Robert B. Radnitz Movies
American producer Robert B. Radnitz is best known for producing high-quality family films including the Oscar-nominated Sounder in 1972. Radnitz was born in Great Neck, Long Island, and after graduating from the University of Virginia taught college and penned scripts for short RKO films. He later became a Broadway producer until the 1960s when he began producing Hollywood features. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Director Martin Ritt's bucolic rural environments of Norma Rae, Conrack, and Sounder, are re-visited once again in Cross Creek, based on author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings' memoirs of her times on a remote Florida bayou. Mary Steenburgen plays Rawlings, author of The Yearling, who, in 1928, makes the abrupt decision to leave her husband and move to an isolated orange grove to concentrate on her writing. Rawlings buys a run-down house covered with cobwebs that she restores with quick dispatch. In these desolate surroundings, Rawlings pauses in her housecleaning to listen reflectively to the otherworldly noises of the swamp. But suddenly out of this loneliness, people emerge. There is Geechee (Alfre Woodard), Rawlings' devoted servant; Marsh Turner (Rip Torn), a liquor-guzzling swamp rat; Floyd Turner (Cary Guffey), a cute harmonica-playing boy; and Ellie Turner (Dana Hill), a little girl whose fawn becomes the basis of Rawlings' Yearling book. Rawlings becomes involved with Norton Baskin (Peter Coyote), the owner of the local hotel, and, as she settles into life on the bayou and her friendship with Norton and Geechee, she is inspired to begin writing. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mary Steenburgen, Rip Torn, (more)
Journalist William Allen White, the Pulitzer Prize-winning sage of Emporia, Kansas, lost his beloved 16-year-old daughter Mary when she was killed in a horseback-riding accident in 1921. The grieving White then wrote a newspaper editorial celebrating his daughter's life, which he printed in his own Emporia Gazette and which has since attained classic status. The made-for-TV Mary White uses the editorial as a reference point for a series of flashbacks, recalling Mary's last year on earth. The events are put in context with the social temper of the times, as both father and daughter fight against such exigencies as segregation and in favor of Women's Suffrage. Ed Flanders plays White, while Kathleen Beller is seen as Mary, and Fionnuala Flannagan portrays Mrs. White. Refreshingly free of phony sentimentality, the moving, inspirational Mary White premiered on November 18, 1977 ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ed Flanders, Kathleen Beller, (more)
- 1977
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Adapted from Alice Childress' inspirational novel of the same name, director Ralph Nelson's sentimental addiction drama tells the story of an intelligent yet alienated ghetto youth seduced into the world of hard drugs. Unable to stand being in the same apartment as his gruff but caring foster-father Butler (Paul Winfield), inner-city high school student Benjie (Larry B. Scott) opts to pass the time smoking grass and drinking with his good friend Jimmy Lee (Kenneth Green) and small-time drug dealer Carwell (Erin Blunt). Before long Benjie is hooked, and hanging out with local pusher Tiger (Kevin Hooks) in order to get the hard stuff. Increasingly alienated from both his foster-father and his grandmother (Helen Martin), young Benjie must rely on the assistance of a caring social worker (Claire Brennan) in order to stay clean and get back on his feet. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cicely Tyson, Paul Winfield, (more)
- 1976
Part 2, Sounder was the sequel to the 1973 filmization of William H. Armstrong's novel Sounder, with the same scenarist (Lonnie Elder III) but with a different director (Graham) and releasing company (Gamma III). Still set amongst Depression-era black sharecroppers in Louisiana, Part 2 features Harold Sylvester and Ebony Wright stepping into the roles originated in first film by Paul Winfield and Cicely Tyson. They're still struggling against poverty and prejudice, but have now been given a ray of hope by activist teacher Anzanette Chase (taking over from first film's Janet McLachlan). Her school is closed down by the white landowners, who don't want the "coloreds" to get too "uppity." The sharecroppers band together to build their own school, so that their children can learn to create a better world. Musician Taj Mahal is back from the first film, doubling in a supporting role and providing the musical score. Originally designed as a made-for-TV movie, Part 2: Sounder was redirected to theatres instead. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harold Sylvester, Ebony Wright, (more)
- 1976
In Birch Interval Eddie Albert and Rip Torn, play Pa Strawacher and Thomas, a pair of Amish patriarchs. Susan McClung plays Jesse, an 11-year-old city girl who undergoes severe culture shock when she moves in with her Amish cousins. Told from McClung's point of view, the film concentrates on such fundamental values as love, faith and loyalty. Sophisticates may not be in step with the film's sentiments, but it is perfect family fare. Birch Interval was scripted by Joanna Crawford from her own novel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Albert, Rip Torn, (more)
- 1974
While the title may mislead one into thinking that Where the Lilies Bloom is a picturesque outdoors family film, the story is pretty strong stuff, not altogether suited for younger children. When their father dies, four backwoods kids hide the fact, lest they be separated by the authorities and shipped off to foster homes. Julie Gholson, the oldest of the children, assumes the "parent" role, proving a formidable opponent for landlord Harry Dean Stanton. Much to everyone's surprise, Stanton turns out to be one of the good guys. Where the Lilies Bloom was adapted by Waltons maven Earl Hamner Jr. from a novel by Vera and Bill Cleaver. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Julie Gholson, Jan Smithers, (more)
