Ann Morgan Guilbert Movies

Season five of The Nanny ended with newlyweds Fran Fine (Fran Drescher) and Maxwell Sheffield (Charles Shaughnessy) both falling over the rail of their honeymoon cruise ship. The opening episode of the series' sixth and final season reveals that Fran and Maxwell have managed to avoid a watery grave by swimming to a deserted island. But before the series can evolve into a neo-Gilligan's Island, the couple is rescued and flown back to New York City, where Fran promptly adopts Maxwell's three children: 22-year-old Maggie (Nicholle Tom), 16-year-old Brighton (Benjamin Salisbury), and 12-year-old Grace (Madeline Zima). In a later two-part episode, our heroine is told that there will soon be one more youngster in the Sheffield household -- but alas, Fran's obstetrician, Dr. Reynolds (Nora Dunn), informs Fran that her pregnancy test was a "false positive." Having not succeeded, Fran and Maxwell try, try again, and in the episode "The Yummy Mummy" it is confirmed beyond all doubt that Fran is "with child." Ultimately, she gives birth to twins in the series finale, which also establishes the fact that the Sheffield family will soon be relocating to Los Angeles. Meanwhile, Maxwell's butler, Niles (Daniel Davis), who has spent the past six years in a war of insults with his boss' bitchy business partner, C.C. (Laura Lane), surprises everyone -- himself included -- by asking C.C. to become his wife. Her first impulse is to laugh in his face, which she does; but given time to think, she realizes that she and Niles are made for each other. Although this would the last season of The Nanny, there was no slackening of the series' commitment to featuring celebrity guest stars as "themselves." This year's crop of big names includes Whoopi Goldberg, Lynn Redgrave, former Beverly Hillbillies leading lady Donna Douglas, game show host Bob Goen -- and, in the episode "The Baby Shower," Fran Drescher herself! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this sequel to the surprise hit Grumpy Old Men, life goes on much as it usually does in Wabasha County, Minnesota, with the only notable differences being that John Gustafson (Jack Lemmon) and Max Goldman (Walter Matthau) are getting along all right (or at least to the extent that they're capable of getting along with each other), and that John's marriage to free-spirited Ariel (Ann-Margret) is working out quite nicely. John and Max's great obsession in life remains fishing, and both are vying to reel in "Catfish Hunter," a trophy fish that local anglers have been trying to catch for ages. However, Max is outraged when Maria Ragetti (Sophia Loren) and her mother Francesca (Ann Morgan Guilbert) arrive in town and take over the local bait and tackle shop, only to announce that they're going to close it down and open an Italian restaurant in its place. Max goes to remarkable lengths to foil Maria's plans, but John thinks that his friend needs a wife, and that Max and Maria might make a good match. Grandpa Gustafson (Burgess Meredith) seems to think he'd be a good mate for Francesca, but then again he's not known for being very fussy about women. John's daughter Melanie (Daryl Hannah) and Max's son Jacob (Kevin Pollak) are trying to work out their own plans to get married, and they might just make it to the altar if John and Max can stop interfering. Grumpier Old Men proved to be the last role for veteran actor Burgess Meredith, who died two years after it was released. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Moving from Wednesdays to Mondays, The Nanny begins its second season on CBS, with Fran Drescher as the title character. Offering 26 episodes this season (up from the previous year's 22), the series provides ample time and space for abrasive, down-to-earth Fran Fine (Drescher) to gleefully upset the decorum of the posh town house owned by her widowed employer, Broadway producer Maxwell Sheffield (Charles Shaughnessy). Despite Fran's million-and-one social gaffes, Maxwell could never bring himself to fire her as the family's nanny, especially since his children, Maggie (Nicholle Tom), Brighton (Benjamin Salisbury), and Grace (Madeline Zima), dote upon our heroine. Even the Sheffields' haughty butler, Niles (Daniel Davis), has warmed up to Fran, if for no other reason than she provides a potential threat to Niles' sworn enemy: Maxwell's bitchy, predatory business partner C.C. Babock (Laura Lane) -- who has been trying to manipulate Maxwell into marriage for years. This season, the possibility begins to arise that the relationship between Fran and Maxwell will eventually blossom into something more than "strictly business." The first clue occurs in the season opener, "Fran-Lite, in which Fran encourages Maxwell to re-enter the dating scene, only to have him go out with a woman who is exactly like her! Other episodes of note include "Everybody Needs a Bubby," in which Fran's freewheeling grandmother Yetta (Ann Morgan Guilbert) briefly moves into the Sheffield household (and now it's Fran's turn to go into the "snob" act!); "A Star Is Born," in which Fran finds herself on-stage playing Juliet, with Fran Drescher's then real-life husband, Peter Marc Jacobson, as Romeo; and the season finale, "Fran Gets Mugged," which not only offers a delightful spin on an old urban legend, but also sets up a situation whereby Fran and Maxwell come very, very close to exchanging their first romantic kiss. As in the previous season, The Nanny exploits the fact that Maxwell Sheffield is supposed to be a major producer by featuring several celebrity guest stars, cast as "themselves": Bob Barker, Sally Jessy Raphael, Steve Lawrence, Eydie Gorme, Shari Lewis, and Billy Ray Cyrus, to name but a few. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Diana Canova guests as Maggie McCauley, former student of Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury) and now the producer of a TV police show. Shortly after a heated argument between Maggie and the network programmer who is planning to cancel the series, the programmer turns up murdered. With herself under suspicion, Maggie draws upon the deductive skills gleaned from her mentor Jessica to find the real killer. Actor-turned-network executive Dwayne Hickman is quite cleverly cast in this episode!. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The doctors and paramedics encounter unexpected difficulties while planning a surprise party for head nurse Dixie (Julie London)--especially when it appears that she won't even show up due to a broken ankle. Back on the job, the team rushes to the rescue when a 1000-pound advertising sign threatens to collapse on two workers, a man is stuck in his own sauna bath, and and stubborn old woman becomes trapped in a an apartment building that will soon explode. Former Dick Van Dyke Show regular Ann Morgan Guilbert has a rather prickly cameo role as a motorcyclist who has landed in a cactus patch. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Returning to college to take a Psychology course, Shirley (Shirley Jones) makes the acquaintance of 19-year-old Paul Bruner (Michael Burns), who mistakes her maternal kindness for true love. Before long, the moonstruck Bruner is ardenty courting the nonplussed Shirley--and he won't take no for answer. In desperation, Shirley enlists the aid of Paul's parents (played by former Dick Van Dyke Show regular Anne Morgan Guilbert and future Three's Company costar Norman Fell) to help her let the boy down gently...with surprising results. Song: "Brown Eyes". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This comedy was banned in Mexico and plagued by vandalism and threats of violence during film production in San Antonio, Texas. General De Santos (Peter Ustinov) organizes a ragtag group of Mexican nationals for the purpose of retaking the Alamo. Using the Washington's Birthday Parade in Laredo as a guise to enter the United States, the group continues towards San Antonio ignored and unchallenged. With the help of Sergeant Valdez (John Astin), the unlikely invaders manage to raise the Mexican flag over the old mission for 24 hours. General Billy Joe Hallson (Jonathan Winters) is a colorful redneck called on to lead the National Guard to the site of the occupied landmark. Keenan Wynn, Alice Ghostley, Pamela Tiffin and Harry Morgan also star in this film farce. During filming, one irate Texan was arrested after waving a rifle in protest over the raising of the Mexican flag over the Alamo, long a symbol of Texas' pride and history. Electric cables were cut during the filming of this production, as some Texans could not even tolerate the fictional premise of the plot. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

