Below is a list of my top five favorite episodes from Season Three (1984-1985) of NBC's "REMINGTON STEELE". Created by Robert Butler and Michael Gleason, the series starred Stephanie Zimbalist, Pierce Brosnan and Doris Roberts:
"REMINGTON STEELE": TOP FIVE FAVORITE SEASON THREE (1984-1985) EPISODES
1. (3.09) "Cast in Steele" - Three actors from Hollywood's golden age call upon the Remington Steele Agency to discover the who is responsible for threatening notes and attacks. Lloyd Nolan, Dorothy Lamour, Virginia Mayo and Michael Constantine guest starred.
2. (3.16) "Steele in the Family" - The nephew of the agency's office assistant, Mildred Krebs, asks Remington Steele to help him hide the body of one of his clients from his prostitution ring, the CEO of a company in which he had invested, and find the killer. Jack Bannon, Albert Macklin and Nancy Everhard guest starred.
3. (3.20) "Steele in the Chips" - Three different people hire Steele and the agency's owner, Laura Holt, to find the missing creator and the prototypes of a no calorie chocolate chip cookie. Geena Davis, Jean Smart and G.W. Bailey guest starred.
4. (3.17) "Diced Steele" - An insurance company investigator digs into Steele's past after the agency loses their money to a thief, in an effort to buy back stolen jewels. James Tolkan, Murphy Dunne and Alan Feinstein guest starred.
5. (3.03) "Maltese Steele" - During a trip to Malta, Laura and Steele are lured into the search for a missing corpse and find an insignificant piece of brass that could get them killed.
Honorable Mention: (3.06) "Steele Your Heart Away" - Laura flies off to help an amnesiac Steele recall why he came to Ireland and why someone is trying to kill him.
"LINCOLN" (1974-76) Review
During the first half of the Twentieth Century, poet and historian Carl Sandburg wrote a six-volume biography on the life of the 16th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. Years passed before David Wolper ("ROOTS", "THE THORN BIRDS", and the "NORTH AND SOUTH" TRILOGY) produced a six-part miniseries on Lincoln's life and career, based upon Sandburg's work.
"LINCOLN" is not what I would your usual biography with a straight narrative. With the exception of one episode that centered on Lincoln acting as a defense attorney in the 1830s and another that focused on the period between his first election and inauguration, the majority of the episodes centered on his administration during the U.S. Civil War. And not in any particular order. Below is a list for those who prefer to watch the entire miniseries in chronological order:
(1.03) "Prairie Lawyer" - Lincoln goes against future political adversary Stephen A. Douglas when he defends physician Dr. Henry B. Truett against murder charges in 1838.
(2.02) "Crossing Fox River" - This episode covers Lincoln's life between winning the Republican nomination for President in May 1860 and attending his first inauguration in March 1861.
(1.01) "Mrs. Lincoln's Husband" - In the wake of the death of the Lincolns' second son William "Willie", First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln's erratic behavior embarrasses and endangers her husband politically when a cabal of Republican senators question her loyalty to the Union.
(1.02) "Sad Figure, Laughing" - Secretary of the Treasury Salmon P. Chase and his daughter Kate attempt to undermine President Lincoln's bid for re-election during the 1864 presidential campaign, when they become aware of how Lincoln's jokes and stories seem to erode their fellow Republicans' confidence in him.
(2.01) "The Unwilling Warrior" - Lincoln finds himself forced to learn the art of war, as he searches for the right general to lead the Union Army to victory between 1861 and 1865.
(2.03) "The Last Days" - Following the Army of Northern Virginia's surrender at the Appomattox Court House, President Lincoln plans Reconstruction with his cabinet and discusses a post-presidential future with the First Lady.
"LINCOLN" managed to garner a great deal of critical acclaim back in the mid-1970s. Did it deserve it? Perhaps. I found myself somewhat impressed by the production. The miniseries, from a visual point-of-view, has managed to hold up rather well in the past forty years. Aside from the exterior shots, the photography struck me as somewhat sharp and colorful, thanks to cinematographer Howard Schwartz . More importantly, director George Schaefer managed to avoid that "filmed play" aspect that had tainted many British television productions and a few American productions. Somewhat. There were a few scenes that seemed to stretch a tad too long in "LINCOLN", but not fortunately long enough to stretch my patience too thin.
A part of me wishes that "LINCOLN" had included more scenes of Lincoln's life before the Civil War. The 1974-76 miniseries must be the first of three productions titled "LINCOLN" - the other two being the 1988 miniseries and the 2012 Steven Spielberg movie - that seemed to be about Lincoln's years in the White House. Another aspect of this miniseries that I found a bit odd is that it did not feature any African-American characters, other than the occasional extra portraying a White House servant. I think. There is a chance that my memory might be playing tricks with me. I simply find it odd that a production about a U.S. president who had such a strong impact on the history of African-Americans . . . did not feature any black supporting characters. No Elizabeth Keckley, the Washington D.C. seamstress who became Mrs. Lincoln's personal modiste and close companion, or Frederick Douglass, who had met Lincoln in 1863. Considering Lincoln's overly cautious approach on the subjects of abolition and civil rights, there is a chance that producer David Wolper feared that Lincoln's reputation as an emancipator would have slightly eroded. It was okay to discuss slavery, which the production did . . . but not with any real depth.
