Vic Morrow Movies
After graduating from Florida State College, actor Vic Morrow came to New York, establishing himself as an interpreter of vicious young punks. His first film role was as the unregenerate high school gang leader in 1955's The Blackboard Jungle. Morrow later channelled his "loose cannon" personality in roles calling for heroics and authority. From 1962 through 1967, he starred as Sergeant Chip Saunders on the TV series Combat! Many of the sillier movie roles accepted by Morrow in the 1970s were aimed at financing his theatrical work as an actor and director. Some of his better later roles included the mean-spirited Little League manager who smacks his own son in public after a diamond error in The Bad News Bears (1976). Sadly, Vic Morrow is most famous now not for his life but for his death; together with two Vietnamese children, Morrow was killed in a still-controversial helicopter accident while filming on location for 1982's Twilight Zone: The Movie. Once married to actress/writer Barbara Turner, Vic Morrow was the father of 1990s film star Jennifer Jason Leigh. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1957
Broadway musical star and celebrated concert singer Barbara Cook makes a rare TV appearance in this chilling episode. Bored with her boyfriend, party girl Barbie Hallem (Cook) decides to escape to her uncle's cabin in the woods. En route, Barbie is warned by café owner Ed Mungo (Robert Karnes) that Ed's brother Bennie (Vic Morrow), suspected of murdering his sweetheart, is still at large. Once at the cabin, Barbie is confronted by Bennie -- who tells her an entirely different story. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1957
Anthony Mann, best known for his intelligent Westerns and hard-boiled crime films, directed this unflinching look at the realities of war set against the backdrop of the Korean conflict. Lt. Mark Benson (Robert Ryan) is the leader of a platoon that has just been given orders to advance to Hill 465, where they are to join awaiting troops and advance on the territory. While Benson and his men are weary, they have little choice but to comply. Needing a transport for their weapons, Benson and his men commandeer a truck, only to discover that it's not empty -- Sgt. "Montana" Williamette (Aldo Ray) has been ordered to escort a colonel (Robert Keith) suffering from extreme battle fatigue to a field hospital for examination and treatment. While Benson's loyalty is to his troops and his mission, Montana refuses to turn over the truck; the colonel is one of the only men he's been able to rely on during his stretch in the Army, and he is determined to stand by him in his time of need. Either way, the men find themselves frequently confronted by danger, and their numbers are decimated when they're ambushed by enemy troops. The supporting cast includes L.Q. Jones, Nehemiah Persoff, and Vic Morrow, who five years later would confront the dark side of war on a weekly basis as star of the TV series Combat. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Ryan, Aldo Ray, (more)
- 1956
The catch-all title Tribute to a Bad Man had been floating around MGM for years (at one point, it was the working title for The Bad and the Beautiful) before it was finally affixed to this big-budget western. Originally intended as a vehicle for Spencer Tracy, the film was recast with James Cagney when Tracy walked out of his MGM contract. Cagney stars as no-nonsense land baron Jeremy Rodock, who plays by his own rules, his own sense of justice and his own code of honor. Young cowhand Steve Miller (Don Dubbins) learns the hard way what it means to incur Rodock's wrath when he falls in love with Jocasta Constantine (Irene Papas), whom Rodock considers his own personal property. Through the example of the even-tempered Miller, however, Rodock rediscovers his own essential humanity. The film's "money scene" takes place when Rodock punishes a group of scraggly horse thieves by forcing them to march barefoot through the sagebrush. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Cagney, Don Dubbins, (more)
In this gritty urban drama, war veteran Richard Dadier (Glenn Ford) wants to begin his career as a teacher and is given an assignment at a boys high school in inner-city New York. However, he soon discovers the school is overrun by delinquents, led by Artie West (Vic Morrow), an insolent hood who likes to call Richard "Mr. Daddy-O." Artie and his gang steal, destroy property, refuse to respect authority, and threaten the female teachers with rape. While most of the faculty have given up and meekly let the delinquents do what they want, Dadier is determined to bring order back to his classroom, even after Artie's thugs threaten Richard's pregnant wife. Keep your eyes peeled for a bit part by Jameel Farah, years before he would change his name to Jamie Farr. Blackboard Jungle was also the first major studio film to use rock & roll on the soundtrack; the film's success kick-started sales of "Rock Around the Clock" by Bill Haley & His Comets, which helped to spark the rock & roll boom of the 1950s. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glenn Ford, Sidney Poitier, (more)
