Hal Smith Movies
Character actor Hal Smith (born Harold John Smith) cut his acting teeth in various touring road companies. Before serving in the Air Force during World War II, he had amassed impressive credits as a band singer, radio disc jockey, and writer. In the postwar years, he decided to try his luck in Hollywood, although holding down a real-estate job so he'd have a financial cushion between acting jobs. His first recurring TV role was on the vintage sitcom I Married Joan (1952-53). (It was a different actor who appeared in the bit role of Anne Baxter's suitor in O. Henry's Full House [1952].) He spent most of the '50s playing guest stints and providing voice-overs for cartoon characters, and was briefly Hal the Bartender, a commercial spokesman for a popular brand of beer. In 1960, he was signed for the semi-regular role of town drunk Otis Campbell on The Andy Griffith Show, essaying this hilarious (if politically incorrect) characterization with expertise, although he often insisted, "I don't think I've ever really been drunk in my whole life." Since Otis did not appear in every Griffith episode, Smith had time aplenty to free-lance, playing such film roles as a drunken Santa in Billy Wilder's The Apartment (1960) and an effeminate Roman emperor in The Three Stooges Meet Hercules (1962), and supplying voices for such cartoon programs as Davey and Goliath and The Flintstones. By 1962, he was making 50,000 dollars per year, a tidy sum in those days. During the 1970s and '80s, Smith was most closely associated with Disney, replacing the late Vance "Pinto" Colvig as the voice of Goofy and providing voices for series ranging from Winnie the Pooh and Friends to Ducktales. Smith died in 1994. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1961
Having entered a baking contest, Betty and Wilma create the "Upside Down Flint-Rubble Double Bubble Cake". Their concoction lands the girls a spot in a big TV bake-off, but on the eve of the event, both Wilma and Betty come down with the measles. At this point, Fred and Barney offer to save the day by taking the girls' place in the bake-off--and donning female drag in the bargain! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1961
Fred is hired to appear in a TV commercial, only to discover that he's been cast as the "before" in a before-and-after ad for the Fat Off Reducing Method. To avoid Fred's wrath, the sponsor offers to pay him a thousand dollars if he can slim down to a svelt 200 pounds for their next campaign. Unable to resist the temptation of eating (which he does quite well indeed), Fred joins a support organization called Food Anonymous (the "testimony" scene is a riot!) This was the final episode of The Flintstones' first season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1961
Fred's Cousin Tumbleweed invites the Flintstones and the Rubbles to "ranch-sit" for him at his huge western spread. While exploring the ranch, Fred and Barney suddenly spot a band of Indians--and, terrified, they run back to their wives to announce that they're being attacked. Little do our heroes realize that the Indians are actors, working for a film company shooting nearby. Daws Butler substitutes for Mel Blanc as Barney's voice in this episode. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1961
Worried that their husband will embarrass them at the Ambassador's Reception, Wilma and Betty order Fred and Barney to attend a charm school. Though the boys do their best, they soon reveal themselves to be as uncouth as ever during the reception. Fortunately, Fred and Barney win over the Upper Crust by foiling a robbery. Listen for the reference to "the Jackie Kennelrock look". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
When a notorious criminal escapes from the state prison, Mayberry sheriff Andy Taylor (Andy Griffith) and his deputy, Barney Fife (Don Knotts), offer their assistance in tracking down the fugitive. Though the state troopers initially laugh off the bucolic Andy and Barney (especially after Barney not only allows the crook to slip through his fingers, but also gets bound and gagged for his troubles), they soon learn to appreciate Andy's uncanny ability to outguess and outsmart the outlaw. When this episode was originally broadcast on October 10, 1960, the TV Guide listings suggested that the fugitive was none other than town drunk Otis Campbell (Hal Smith), an error the magazine would not make in the future. As a further trivia note, this is the episode which established that Barney is Andy's cousin. "The Manhunt" was written by Jack Elinson and Charles Stewart. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Sheriff Andy's male chauvinism boils over when his girlfriend Ellie Walker decides to run for town council-the first woman ever to do so. As the campaigning proceeds, Andy and Barney do everything they can to throw roadblocks in Ellie's political career. The Sheriff realizes the error of his ways when his own son Opie begins spouting anti-female propaganda. First shown on December 12, 1960, "Ellie for Council" was written by Jack Elinson and Charles Stewart. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Reluctant to bring in his own son Billy (Andrew Prine) on a murder charge, a town marshal (Ken Lynch) hires Paladin (Richard Boone) to do the job. Venturing into treacherous mountain country, Paladin seeks out Billy in hopes of persuading the young man into surrending peacefully and standing trial. Unfortunately, Paladin's trail is dogged by a bloodthirsty posse, none of whose members is inclined to bring Billy back alive. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Missing for two years and presumed dead, hard-hearted businessman Hartley Bassett (Thomas B. Henry) suddenly returns and begins make everyone's life miserable all over again, especially his wife Sybil (Peggy Converse). After he fires his heir apparent Peter Dawson (Philip Ober), Bassett is murdered and Dawson is accused. Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) is approached by two eyewitnesses, Richard Hart (a young Robert Redford) and his wife Teddi (Cindy Robbins), who can prove that Bassett is innocent. There are only two problems: each witness claims that a different person is the guilty party--and both witnesses abuptly vanish just before the trial! This is the first episode of Perry Mason's fourth season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Season four of Leave It to Beaver begins as Beaver (Jerry Mathers) refuses to eat the Brussels sprouts his mom June (Barbara Billingsley) has served him. Pleading, cajoling, and threatening do not work -- Beaver will not eat the vegetable no matter what his parents do to him. Anxious to defuse the situation, Ward (Hugh Beaumont) forces Beaver to promise to eat Brussels sprouts the next time they are served. Not long afterward, the family goes to a fancy restaurant -- and guess what's first on the bill of fare? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ken Osmond, Netta Packer, (more)
- 1960
Fred and Barney want to buy Boulder Dan's Billiard Parlor, but first they must come up with an excuse as to why Fred hasn't come home with his paycheck. It takes some doing, but the boys manage to convince Wilma that Fred was the victim of a robbery. This done, our heroes head off to the local dinosaur racetrack, hoping to parlay Fred's wages into a huge sum by putting it all on Sabertooth to win the big race. Not surprisingly, this episode was written by Honeymooners veteran Sid Zelinka. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Tired of being wage slaves, Fred and Barney decide to purchase a diner. Of course, they must keep this transaction a secret from wives Wilma and Betty, which proves difficult when a pair of glamorous car-hops (who AREN'T named "Charlie" and "Irving") show up at the Flintstones' front door. This episode includes the celebrated "Car Hop Song" ("Here we come on the run/With a burger on a bun..."), which is hilariously reprised in the final scene at the "Club Rockadaro." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Widely regarded as a comedy in 1960, The Apartment seems more melancholy with each passing year. Jack Lemmon plays C.C. Baxter, a go-getting office worker who loans his tiny apartment to his philandering superiors for their romantic trysts. He runs into trouble when he finds himself sharing a girlfriend (Shirley MacLaine) with his callous boss (Fred MacMurray). Director/co-writer Billy Wilder claimed that the idea for The Apartment stemmed from a short scene in the 1945 romantic drama Brief Encounter in which the illicit lovers (Trevor Howard and Celia Johnson) arrange a rendezvous in a third person's apartment. Wilder was intrigued about what sort of person would willingly vacate his residence to allow virtual strangers a playing field for hanky panky. His answer to that question wound up winning 6 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay. The Apartment was adapted by Neil Simon and Burt Bacharach into the 1969 Broadway musical Promises, Promises. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, (more)
- 1960
The pilot for the long-running CBS sitcom The Andy Griffith Show was seen on February 15, 1960, as an episode of The Danny Thomas Show, "Danny Meets Andy Griffith." As originally conceived, Andy Taylor (Andy Griffith) was not only the sheriff of the sleepy North Carolina town of Mayberry, but he was also the mayor, justice of the peace, and newspaper editor. Child actor Ronny Howard (who, as Ron Howard, would in adulthood enjoy a spectacularly successful career as a film director) was seen in the pilot as the widowed Andy's son Opie, but Frances Bavier played an entirely different role than she would in the actual series, while Frank Cady rather than Hal Smith was cast as town drunk Otis Campbell. While there would be changes in concept and casting, the laid-back character of Andy Taylor "clicked" with TV audiences, ensuring that The Andy Griffith Show would join the Monday night CBS lineup come October 3, 1960. Introduced as regulars during season one were of course Andy Griffith, Ronny Howard, and Frances Bavier (now as Aunt Bee, housekeeper for Andy and Opie Taylor), with the significant and salutary addition of Don Knotts as Andy's tightly wound deputy Barney Fife. The rapport between Andy and Barney contributed mightily to the series' success during its shakedown season, with nominal leading character Andy often voluntarily taking a back seat to Barney's overzealous antics. Subsequent additions to the cast included Jim Nabors as bucolic gas station attendant Gomer Pyle (later spun off into his own series, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.); George Lindsey as Gomer's cousin, Goober Pyle; Howard McNear as dithery barber Floyd Lawson; and Hal Smith as the aforementioned Otis Campbell. Taking advantage of Andy Taylor's widower status, the series' writers tried to pair the character off with a number of eligible young ladies, beginning in the first season with Elinor Donahue as drugstore sales clerk Ellie Walker. But only when Aneta Corsaut joined the cast as Opie's schoolteacher Helen Crump did Andy find the "right" girl. Indeed, Andy and Helen would become engaged during the series' final season. Conversely, Barney Fife had but one steady girlfriend, Thelma Lou, played by Betty Lynn.
