Late Night Retro Television Review: Highway to Heaven 3.18 “A Mother And A Daughter”

Posted on April 3, 2025 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Thursdays, I will be reviewing Highway to Heaven, which aired on NBC from 1984 to 1989. The entire show is currently streaming on Tubi and several other services!

This week, Jonathan is considered for a promotion!

Episode 3.18 “A Mother And A Daughter”

(Dir by Michael Landon, originally aired on February 4th, 1987)

Jonathan and Mark are in Hollywood …. again!

Seriously, it’s interesting how many episodes of Highway to Heaven found Jonathan and Mark dealing with movie stars and entertainment executives in Hollywood. Every Hollywood episode basically followed the same plot. Jonathan is all-business while Mark is excited to meet one of his old screen idols. One thing that is a bit odd is that Mark always acts as if he’s never been in Hollywood before, even though almost every season usually featured several Hollywood episodes.

This time, they’ve been assigned to repair the relationship between veteran film star Phoebe Hall (Gloria DeHaven) and her estranged daughter, Gail (Judith Chapman). Gail is writing a tell-all book about Phoebe, one that is set to be published at the same time that Phoebe is receiving a lifetime achievement award at a televised ceremony. Can Jonathan get Gail to forgive her mother by showing Gail a bunch of old home movies? Can Mark show Pheobe how much her career means to her fans? Episodes in which Jonathan dealt with a film star who hadn’t been there for their children always seemed to hit Michael Landon extra hard. His children have said that Landon was a bit of a workaholic and not always the most present of fathers. One gets the feeling that this episode was Landon’s way of dealing with his own regrets.

While Jonathan works, he’s observed by another angel, Henry Clifford (Basil Langston). Henry confides to Mark that Jonathan is being considered for a promotion into Heaven. Mark briefly thinks about purposefully tanking the assignment so that Jonathan will stay on Earth with him. Jonathan explains that they can’t do that and, to the show’s credit, Mark quickly realizes that Jonathan’s correct. (Doing a bad job on purpose would have gone against everything the show had established about Mark’s character.) In the end, Henry says that Jonathan will be staying on Earth for the time being because that’s obviously where Jonathan can do the most good. Jonathan and Mark are happy.

That said, I do find it curious that the show has never really examined how Jonathan feels about the prospect of finally heading “upstairs.” I mean, as Jonathan explains during this episode, he’s dead. He’s been dead for a long time. Wouldn’t he like to relax and enjoy his final reward? Some people really like to work. To be honest, I’d probably be the same way. Give me a choice between going to Heaven and reviewing movies as a ghost …. well, it would be a hard decision for me.

Anyway, this was a sweet episode. Highway to Heaven‘s strength was that it was shamelessly optimistic and earnest and that’s certainly the case here.

Caddyshack II (1988, directed by Allan Arkush)

Posted on January 31, 2025 by Jedadiah Leland

Welcome back to Bushwood Country Club! The Gopher is still stealing balls and burrowing through the course. Ty Webb (Chevy Chase) is still the majority shareholder of the club, even though he now only plays golf inside of his mansion. And that’s it!

Only the Gopher and Chevy Chase returned for Caddyshack II. Ted Knight died before the movie went into production. Bill Murray didn’t want to recreate his role from the first movie. Rodney Dangerfield was involved in developing the movie but then dropped out after two million had already been spent in pre-production. Chevy Chase was paid seven figures to return and he later called it one of the biggest mistakes of his career. Only the Gopher didn’t complain.

With hardly anyone from the first film willing to come back for a second round, Caddyshack II features comedian Jackie Mason as Jack Hartounian, a real estate developer whose daughter, Kate (Jessica Lundy), wants to be a part of the WASPy Bushwood social set. When Chandler Young (Robert Stack) keeps the plain-spoken Jack from being given a membership, Jack teams up with his old friend Ty and buys Bushwood. He turns Bushwood into an amusement park called Jackie’s Wacky Golf. Kate tells Jack that he’s ruined everything and turned Bushwood into Coney Island. Chandler hires survivalist Tom Everett (Dan Aykroyd) to kill Jack and then agrees to play Jack in a round of golf. The winner wins Bushwood.