Two parents worry about the feelings of their love-struck teenage son in this engaging romantic comedy. Grif (James Garner) and wife Jenny (Debbie Reynolds) are concerned about their son Davey (Donald Losby). When his girlfriend is slated for a tour of Europe, the teenage boy is heartbroken. Grif, a photographer by trade, draws the assignment as a photo journalist to cover the girl's tour. Jenny is swindled by Mr. Tilly (Terry-Thomas) who takes her money as rent payment on a Riviera villa. The house is owned by a French playboy who allows the pretty mom to stay. Comedy ensues when a jealous Grif discovers wife Jenny in a bikini given to her by the amorous Frenchman. Prolific songwriter Jimmy Webb provides the music for this feature. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

Ed Stander (Robert Morse), with the help of an all-star cast, teaches Paul Manning (Walter Matthau) the fine art of philandering in A Guide for the Married Man. Paul, happily married to sexy Ruth (Inger Stevens), has no burning desire to cheat, but Ed makes the prospect sound very attractive. Finally taking the "big step" with a glamorous brunette after months of careful preparation, Paul finds that he loves his wife way too much to betray her -- while the ever-careful Ed ends up in divorce court. Among the myriad of "advisors" peppered throughout Guide for the Married Man are Art Carney, Lucille Ball, Jack Benny, Jayne Mansfield, Terry-Thomas, and Carl Reiner. The best guest-star vignette features Joey Bishop as a man caught in bed with another woman by his wife -- whereupon he calmly puts on his clothes, straightens up the room, and quietly responds to his wife's outrage by saying "What bed? What girl?" Adapted by Frank Tarloff from his book of the same name, Guide for the Married Man was directed by Gene Kelly, who makes a cameo "appearance" of his own as a voice on a TV set. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In keeping with producer Carl Reiner's edict, "Always leave 'em laughing," the final episode of The Dick Van Dyke Show (though not the final one to be shown) is one of the series' funniest outings. Assigned to write a cowboy sketch for his boss Alan Brady, Rob (Dick Van Dyke) dreams up an elaborate "High Noon" Western-spoof casting himself as a sheriff slated for a showdown with notorious outlaw "Big Bad" Brady (Reiner, of course). The show's entire cast joins in on the dream sequence, with Laura (Mary Tyler Moore) performing a spirited (and interminably repeated) rendition of "I Don't Care," Buddy (Morey Amsterdam) showing up as Rob's deputy, Sally (Rose Marie) appearing as the local saloon gal, and Richard Deacon, Jerry Paris, Larry Mathews, and Ann Morgan Guilbert likewise cavorting about in Old West costumes. The script contains more classic gags and one-liners than one can shake a stick at, and as the bonus, includes the only Dick Van Dyke Show sequence to be filmed out-of-doors." The Gunslinger" is everything a great series finale should be...even if it wasn't telecast as the series finale! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Rob (Dick Van Dyke) and Laura (Mary Tyler Moore) go out of their way to be friendly to their new neighbors, Fred and Mary Jane Staggs (Joby Baker, Sue Taylor). Before long, the Petries and Staggs are spending a lot of time together -- way too much time, so far as Rob and Laura's jealous best friends Jerry and Millie Helper (Jerry Paris, Ann Morgan Guilbert) are concerned. Listen for the voice of Carl Reiner in the climactic gag involving the clandestine recording of a wretched off-Broadway musical. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Left alone in the house when Rob (Dick Van Dyke), Ritchie (Larry Mathews), and Jerry Helper (Jerry Paris) go off on a fishing trip, the normally sensible Laura (Mary Tyler Moore) gets an unexpected case of the jitters. It helps matters not at all when a nervous Millie (Ann Morgan Guilbert) shows up, making references to the Hitchcock film Psycho and mistaking tomato juice for blood. Before the night is over, the two terrified ladies become convinced that the house is about to be invaded by (at the very least) an axe murderer -- and wait till you see who the "villain" is! This episode was originally slated to air on March 16, 1966. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide