Veronica Cartwright Movies
An actress with the kind of versatile beauty that has allowed her to effortlessly alternate between earthy and glamorous roles, Veronica Cartwright's steel-blue eyes have a strange way of piercing through the screen and transcending their two-dimensional restraints. Having successfully made the transition from child actor to seasoned screen veteran, Cartwright continued a career which allowed her to explore roles that ran the gamut from straight drama to chilling horror. A native of Bristol, England, Cartwright's family emigrated to the United States when she was still very young. Following a series of modeling jobs and print ads, the aspiring actress became a familiar face to television viewers as the "Kellogg's Girl" in a series of breakfast cereal commercials. She made her screen debut in the 1958 war drama In Love and War, and, in the years that followed, alternated between film and TV work with roles in such features as The Children's Hour (1961) and The Birds (1963), in addition to a turn as Lumpy's sister on the small-screen classic Leave It to Beaver. From 1964-1968, the actress endeared herself to television viewers as Jemima Boone on the popular Daniel Boone series.Although the transition from adorable child star to serious adult actor has been a serious stumbling block for generations of young stars, Cartwright skillfully avoided this pitfall with a series of memorable roles in the 1970s. Playing opposite such heavies as Richard Dreyfuss in Inserts (1975) and Donald Sutherland in Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978), Cartwright was well on her way to crafting an enduring film career. A role as the ill-fated navigator in the 1979 sci-fi horror classic Alien found her taking part in what would become one of the most lucrative and prolific franchises in cinema history, and a memorable performance in the 1983 space program drama The Right Stuff (in which she worked again with Body Snatchers director Philip Kaufman) helped to sustain her career through the '80s. Subsequent roles in Flight of the Navigator (1986) and Wisdom (1987) offered little in the way of dramatic depth, though Cartwright's winning performance in George Miller's The Witches of Eastwick (1987) found her nearly stealing the show from stars Cher, Susan Sarandon, and Michelle Pfeiffer. Despite the fact that Cartwright kicked off the '90s with a memorable turn in the popular weekly drama L.A. Law, the roles which followed were mostly comprised of thankless appearances in made-for-TV features and forgettable horror sequels. Although she remained busy, her parts just weren't as rich as they had been. Despite the dry spell, however, Cartwright was nominated for an Emmy for three memorable appearances in the popular small-screen chiller The X Files. The following decade found her edging back toward memorable film work with appearances in In the Bedroom (2001), Scary Movie 2 (2001), and Just Married (2003). After facing off against a cat-munching alien in the 2002 short Mackenheim, Cartwright essayed a substantial role in Richard Day's 2004 comedy Straight Jacket. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
Sentenced to hang in a backwater western town, horse thief Henry Moon (Jack Nicholson) is saved when frontierswoman Julia Tate (Mary Steenburgen) agrees to marry him. Taking advantage of the town law that prohibits the execution of married men, Moon follows Tate back to her ranch, planning all the while to escape at the first possible opportunity. But Tate insists that he honor his end of the bargain at work on the ranch. She has no intention of consummating the union, a fact that drives the hot-to-trot Moon up a wall. She puts him to work on the gold mine that she has on her property, while his old gang prepares to relieve the couple of their gold once it's on the surface. Jack Nicholson personally selected movie newcomer Mary Steenburgen for Goin' South. The film also features John Belushi in the role of a dyspeptic deputy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Nicholson, Mary Steenburgen, (more)
Many observers consider the 60-minute Bernice Bobs Her Hair to be the best-ever filmed adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald. Bernice (Shelley Duvall), a shy retiring girl of the Roaring 20s, yearns to be popular. On the advice of her flapper cousin Marjorie (Veronica Cartwright), Bernice cuts her unfashionable long hair into a short bob, begins dressing more stylishly, and learns the Most Valuable Rule: "When you're with a man, there are only three topics of conversation: you, me and us." Bernice Bobs Her Hair first aired on PBS' American Playhouse on April 5, 1977. It was telecast in tandem with a dramatization of Sherwood Anderson's oft-adapted I'm a Fool. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shelley Duvall, Bud Cort, (more)