The miniseries certainly did not hesitate to display Lincoln's ruthlessness and talent for political manipulation. Even when those traits were occasionally clouded by compassion, humor and verbosity, it was on display. This was especially apparent in two episodes - namely "Sad Figure, Laughing", in which Lincoln had to deal with the political machinations of Salmon Chase for the Republican nomination for President in 1864; and in "The Unwilling Warrior", in which he dealt with one general after another in his search for the one military leader who could deal with the Army of Northern Virginia and Robert E. Lee.
The best aspect of "LINCOLN" were the performances. Well . . . some of the performances. I hate to say this, but some of the minor performances struck me as a bit theatrical or amateurish. There were some performances that struck me as solid - including Norman Burton as General Ulysses S. Grant, Robert Foxworth as John T. Stuart, Lloyd Nolan as Secretary of State William H. Seward, Ed Flanders as General George B. McClellan, and Catherine Burns as Mary Owens. But there were those performances that I found impressive. This especially seemed to be the case for Roy Poole as Secretary of Treasury Salmon P. Chase, Elizabeth Ashley as the latter's older daughter Kate Chase Sprague, Beulah Bondi as Lincoln's stepmother Sarah Bush Lincoln, John Randolph as the first Secretary of War Simon Cameron and James Carroll Jordan as the Lincolns' oldest son Robert Todd Lincoln.
But the two performances that outshone the others came from Hal Holbrook and Sada Thompson as the presidential couple, Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln. This is not really surprising. Of the three productions I have seen about Lincoln, the actors and actresses who have portrayed this couple have all given superb performances. This was the case for both Holbrook and Thompson. Holbrook seemed to have some special connection to the 16th president. The 1974-76 miniseries marked the first time he portrayed the role. He also portrayed Lincoln in the 1985 miniseries, "NORTH AND SOUTH: BOOK II" and he appeared in the 2012 Steven Spielberg movie as an old political crony of the President's, Francis P. Blair. Holbrook's portrayal of Lincoln could have easily strayed into the realm of folksy idealism. The actor did not completely reveal the more negative aspects of Lincoln's character, but he did a superb job in conveying not only the President's style of humor, but also his political savvy and a temper that can be fearsome. In an odd way, Sada Thompson had the easier job portraying First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln. Hollywood productions are more inclined to explore the more negative aspects of her personality than Lincoln's. What I enjoyed about Thompson's performance is that she still managed to make Mrs. Lincoln a likable person, despite the character flaws. It is not surprising that Holbrook won an Emmy for his performance and Thompson earned a nomination. Both of them deserved the accolades.
There are aspects of "LINCOLN" that I found questionable. Well . . . my main problem is that the production did not focus enough on the question of slavery, which I found rather odd, considering the subject matter. I also wish that the miniseries had included more scenes of Abraham Lincoln's life before the Civil War. Now some television viewers might find the scattered narrative somewhat disconcerting. I simply figured out the chronological order of the episodes and watched them in that manner. But overall, "LINCOLN" is a first-rate miniseries about the 16th President that holds up rather well, thanks to George Schaefer's direction and a skillful cast led by the talented Hal Holbrook and Sada Thompson.
"AIRPORT" (1970) ReviewAccording to many film critics and fans, the 1970 movie, "AIRPORT", generated what is known in Hollywood as the first in the "disaster film" genre. Is this true? From a certain point of view. "AIRPORT" was not the first Hollywood disaster movie ever made. But it did kick start a whole slew of them that Hollywood churned out during the 1970s. Based upon Arthur Hailey's 1968 novel, "AIRPORT" told the story of the manager of a fictional airport near Chicago named Mel Bakersfield, who is trying to keep the airport open during a snowstorm. Bakerfield not only has to deal with the bad weather's effect upon the airport; but also local suburban residents, who want to permanently shut down one of the runways; an elderly lady who also happens to be a habitual stowaway; a failing marriage; a hostile brother-in-law, who is an airline pilot; and a suicidal bomber who plots to blow up a Rome-bound Boeing 707 airliner in flight. This is just the tip of the iceberg. Not only is Bakersfield's brother-in-law, Vernon Demarest, is a tool, he is having an affair with a beautiful young English-born stewardess named Gwen Meighen. And both had been assigned to the Rome-bound flight about Trans Global Airline (TGA)'s flagship, the Golden Argosy. Bakersfield's own marriage is in trouble, due to his long working habits. Even worse, he is attracted to TGA's customer relations agent, Tanya Livingston. Meanwhile, former demolitions expert D.O. Guerrero has hit hard times due to unemployment and a history of mental illness. In a desperate bid to provide for his long-suffering wife, Inez, he buys life insurance with the intent of committing suicide by blowing up the Golden Argosy over the Atlantic Ocean, so that his wife, Inez will collect the $225,000 insurance money.I would not be surprised if many movie fans and film critics have dismissed "AIRPORT" after forty-six years. Superficially, it is the type of film that many would either dismiss today as "dated" or simply melodramatic trash. Yes, "AIRPORT" is filled with melodrama. But if I must be honest, I would regard it as classy melodrama. Mature. Yes, the movie is filled with infidelity, strained marriages and unrequited love. But all topics are