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Reviews
Gunsmoke (1955)
A great show
I have many warm memories of Gunsmoke and many episodes are like old friends. One in particular involved a hillbilly family: a father and two sons. The younger son, Sweet Billy, wanted to get married, but his older brother hadn't found a bride yet. So, he went into town town to find a woman. He chose on Kitty and, according to tradition, took her with him. After she was rescued, the boy apologized to Miss Kitty, explaining that he could't marry her after all and went back to his folks. It was very touching.
The boy was played by Don Dubbins, who later played the troubled recruit in the Jack Webb movie "The D.I."
I still recall the promo for Gunsmoke, featuring both John Wayne and James Arness. John Wayne invited us to watch this history-making western and this (young) actor James Arness.
At the end there was this touching exchange (quoted from memory):
Arness: Thank you for all those nice words, John. (shakes hands)
Wayne: (grins) I had to be nice. You're bigger than me.
Arness: Taller, maybe.
The Outsider (1967)
One of my favorite shows
I loved the opening shots: his phone in the refrigerator, old pizza, that gulp of sour milk . . . and the teaser (paraphrased) : "My name is David Ross and you're probably wondering how I got into this mess."
One episode ended with an aerial view of him looking a broken rear-view mirror on his car. There was a note on his windshield. As his voice-over read the letter, the camera panned higher and higher. The note said something like: "Sorry, I broke your mirror. There were several witnesses. They think I'm writing down my name and address. I'm not."
His ups and downs remind me of one of my favorite fictional detectives, Shel Scott, who was always getting in and our of jams.
The Hero (1966)
Victor French
Those were the days of "My Living Doll" and "Valentine's Day", featuring actors I had never seen before.
I have been in love with Mariette Harley ever since.
I thought William Mulligan was a riot. Years later, he became better known as Bert on "Soap".
I still remember the supporting actor, Victor French, playing the neighbor. A few years later, I was surprised and amused to see French described as a "veteran heavy", and yet had to admit that he was chillingly convincing as a villain. Even later, you may recall him as Michael Landon's friend on "Highway to Heaven."
Between Time and Timbuktu (1972)
buzzword
As a Vonnegut fan, I loved the film. It was thrilling to see his character's come to life. I have issues about which of his stories were dramatized, but I will not nitpick about the film's interpretation, continuity, depth of character, etc.
I am equally forgiving about "Slaughterhouse-Five", which did a good job in telling the jumbled story of Billy Pilgrim.
I also enjoyed Bob and Ray's deadpan repetition of the phrase "Chrono-synclastic Infundibulum." It was another phrase which I happily memorized for the sheer joy of knowing it -- similar to "Gort! Klaatu barada nikto!"