Philip Leacock Movies
British director Philip Leacock was active in the movie industry from the age of 18. A disciple of documentary filmmaker John Grierson, Leacock assembled such above-average "reality" films as Island People (1946), Out of True (1951) and Festival in London (1951) before switching to non-documentary subjects in 1952. His British features of the 1950s are distinguished by Leacock's expertise at gently coaxing convincing performances from child actors: the best example of this was 1953's The Little Kidnappers (1953). In Hollywood from 1959, Philip Leacock continued to turn out theatrical features while devoting most of his energies to such top-rank television series as Route 66 and Gunsmoke; he also produced the 1974 series The New Land. Philip Leacock was the older brother of director Richard Leacock. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi- 1985
Jessica (Angela Lansbury) and Seth (William Windom) are collecting research for her latest novel at the New Mexico site of an archeological dig. The scientists believe that they are about to uncover Coronado's fabled "City of Gold"; instead, they unearth a corpse of more recent vintage. The victim is an Indian guide (Randolph Mantooth) who was violently opposed to the excavation; the main suspect is a bit too obvious for Jessica's taste, so she does a little "digging" of her own. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1985
The brutal Salem witch trials provide the setting for this provocative drama that presents the story of an accused woman who survived the ordeal. Like her two older sisters, poor Sarah faces a trial herself. The sisters were tortured, found guilty and burned. Despite her fear, Sarah proves that her family is innocent of the charges. This film originally appeared on PBS television's American Playhouse. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1982
In this Civil-war era western set in a Missouri mining town, respectable women and floozies join forces to keep renegade Union soldiers from destroying their community. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1981
In this drama, an ex-hooker reluctantly accepts an undercover assignment for the cops and returns to her old stomping grounds. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1981
While on furlough, Jim-Bob (David W. Harper) is pursued by an impulsive lass named Kathy (played by a very young Jennifer Jason Leigh), who insists that she is pregnant--and that Jim-Boy is the father. And half a world away, Ben (Eric Scott) is having a great deal of difficulty curbing his rebellious streak as he sits out the war in a Japanese POW camp. It can be argued that the problems of both Walton brothers are resolved by episode's end--though one of them still has a long way to go before he's completely out of the woods. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1980
Originally made for television, the film centers on an Egyptian archaeological expedition, and the discovery of the tomb of the famed Pharaoh. After it is opened, disturbing events mark the trip. ~ John Bush, Rovi
- 1980
Angel City plays like a Grapes of Wrath updated to the 1980s. Ralph Waite plays a West Virginia farmer who, faced with the prospect of starving to death on his unproductive land, packs up his family and moves to the so-called Promised Land of Florida. There he goes to work on what is euphemistically called a collective farm. But soon he finds himself surrounded in squalor and misery, working back-breaking hours for slave-labor wages. Paul Winfield, Jennifer Warren and Mitchell Ryan co-star in this made for TV movie, which debuted November 12, 1980. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1980
In the conclusion of The Waltons' two-part Season Nine opener, John Walton (Ralph Waite) faces a long jail term for helping to conceal murder suspect Harley Foster (Hal Williams) from the authorities. Despite his own dilemma, John is determined to prove that Harley is an innocent victim of racial prejudice. Meanwhile, the budding romance between John's daughter Elizabeth (Kami Cotler) and Drew Cutler (Tony Becker) hits a snag when she begins neglecting him to spend more time her horse Molly. And in faraway Paris, the girlfriend of Jason Walton (Jon Walmsley) helps him locate his war-correspondent brother John-Boy (Robert Wightman). The episode closes with a stunning national tragedy which has a profound impact on the people of Walton's Mountain. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1980
