August 9 - 15, 2025

 

To answer these trivia questions, please email me at scinema@earthlink.net.

Brain Teasers:

Which British actress, born in 1934, was considered a "sexy actress" in a 1959 movie before making a film in Italy in 1961?

Bertrand van Wonterghem knew that it was Sylvia Syms of EXPRESSO BONGO.

What was the first movie that Jack Palance shot in Italy?

Bertrand van Wonterghem knew that it was director Abel Gance's AUSTERLITZ in 1960.

What was the last movie that Jack Palance shot in Italy?

I know that the date of release doesn't necessarily correspond to when a film was produced, but Jack Palance had five films released in Italy in 1976: SQUADRA ANTISCIPPO, aka THE COP IN BLUE JEANS opened on March 11 - and was George Grimes' guess. EVA NERA, aka BLACK COBRA opened on August 5. SAFARI EXPRESS opened on September 25. I PADRONI DELLA CITTA, aka MR. SCARFACE opened on December 3 and was Bertrand van Wonterghem's and Angel Rivera's guess. SANGUE DI SBIRRO, aka KNELL BLOODY AVENGER opened on December 11, so I figure it was the last movie Palance shot in Italy.

What was the last Western the Jack Palance made with an Italian director?

Bertrand van Wonterghem and Angel Rivera knew that it was DIAMANTE LOBO, aka GOD'S GUN, made in Israel by director Frank Kramer, aka Gianfranco Parolini.

And now for some new brain teasers:

Which Italian film director worked with Boris Karloff, Ugo Tognazzi, Jerome Courtland, Horst Frank, Yoko Tani, Richard Harrison, George Martin and Brad Harris?

Which actor, born in Venezuela in 1925, appeared in at least 20 Italian Westerns?

Which Italian actor reportedly attended the Actors Studio in New York before returning to Italy to make his first movie in 1953?

Name the movies from which these images came.

George Grimes and Bertrand van Wonterghem identified last week's photo of Jack Palance in IL MERCENARIO, aka THE MERCENARY, aka A PROFESSIONAL GUN.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

No one identified the above photo yet.

Can you name from what movie it came?

Bertrand van Wonterghem and  George Grimes identified last week's photo of  Lee Van Cleef  and Rene Abadeza in GEHEIMCODE WILDGANZE, aka CODE NAME WILDGEESE

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

George Grimes identified last week's photo of Jackie Chan in THE SHADOWS EDGE

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

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I am interested in knowing what movies you have watched and what you enjoyed or not. So please send me an email at scinema@earthlink.net if you'd like to share. Here's what I watched last week:

Enjoyed:

Weeds season seven (2011)

Bosch Legacy (2024) - Three seasons of the excellent follow-up to Bosch. Now, on to Ballard.

JIGSAW (1962) - While I was disappointed to find that the JIGSAW with which I had a copy was not the 2017 reboot of the SAW series, I took heart that it was a crime film directed by Val Guest. Guest had made 13 wonderful films for Hammer, the last being the excellent HELL IS A CITY in 1960, so JIGSAW was sure to be a palate cleanser after a series of films I hated. It was featuring the brisk no-nonsense storytelling most of his earlier films featured. Guest adapted his screenplay from Hillary Waugh's novel SLEEP LONG, MY LOVE, the first of his series of Detective Fred Fellows books. Being a British production, the locale of the story was moved from the fictional town of Stockford, Connecticut to an area around Brighton in England. Reportedly, the film followed the novel closely. The film began with the beautiful Moira Redmond - who would later make NIGHTMARE for Hammer in 1964, telling the unseen man in her bed that she was pregnant. Naturally, with the camera as his P.O.V., he moved menancingly towards her. Detective Sgt. Ronald Lewis - who made two films for Hammer in 1960, one directed by Val Guest - was called to the scene of a burglary at a property leasee shop. Eventually he was joined by his boss, Detective Inspector Jack Warner - who had previously worked with Guest and Hammer for 1955's THE QUATERMASS XPERIMENT - to investigate a leased home in which Redmond's dismembered body was found. Guest was keen to make JIGSAW because it was "very unusual, to show the police working and not getting anywhere. The awful dead ends they come up against which is what that picture shows." In taking an almost documentary approach - without needlessly shaking the camera, Guest presented a convincingly realistic portrait of police work, though everyone spoke rather rapidly. Because the police often run into "dead ends", the film may seem rather drawn out to many fans of cop movies. But it did come to a satisfactory conclusion. John Le Mesurier, who had previously appeared in the Hammer version of THE HOUSE OF THE BASKERVILLES, got one of the best scenes of his career in a small role. Yolande Donlan was married to director Guest and they made eight films together, though none for Hammer. Michael Goodliffe had made three Hammer films with director Guest, and THE GORGON without him. Brian Oulton made two Hammer Films without Guest. Ray Barrett would go on to make THE REPTILE for Hammer. Norman Chappell, Reginald Marsh, Timothy Bateson and John Barron had appeared in Guest's THE DAY THE EARTH CAUGHT FIRE in the previous year. Geoffrey Bayldon made three Hammer films, two with Guest.

