UNSINKABLE

UNSINKABLE: A MEMOIR. Debbie Reynolds and Dorian Hannaway. William Morrow; 2013.

In Debbie Reynolds' first autobiography, she went into her divorce from Eddie Fisher -- who ran off with Liz Taylor -- and how her second husband completely drained her bank account and left her broke. In this sequel, Reynolds writes affectingly of two major incidents since that period. The first is her marriage and divorce to her third husband who, at least as portrayed in the book, was a monstrous hustler who took his wife for everything she was worth, all the while using her money to support his long- time mistress. During one confrontation, he kept asking Debbie to step out on the 12th story balcony, which might well have been her finish. Coinciding with this is her narrative of the Debbie Reynolds Hotel and Casino, which her husband apparently managed to run into the ground.

Once she was extricated from that mess, Reynolds now had to find a home for all the items of Hollywood memorabilia that she had amassed over the decades. This section of the book also has real suspense as the lady discovers that people in Hollywood don't especially care that much about its history. With one plan after another for the museum crumbling despite her and others' best efforts, all of the items (including the dress Marilyn Monroe wore in The Seven Year Itch) finally were sold in a huge auction that netted Reynolds millions.

This is about enough for two thirds of a book, so Reynolds has a final section in which she recounts some familiar stories about her coming to Hollywood, losing Eddie Fisher to La Liz, and so on, then has an annotated list of all of her movies, what she thought of them, and interesting behind-the-scenes details. Reynolds tells of the time she had to get a drunken Donald O'Connor off the stage when he tried to join in when Fred and Adele Astaire started dancing, and reveals that David Janssen [Man-Trap] was convinced he was the son of Clark Gable and drank himself to death over it! Who knows?

For much of its length, Unsinkable is a real page-turner, and for that we can thank Reynolds' co-auhor, (Ms.) Dorian Hannaway, who does a splendid job of telling the movie star's story.

Verdict: Very readable, well-done, and entertaining memoir. ***1/2. 

MAN-TRAP

David Janssen and Jeffrey Hunter

MAN-TRAP (1961 ) Director: Edmond O'Brien.

"Lipstick on your chin is almost a sign of innocence. If he wasn't innocent all the lipstick would have been wiped off."

Matt (Jeffrey Hunter) saves Vince's (David Janssen) life on a Korean battlefield, so Vince tries to repay the favor by cutting him in on a deal. Matt works for his father-in-law and is married to an adulterous borderline shrew, Nina (Stella Stevens), but he is having his own affair with a sympathetic woman named Liz (Elaine Devry), who also works for his father-in-law's firm. Fed up with Nina, and wanting to run off with Liz, Matt agrees to Vince's suggestion to steal a suitcase of money which is supposedly to be used to buy guns for a South American revolution. However, this caper is not nearly as simple as Vince has led him to believe ... Man-Trap is a completely unpredictable thriller with interesting developments and twists and turns throughout its running time. Hunter and Janssen both offer excellent performances, and are at least matched by Steven's [The Mad Room] vital portrayal (making the woman much more dimensional in her way than a lesser actress might have done) and Devry, who gets across all of the conflicted feelings her character has about Matt. Virginia Gregg [Crime in the Streets] is also wonderful as Ruthie, Matt and Nina's housekeeper, and one of the best scenes in the movie is her ugly confrontation with Nina. Another memorable scene has Nina taking a poker to her husband's head and nearly being strangled because of it. The robbery sequence is well-handled and even a bit chilling. Bob Crane and Frank Albertson have smaller roles. Nina and her drunk friends are fond of running around with water pistols full of booze. Actor Edmond O'Brian only directed two films -- the less interesting Shield for Murder was co-directed by Howard W. Koch --  but he does such a good job with this one it's too bad he didn't direct others.

Verdict: Very snappy and absorbing crime thriller with fine performances. ***.

FRANCIS IN THE HAUNTED HOUSE

FRANCIS IN THE HAUNTED HOUSE (1956). Director: Charles Lamont.

"You've been in politics twenty years and you've never heard of a talking jackass?"

After several "Francis, the Talking Mule" movies with Donald O'Connor, Mickey Rooney took over -- as another character -- for the final entry in the series. In this David Prescott (Rooney) is somehow seeing a lovely heiress named Lorna McLeod (Virginia Welles) when he gets a phone call from a "man" named Francis. Miss Welles is represented by a law firm whose partners are being murdered one by one, with Prescott as the chief suspect. Naturally no one believes him that Francis (Paul Frees of The Star) is a witness who can alibi him and can actually talk. Rooney is fine (as is Frees as the voice of Francis) but this is one dip in the well too often, and despite a couple of chuckles and a surprise ending (to the mystery plot), this is more frenetic than funny. David Janssen [Moon of the Wolf] has a supporting role as a cop. The "haunted house" of the title is McLeod Castle, where supposedly a ghost roams at night atop a horse.