Writer/director John Byrum filmed this bizarre and controversial period picture on one massive set. It takes place in the 1930s, and stars Richard Dreyfuss as Boy Wonder, a once-great Hollywood director, who spends all of his time in decrepitude in his rococo mansion (which will soon be leveled and replaced by a major highway), half-soused, unshaven and clad in his bathrobe and pajamas. Instead of shooting major Hollywood pictures, this impotent has-been is now reduced to shooting pornographic films with a coke-addled actress, Harlene (Veronica Cartwright) and a moronic leading man, Rex (Stephen Davies). Rex's employer, the financier Big Mac (Bob Hoskins) turns up, bringing along his shy and dim-bulb fiancee, Cathy Cake (Jessica Harper), whom he treats condescendingly but hopes to launch to megastardom as a movie actress. When Harlene overdoses, Rex and Big Mac haggle over her body. Mac then leaves Cathy with Boy Wonder, who tells the burned-out director that her one dream in life is to appear in movies, and asks if she could pose for insert shots for his next stag film. By shooting the inserts, Boy Wonder manages to regain his potency, but he is completely put off by Cathy, who suddenly realizes, after the fact, that the camera wasn't running. At that point, Big Mac returns and catches them in the filmmaking process. Although he is not really sure what went on, Big Mac vamooses with Boy Wonder's camera and paraphernalia and takes Cathy with him. Meanwhile, an aspiring thesp named Clark Gable turns up at the door, wanting Boy Wonder to direct him to stardom. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Dreyfuss, Jessica Harper, (more)
- 1969
Every sitcom of the late 1960s had at least one "hippie" episode, and Family Affair was no exception. Encountering several flower children in Greenwich Village, Cissy wants to be a part of their alternative lifestyle--at least on weekends. Naturally, Uncle Bill is nervous, but he needn't worry: Cissy ultimately realizes that she'd rather tune out and drop in rather than turn on. And, oh wow, look at that supporting cast--including M*A*S*H's "Klinger" as a far-out freak! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
For a family picture, not to mention a story that later became the old-fashioned-values-affirming series The Waltons, Spencer's Mountain sure has a lot in it about sex. Henry Fonda gives an interesting portrayal in one of his more unusual roles, as Clay Spencer, the hard-drinkin', hard-livin', hard lovin', hard-cussin' patriarch of a fiercely independent Wyoming family living in the Grand Tetons. When he's not resisting the encroachment of organized religion on his daily life (he believes in God, but doesn't want others to tell him how to do that, or how to show respect to the Lord), he's busy trying to finish the house he promised his wife (Maureen O'Hara) to house their constantly growing brood, and trying to help his eldest son, Clayboy (James MacArthur) -- who's going to be the first Spencer to get past high school -- prepare for college and manhood, while temptation in the form of Claris Coleman (Mimsy Farmer) and Minnie-Cora Cook Kathy Bennett comes his way. There's also a good bit of human drama here, and some especially finely nuanced performances by Donald Crisp and Lillian Bronson, as Fonda's aging parents. Between their work, the CinemaScope photography, the gorgeous Wyoming locations, and a good basic story, this is a surprisingly engrossing comedy-drama of a kind that probably could not be made today, even with a top-name cast. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Henry Fonda, Maureen O'Hara, (more)
The story begins as an innocuous romantic triangle involving wealthy, spoiled Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren), handsome Mitch Brenner (Rod Taylor), and schoolteacher Annie Hayworth (Suzanne Pleshette). The human story begins in a San Francisco pet shop and culminates at the home of Mitch's mother (Jessica Tandy) at Bodega Bay, where the characters' sense of security is slowly eroded by the curious behavior of the birds in the area. At first, it's no more than a sea gull swooping down and pecking at Melanie's head. Things take a truly ugly turn when hundreds of birds converge on a children's party. There is never an explanation as to why the birds have run amok, but once the onslaught begins, there's virtually no letup. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rod Taylor, Tippi Hedren, (more)
- 1963
If nothing else, this episode proves that Beaver (Jerry Mathers) no longer regards girls as "creepy." With the big eighth grade dance rapidly approaching, Beaver accepts the invitation to escort pretty Peggy McIntosh (played by Veronica Cartwright, who used to be Violet Rutherford a few seasons back). The fun begins when Beav tries to weasel out of his commitment to Peggy when another girl, Melinda Nielson (Charla Doherty), asks to be his date for the very same dance. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ken Osmond, Stephen Talbot, (more)
- 1963
From at least the 1930s on to the 1970s, the upbeat protestant minister, Reverend Norman Vincent Peale, ministered to the well-heeled and upwardly mobile of the United States from his pulpit at the Riverside church on Fifth Avenue in New York City. At least as positive-thinking as the similarly cheery Dale Carnegie (How To Win Friends and Influence People), his lift-yourself-by-your-bootstraps message of good cheer was perceived as unorthodox by many within the churches he grew up in. After many decades of preaching his message, summed up in his best-selling book The Power of Positive Thinking, he was enshrined as a sort of secular saint. His influence reached to Presidents and corporate heads, and his name became synonymous with a kind of extraverted wholesomeness which has long since vanished. This biopic traces his career in the most respectful possible manner. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Don Murray, Diana Hyland, (more)
- 1962
Though he'd originally intended to write several scripts for the original Twilight Zone, Ray Bradbury's sole contribution to the series was this sensitive adaptation of his own short story "I Sing the Body Electric!" Hoping to fill the void left by the death of his wife, a widower (David White) takes his children to Robots Unlimited to purchase an "electric grandmother" for the kids. The younger children (Charles Herbert) and Dana Dillaway) are delighted with their robot granny (Josephine Hutchinson), but older daughter Anna (Veronica Cartwright) is sullen and resentful -- until "Grandma" proves herself to be more human than most humans. Though the episode is generally successful, no one connected with it was satisfied, least of all director James Sheldon, who felt that star Josephine Hutchinson was not quite right in the leading role. In addition, an earlier scene with June Vincent as the kids' aunt Nedra didn't "play" on film, necessitating an expensive reshoot, directed by William F. Claxton, with Doris Packer replacing Vincent. All in all, however, "I Sing the Body Electric!" pleased the crowd when it first aired on May 18, 1962, though a much-later 60-minute TV version, "The Electric Grandmother" (1980), was closer to the spirit of the Bradbury original. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Josephine Hutchinson, Veronica Cartwright, (more)
- 1961
Already upset that Beaver (Jerry Mathers) has gotten short shrift in a series of "trades" in his classroom, June (Barbara Billingsley) is aghast when her son comes home with a new pet rat named Peter, which he has purchased for fifty cents. When June refuses to allow Beaver to keep the rat -- and also lectures him about having more common sense when it comes to the value of money -- Beaver promptly sells Peter to Violet Rutherford for three times more than he paid for it! It is up to Ward (Hugh Beaumont) to advise our hero that one does not snooker one's friends in the world of high finance. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Deacon, Frank Bank, (more)
- 1961
In modern-day Salem, MA, Phyllis and Ben Kendall (Julie Adams, James Franciscus) purchase an old house from local eccentric Amelia Gastell (Charity Grace). The location of the house is perfect in every respect save one -- there are no playmates in the neighborhood for the Kendalls' 9-year-old daughter Kate (Susan Gordon). Soon, however, Kate begins playing with an imaginary friend whom she calls Letty -- the same name of a child who died in Salem way back during the "witch hunt" of 1692. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Based on the 1934 play by Lillian Hellman, The Children's Hour is set at an exclusive girl's school managed by best friends Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine. When student Karen Balkin is punished for one of her many misdeeds, the mean-spirited youngster rushes to her wealthy aunt Fay Bainter, and, randomly choosing a phrase she has undoubtedly read in some magazine, accuses Hepburn and MacLaine of having an "unnatural relationship." As Balkin's lies grow in viciousness, the student's parents withdraw their children from the school. Hepburn and MacLaine sue Bainter for libel, only to lose their case when MacLaine's aunt Miriam Hopkins refuses to testify as a character witness. The trial takes its toll on the relationship between Hepburn and her boyfriend James Garner. When Bainter discovers that her niece has been lying, she tries to make amends, but it is too late. Director William Wyler had also helmed the first film version of Children's Hour, 1936's These Three, which due to censorship restrictions of the time did without the lesbian angle (the little girl's accusations involved a supposed romantic triangle between the two ladies and a male friend). Miriam Hopkins, who plays a supporting role in The Children's Hour, originally essayed the Shirley MacLaine role in These Three. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Audrey Hepburn, Shirley MacLaine, (more)
- 1960
The Swiss Alps are the backdrop for a deadly romantic triangle involving Colin Chandler (Ronald Howard), his fiancee Nancy (Christine White) and his best friend Peter (Keith McConnell). Convinced that Nancy is cheating with Peter behind his back, Colin decides to use a skiing accident to his advantage, allowing Peter to freeze to death in the snowy wastes. But if Colin thinks that his problems are behind him, an "ill wind" which sweeps through his wedding ceremony proves otherwise. Seen in a secondary role is an 11-year-old Veronica Cartwright. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1959
His head filled with horror stories about dentistry supplied by his so-called friends, Beaver (Jerry Mathers) is terrified at the prospect of visiting the local dentist (played by Frank Wilcox, replacing actor Wendell Holmes). In desperation, the dentist offers to give Beaver every item in a toy box if he suffers even the slightest bit of pain. A very, very young -- and decidedly pre-Alien -- Veronica Cartwright makes her first series appearance as Violet Rutherford. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Deacon, Rusty Stevens, (more)
- 1958
Based on the Anton Myrer novel The Big War, In Love and War is an entertaining showcase for several of 20th Century-Fox's younger contract players. Robert Wagner, Jeffrey Hunter and Bradford Dillman plays three young San Francisco residents who sign up for the Marines at the outbreak of WW2. The film traces the progress of all three in the Pacific "theater of operations", emphasizing the characters' individual strengths and shortcomings. One of the men is a gung-ho patriot, the second is a perennial goof-off, and the third hopes to prove his worth to his wealthy father. The women in the three protagonists' lives are played by Sheree North, Hope Lange, France Nuyen, and Dana Wynter, the latter delivering a powerhouse performance in an extremely difficult role. Providing comic counterpart to the more serious goings-on is nightclub comedian Mort Sahl, making his screen debut in a tailor-made role as an eternal griper. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Wagner, Dana Wynter, (more)