Live Aid: When Rock 'n' Roll Took On the World (2025) - The title of this CNN documentary series is a bit extravagant, but the program is quite fascinating. I wasn't a big fan of the "Do They Know It's Christmas" event, and always felt that "We Are the World" was African-American musicians being embarrassed that it was Europeans trying to end famine in Africa. Live Aid had too many mainstream performers to ignite my interest, but hearing Bob Geldof explain that his idea was to get the most successful performers on the stage to attract the biggest audience made sense. I had no idea how hard getting this on was, and the story of Birhan Woldu was very moving. When Live Aid 2 happened, it seemed like more of the same. The real eye-opener of this series was the behind-the-scenes story of Live 8 which had given me a whole new respect for President George W. Bush. 

Did not enjoy:

THE BETSY (1978) - You can't fault the producers of this turkey for not hiring talented people. Director Daniel Petrie won acclaim for his TV work on Eleanor and Franklin, Sybil and Eleanor and Franklin:The White House Years. I'm guessing that it was his idea to get Edward Herrmann and Jane Alexander into this cast. Unfortunately, while hiring the "World's Greatest Actor", Laurence Olivier, may have been a prestigious effort, no one stopped Olivier from giving perhaps the worst performance of his career, but with this material was that unexpected? I think the filmmakers may have hoped to turn Harold Robbins' novel into THE GODFATHER set in the U.S. automobile industry - and some of the murders look similar. Having another respected actor like Robert Duvall in the cast also brought a comparison to mind. When this was made, Tommy Lee Jones looked to become a big star. Movies like this cooled his trajectory. One can't help but wonder what respected writer Walter Bernstein thought about adapting a Harold Robbins book, but it would seem right in line with co-writer William Bast's career, as he would create the primetime soap The Colbys a few years later. The beautiful Kathleen Beller had a small role in THE GODFATHER PART II before television work like Search For Tomorrow. She did a couple of "serious movies" like PROMISES IN THE DARK and FORT APACHE THE BRONX, before returning to TV soaps like Dynasty. Also wasted in the cast are Katharine Ross, Lesley-Anne Down, Joseph Wiseman and Titos Vandis. Cameraman Mario Tosi, who shot Sybil, brought a fog filter look to this film, not unlike what he did with director Brian De Palma's CARRIE. Even hiring John Barry to do the music didn't improve the film. 

TWICE IN A LIFETIME (1985) - I think a better title for this would be SYMPATHY FOR THE UNFAITHFUL HUSBAND. This was Colin Weiland's next project after writing CHARIOTS OF FIRE, but it would seem to have been a personal project for producer/director Bud Yorkin. In 1984, he divorced his wife of 30 years, with whom he had two children. He failed to find a studio willing to finance TWICE, so he raised the money independently using his stake in Tandem Productions which he created with Norman Lean in 1958 and proved wildly successful with TV shows like All In the Family and Sanford and Son. Factory worker Gene Hackman had a loving home life with wife Ellen Burstyn and daughters Amy Madigan and Ally Sheedy, but he fell in love with bar maid Ann-Margret and blew it all up. The film ends with Hackman sheepishly attending Sheedy's wedding so that he had a slight reconciliation with one daughter before not going to the reception and walking away alone. On the plus side, Burstyn, Madigan, Sheedy and Ann-Margret all look marvelous.

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Angel Rivera  Highly enjoyed:

"THE SOUND OF MUSIC" (1965)
Great music; if you like the standards. Julie Andrews is in top form. The movie is still enjoyable even if it is slightly fictionalized. (Or idealized! Take your pick.) For ex. we now know that  the Trapp family left Austria by train and not climbing over the Austrian Alps, But it does make for a great song. ["Climb Every Mountain" along with "Do-Re-Mi"; "A Few of My Favorite Things"; and of course "The Sound of Music"!] A classic movie musical!

"THE OUTER LIMITS" S1; E1: The Galaxy Being" (1963)
My all-time favorite Sci-Fi TV series is the original "Outer Limits" (1963-4). "The Galaxy Being" served as the pilot episode and its premiere episode. Stars Cliff Robertson  as the owner of a small radio station whose equipment and radio frequency he uses for broadcasting "microwaves" into the ether and one day he picks up a signal from out there. The Andromeda system to be exact. He is able to receive a 3D image of the being he has contacted. The problem is if the signal is increased all hell will break out. Robertson has to leave his power shed to attend a banquet in his honor. Enter the substitute DJ hired to keep the station's programs airing. He is told not touch the power knobs and to keep the station's output where it is. Wanting to increase the signal so he can reach a wider area of audience. He turns the dial to up. The being that Robertson had been communicating with is suddenly thrust into our world.  What happens next is where the story really gets interesting. I consider this a classic of Sci-Fi TV.

Enjoyed:

"JURASSIC WORLD: REBIRTH" (2025)
Scarlett Johansson (the highest paid actress in the world right now) leads a rag-tag team of mercenaries and others which includes Academy Award winner Mahershala Ali back to where Jurassic Park began. That is where the creatures were synthesize and they need to get some DNA samples of the surviving dinosaurs. Not to gory or graphic, but one can sit there trying to determine which members of the team will end up as dinosaur fodder. Also along with the team, a family of four, (a father, his youngest daughter, his oldest daughter and her boyfriend.) who were sailing near the island where the dinosaurs are. Still well done maybe worth a look. I give it a 6 out of 10.

"ROOM 222" S1; E1: Richie's Story" (1969)
I've been watching a lot of the old 70's series, "Room 222" which has been streaming on YouTube and this one happens to be the pilot.The story goes Lloyd Haines, plays a great teacher at the school who  has been informed. that one of his star pupils is stressing out because it has been discovered that he doesn't live in the district. So he must be sent to his district's zoned school. The school is described as inferior. Our student can stay if he can find a course, that is only taught at his one school and not he other. The course being taught at Walt Whitman only and not the other school is Hebrew. So the student can stay and as he is told to return to his class, at which point he yells out, "Shalom!"

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Bertrand van Wonterghem Enjoyed:

Posse from hell (1961, Herbert Coleman)

The Cimarron kid (1951, Budd Boetticher)

Distant drums (1951, Raoul Walsh)

The lawman (1970, Michael Winner)

Mildly Enjoyed

Quick millions (1931, Rowland Brown)

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 David Deal Enjoyed: 

FRANKENSTEIN AND ME (96) - This famous ode to monster movies from a kid's point of view lives up to its reputation.

THE TERROR (63)

SPECTERS (87) - Subway work exposes a tomb beneath the Roman catacombs that contains… Evil. Archeologist Donald Pleasence is on top of the situation, well, as much as possible. Solid Italian Gothic inspired by Argento and Soavi. Good production design and locations. Worth a look.

DECISION AT SUNDOWN (57)

UFO'S: PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE (74) - The release date of this speculative documentary is in question. This version appears to be a re-release since dates in 1976 are mentioned more than once. At any rate this is a non-stop barrage of UFO sighting information, some of it seemingly legitimate, some of it not so much. Either way, it is one of the more convincing of its subgenre. Features Rod Serling, Burgess Meredith, and Jose Ferrer.

BATTLE OF THE WORLDS (61)

THE BIG COMBO (55)

WINCHESTER 73 (50)

BULLITT (68)

THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS (53)

BOB LE FLAMBEUR (56)

Mildly enjoyed:

THE GIRL IN 313 (40) - Insurance investigator Kent Taylor falls in with pretty jewel thief Florence Rice. Or is it the other way around? Light crime 'n' romance programmer that won't leave a mark. Features Lionel Atwill, Kay Aldridge, Jack Carson, and a downbeat ending.

WAVES OF LUST (75)

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August 2 - 7, 2025

 

To answer these trivia questions, please email me at scinema@earthlink.net.

Brain Teasers:

Which American actress was a celebrated dancer on Broadway before getting into movies, including one directed by Duccio Tessari?

Bertrand van Wonterghem knew that it was Paula Kelly of TOUGH GUYS.

Which British actress, born in 1934, was considered a "sexy actress" in a 1959 movie before making a film in Italy in 1961?

No one answered this question correctly yet.

From what movie was director Vittorio Cottafavi reportedly fired because the French star didn't like him?

Bertrand van Wonterghem knew that it was LE VERGINI DI ROMA, aka AMAZONS OF ROME.

Which Italian actor, born in 1927, appeared in movies directed by Mario Soldati, Sergio Corbucci, Lucio Fulci, Federico Fellini, Mario Mattoli, Pietro Francisci, Abel Gance and John Sturges?

Bertrand van Wonterghem and George Grimes knew that it was Ettore Manni.

And now for some new brain teasers:

What was the first movie that Jack Palance shot in Italy?

What was the last movie that Jack Palance shot in Italy?

What was the last Western the Jack Palance made with an Italian director?

Name the movies from which these images came.

Bertrand van Wonterghem identified last week's frame grab of Aldo Sambrell in THE TEXICAN.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

Bertrand van Wonterghem and Angel Rivera identified last week's photo of Louis Jordan and Sylvia Syms in LE VERGINI DI ROMA, aka AMAZONS OF ROME.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

Bertrand van Wonterghem, George Grimes and Angel Rivera identified last week's photo of Angelo Infanti and Laura Gemser in EMANUELLE NERA, aka BLACK EMANUELLE.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

Angel Rivera and George Grimes identified last week's photo Hiroyuki Sanada and Conan Lee in NINJA IN THE DRAGON'S DEN.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

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I am interested in knowing what movies you have watched and what you enjoyed or not. So please send me an email at scinema@earthlink.net if you'd like to share. Here's what I watched last week:

Enjoyed:

Weeds season six (2010)

Did not enjoy:

NOAH'S ARC: THE MOVIE (2025) - I was not the targeted audience for this show. In 2003, Patrik-Ian Polk decided to write a series about Black gay men in Los Angeles. This became a web series in 2004, which was picked up by Logo TV. After two seasons, and 17 episodes, NOAH'S ARC: JUMPING THE BROOM was made and the show ended. However, in 2020, during the COV-19 pandemic, there was a reunion show made for YouTube and Facebook called THE 'RONA CHRONICLES in which the cast interacted via Skype. In 2025, everyone came back for a feature airing on Paramount+. Darryl Stephens and Jensen Atwood decided they wanted to be parents, and, luckily, they knew a young woman who was already knocked up. Jasmine Guy was the social services worker who must determine whether the gay couple were fit to be parents. While practicing with baby dolls, the guys learn that the woman was pregnant with twins. Much of this show was set in a Black Gay Drag Club so there were plenty of musical performances. Interestingly, for a show set in Los Angeles, there was virtually no White people. And after the end credits came the annoucment that this was made in Georgia.

NOAH'S ARC: JUMPING THE BROOM (2008) - That's right. I saw this out of order. One doesn't think of Martha's Vineyard as having many African-American residents, but in this movie Jensen Atwood was raised on Martha's Vineyard and he wanted to be married to Darryl Stephens at the old family home. It turned out that his parents aren't there, and that he hadn't "come out" to them yet. This film had just about all of the cliches of current romantic-comedies, except rather than a comedic gay friend of the bride, this film had a straight woman friend with a fiery attitude. Also there was a discussion of about being true to yourself and telling your parents about what they may decide to be aberrant. The most interesting thing about this movie was the appearance at the end of Phoebe Snow, who had a big hit in 1974 with "Poetry Man". Snow married Phil Kearns in 1975 and they had a daughter, Valerie Rose, who was born with severe brain damage. The marriage to Kearns ended in 1978 and he came out as gay. Snow dedicated herself to taking care of her daughter at home, which just about ended her career. At the age of 31, Valerie died in 2007. Almost two years after her performance in NOAH'S ARC: JUMPING THE BOOM, Snow suffered a cerebral hemorrhage which put her in a coma. On April 26, 2011, she died at the age of 60.