Verdict: Francis should have kept his mouth shut. **.

TWENTY PLUS TWO

TWENTY PLUS TWO (1961). Joseph M. Newman.

When Richard Diamond, Private Detective wound up its four season run, star David Janssen played a man who looks for missing people in Twenty Plus Two. Tom Alder (Janssen) has always been interested in the case of a girl who completely vanished 12 years ago when she was 16. At the same time, movie star Leroy Dane (Brad Dexter) discovers that the woman who answered his fan mail has been murdered. Jacques Pleshette (Jacques Aubuchon) then hires Alder to look into the disappearance of his brother, Auguste. Are these cases all connected in some way? Meandering through the story are three women: former love Linda (Jeanne Crain), who sent him a "Dear John" letter; hostess turned socialite, Nicki (Dina Merrill), whom Tom met in a post-war Tokyo; and Eleanor Delaney (Agnes Moorehead), the mother of the missing girl. Twenty Plus Two is fairly unpredictable and reasonably absorbing, but it ultimately adds up to nothing. It's one of those movies in which characters spend years covering up a "murder" that was clearly self-defense and yet never bother getting a good lawyer. Janssen is fine and the other actors are okay, but the picture is stolen by Moorehead, especially in a scene with Janssen when the two look at photos of the missing 16-year-old and realize that she's already turned into a woman. An unintentionally funny scene has teenage girls screaming over Brad Dexter [99 River Street] as if he were Troy Donahue! William Demarest [The Perils of Pauline] gives a superb performance as a bitter and drunken ex-reporter, walking off with the movie in one brief sequence.

Verdict: Like an extended Richard Diamond episode in CinemaScope. **1/2.

KING OF THE ROARING 20'S

KING OF THE ROARING 20'S (1961). Director: Joseph M. Newman.

Arnold Rothstein (David Janssen) grows up to become a mob boss in 1920's New York. He fixes races and runs bookie operations with his old pal Johnny Burke (Mickey Rooney). Rothstein marries an entertainer named Carolyn (Dianne Foster) but she becomes tired of being left alone, his crooked deals, and his cold-blooded attitude. The "true" story of Rothstein, aka "The Brain," should have made a much, much more interesting picture than this concoction. True, Rothstein tried to run his operations like a business instead of employing a typical violent mob approach, but even so the picture could have used a lot more excitement, and the facts of his life would have been more compelling than fiction. Janssen [Richard Diamond, Private Detective] is okay as Rothstein, but his essentially small-screen persona only fits the basic and cheap TV tone of the whole production. Foster [The Brothers Rico] is quite good, as is Mickey Rooney, and there are also notable performances from Robert Ellenstein [Too Much, Too Soon] , Dan O'Herlihy, Mickey Shaughnessy, Jimmy Baird (as Arnold as a boy), and especially Joseph Schildkraut as Rothstein's father.

Verdict: Strictly mediocre TV-type fare. **.

RICHARD DIAMOND, PRIVATE DETECTIVE Season 4

Diamond (David Janssen) takes a call on his car phone

RICHARD DIAMOND, PRIVATE DETECTIVE Season 4. 1960.

In its fourth and final season, Richard Diamond had only ten episodes. The show remained watchable, bolstered by David Janssen's smooth playing and some decent scripts. Among the more notable: Diamond is hired to find a missing woman even though everyone he talks to denies her very existence in "Double Trouble." Diamond investigates whether or not "The Lovely Fraud" is genuinely crippled or faking it for the money. And Rick is hired to find a poodle whose pretty owner has been murdered in "Accent on Murder." Guest-stars on the brief fourth season include Rita Moreno, James Coburn, Lyle Talbot and Joanna Barnes. Although a few episodes can be found on DVD or on youtube, or in private editions collected from broadcast, Richard Diamond is essentially a forgotten series but for TV detective buffs. The show was by no means a failure, however, but Janssen would have to wait for the super-hit The Fugitive to become a household name.

Verdict: For hardcore private eye fans. **1/2. 

RICHARD DIAMOND, PRIVATE DETECTIVE Season 3

RICHARD DIAMOND, PRIVATE DETECTIVE Season Three.
1959.