Don Knotts left the series at the outset of its sixth season (the show switched from black-and-white to color at the same time); it was explained that Barney had accepted a deputy position in Raleigh, permitting Knotts to make a handful of memorable return guest appearances. Barney was briefly replaced by Deputy Warren Ferguson, played by Jack Burns; later on, Goober Pyle became Andy's unofficial deputy. The post-Don Knotts episodes brought forth several other new recurring characters: Jack Dodson as town clerk Howard Sprague, Paul Hartman as handyman Emmet Clark, and Hope Summers as Aunt Bee's best friend, Clara. During the Emmy-winning series' eighth season, Andy Griffith decided to leave the show. At this point, Ken Berry was added to the cast as widowed farmer and later town councilman Sam Jones, with Buddy Foster as Sam's son Mike and Arlene Golonka as Sam's girlfriend, Millie Hutchins. After the final telecast of The Andy Griffith Show on September 16, 1968, the series continued for three additional seasons under the title Mayberry RFD, with Ken Berry taking over as star and with most of the familiar Andy Griffith Show supporting characters still in attendance. One of the most consistently popular sitcoms of all time, The Andy Griffith Show lasted 249 half-hour episodes, and also spawned the high-rated 1986 TV movie Return to Mayberry. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Don Knotts left the series at the outset of its sixth season (the show switched from black-and-white to color at the same time); it was explained that Barney had accepted a deputy position in Raleigh, permitting Knotts to make a handful of memorable return guest appearances. Barney was briefly replaced by Deputy Warren Ferguson, played by Jack Burns; later on, Goober Pyle became Andy's unofficial deputy. The post-Don Knotts episodes brought forth several other new recurring characters: Jack Dodson as town clerk Howard Sprague, Paul Hartman as handyman Emmet Clark, and Hope Summers as Aunt Bee's best friend, Clara. During the Emmy-winning series' eighth season, Andy Griffith decided to leave the show. At this point, Ken Berry was added to the cast as widowed farmer and later town councilman Sam Jones, with Buddy Foster as Sam's son Mike and Arlene Golonka as Sam's girlfriend, Millie Hutchins. After the final telecast of The Andy Griffith Show on September 16, 1968, the series continued for three additional seasons under the title Mayberry RFD, with Ken Berry taking over as star and with most of the familiar Andy Griffith Show supporting characters still in attendance. One of the most consistently popular sitcoms of all time, The Andy Griffith Show lasted 249 half-hour episodes, and also spawned the high-rated 1986 TV movie Return to Mayberry. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Andy Griffith, Don Knotts, (more)
- 1960
Wealthy Morgan Gibbs (Robert F. Simon) hires Paladin (Richard Boone) to locate Gibbs' son David (Bud Slater), a fugitive from justice, and bring him back alive. Shortly thereafter, Paladin returns with David's dead body in tow. Accused of murdering the boy in order to collect a $500 body, Paladin is himself put on trial--and the jury has been hand-picked by the vengeful Morgan Gibbs. One of the best episodes of the series' third season, this one is a real treat for movie buffs, filled to overflowing with an abundance of familiar faces in the supporting cast. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1959
Legendary stage actress Adah Isaacs Menken (Ruth Roman) brings her celebrated Mazeppa troupe to Virginia City. Ben Cartwright welcomes the opportunity to renew his longstanding friendship with the "lady in pink tights." As for Ben's sons Adam, Hoss, and Little Joe, they become convinced that Adah is trying to ensnare their father into marriage. Also in the cast is Don Megowan as Adah's persistent would-be suitor John Regan. Written by Donald S. Sanford, "The Magnificent Adah" was originally telecast on November 14, 1959. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, (more)
- 1958