SAW IV (2007) - SAW movies bare a resemblance to FINAL DESTINATION flicks - no one survives no matter what they do. As I predicted after SAW III, another film by director Darren Lynn Bousman would be a major irritant. This one is particularly annoying with a "What The Fuck" script. If this film begins with the autopsy of Tobin Bell, as killed in SAW III, how does Scott Patterson burst in at the end of SAW IV just as Tobin Bell dies? Oh, I get it. Everything after the autopsy scene was flashbacks. And this film commits the age-old sin of flashbacks within flashbacks. The question of how anyone can conceive, afford and build such elaborate "mousetraps" I guess will always dwell in the land of "suspension of disbelief". Interestingly, as with SAW III, the most gore is shown during a medical procedure - here an autopsy.

SAW V (2008) - For this installment, David Hackl, who worked as the production designer on the previous SAW movies, got the director's chair. That made sense as the design of the movies was more important than the storytelling. All of the annoying editing tricks were still in place, though the gore stopped being from medical procedures and now came with the kills. As much as I liked watching Julie Benz and Meagan Good, I preferred watching them in something else. At least this film resolved the story of Angus Macfadyen's kidnapped girl from SAW III.

SAW VI (2009) - These films are pretty consistent with each other no matter who gets the director's credit. This time it is Kevin Greutert, who was the film editor on the previous five SAWs.

SAW 3D. aka SAW 3D THE FINAL CHAPTER (2010) - evin Greutert returned as director for what was supposed to be the last film of the franchise. The two films starring Vincent Price as Dr. Phibes were the first films I saw which were just a series of gruesome murder scenes, but also featured an E.C. comic book sensibility. The SAW films don't have that, nor the cinematic stylistics which made the Phibes films fun. Obviously, I am not a fan of these films and I don't really have anything more to write about them, so I'll take a quote from Rotten Tomatoes: "Sloppily filmed, poorly acted and illogically plotted, SAW 3D leaves viewers trapped in the most lackluster installment of the series."

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Angel Rivera  Highly enjoyed:

 "BILLY JOEL: AND SO IT GOES": PARTS ONE & TWO (2025)
For Billy Joel fans and any one else interested in musical icons. Part One covers his rise to fame and how he almost lost it all due to a motorcycle accident and his excessive drinking. His first wife and one time manager does leave him, citing she couldn't watch him destroy himself. Part two covers his recovery and loss of income due to bad business actions and his successful return to prominence and his residency as "the house band" at Madison Square Garden  and his 100th MSG show. The documentary ends there and does not cover the condition that caused him to step back from performing while he tends to his health. All in all an interesting documentary. 

"THE OUTER LIMITS: S1; E 29: A Feasibility Study" (4/13/1964) 
"STAR TREK: Voyage One: The Menagerie" (aka "The Cage") (1964/65/88)
I like to watch some films and episodes over and over again. "Star Trek; Voyage One: The Menagerie" is one of those films I like to watch in its original form again and again. For those unfamiliar with its plot, Capt. Pike played by Jeffery Hunter lands on the planet Talos IV where the Talosian race with their strong mental powers try to keep the Capt. as a mate for a female crash survivor whom they hope to use the Capt. for breeding stock to restore their planet to its former glory which was destroyed by war.
 In the Outer Limits episode, "A Feasibility Study" a whole Earth community is transported to the planet, Luminos where the population is dying. The Luminoids hope to determine if the humans abducted can survive and they can be used as slave labor. This episode I remember well from when I first saw it at the age of seven. The ending is very profound as the kidnapped humans realize that if they survive, the whole human race would be marked for slavery. So in order to not let that happen, our main character, played by Sam Wanamaker addresses his fellow captives and says ('Spoiler alert) his wife has contracted the disease that is destroying the Luminoids and will receive their fate and become a living immobile being. He says to prevent the feasibility of their abduction allowing the Luminoids to make all Earthlings slaves, he states he will take his wife's hand and contract the disease. He then asks will some one take his hand. The self-sacrifice of the abducted community saves the rest of humanity.  Both episodes had a profound effect on me.

Enjoyed:

"THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS" (2025)
The fourth attempt to bring the comic book characters to the silver screen. Stars Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards aka Mr. Fantastic. Despite having a mustache which the comic book character doe not have Pascal does a decent job of portraying the leader of the group. I am a big "Fantastic Four" fan. Even though I consider myself more a DC fan, I own the first 100 issues of the Fantastic Four in reprint volumes. Instead of  fighting Dr. Doom, the Four's main foe, they fight Galactus,an alien being who devours planets for their energy. Basically a reboot of the 2007 "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer" with a few changes to the story. For example, instead of the traditional male Silver Surfer, "FF:FS" has a female Silver Surfer. The film also includes the robot, H.E.R. B.I.E. a character from the second Fantastic Four animated TV Series. All in all all this version of the FF is well worth the viewing.

