morris and Benny Golson. Scripted by Howard Berk and Orville H. Hampton from a story by Berk, "Blues" first aired on November 20, 1971. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Graves, Greg Morris, (more)
- 1968
This musical chronicles the rise to fame of C&W singer Grady Dodd (Hank Williams Jr.). The tale begins as the talented young man defies the uncle who raised him and tries to break into the music business. As a result of the conflict, the boy learns that his mother, whom he doesn't remember, was a singer who died after she ran away with another musician. Songs include: The Humming Bird, It's All Over But the Crying, Rock in My Shoe (Hank Williams, Jr.), A Man Is On His Own (John Scoggins, Williams, Jr.), Money Can't Buy Happiness, Old Before My Time (Steve Karliski), Next Time I Say Goodbye, I'm Leaving (Larry Kusik, Eddie Snyder), and A Time to Sing (Scoggins). ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hank Williams, Jr., Shelley Fabares, (more)
- 1968
Three teenage runaways leave home for life in the big city. Shelly (Brooke Bundy) runs away from her father (Lloyd Bochner), when communication breaks down between the success-minded dad and his daughter. Dewey (Kevin Coughlin) leaves behind life on the farm when his girlfriend suggests she may be pregnant. Deanie (Patty McCormick) is the sex-starved teen who runs away from her promiscuous mother (Lynn Bari) and her father who doesn't have a clue (Norman Fell). Dick Sargent plays the kind soul who offers the teens temporary refuge in his home. Richard Dreyfuss makes an early film appearance as a lazy, draft-dodging car thief in this youthful exploitation feature. The Gordian Knot delivers two songs as the runaways fall victim to drugs, prostitution and other urban nightmares. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brooke Bundy, Kevin Coughlin, (more)
- 1968
Made for television, Escape to Mindinao stars George Maharis and Ronald Remy as two GIs interred in a Japanese POW camp. Effecting a daring (and economically filmed) escape, Maharis and Remy make off with a secret Japanese decoding device. During their efforts to get back to their own lines, the fugitives cross the path of mercenary Dutch captain Nehemiah Persoff and his lovely daughter Willi Koopman. Maharis and Remy very nearly lose their top-secret booty to a black market ring before their journey is over. Escape to Mindinao was filmed on Luzon, in the Philippines. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1967
In this drama set during the real life riots of the mid-1960s, an LA police sergeant attempts to service the Strip businessmen who object to the hippie youths that hang out, by setting a curfew. Unfortunately, the cop also believes that the kids have a right to be there, until he discovers that his estranged daughter, whom his drunken ex-wife took away from him, has come back to LA and has joined the counter-culture crowd. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Aldo Ray, Mimsy Farmer, (more)
- 1966
This episode is a virtual dry-run for the 1970s series Dallas, except that the question posed is not "Who Shot J.R.?" but instead "Who Killed J.K.?" There is no shortage of suspects when nasty oil tycoon Jerome Klee (Wendell Corey) is murdered, but the police finally settle upon Klee's foreman Allen Winford (James Best), who had been trying to prevent Klee from cheating an impoverished farmer named Jason Rohan (Paul Brinegar). Of course, Winford is innocent--else why would Perry Mason (Raymond Burr agree to take his case? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Appropriately enough, the 271st and final episode of Perry Mason concerns a murder which takes place during the filming of a TV show. No sooner has Perry (Raymond Burr) been able to establish the innocence of chief suspect Jackson Sidemark (Denver Pyle) than Sidemark himself is knocked off by the real killer (and wait until you see who THAT is!) Several members of the Perry Mason production staff, including executive producer Gail Patrick Jackson, appear in cameo roles, while series creator Erle Stanley Gardner shows up unbilled as a judge. Longtime fans of the series will enjoy the multitude of "inside" jokes in the script (including a barbed reference to the show's NBC competition Bonanza), but the best is reserved for last when Perry and his longtime courtroom adversary Hamilton Burger (William Talman) exchange words for the final time. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Model Sharon Camody (Mary Ann Mobley) has an excellent chance of being hired as the spokeswoman for White Snow Soap--so long as she is able to keep her unsavory past a secret from the public. Unfortunately, Sharon is targetted for a shakedown by blackmailer Ed Grover, who subsequently turns up murdered. Convinced that he has killed Grover with his bare hands, Sharon's ex-boxer boyfriend Duke (Paul Lukather) confesses his "crime" to Perry Mason (Raymond Burr)--who is subsequently faced with an ethical dilemma when derelict Jake Stearns (James Griffith) is arrested for the crime. In order to clear Jake, Perry may be forced to turn his own client Grover over to the authorities...a move that will not only ruin Grover's life but Sharon's as well. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Perry Mason's one-and-only color episode is a loose adaptation of Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist. The "Fagin" character is slimy art collector Benjamin Huggins (Victor Buono), who with the assistance of henchman Bill Sikes (Scott Graham) masterminds a teenage car-stripping gang. Murder rears its ugly head when 18-year-old gang member Lennie Beale (Kevin O'Neal) is charged with killing Sikes, apparently as retaliation for Sikes' shooting of Lennie's girlfriend Robin Spring (Lisa Seagram). Even though he had previously been robbed by Lennie, Perry (Raymond Burr), in true "Mr. Brownlow" fashion, agrees to defend the boy in court. One of the seventy-six Perry Mason episodes removed from the series' original 1966 syndication package, "The Case of the Twice-Told Twist" was finally rebroadcast on cable TV in the early 1990s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
So far as the authorities are concerned, Dr. Stacey Fielding (George Wallace) died in a plane crash while flying to Salt Lake City--and the cause of death was not the crash but a heavy dose of poison. As the last person to see Dr. Fielding alive, his wife Miriam (Jeanne Cooper) is the most likely murder suspect, but she is cleared thanks to attorney Perry Mason (Raymond Burr). End of story? No way! After Miriam's day in court, Perry finds out that the man who died in Dr. Fielding's plane was actually mechanic Al Dolby (John Goddard)--and that Fielding may have faked his death in order to run off with his sexy nurse! This episode is based on Erle Stanley Gardner's "Perry Mason" novel The Case of the Fugitive Nurse, which was previously filmed under that title in 1958. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Coasting on the reputation of his golf-champion wife Alma (Phyllis Hill), Chick Farley has landed a job as resident pro at an exclusive golf club. To supplement his income, Chick begins blackmailing club official Erwin Brandt (Harry Townes), and also embezzles money from the club's pro shop. Intending to place the blame for a $3000 deficit on his assistant Jim Harrell (Alan Hale Jr.), Chick makes a phone call to club member Hamilton Burger--only to be bludgeoned to death with a sand wedge as Burger listens in! Naturally, Harrell is charged with the murder, and just as naturally, Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) defends the poor sap. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Art-gallery owner Francis Clune (Donald Murphy) is the victim of theft and fraud, while his girlfriend Bobbie Dane (Francine York) is nearly killed by a "careless" motorist. The couple's woes are exacerbated when both are charged with killing a detective (Allan Melvin) and a hijacker (Peter Mamakos). Determined to prove the innocence of Francis and Bobbie, Perry Mason (Raymond Burr), literally puts his own life on the line. This is the second Perry Mason episode based on Erle Stanley Gardner's 1952 novel The Case of the Moth-Easten Mink, previously filmed under that title in 1958 (and incidentally, the painting identified as "Sausalito Sunrise" had likewise appeared in at least two earlier episodes!) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
No sooner has Mme. Sonya Galinova (Virginia Field) hires Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) to press charges against a jewel dealer for selling her a cheap imitation of a tiara worth $754,000 than she discovers that the "fake" is the genuine article. Somehow or other, the precious tiara ends up in the hands of Gerard Van Ness (Kendall Clark)--who finds himself facing a murder charge when the body of jewel thief Nils Dorow (Fred Krone) tumbles out of a trunk that has been delivered to Perry's office! Broadway musical star Vivienne Segal, whose stage credits include the original productions of "The Desert Song" and "Pal Joey", makes a rare TV appearance in this episode. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Not only is Ethel Andrews (Pippa Scott) jilted by her fiance Bruce Strickland (Hunt Powers) on her wedding day, but she is also blamed for a $50,000 theft masterminded by her erstwhile sweetheart. Fleeing town, Ethel ends up swapping identities with Peggy Sutton (Althea Milgrave), who is likewise on the lam. This proves to be yet another tragic blunder for Ethel when it turns out that Peggy is carrying $50,000 in the trunk of her car. Subsequently, the cops find the 50 grand, put two and two together, and charge poor Ethel with the murder of Bruce Strickland! It is up to Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) to end Ethel's incredible bad-luck streak and clear her of all charges. This is the second Perry Mason episode based on Erle Stanley Gardner's novel The Case of the Footloose Doll (the first was filmed under that title in 1959). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
