The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn 1981 TV, 100 min. Genre: Family / Adventure
Director: Jack B. Hively Cast: Kurt Ida, Dan Monahan, Brock Peters, Forrest Tucker, Larry Storch, Lurene Tuttle, Mike Mazurki, Jack Kruschen, Don Haggerty, Helen Kleeb, James Griffith, Michele Marsh, Cliff Osmond, Bill Zuckert, Elvia Allman
In this made-for-TV offering of Mark Twain's story, Tom Sawyer (Dan Monahan) joins his best friend Huckleberry Finn (Kurt Ida) as they help runaway slave Jim (Brock Peters). The trio drifts down the Mississippi River on a raft, and, along the way, they run into con-men "the Duke" (Forrest Tucker) and "the Dauphin" (Larry Storch) and inadvertently become involved in their schemes.
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Eleanor and Franklin 1976 TV, 210 min. Genre: Drama
Director: Daniel Petrie Cast: Jane Alexander, Edward Herrmann, Rosemary Murphy, Pamela Franklin, Mackenzie Phillips, Lilia Skala, Ed Flanders, Linda Purl, Lindsay Crouse, David Huffman, Helen Kleeb, Peggy McCay, Anna Lee, Irene Tedrow, Linda Kelsey
The story of Eleanor and Franklin D. Roosevelt (Jane Alexander and Edward Herrmann) from Franklin's youth to his election to the presidency is based on Joseph P. Lash's Pulitzer Prize-winning book. Told in flashback while Eleanor prepares for Franklin's funeral, scenes include their lives growing up as cousins and then their marriage. Problems in the marriage are reflected on–including Franklin's domineering mother Sara (Rosemary Murphy) and his affair with Lucy Mercer (Linda Kelsey)–and good times are remembered as well. This made-for-TV spectacular won 11 Emmys, including Outstanding Special and Best Director, as well as one for Rosemary Murphy. A sequel that covers the presidential years follows.
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Magnificent Obsession 1954 N/R, 107 min. Genre: Drama
Director: Douglas Sirk Cast: Jane Wyman, Rock Hudson, Barbara Rush, Agnes Moorehead, Otto Kruger, Gregg Palmer, Paul Cavanagh, Jack Kelly, Lisa Gaye, George Lynn, Sara Shane, Judy Nugent, Helen Kleeb, Will J. White, Fred Nurney
Playboy Bob Merrick (Rock Hudson) is involved in a boating accident that inadvertently kills Dr. Wayne Philips. When Bob falls in love with Wayne's widow Helen (Jane Wyman), he soon learns that his love is not returned. After Helen is blinded, Bob goes to medical school, remakes his life, and performs surgery on Helen to restore her eyesight in an effort to win Helen's love. Wyman was nominated for a Best Actress Oscar.
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Sex and the Single Girl 1964 N/R, 114 min. Genre: Comedy / Romance
Director: Richard Quine Cast: Tony Curtis, Natalie Wood, Henry Fonda, Lauren Bacall, Mel Ferrer, Edward Everett Horton, Howard St. John, Stubby Kaye, Fran Jeffries, Otto Kruger, Barbara Bouchet, Leslie Parrish, Larry Storch, Max Showalter, Helen Kleeb
This satire on sexual mores is more-or-less based on the Helen Gurley Brown book by the same name. Helen Brown (Natalie Wood) is a 23-year-old therapist who advises women about sex. Bob Weston (Tony Curtis) is a magazine editor planning to write a story in which he will accuse Helen of being a virgin. But everything changes when they meet, and romance is definitely in the air–despite the fact that Bob is married–although maybe not legally–to Sylvia (Lauren Bacall). Problems ensue, which all lead to a wild taxi chase on the freeway where things are finally sorted out.
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Star Spangled Girl 1971 G, 92 min. Genre: Comedy
Director: Jerry Paris Cast: Sandy Duncan, Tony Roberts, Todd Susman, Elizabeth Allen, Art Lewis, Allen Jung, Helen Kleeb, Harry Northrup, Gordon Bosserman, Jim Conners
Sandy Duncan, as an all-American girl, is the only bright spot in this Neil Simon failure. Our heroine is up against radical newspapermen (Tony Roberts and Todd Susman).
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| 1. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1981)
2. Eleanor and Franklin (1976)
3. Magnificent Obsession (1954)
4. Sex and the Single Girl (1964)
5. Star Spangled Girl (1971)
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