Mildly enjoyed:

"I BURY THE LIVING" (1958)
A psychological horror film where Richard Boone is the new director of a cemetery with a map that shows which plots have corpses (marked with a black pin) and plots that have been sold but not yet filled with a white pin. Boone makes a mistake marking an unoccupied plot with a black dot instead of a white dot and then the couple that owns the plot turns up dead. 

"GARBO" (2005)
 A documentary about the reclusive actress. Although I was never really a fan of Garbo's and know little about her movies, the documentary was still interesting.

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Bertrand van Wonterghem Enjoyed:

The manchurian candidate (1962, John Frankenheimer)

The desert rats (1953, Robert Wise)

Betrayed / When strangers marry (1945, William Castle)

Across the line (2010, R. Ellis Frazier)

Mildly Enjoyed

The young savages (1960, John Frankenheimer)

Phantoms (1998, Joe Chappelle)

Les tontons flingueurs (1962, Georges Lautner)

Hollow man (2000, Paul Verhoeven)

Il cobra (1967, Mario Sequi)

L'amateur / S.O.S. Fernand – episode « Le somnambule » (1967, Jean-Pierre Decourt)

Did not enjoy:

Escape velocity (1998, Lloyd A. Simandl)

Jack Brooks monster slayer (2007, Jon Knautz)

Game of the dead (short) (2008, Nicolas Hugon)

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 David Deal Enjoyed: 

STRANGLER OF THE SWAMP (46) - One of the lasting poverty row horrors,

THE MAN FROM BITTER RIDGE (55) - Undercover investigator Lex Barker walks into a hornet's nest in Tomahawk where oily John Dehner and his nasty brothers aim to get Dehner elected sheriff and run the sheepherders headed by Stephen McNally out of this cattle country. Lex is there to find out who's been robbing the stagecoaches (three guesses) and he falls for McNally's girl Mara Corday before things get cleaned up. An above average western from Jack Arnold with a good cast of supporters and solid writing.

THE CORRUPT ONES (67) - Check out this adventure with Robert Stack, Elke Sommer, and the great Werner Peters.

SHOWDOWN (50) - "Wild" Bill Elliott is out for revenge for the murder of his brother. He figures the killer works for a nearby cattle ranch so he joins a cattle drive to find out. He figured right. Excellent dark western with Walter Brennan, Marie Windsor, and a nasty Harry Morgan. This opens in a graveyard on a stormy night, something you can't say about many westerns. Recommended.

THE BLACK PIT OF DR. M (58)

THE ASCENT (76) - During a fierce winter in WWII, in the frozen hinterlands of Russia, a group of partisans are running from the Germans. Two of their number break away to look for food. This is their journey to hell. A stark, compelling film that won Best Picture at the Berlin film festival. And deserved it.

THE MONSTER THAT CHALLENGED THE WORLD (57)

ANGEL WITH THE IRON FISTS (67) - Lily Ho is agent 009 who infiltrates a large criminal organization that has been targeting government spies. Another enjoyable "bangpian" film filled with color and action.

DEAD EYES OF LONDON (60)

KISS KISS, KILL KILL (65) - Please refer to The Eurospy Guide.

ROCKETMAN (19) - If Elton John rings a bell, check this biopic out.

WITNESS IN THE CITY (59)

THE DEADLY MANTIS (57)

THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME (32)

Mildly enjoyed:

OVERLAND TELEGRAPH (51) - The installation of overland telegraph lines in the west meant that army outposts along the line aren't needed anymore. This is a problem for George Nader who has all of his money tied up in supplies for the forts. Nader and saloon owner Hugh Beaumont conspire to sabotage the telegraph. Beaumont has it in for Nader because he wants his girlfriend Mari Blanchard. Tim Holt and his sidekick Chito Rafferty (Richard Martin) ride right into this mess and try to make sense of it. Plot heavy oater with many moving parts is adequate entertainment for Holt fans.

SON OF THE STARS (88)

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