Wealthy California widow Millie Barton (Cathy Downs) is matched up by a computer-dating service with Oklahoman Lucas Tolliver (Noah Beery Jr.). Though he pretends to be a poverty-stricken rube, Lucas is actually a filthy-rich oil man. This sets Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) to wondering why Lucas wants to draw up a will leaving Millie's fortune to him in the event of her death. Also problematic is the fact that Lucas' first wife died from an "accidental" poisoning--and guess what eventually happens to poor Millie! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
Paul Drake (William Hopper) is hired to investigate when an unusually high number of heart attacks threaten to bankrupt the Safeline Insurance Company--an assignment that proves more hazardous than it first appeared to be. In his efforts to help Paul prove that some of the claims are fraudlent, Perry (Raymond Burr) forces ex-boxer Jack B. David (Hal Baylor) to reveal that he isn't a helpless invalid. When David ends up dead, Perry may well be facing a manslaughter charge! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
Moving to a new Sunday-night timeslot opposite Bonanza for its ninth and final season, Perry Mason gets the ball rolling as Perry (Raymond Burr) is requested by a judge (Dan Tobin) to handle the defense of Carla Chaney (Jean Hale) a destitute young woman with a really nasty attitude. Charged with the murder of two-bit journalist Gerald Havens, Carla has failed to convince three previous lawyers that she is innocent, especially since her fingerprints were all over the murder weapon. But Perry is willing to take a chance, and immediately set about to locate the mysterious "laughing lady" whom Carla claims to have seen standing over the corpse. With this episode, Richard Anderson becomes a regular as Lt. Steve Drumm. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
The "Candy Queen" is Claire Armstrong (Nancy Gates), who has become quite wealthy after inheriting the famous candy-manufacturing formula that has been in her family for generations. But it is not so sweet when Claire's secretary is poisoned by a box of her boss' candy. And things really go sour after Claire's brother Mark (John Napier) steals the formula to pay off his gambling deaths--not to mention when the "Candy Queen" is framed for the murder of blackmailer Harry Arnold (John Archer). Perry Mason probably has a feeling of deja-vu when he agrees to handle this case: "The Case of the Candy Queen" is a remake of the earlier Perry Mason episode "The Case of the Silent Partner" (both episodes are based on the same 1940 novel by series creator Erle Stanley Gardner). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
Despite the efforts of detective Paul Drake (William Hopper) to protect a secret desalinization process developed by Tryon Labs, the formula is pirated by a rival company. Working undercover for Tryon's head man Dr. Malcolm Scranton (Gilbert Green), Horace Lehigh (Bryan O'Byrne) is on the verge of revealing the identity of the person responsible for the security leak when he is drowned in a chemical vat. Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) ends up defending Dr. Todd Meade (Grant Williams), who apparently had both motive and opportunity to murder Lehigh. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
This is the second Perry Mason episode based on Erle Stanley Gardner's 1940 novel The Case of the Vagabond Virgin (the first version, filmed in 1958, was discreetly retitled "The Case of the Vagabond Vixen"). After giving a ride to pretty hitchhiker Debbie Conrad (Angela Dorian), Victor Montalvo (Philip Bourneuf), the Hefneresqe co-owner of a men's club called the Golden Bear, is blackmailed by Debbie and her partner in crime Rick Durbin (Bruce Glover). Things go from bad to worse when Montalvo is charged with the murder of his partner Stacey Garrett (George Neise). In order to clear Montalvo, Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) must locate the only person who can provide the poor fellow with an alibi--and that person is Debbie Conrad, who has apparently vanished from the face of the earth! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1964
Filmed in Ohio, One Potato, Two Potato was a "critic's darling" film of 1964 dealing with the then-daring topic of miscegenation. White Barbara Barrie divorces her husband Richard Mulligan, then falls in love with and marries African-American Bernie Hamilton. When the ex-husband sues for custody of Barbara's child, arguing that a mixed household is an improper place to raise the girl, Hamilton fights for his parental rights in court. But the judge is driven by the prejudices of the era, and the child goes back to its natural father. At the time of its release, One Potato, Two Potato was praised beyond all proportion for its realistic and progressive dissection of race relations. Only a few renegade critics like Judith Crist dared to note that sociologically, the film was still mired in the patronizing Pinky era. Instead of concentrating on the injustices heaped upon black Bernie Hamilton, the film's sympathies are almost totally directed towards poor, put-upon, snow-white Barbara Barrie. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Barrie, Bernie Hamilton, (more)
