Alex March Movies
Alex March directed three feature films during the late '60s including Paper Lion. March began as an actor and worked in both stock theater and on Broadway. Later he worked as a script editor and a casting director at CBS-TV and from there directed episodes of several notable series and television movies during the '70s. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide- 1978
We'll confess not to having seen The Amazing Captain Nemo, principally because we can't find it anywhere. It's our loss, because it certainly sounds fascinating. Jose Ferrer stars as Nemo, the demented but essentially well-meaning technological genius created by Jules Verne in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. In what seems to have been a one-time-only occasion, Ferrer costars with his namesake Mel Ferrer. Also in the star-heavy cast is Burgess Meredith as an eccentric professor and Lynda Day George as the all-around heroine. The film was largely photographed by Lamar Boren, the undersea expert responsible for the soggy cinematography of Creature from the Black Lagoon and Flipper. Given the cast and the director (Alex March), we suspect that The Amazing Captain Nemo was filmed for television, then deflected to theaters to make back its cost. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1978
Quincy (Jack Klugman) receives an urgent call from his friend Rosey Grier (playing himself), who is currently running Giant Step, a city-funded remedial program for delinquents. One of Grier's charges, troubled teenager Victor Garn (Todd Davis), has been accused of murdering an old man, and the program is in danger of being closed down. Rosey hopes that Quincy can prove the boy's innocence: trouble is, Quincy has already signed off on the case and established the boy's guilt. The challenge now is to establish that Victor is not a murderer, but instead acted in self-defense. This episode was originally scheduled to air on December 23, 1977. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
The title character in this episode, played by Adrienne La Russa), is the wife of jailed mobster Joseph Trancata (Victor Rendina). Upon her husband's incarceration, the long-suffering Carla goes on the lam. As she hides out in the apartment of undercover cop Tony Baretta (Robert Blake), Carla's in-laws inaugurate a search to bring the woman back--dead or alive. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
The plot of this 90-minute (Quincy, M.E.) episode gets under way when a human bone, found at the excavation site for a new college building, is given to medical examiner (and temporary forensics teacher) Quincy (Jack Klugman) as a joke. But it is no laughing matter when, after a little lab work, Quincy determines that the bone was from the body of a murder victim. Much to the dismay of his superiors at the LA County Coroner's Office, Quincy puts his regular duties aside to conduct an investigation which may not only determine the identity of the victim, but also solve a 20-year-old murder. The supporting cast includes two future Lou Grant regulars, Linda Kelsey and Jack Bannon. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
Posing as a prison pathologist, Quincy (Jack Klugman) conducts an investigation of the death of a convicted embezzler who was about to provide testimony against his mob bosses. The man's death has been ruled accidental, but Quincy doesn't believe it. The trick now is to figure out how a murder was committed in a maximum-security prison wing, without any tangible evidence (hint: the episode's title is a key to the solution). This episode was originally scheduled to air on April 15, 1977. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1974
In a disturbing turn of events, Lt. Theo Kojak (Telly Savalas) appears to be on the take, living extravagantly, spending lavishly and gambling heavily. Only a handful of intimates are aware that Kojak's "corruption" is actually part of a scheme to trap a heroin dealer who has repeatedly eluded the authorities. Complicating (and possibly compromising) this carefully calculated sting is the vengeful widow of a murdered mob courier, played by future Jaws costar Lorraine Gary. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1973
Originally made as a television pilot for a series that never panned out, Mr. Inside, Mr. Outside focuses on two New York cops (Hal Linden, Tony LoBianco). The pair work together to thwart a gang of diamond smugglers, with one going undercover while the other remains on the outside. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- 1972
An African American youth must deal with both many physical tests and the racism of his peers as he works to become a full-fledged fire fighter in this drama that was originally made as a television pilot. As he is the only black man in an all white unit, things are difficult, especially after he learns that the man he replaced was killed in a fire set by a black arsonist. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1969
- G
This hilarious parody pokes fun at Charlie Chan movies and features Zero Mostel as an inscrutable Asian detective, Inspector Hoku, who must keep international spies from getting hold of a newly developed robot. In-jokes abound and slapstick mayhem ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Jack Ryan (Ryan O'Neal) is a cucumber picker who is fired after a fight with a Mexican-American (Victor Paul) co-worker. He finds work on a ranch owned by Ray Ritchie (James Daly). Soon his private secretary Nancy (Leigh Taylor-Young) is after Jack. She spends her free time in pursuit of hedonism and reckless pleasure by fornicating on tombstones and breaking hearts as well as windows. Sam Mirakian (Van Heflin) is the motel owner whose lonely resident (Lee Grant) makes a play for Jack. She ends up killing herself and Nancy ends up killing someone else for sheer pleasure. This forgettable and pointless movie -- one critic described it as "a rancid piece of trash" -- is O'Neal's big-screen debut. Some nudity required an "R" rating. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ryan O'Neal, Leigh Taylor-Young, (more)
Paper Lion is taken from the actual experiences of journalist George Plimpton. George (Alan Alda) dons helmet and pads to play quarterback against the Detroit Lions. His experience is less-than-successful as he is mercilessly tackled by the Lion's defense, including Alex Karras. Roger Aaron Brown tackles George and carries the ball and the player over the line for a touchdown. Flashbacks include the reporter's three-round bout with "Sugar Ray" Robinson. Football legends Frank Gifford and coach Vince Lombardi also appear. The final scene is the actual pre-season game against the St. Louis Cardinals football team. After his retirement from the Lions, Alex Karras made a successful transition into acting in films and on television, joining Jim Brown who preceded and Bubba Smith and others who followed. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alan Alda, Lauren Hutton, (more)