A bust with both audiences and critics, Caddyshack II is one of the worst sequels ever made. Why would you do a sequel to Caddyshack that features almost nothing that made the first film so entertaining? Jackie Mason was a great comedian and writer but he wasn’t much of an actor and he makes a poor replacement for Rodney Dangerfield. The film really loses me when Chandler Young literally pays money to have Jackie murdered. It’s just a step too far. Not even Ted Knight tried to kill Rodney Dangerfield and Dangerfield was a lot more obnoxious than Jackie Mason ever was. Not even the dancing Gopher can generate much laughs and Kate’s right. Jackie’s Wacky Golf really is a terrible place.

There are some interesting actors and actresses in the supporting cast. The lovely Dyan Cannon plays Jack’s love interest and is one of the few good things about the movie, despite having no chemistry with Mason. Randy Quaid gives a manic performance as Jack’s lawyer, a role that was originally meant for Sam Kinison. Jonathan Silverman is the good caddy who falls for Jack’s daughter while Chynna Phillips is Chandler’s snobby daughter who befriends Kate and tells her she should change her last name to Hart. Dan Aykroyd delivers all of his lines in a high-pitched voice that isn’t funny but which becomes very annoying.

The slobs win again. The snobs are defeated and the Gopher dances with noticeably less enthusiasm. There has never been a Caddyshack 3.

Film Review: The Great Smokey Roadblock (dir by John Leone)

Posted on January 7, 2025 by Lisa Marie Bowman

First released in 1977, The Great Smokey Roadblock tells the story of Elegant John Howard (Henry Fonda).

Elegant is not really his first name. It’s a nickname, one to let us know that, in the world of independent truckers, John Howard was one of the good guys. He never crashed his rig. He never overcharged for a job. He always arrived on time and in good shape. John Howard was a good man but then he turned 60 and he got sick. He spent months in the hospital, unable to work. His truck was repossessed. The movie starts with John sneaking out of his hospital room, stealing back his truck, and hitting the road in search of one final job. Though John says he just wants to make enough money to get his truck back, the truth is that John is terminally ill. If he’s going to die, he wants to die doing what he loves. Of course, dying while driving could lead to some trouble for anyone else who happens to be on the road at the time but still, you have to respect John’s determination. He’s a true American, independent to his core.

(My Dad occasionally made a living driving a truck so perhaps that’s why I’m partial to films like this one.)

John picks up a hitchhiker, a religious young man named Beebo Crozier (Robert Englund). John picks Beebo up because Beebo was walking through the desert in a suit. Beebo claims that he’s walking to Florida but John tells him that he can’t do that. John will drive Beebo to Florida. Of course, John also expects Beebo to pay for the gas that his truck uses because it’s not like John has any money. At first, Beebo accuses John of cheating him. (Henry Fonda cheating someone!? Perish the thought!) Soon, however, John has become Beebo’s mentor.

Everyone respects John but no one wants to hire him. The only offer that John gets is from sleazy Charlie Le Pere (Gary Sandy), who has an agenda of his own. Finally, John visits his old friend, Penelope (Eileen Brennan). Penelope is a madam whose brothel has just been closed down. John agrees to transport Penelope and her girls (including Susan Sarandon) to a new location on the East Coast. Penelope offers to help John pay the bills. Elegant John’s a pimp now! (I was about to say that this seemed like an odd turn-of-events for Henry Fonda but then I remembered that he starred in The Cheyenne Social Club with Jimmy Stewart.)

There’s not really much of a plot to The Great Smokey Roadblock. John, Beebo, Penelope, and the girls travel from one location to another. They get thrown in jail by a notoriously corrupt deputy named Harley Davidson (Dub Taylor). After they escape, they become minor celebrities. Two counterculture journalists (played by Austin Pendleton and John Byner) show up and help them broadcast their story and the film comes to a halt while Pendleton and Byner exchange what sounds like improvised dialogue. The police attempt to set up a roadblock to stop Elegant John and his Six Mystery Women. I guess that’s the Great Smokey Roadblock of the title.

