Robbie Rist Movies

Balto is an animated trifle, based loosely on a true story from the 1920s, that may offer some amusement for young children. A live-action intro and outro set the stage for the story of Balto (voiced by Kevin Bacon), a stray who's half dog and half wolf, who is shunned as a half-breed outcast by both humans and his own kind. Balto does have some friends, like the goose Boris (Bob Hoskins) and two polar bears named Muk and Luk (Phil Collins), but he is particularly resented by canine pack leader Steele (Jim Cummings), with whom he is competing for the affections of Jenna (Bridget Fonda). He eventually becomes a hero when he guides a medication-carrying sled to a townful of sick kids in the wilds of Alaska. The film features a number of positive messages (subtlety is not its strong point), but it may not feature enough humor or excitement to keep anyone but the very smallest viewers engrossed. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide

The crime-fighting Turtles -- Michaelangelo (Michelan Sisti), Donatello (Leif Tilden), Raphael (Kenn Troum), and Leonardo (Mark Caso) -- return in this quickly made sequel to the popular superheroes' first film. The story concerns arch-enemy Shredder, who kidnaps nutty professor Jordan Perry David Warner, the man who invented the infamous ooze, in order to use the ooze to destroy the Turtles. Shredder enlists his hapless German shepherd puppy named Rahzar and a baby snapping turtle named Toko and dips them in the ooze to turn them into horrible and imposing ninja warriors. But on the Turtles' side is proficient kick-boxing pizza boy Keno (Ernie Reyes Jr.), who uses his moves to help the Turtles stop Shredder and his monster warriors. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie is the live-action, feature film adaptation of the cult comic book and the popular animated television show. After prolonged exposure to radiation, four teenage turtles--Michelangelo, Raphael, Leonardo, and Donatello--have mutated into ninjas and have begun living in the sewers of a large city. Under the guidance of a ninja master Splinter the Rat and television reporter April, the Turtles embark on a mission to run crime out of the city and battle the warlord Shredder. The Turtles have been designed by Jim Henson Productions and effortlessly fit into the live-action surroundings. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide

A clumsy hipster gets more than he bargained for when he mistakenly picks up a bag full of drug money instead of his clean laundry in this comedy. Interestingly the film features Olympic champions Greg Louganis and Carl Lewis in major roles. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

This TV movie consists of two episodes of Galactica 1980 edited together. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide

Twelve-year-old Calvin Brundage (Robbie Rist) may be the richest kid in town, but that certainly doesn't mean that he's the happiest. Unable to make friends -- or even buy them -- the lonely Calvin has become a couch potato glued to his television. Then one day, a genie (played by the inimitable Butterfly McQueen!) appears on his TV screen, informing him that he has won the "Seven Wishes Sweepstakes." But as the story draws to its conclusion, Calvin comes to realize that the secret to true happiness has been within his grasp all along, genie or no genie. Christopher Hewett of Mr. Belvedere fame co-stars in this fanciful ABC Afterschool Special. ~ All Movie Guide

While The Mary Tyler Moore Show no longer enjoyed Top 20 ratings as the series entered its seventh season, CBS hoped that the show would last forever as the linchpin of its Saturday-night lineup. However, series star Mary Tyler Moore (cast as Mary Richards, newscast producer at Minneapolis TV station WJM) had already decided to emulate the example set by her previous sitcom, The Dick Van Dyke Show: quit while the applause and laughter are still ringing in your ears, rather than hang around until nobody is left in the room. Thus, season seven of The Mary Tyler Moore Show was predestined to be season last. Even so, the series' final batch of episodes uphold the lofty standards of previous seasons, as indicated by the fact that Mary Tyler Moore earned its third Outstanding Comedy Series Emmy award in a row at the 1976-1977 ceremonies. Things get off to a grand start with "Mary Midwife," in which Georgette Baxter (Georgia Engel), the pregnant wife of WJM-TV's vainglorious anchorman, Ted Baxter (Ted Knight), goes into labor right in the middle of one of Mary Richards' infamous dinner parties. Subsequent episodes of note include "Sue Ann's Sister," in which WJM's "Happy Homemaker" Sue Ann Nivens (Betty White) suffers a bad case of sibling rivalry when her sister -- and professional competitor -- Lila (Pat Priest) comes to town; and "Sue Ann Gets the Ax," wherein Sue Ann accepts a humiliating supporting role on a TV kiddie show when her own series is canceled. Also worth noting are "Ted's Change of Heart," in which Ted undergoes an epiphany after suffering a heart attack while on the air; "Lou Proposes," featuring another lively appearance by Eileen Heckart as Mary's globetrotting journalist aunt Flo Meredith; "Mary's Insomnia," combining slapstick with melodrama as Mary inadvertently becomes addicted to sleeping pills; "The Critic," guest-starring Eric Braeden as a waspish arts critic who is given a gooey comeuppance by an unwitting Ted; "Hail the Conquering Gordy," marking a return appearance by John Amos in the role of former WJM weatherman Gordy Howard; "Mary's Big Party," in which Johnny Carson makes a guest appearance -- we think; and the series' only fantasy episode, "Mary's Three Husbands." The Mary Tyler Moore Show neatly wraps things up after seven seasons with the now-classic series finale, in which the new manager of WJM-TV fires everyone on the staff -- except, amazingly, Ted Baxter! (It's a long way to Tipperary....) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A middle-aged housewife, bored and frustrated with her life, endeavors to find herself and renew her happiness in this drama. To relieve the ennui, she has tried several techniques, including mate swapping, but nothing works. She then takes to making daily visits to a hotel room where she finds peace, and also hopes to make her husband jealous. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The fifth and final season of The Brady Bunch finds a newcomer amidst the familiar faces. Joining stars Robert Reed and Florence Henderson as Mike and Carol Brady, Barry Williams, Maureen McCormick, Christopher Knight, Eve Plumb, Mike Lookinland, and Susan Olsen as the various and sundry Brady kids, and Ann B. Davis as Alice the housekeeper, is child actor Robbie Rist as the infamous Cousin Oliver, whose addition to the family was a gimmick to "freshen up" the then five-year-old series. There are thousands upon thousands of Brady Bunch fans who are of the opinion that the world would be no worse off with one less Cousin Oliver, but thankfully (for these fans) the kid showed up in only six episodes. No matter what one's opinion of the estimable Oliver, it cannot be denied that several of the fifth-season Brady Bunch episodes are among the series' best and most memorable. These include "Adios, Johnny Bravo," in which Greg Brady adopts a new name in preparation for a showbiz career; "Mail Order Hero," distinguished by football legend Joe Namath in a guest appearance as himself; "Never Too Young," featuring a pre-Little House on the Prairie Melissa Sue Anderson as little Bobby Brady's first major crush; "Marcia Gets Creamed," a textbook example of the venerable adage "Never hire your relatives"; "The Elopement," wherein the Brady kids labor under the false assumption that Alice is about to marry her erstwhile beau Sam (Allan Melvin); "Two Petes in a Pod," with series regular Christopher Knight in a dual role; "The Cincinnati Kid," an episode built around the real-life opening of the Kings' Island amusement park in Cincinnati; and the series' final episode, "The Hair-Brained Scheme," the one in which Greg's hair turns orange. Also worth mentioning is the episode titled "Kelly's Kids," the story of a husband (Ken Berry) and wife (Brooke Bundy) who adopt a trio of interracial kids, which was filmed as the pilot for a series that never sold. ~ All Movie Guide