The big change in Richard Diamond for the third season [of 34 black and white half hour episodes] is that Diamond has been transplanted to the west coast. He now lives in a nice house with a swimming pool, operates out of L.A., and has an unseen answering service gal named "Sam" [we only hear her voice] who also functions as a kind of assistant at times. Barbara Bain, who later appeared on Mission: Impossible, plays a girlfriend of Diamond's for a few early episodes and then completely disappears. Regis Toomey is gone, replaced by Russ Conway as Lt. Pete Kile, who is friendly to Diamond but who has a nasty, highly unfriendly associate, Sgt. Alden [?]. Janssen now plays Diamond in a very slick and glib manner. Mary Tyler Moore played Sam for a few episodes, and then was replaced by Roxane Brooks.

Richard Diamond remained an entertaining series even with all the changes. Most of the episodes earn a solid "B+."  Arguably the two best episodes are "Two for Paradise," a study of twisted skulduggery over a ranch and a younger woman; and the clever "Seven Swords," [a magician's assistant is murdered right during the act] which guest-stars Carol Ohmart (House on Haunted Hill) and Jerome Cowan (The Old Maid) and has a fine script by Levinson and Link. Guest stars on other episodes include everyone from Allison Hayes, Nora Hayden and Ingrid Goude to Geraldine Brooks, Frank Albertson and Joey Bishop.

Verdict: Not a bad old show. ***.

RICHARD DIAMOND, PRIVATE DETECTIVE Season 2

David Janssen on his car phone

RICHARD DIAMOND, PRIVATE DETECTIVE Season 2. 1958.

David Janssen was back as urbane P.I. Richard Diamond for the second season out of four, consisting of 21 half-hour episodes. Diamond narrates the stories a la Mike Hammer, whose show began the same year, and even roughs up people the way Hammer does on occasion, even though he's otherwise a very different sort of fellow. Most of the episodes are a solid "B" or "B+," making the show entertaining but not outstanding. Among the more memorable episodes are: "The Dark Horse," in which a lady politician rejects the notion of a bodyguard; "Pension Plan," about a unique retirement scheme involving stolen jewelry; "Another Man's Poison," in which Rick, as everyone calls him, wonders if he was the real target when a man nearby gets shot; "Last Testament" (was the will of an electrocuted man altered?); "Percentage Takers," in which Rick protects an obnoxious Broadway star played by Jack Cassidy; "The Bungalow Murder," in which a studio head is found dead; "One Foot in the Grave" [an old cop is shot]; and "Snow Queen," in which an art store covers up a brisk trade in heroin. Guest-stars include Gordon Jones, Doris Dowling, Jay Novello, Keye Luke, Gloria Talbott, Nick Adams, Lee Van Cleef, Kipp Hamilton, and many others.

Verdict: Janssen is fine and the show quite entertaining. ***.

RICHARD DIAMOND, PRIVATE DETECTIVE Season 1

Janssen as the urbane Richard Diamond

RICHARD DIAMOND, PRIVATE DETECTIVE Season 1. 1957.

In this popular series which lasted four seasons, David Janssen plays a New York City private detective, a former cop, who's a lot more polished and urbane [if somewhat less interesting]  than Mike Hammer. While one can't imagine Hammer fitting in at a society party, that's not the case with Diamond. The first season only had twelve episodes, but they were interesting enough to make the public want more. The best of these episodes were "The Peter Rocco Case" [with Charles Bronson], in which a woman wants Diamond to find her son, an escaped convict who is gunning for Diamond; and "The Venus of Park Avenue," in which a young woman claims that a valuable ancient statue is actually of more recent vintage. The first had very good twists, and the second was very suspenseful. Most of the other episodes, while not as good, were at least a "B' in quality. Regis Toomey plays a police detective in most of the episodes. Diamond was created by Blake Edwards. The theme music is notable, especially the music that plays over the closing credits. Janssen's rather large ears are sometimes a distraction, but he's good in the role.

Verdict: This has possibilities. **1/2.

MOON OF THE WOLF

David Janssen

 MOON OF THE WOLF (1972 telefilm). Director: Daniel Petrie.

Louisiana sheriff Aaron Whitaker (David Janssen) investigates the murder of a young woman in his town, and there are several suspects. These include the woman's mad-at-the-world brother, Lawrence (Geoffrey Lewis), Dr. Drutan (John Beradino), who may have gotten her pregnant, the wealthy Andrew Rodanthe (Bradford Dillman), or his wife, Louise (Barbara Rush), old Tom (Royal Dano) or his son (John Chandler), among others. But the injuries make Whitaker wonder if she might have come afoul of a rabid dog -- or something worse, such as a loup garou. The performances aren't bad in this, with Rush, Lewis, Janssen, and Claudia McNeil as Sarah taking top honors, but as werewolf movies go it's fairly minor. The identity of the werewolf seems obvious almost from the first. Moon of the Wolf is very typical of the type of horror telefilms that were being churned out in the seventies; this is neither better nor worse than most.

Verdict: Not badly done for what it is but no surprises. **.