treated with both class and a brutal honesty by writer-director George Seaton that I found rather surprising. This especially seemed to be the case in the story line regarding Vernon Demarest and his mistress, Gwen Meighen. Their discussion of her pregnancy and and a possible abortion struck me as very mature . . . and honest. I could also say the same about the story line regarding Mel and Cindy Bakersfield's failing marriage. What I liked about this story line is that despite Cindy's bitching about Mel's working habits, I realized that she had a very good reason to feel bitter. I also felt a good deal of sympathy toward Mel's attraction to customer relations agent, Tanya Livingston. More importantly, both husband and wife managed to come to the conclusion that divorce was their only option without any overblown angst. Seaton also managed to portray D.O. and Inez Guerrero with an honest eye and show how their money troubles and his emotional instability has been a strain on their marriage. Within all of this melodrama, "AIRPORT" provided some laughs in the story arc about Tanya's dealings with a charming old widow named Mrs. Ada Quonsett, and her penchant for stowing aboard many of the airline's flights. But even her story arc takes a serious turn when she decides to sneak about the Golden Argosy's flight to Rome and finds herself in a seat next to Guerrero. The movie also benefited from attention paid to the detail of day-to-day airport and airline operations, the response to a paralyzing snowstorm, a runway blocked by a disabled airplane, environmental concerns over noise pollution, and an attempt to blow up an airliner. What I find really interesting is how the film's plot allowed the main characters' personal stories to intertwine with scenes that featured decisions being made minute-by-minute by the airport and airline staffs, operations and maintenance crews, flight crews, and Federal Aviation Administration air traffic controllers. This balancing act seemed to be at its supreme in the story arc featuring D.O. Guerrero's attempt to bomb the Rome flight. I was amazed at how the other arcs featuring Mrs. Ada Quonsett, Vern Demerest and Gwen Meighen's affair, and the disabled plane blocking the runway managed to seamlessly intertwine with Guerrero's story. Not only does one have author Arthur Hailey to thank, but also George Seaton, who made this happen on screen due to his Oscar nominated screenplay and excellent direction.Was there anything about "AIRPORT" that I disliked? Or found wanting? I had nothing against Edith Head's costumes for the film. Quite frankly, I found them very attractive. But for the likes of me, I cannot understand why her work for this film was nominated in the first place. Her designs were not that mind boggling. But my real complaint about this movie were some of the performances. I have nothing against the performances by the movie's stars and major supporting cast members. But I found those performances by many of the minor supporting cast either wooden or hammy. Their performances reminded me of those I had encountered among the minor cast members in the 1982 miniseries, "THE BLUE AND THE GRAY".As I had stated earlier, I had no problems with those performances of the movie's stars and major supporting cast members. The movie featured solid performances from the likes of Gary Collins, Barry Nelson, Lloyd Nolan, and Barbara Hale. Jean Seberg gave an excellent performance as customers relations agent Tanya Livingston, especially in her major scene with Helen Haynes. The latter received a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance as the charming, yet cunning Ada Quonsett. Star Burt Lancaster held the movie together with a commanding performance and at the same time, was perfectly emotional in his scenes with Dana Wynter, who portrayed his wife. Speaking of Ms. Wynter, she did an excellent job of conveying Cindy Bakersfield's emotional turmoil as an estranged wife. Jacqueline Bisset was spot on as stewardess Gwen Meighen, who not only found herself pregnant, but also in love with her unborn baby's married father. Maureen Stapleton received several nominations and a Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe Award as Guerrero's long-suffering wife. Although I admired her performance very much, I found her last scene a bit on the hammy side.However, my favorite performances came from three cast members - Van Heflin, George Kennedy and especially Dean Martin. I am amazed that Heflin did not receive an acting award or nomination as the emotionally damaged D.O. Guerrero, who had decided to solve his problems with an act of violence. Heflin did an excellent job of portraying a man barely able to keep his emotions in check, yet beaten down by the bad luck in his life. George Kennedy received several acting nominations as the gregarious, yet very intelligent airline mechanic, Joe Patroni. In fact, I believe he gave the most entertaining performance in the movie. But if there is one performance I believe deserved an acting nomination or award, it came from Dean Martin. His portrayal of pilot Vern Demerest struck me as the most complex character in the movie. He conveyed the different aspects of Demerest's personality - arrogance, temperamental, competency, compassionate and loving - with such great skill that it seemed a crime that he was never acknowledged for his work.After my recent viewing of "AIRPORT", I found myself wondering why I had ignored it for so long. It really is a first-rate movie, thanks to George Seaton's adaptation of Arthur Hailey's novel and skillful direction. The movie was also blessed with a first-rate cast that included Burt Lancaster, Helen Haynes, George Kennedy and Dean Martin. "AIRPORT" might have a few flaws, but after forty years or so, I still believe it is one of the best disaster films I have ever seen . . . period. And at the moment, I cannot even think of any other film that might be its equal or superior.