While leading his squadron into battle in Germany, Jason (Jon Walmsley) comes across a shell-shocked American soldier named Willis (Mark McClure). Despite his emotional problems, Willis is a very handy man to have around when the squadron is besieged by an elusive German sniper. And back on Walton's Mountain, storekeeper Ike Godsey (Joe Conley) is in trouble with the authorities for violating the rationing laws. Despite all indications to the contrary, the episode ends with good news for everyone concerned--even the hapless Ike. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1980
Robert Wightmanbecomes a regular in the role of John-Boy Walton (which he'd previously played on a recurring basis, replacing Richard Thomas) in the ninth and final season of The Waltons. The two-part season opener (originally telecast as a single two-hour episode) takes place during the final months of WW2, as John Walton (Ralph Waite) tries to clear his friend Harley Foster (Hal Williams) of a long-standing murder charge. Convinced that Harley's original trial was biased, John is willing to put his own reputation--and freedom--on the line to prove the man's innocence. Elsewhere on Walton's Moutain, storekeeper Ike Godsey (Joe Conley) and his formidable wife Corabeth (Ronnie Claire Edwards) have a spirited argument over a woman's "proper place" in a male-oriented society. And as the newly-uniformed Ben Walton (Eric Scott) is headed for the war in the Pacific, his brothers John-Boy and Jim-Bob attempt to connect up with each other in Paris--an effort that seems doomed to failure! Jason Moses in seen in the role of Harley Foster's stepson Josh, replacing Todd Bridges, who of course had moved on to Diff'rent Strokes. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1979
An episode of the television series, where Buck leads a squad of pilots, including a friend of Wilma's father, into a fight with interplanetary gunrunners. ~ Rovi
- 1979
The Walton family is unpleasantly surprised when Ben (Eric Scott) comes home at the ungodly hour of 3 a.m. in the company of his girlfriend Cindy (Leslie Winston, in her first series appearance). No sooner has the family adjusted to this development than Ben drops the big bombshell: he and Cindy have just gotten married! In the days that follow, the suspicions of the younger Walton kids are aroused concerning the reason that Ben made so sudden a decision, while the fiercely independent Cindy balks at being ordered about by her new husband. Elsewhere, Corabeth Godsey (Ronnie Claire Edwards) is in for a bit of a letdown when she purchases a fountain that she had loved as a youth. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1979
A motion-picture production company wants to make a documentary about J.D. Pickett's factory, but Erin (Mary McDonough) tries to prevent them from pestering the other workers. To get Erin out of their hair, the producers promise to take her to Hollywood and make her a star -- and she falls for this line completely! Elsewhere, Jason (Jon Walmsley) pulls rank on his fellow soldiers to force them to accept a dinner invitation from the eccentric Baldwin sisters. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1979
Peggy Rea joins the cast as Rose Burton, the Waltons' aunt from Baltimore. Having come to Walton's Mountain to help the family out while Olivia (Michael Learned) continues her convalescence, Aunt Rose brings her two troublesome grandchildren, Jeffrey (Keith Mitchell) and Serena (Martha Nix), along for the ride. As it turns out, the kids' bad behavior stems from a very serious problem which Rose is reluctant to discuss with anyone. Meanwhile, Jim-Bob (David W. Harper) and Ike Godsey (Joe Conley) do their bit for the war effort by constructing a rather odd-looking air raid siren. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1979
In the conclusion of a two-part story, the family gathers together to welcome back John-Boy from the battlefield in Europe -- but John-Boy is still in a coma as a result of injuries sustained from a plane crash. As Olivia sits patiently at John-Boy's bedside, hoping to make some sort of contact with him, she becomes close to her son's hospital roommate Sam, a young double amputee who has no family to come home to (Morgan Stevens, later to join the cast as Erin Walton's fiancé Paul Northridge, is here seen as Sam). Meanwhile, the formidable Aunt Rose (Peggy Rea) takes it upon herself to prepare the family's Thanksgiving dinner. Robert Wightman takes over from Richard Thomas in the role of John-Boy Walton in this episode -- which, ironically, also marks the final series appearance of Michael Learned as Olivia. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1979
With John-Boy still missing in action somewhere in Belgium, his publishers ask the Walton family permission to publish his most recent manuscript. While the rest of the family is willing, Olivia (Michael Learned) flatly refuses, convinced that if she gives her consent, it would be the same as admitting that her son is dead. Elsewhere, cousin Jeffrey (Keith Mitchell) holds Ben (Eric Scott) responsible for the death of his beloved dog Restless. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1978