It’s a weird movie, in that the humor is extremely broad and often crude but Henry Fonda is playing a man who is not only terminally ill but who actually looks like he’s terminally ill. (Henry Fonda himself was reportedly very ill during the filming of The Great Smokey Roadblock.) As such, it’s a rather melancholy comedy, one in which every joke seems like it might be the last one that Elegant John will ever hear. In the 70s, not even a trucker comedy could have a happy ending and, as such, The Great Smokey Roadblock feels like a drive-in film for the existential set. The film’s plot doesn’t really add up to much and is full of plot holes that serve as evidence of a troubled production. That said, there’s something rather charming about seeing a pre-Nightmare On Elm Street Robert Englund playing a gentle guy who ends up as Henry Fonda’s protegee. Fonda and Englund play off each other well and their scenes together are the best thing about The Great Smokey Roadblock.

Retro Television Reviews: The Love Boat 2.7 “Ship of Ghouls”

Posted on March 29, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Wednesdays, I will be reviewing the original Love Boat, which aired on ABC from 1977 to 1986! The series can be streamed on Paramount Plus!

This week, Vincent Price comes aboard for a special Halloween episode!

This is actually, the second time that I’ve reviewed this episode. I also watched and reviewed it back in 2021. I enjoyed it the first time that I watched it and my opinion remained the same the second time I watched it. Still, I’m glad that I rewatched the episode as opposed to trying to write a second review from memory. There were a few details that I had forgotten.

Anyway, it’s time for…. SHIP OF GHOULS!

Episode 2.7 “Ship of Ghouls”

(Originally aired on October 28th, 1978, dir by Roger Duchowny)

It’s time for the annual Halloween cruise and Captain Stubing is super excited because he has hired The Amazing Alonzo (Vincent Price) to provide the cruise’s entertainment. Alonzo is a master illusionist and hypnotist, who can trick people into seeing just about anything. The episode really doesn’t explain just how exactly Alonzo is able to hypnotize people by just saying a few words to them but no matter. This is The Love Boat and Vincent Price is …. well, he’s Vincent Price. Vincent comes across like he’s having the time of his life in this episode and, as such, we accept that Alonzo can cause a bunch of people to think that Gopher and Doc have been turned into two donkeys. We accept that he can fool the Captain into thinking that the ship’s pool has been turned into a giant ice cream sundae. We even accept that he can make Isaac’s head appear in a glass of beer. We accept all of it because it just feels wrong to get hung up on logic when Vincent Price is involved.

The Amazing Alonzo is having so much fun flirting with his elderly groupies and casting spells that his long-suffering fiancé, Ramona (Joan Blondell), dumps him and instead moves into the Captain’s quarters. At first, Alonzo is jealous of the Captain but he soon comes to realize that the Captain is not romantically interested in Ramona and is just letting her stay in his quarters because she needs some place to stay. Alonzo also discovers that he can no longer hypnotize people without Ramona’s support. At the big Halloween party, Alonzo freezes time and apologizes to Ramona. He also confesses to her that his real name is Wendell. They walk out of the ship’s ballroom, hand-in-hand. Yay!

Needless to say, Vincent Price was the highlight of this episode. However, as was always the case with The Love Boat, there were other passengers on the cruise.

For instance, nine year-old Bobby Diller (Charlie Aikman) is a habitual liar and prankster. His behavior may be bratty but that’s largely due to the fact that his parents (Gary Collins and Mary Ann Mobley) are getting back together after previously getting a divorce and he’s worried that they’re going to split up again. Fortunately, Bobby’s lying comes in handy when he spots Karen (Barbara Anderson) preparing to throw herself overboard. Bobby tells Karen that his mother committed suicide and that he’s never gotten over it. Karen changes her mind about committing suicide. Once Karen is safely back on deck, Bobby admits that he lied but then adds, “It’s the last lie I’ll ever tell!”

Why was Karen suicidal? Karen was a model until a car accident left her with a scar on her face. Karen is convinced that no one will ever find her to be beautiful again. Of course, Gopher and Doc both find her to be beautiful and they spend the entire cruise hitting on her and arguing over which one of them has the right to dance with her and have dinner with her. (As I’ve said in the past, The Love Boat really was a floating HR nightmare.) Karen, unfortunately, thinks that they’re just doing this as a favor to Karen’s best friend, cruise director Julie. Fortunately, Bobby’s lie convinces Karen that people can sincerely care about one another. Also, Karen realizes that she’s too good for either Gopher or Doc. Good for her!

This was a good episode. Vincent Price was a delight as always and Barbara Anderson was sympathetic Karen. All Halloween cruises should be as entertaining as The Love Boat‘s!