In this violent drama, a young juvenile delinquent gets into more trouble when he gets involved with a gang that steals auto parts and resells them on the black market to pay for their beer parties. It looks as if he might actually turn his life around after he meets a good-hearted woman, when he decides to run a final game of chicken against a juvenile delinquent girl who gets killed in the ensuing crash. The terrified boy then takes his girlfriend and splits. He is later shot-down by the police. Later the authorities learn that the boy was set upon his crooked path by policemen who beat him when he was younger. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Bakalyan, June Kenney, (more)
- 1957
Crooked "sportsman" Billy Joe Kane (Lawrence Dobkin) is promoting a race in the Mojave desert, in which he is wagering that his posse will be able to track down any contestant before reaching the finish line. Accepting the challenge, Paladin (Richard Boone) enters the race--and, confirming his suspicions, he quickly finds that Kane is willing to commit murder rather than pony up the prize money. Thus it is that Paladin bends the rules a bit by utilizing a unique form of transportation: a US Army camel! This is the first of several Have Gun--Will Travel episodes written by future Star Trek maven Gene Roddenberry. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1956
There's Always Tomorrow is a remake of a 1934 film of the same name. Fred MacMurray is a toy company executive whose wife (Joan Bennett) and kids (Gigi Perreau, William Reynolds and Judy Nugent) take him for granted. Barbara Stanwyck is Fred's former girlfriend, whose own business activities result in a surprise reunion. MacMurray falls back in love with Stanwyck and prepares to leave his family. MacMurray's children go to Stanwyck and politely ask her to back off. She does so, and MacMurray's wife Bennett, who's been out of town during all this, is none the wiser. In the original There's Always Tomorrow, the male and female leads (Frank Morgan and Binnie Barnes) were farther apart age-wise, making their brief encounter all the more poignant. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, (more)
It Came From Beneath the Sea was the first of several fruitful collaborations between producer Charles H. Schneer and special-effects wizard Ray Harryhausen. "It" is a giant, six-tentacled octopus, which is galvanized into action by an H-bomb test. Worse still, the monster is highly radioactive, rendering useless the normal means of defense against it. Scientists Donald Curtis and Faith Domergue team with atomic-submarine commander Kenneth Tobey to halt the creature's progress before it begins to attack major coastal cities. Alas, the monster manages to reach San Francisco, wreaking havoc on the Golden Gate Bridge, the Ferry Building, and Market Street before Tobey figures out a way to destroy it. The stop-motion animation utilized by Harryhausen in It Came From Beneath Sea is convincingly frightening, but before long he'd top this achievement with such superb projects as Earth vs. Flying Saucers and Seventh Voyage of Sinbad. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kenneth Tobey, Faith Domergue, (more)
This anthology film assembles five respected directors and a top-notch cast to bring a handful of stories by the great American author O. Henry to the screen. In The Cop and the Anthem, a tramp named Soapy (Charles Laughton) tries to get arrested so that he can spend the winter in jail, only to find that is not as easy as it used to be. Marilyn Monroe appears in this episode as a streetwalker. The Clarion Call features Dale Robertson as Barney, a cop forced to arrest an old friend, Johnny (Richard Widmark). Anne Baxter stars in The Last Leaf as Joanna, an elderly woman who sees her own illness reflected in the fall of the autumn leaves; she's convinced that when the last leaf drops from the tree outside her window, her life will go with it. The Ransom of Red Chief concerns Sam (Fred Allen) and Bill (Oscar Levant), two novice kidnappers who kidnap a child, only to discover that his parents don't want him back -- and after a few hours with the brat, they find out why. And The Gift of the Magi tells the story of a pair of cash-strapped newlyweds, Della (Jeanne Craine) and Jim (Farley Granger), who struggle to get each other the perfect Christmas gift, with unexpected results. John Steinbeck narrates. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charles Laughton, Marilyn Monroe, (more)
- 1952
You for Me stars Peter Lawford as a profligate playboy who's a nice guy underneath. After suffering a hunting accident which leaves him with a butt full of buckshot, Lawford is interred in the hospital that his donations have kept afloat. Nurse Jane Greer refuses to treat Lawford any better than any other patient, which of course makes him adore her all the more. Gig Young is once more the poor schlemiel who loses the girl--but this time Young deserves it, since he encourages Jane to make goo-goo eyes at Lawford so the donations will keep on coming (there's a word for that sort of thing where we come from, stranger). You for Me was directed by Don Weis, whose MGM films are often so lightweight that they're in danger of floating away. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Lawford, Jane Greer, (more)
- 1950
William Eythe is the Customs Agent in this brisk Columbia programmer. The plot finds Bert Stewart (Eythe) stationed in China, where he goes undercover to join a gang of dope smugglers. His plan is to stop the wholesale stealing of valuable streptomycin, which the crooks are peddling to drug addicts. Marjorie Reynolds will surprise fans of her work in TV's The Life of Riley with her portrayal of the gang-leader's moll. Another TV favorite, Jim Backus, co-stars as one of the good guys. Customs Agent makes no demands upon the intellect but does succeed as slam-bang entertainment. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Eythe, Marjorie Reynolds, (more)
- 1950
The Milkman is a low-key variation of a theme explored in such slapstick festivals as The Fuller Brush Man and The Yellow Cab Man. Donald O'Connor plays Roger Bradley, who hopes to become a top-flight milkman to please his father (Henry O'Neill), the owner of the milk company. Jimmy Durante co-stars as Breezy Albright, the older milkman who teaches Roger the ropes. After several comic set pieces, the plot rears its ugly head in the form of John Carter (Jess Barker), the nephew of rival milk-company proprietress Mrs. Carter (Elizabeth Risdon). Carter has gotten mixed up with a nasty bunch of gamblers, led by Mike Morrel (William Conrad). This leads to an exciting, albeit chucklesome finale wherein Roger, Breezy and ingenue Chris Abbott (Piper Laurie) combine forces to rout the bad guys. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Donald O'Connor, Jimmy Durante, (more)
- 1948
In this off-beat western, a middle-aged rancher endeavors to realize his dreams of starting up a horse ranch in Texas. His much younger wife, is opposed to the idea and begins questioning her love for her husband. The would-be rancher's adopted son doesn't help matters by trying to seduce his father's wife during their mad search for a magnificent pinto stallion. At last the rancher captures the horse, but during the struggle, breaks his leg. Somehow the three and the horse make it back to the ranch. The situation becomes more tense as the man's leg gets worse, the stallion proves to be an outlaw, and there is no food to eat. They go looking for food and eventually find and empty but well-stocked farmhouse. Unfortunately, when they learn that the well was infected with typhoid, they must leave. The horse then escapes and tempers flare, resulting in a fight between father and son. The latter ends up knocking his wounded father into an arroyo and he leaves him to die. Miraculously, he is saved by the outlaw stallion. Later the ungrateful son dies of typhoid (he snuck a drink of well-water) and the wife is left alone in the desert. She wanders about near death when she hears thunderous hooves upon the ground. She thinks she is hallucinating, but her husband rides up astride the stallion and she is saved. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Preston S. Foster, Mary Stuart, (more)
- 1948
Black Eagle was based on The Passing of Black Eagle, a short story by O. Henry. William Bishop stars as Jason Bond, who stays out of trouble by the simple expedient of avoiding other people. Unfortunately, the plot dictates that Bond must come into contact with several characters, all of whom end up fleecing our hero in one way or another. Even so, Jason manages to enjoy a brief romance with pretty Ginny Long (Virginia Patton) before returning to his life of carefree vagabondage. A very minor film, The Black Eagle makes the most of its excellent supporting cast, including Gordon Jones, Trevor Bardette, Will Wright and stuntman extraordinaire Richard Talmadge. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Bishop, Virginia Patton, (more)