- 1966
Wandering cowpoke Kiowa Jones (Robert Horton) is deputized by a mortally wounded marshal (Gary Merrill) for a deadly mission. Jones is to transport two killers (Sal Mineo, Nehemiah Persoff) to a faraway fort. One of the criminals has offered a $2000 reward to anyone who will help him escape. Since Dangerous Days of Kiowa Jones was the pilot for a TV series, we can say with some confidence that Mr. Jones completes his mission. This made-for-TV movie--the first such for MGM--was first networkcast on Christmas day, 1966; later on, MGM released the film theatrically in Europe. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Mickey Rooney guest stars as Charlie Paris, a former standup comedian and Syndicate bookie who has "gone straight" and is running the Yonkers laundromat where Richard Kimble (David Janssen) is presently employed. Unfortunately, some gamblers who knew Charlie back in his mob days have come to town to get even for his testifying against him. Though nervous about this turn of events, Charlie is confident that no matter what happens he can count on the undying devotion of his girlfriend Paula (Nita Talbot)--who at this very moment is planning to double-cross Charlie for a hefty sum. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Acting upon a clue in a broken liquor bottle, UNCLE agents Solo and Illya investigate possible skullduggery at a Swiss monastery. It turns out that the ancient structure is being used by THRUSH agent Abbott Simon (David J. Peter) as the construction site for a laser gun aimed at the Louvre. This week's innocent bystander is Andrea Fouchet, played by ubiquitous 1960s starlet Celeste Yarnall); also in the cast as Brother Paulus is Iggie Wolfington, who created the role of Marcellus Washburn in the original Broadway production of The Music Man. Written by Sheldon Stark, "The Monks of St. Thomas Affair" originally aired on October 14, 1966. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Jack Weston guest stars as Buzz Conway, an unsuccessful salesman who is mistaken for the inventor of an earthquake-manufacturing device. Hoping to pry information from the gormless Buzz, THRUSH agent Marvin Elom (Leon Askin) kidnaps the poor fellow and subjects him to the seductive wiles of female spy Narcissus Darling (Barbara Bouchet). Though UNCLE could conceivably step in and clear up Elom's misconceptions about Buzz, agents Solo and Illya decide to allow the villains to continue barking up the wrong tree so that the real inventor can make a clean getaway -- or can he? Written by Dean Hargrove, "The Project Deephole Affair" made its first network appearance on March 18, 1966. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
The photographer is Arthur Mannix (Jack Cassidy); the undertaker is Hiram Price (Harry Townes). Both men supplement their incomes by moonlighting as professional hitmen -- and both work for the same gangster boss. The "fun" begins when Arthur is ordered to bump off Hiram, and vice versa...leading to a bizarre set of circumstances that neither one of our "heroes" could ever have anticipated. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Cassidy, Harry Townes, (more)
- 1965
Arriving in a small town to pay his respects to the family of Adam Manning, the first man he killed in battle during the Civil War, Jason (Chuck Connors) is astonished when he comes face to face with Adam's exact double. He soon realizes that he has met the man's younger brother Tad (both roles are played by Chad Everett), whose embittered father Sam (James Dunn) has been feeding Tad a steady diet of hate ever since the war ended. Brushing aside Jason's words of regret, Tad plans to kill McCord and thus avenge his family's tattered honor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1963
The final episode of The Untouchables revolves around Roy Dahlgren (Jeremy Slate), a crazed WW1 veteran. Elliot Ness (Robert Stack) would like to know why all of the top gangsters in Chicago are leaving town in droves. The reason? The crooks want to establish an alibi when Ness is rubbed out. Mob boss Danny Mundt has offered $10,000 to anyone willing to kill Ness. The deranged Dahlgren accepts the assignment, preparing to finish the Fed off with his weapon of choice--a hand grenade. The climax finds a temporarily blinded Elliot Ness approaching a showdown with Dahlgren, who may or may not have one grenade left. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1963
No one could accuse this episode of The Untouchables of defaming the Italians--certainly not with the young, aggressively WASP-ish Robert Redford as the villain of the week. Redford is cast as Ivy League bootlegger Jack Parker, who who is deliberately distributing a dangerous form of methyl alcohol known as "Ginger Jake" to college campuses. Even mob boss Frank Nitti (Bruce Gordon) is queasy about selling a product that could permanently blind anyone who drinks it, but Parker wins Nitti over by explaining his reason for pushing the cheap hooch: it will whet the students' appetite for the "good stuff", for which Parker has formulated a diabolically brilliant distribution scheme. This episode boasts one of the most grimly powerful finales in all Untouchables history--and as a bonus, Star Trek fans are treated to a glimpse of an uncredited Walter Koenig as one of the students. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1962
Though the producers of The Untouchables had promised that their fourth season would have less violence and more humanity than in previous years, that season's opening episode was hardly in the "kinder, gentler" category. No sooner had the episode gotten under way than a likeable lug named Hap Levinson, dressed in a Santa Claus costume and handing out presents on Christmas Eve, is gunned down in full view of several wide-eyed orphans (one of whom is played by an unbilled, pre-"Eddie Munster" Butch Patrick). Why would anyone kill a nice guy like Hap, whose only connection to the Underworld appeared to be the fact that he managed a nightclub owned by mobster Mike Volney (Murvyn Vye)? As the story progresses, Elliot Ness learns the awful truth about good ol' Hap, and he intends to use what he knows to put Volney out of business for keeps. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