In this western adventure set in 1903, four imprisoned cowgirls bust out and begin trailing a famed Irish killer who is planning to assassinate President Teddy Roosevelt. Along the way, the foursome encounter many exciting adventures. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1978
The opening two-part episode of The Waltons' seventh season (originally telecast in a single two-hour timeslot) is dedicated to the memory of Will Geer, who had died in the summer of 1978. Also conspicuous by her absence is semi-regular Nora Marlowe, who had also passed away, as neighbor Flossie Brimmer. The loss of both Grandpa and Mrs. Brimmer is duly acknowledged as the Walton family leaves 1940 behind and enters 1941, a year that will yield many dramatic changes in their lives. For starters, John Walton (Ralph Waite) is faced with a choice between remaining with his struggling lumber business on Waltons' Mountain or accepting a more lucrative job out of town; and John's daughters Erin (Mary Elizabeth McDonough) and Mary Ellen (Judy Norton-Taylor) follow the lead of their brother John-Boy , moving out of the family home and into their own apartment. Peggy Rea, who would later join the series' cast as the Waltons' cousin Rose Burton, is here seen as the girls' landlady Mrs. Boren. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1978
In the conclusion of The Waltons' two-part Season Seven opener (originally telecast as a single two-hour episode), John Walton (Ralph Waite) wonders if he should leave the Mountain for a lucrative out-of-town job, thereby turning over the family business to the comparatively inexperienced Ben (Eric Scott). Elsewhere, Erin (Mary Elizabeth McDonough) learns a disturbing fact about her boss as she settles into her new job in Charlottesville; storekeeper Ike Godsey (Joe Conley) bristles when his social-climbing wife Corabeth (Ronnie Claire Edwards) installs several "refined" changes at their place of business; and the family prepares to celebrate Grandpa's birthday--without Grandpa, who has recently passed away. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1977
In this made-for-TV thriller, a group of tourists aboard a cruise ship must be quarantined after they become afflicted with a lethal virus. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi
- 1977
When the Army holds maneuvers on Walton's Mountain, Olivia (Michael Learned) worries that the War is drawing ever closer to home. She decides to paint landscape portraits of several local landmarks, on the chance that they will be destroyed in the months to come--beginning with Drucilla's Pond, which may be irrevocably polluted by the Army's wasted ammunition rounds. The story takes an unexpected turn when a mysterious art patron purchases Olivia's paintings for a sizeable sum. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1977
The family is confused and a little frightened by Olivia's uncharacteristically harsh and mercurial behavior. It soon becomes obvious that Olivia (Michael Learned) is going through menopause--and rather than subject her husband and children to the "collateral damage" of this ordeal, she temporarily moves in with her Aunt Kate (Louise Latham). Meanwhile, Jim-Bob (David W. Harper) compromises his integrity when he forges Olivia's signature on a job application, resulting in a most unusual man-to-man talk with Reverend Buchanan (Peter Fox). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1977
When Erin (Mary Elizabeth McDonough) turns down his wedding proposal, G.W. Haines (David Doremus) promptly joins the army. Shortly thereafter, Erin is invited to visit G.W. at Camp Lee--all by herself. Should John (Ralph Waite) and Olivia (Michael Learned) put faith in their daughter's common sense and let her travel alone, or should they be worried that G.W. will surrender to his "baser instincts?" ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1974
Rummaging through a second-hand purse which she has purchased in anticipation of going to a dance with John-Boy's friend Mike (Ted Eccles), Mary Ellen (Judy Norton-Taylor) finds a valuable ring. Allowing vanity to get the better of her, Mary Ellen decides to wear the ring to the dance, even as its previous owner Mrs. Breckenride (Adrienne Marden) announces that the ring is missing. A crisis ensues when our heroine loses the ring somewhere in the school gym--necessitating a nocturnal "burglary" involving two of the Walton kids. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
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