Martin Ritt's big-screen adaptation of William H. Armstrong's Newberry Award winning novel, Sounder stars Cicely Tyson, Paul Winfield, and Kevin Hooks as a black family struggling through life in depression-era Louisiana. The Morgan family is poor, but close. Young son David (Hooks) enjoys hunting with his father Nathan (Paul Winfield) and his trusted dog Sounder. Eventually, they fall on such rough times that Nathan steals a loaf of bread to feed his family, but he is arrested and sentenced to a work camp. Mother Rebecca (Tyson) realizes that David is now responsible for taking care of the family. He sets out to locate where his father is being held, and becomes involved in a school for black children where he learns facts that give him a new level of self-esteem. Sounder was nominated for a variety of Academy Awards, including Best Picture. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cicely Tyson, Paul Winfield, (more)
- 1972
This heart-rending family-oriented drama chronicles the adventure of two Dutch children who temporarily lose their father and mother during the great flood of 1953. Fortunately, they and their animals are taken in by a salty old boatman who helps them reunite with their father. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
Thirteen-year old Teddy Eccles is a devotee of Thoreau, as most everybody else was in 1969. Eccles decides to spend a one-year sabbatical in the Canadian woods. His immediate companion is his pet raccoon; his spiritual companion is idealistic librarian Chris Wiggins, who supplies Eccles with books on survival. Reality intrudes when another of Eccles' kindred spirits, a falcon, is killed by insensitive hunters. But the boy survives this disillusionment with the help of Wiggins and wandering-troubadour Theodore Bikel. My Side of the Mountain is a refreshingly non-condescending adaptation of the novel by Jean Craighead George. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ted Eccles, Theodore Bikel, (more)
- 1966
Based on the popular novel by Joseph Krumgold, And Now Miguel is an easygoing yarn about a small boy with a big dream. Miguel (Pat Cardi), a shepherd's son, hopes some day to himself shepherd the flocks of sheep that has been managed by his family for so many years. Filmed mostly out-of-doors, the film benefits from the natural scenic beauty of New Mexico. The plot itself tends to be pokey, especially whenever the camera lingers on shots of sheep grazing, sheep moving from pasture to pasture, and sheep being shorn. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Ansara, Guy Stockwell, (more)
- 1964
Based on the popular children's story by Scott O'Dell, this family movie tells of the true adventures of a young Native American girl. After her father is killed by a malevolent white trapper, Karana (Celia Kaye) joins her community as they leave their island home in the Pacific to live on the mainland. Upon her departure, Karana realizes that her brother has been left behind. She immediately swims back to be with him and the two remain on the abandoned island. Though Karana is able to domesticate a wolf, her brother is not so fortunate with the animals and is killed by a pack of wild dogs. She is left to survive against the odds for several years before she has a chance to journey to the mainland herslelf. The adept cinematography of Leo Tover (Journey to the Center of the Earth, The Day the Earth Stood Still) greatly contributed to this outdoor adventure film as did appropriate music from prolific film composer Paul Sawtell. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Celia Kaye, Larry Domasin, (more)
Marguerite Henry's beloved novel Misty of Chincoteague is given a charmingly old fashioned cinemadaptation in this 1961 second feature. David Ladd (son of Alan) plays a pre-teen boy who with his sister Pam Smith live with their grandparents on a Virginia coastal island. Each year, the local citizens celebrate Pony-Penning day, when they round up the wild ponies on the neighboring islands to sell them at auction. Ladd and Smith capture a mare known as "Phantom" because it has never previously been corralled by the locals. The kids hope to buy Phantom's colt Misty, but are disheartened when a stranger purchases both colt and mare. With the help of the sympathetic townspeople, a happy ending is secured. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Ladd, Arthur O'Connell, (more)
- 1959
Based on a novel written in 1872, this charming tale of a young boy and his dog is leisurely and heart-warming. Nello (David Ladd) and his grandfather Daas (Donald Crisp) manage to make ends meet by delivering milk from the nearby farms to the city of Antwerp. Nello's most deeply felt ambition is to follow in the footsteps of the greatest Flemish artists but his grandfather has little faith in Nello's ability to make a living with brush and canvas. Inevitably, Daas passes away and Nello ekes out a living as they always did, accompanied by his cart dog. One day Nello and his canine friend meet Piet (Theodore Bikel), a reclusive artist whose muse has not been constant of late. The combination of young boy, talented artist, and loyal canine then begins to exert its own chemistry, to everyone's benefit. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Ladd, Donald Crisp, (more)
- 1958
The little-known British melodrama Wink of an Eye was given a brief American distribution by United Artists. Jonathan Kidd plays Atterbury, the apparently mild-mannered owner of a small perfume laboratory. No one suspects that Atterbury plans to murder his harridan of a wife (Jaclynne Greene) and run off to South America with his lovely lab assistant Myrna Duchane (Doris Dowling). Though the audience sees nothing, it is implied that Mrs. Atterbury has been chopped up in little peaces and stored in her husband's freezer. After leading us up the garden path for seven reels, Wink of an Eye offers an amusing twist just before the end. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jonathan Kidd, Doris Dowling, (more)
