Up Periscope: Early James Garner

The same night that he proposes marriage to a recent acquaintance, Navy Lieutenant Kenneth Braden (James Garner) is whisked away to conduct a secret mission in the Pacific. Once aboard the submarine Barracuda, Captain Paul Stevenson (Edmond O'Brien) explains that Braden will be dropped off in a lagoon near a Japanese-occupied island. His task is to locate a enemy radio transmitter, photograph a radio code book, and return to the sub.

As if that's not challenging enough, the journey to the island is fraught with its own perils. The most significant may be that the submarine crew has lost confidence in its commander. During an earlier mission, Stevenson played it "by the book" and waited underwater for six hours while Japanese boats patrolled the ocean surface. However, as a result of the long wait, a young sailor died of wounds sustained during the attack.

Edmond O'Brien frets a lot.

Apparently, Warner Bros. was grooming James Garner, one of its biggest TV attractions, for movie stardom in Up Periscope (1959). However, it's clear that the studio didn't want to put too much effort into this modestly-budgeted actioner. The trek to Braden's destination contains some minor thrills (e.g., an aerial attack on the sub), but the plot never gains steam until the final half-hour. Add a pedestrian script and what you have is a rather perfunctory picture that does little but showcase Garner's natural appeal.

Edmond O'Brien deserves better than the clichéd role of the vessel commander who begins to doubt his own decisions. The same can be said of an interesting supporting cast, which is mostly wasted. Still, it's entertaining to watch early appearances by football player/future broadcaster Frank Gifford, Edd Byrnes, and Warren Oates. Judging by Byrnes' limited screen time, I'm guessing the production started before he became a pop culture phenomenon as Kookie on 77 Sunset Strip.

Alan Hale, Jr. with beard!

Two other actors may have unknowingly auditioned for their most famous roles. As Garner's bunkmate, Alan Hale, Jr. provides most of the film's humor--preparing him well for playing the Skipper in Gilligan's Island. Meanwhile, Henry Kulky, who plays the Barracuda's Chief Petty Officer, would play one again in the first season of the TV series Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. (Sadly, he died of a heart attack, so the Seaview had a new CPO in seasons 2-4.)

If you're a James Garner fan, you probably ought to see Up Periscope. Garner displays everything that made him a film and TV star for decades, from the heartfelt love scenes with Andra Martin to the physicality of his (backlot) jungle scenes. That's the best recommendation for this otherwise soggy adventure.

James Garner and Andra Martin on the beach.

The Beach Boys Harmonize While Kookie Stays in Orbit!

With its Beach Party series thriving at the box office in 1964, American International Pictures (AIP) was anxious to make a movie with surf music's supergroup: The Beach Boys. Brian Wilson, working with songwriting partners Roger Christian and Gary Usher, had already contributed six tunes to Frankie and Annette's Muscle Beach Party (1964). However, according to Marshall Crenshaw's Hollywood Rock: A Guide to Rock 'n' Roll in the Movies, the Beach Boys' AIP film deal fell apart when the studio insisted on retaining the soundtrack rights.


The Beach Boys.

While the Beach Boys never headlined their own movie, Paramount did feature them later that year in The Girls on the Beach. The title song, written by Wilson and performed by the Beach Boys, appeared on their sixth studio album All Summer Long. The group also appeared in the movie, but only long enough to sing "Little Honda."

The focus on The Girls on the Beach is the Beatles--and they never appear in the movie! The premise has a trio of girls trying to raise $10,000 to save their sorority house. After several futile fundraising efforts (e.g., a bake sale, a beauty contest), they meet three guys who--trying to sound impressive--claims to know Paul, John, George, and Ringo. The girls decide that a Beatles concert is a surefire way to save the Alpha Beta House!

It's a silly plot, to be sure, but the cast is likable and the music good. In addition to the Beach Boys, Leslie Gore and the Crickets (who continued after Buddy Holly's death) perform jaunty tunes. Carol Connors dubs for actress Noreen Corcoran on a couple of songs, including the marvelously-titled "We Wanna Marry a Beatle." Connors was formerly lead singer of the Teddy Bears, who scored a huge pop hit with "To Know Him Is To Love Him." Years later, she co-wrote "Gonna Fly Now" from Rocky.

Kincaid and friends.

Among the cast, the most recognizable performers are Ahna Capri, Lana Wood (Natalie's sister), and Aron Kincaid. Ahna Capri would go to play John Saxon's brief love interest in Enter the Dragon. Lana Wood's most famous film appearance was as Plenty O'Toole in Diamonds Are Forever. Kincaid, a beach movie veteran, would appear in two AIP films, The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini (with Deborah Walley) and  Ski Party (his best role as a campus heart-throb who falls for Dwayne Hickman dressed as a girl), and Paramount's Beach Ball.

The second half of this "Spring Break" double-feature, Beach Ball stars Edd Byrnes--forever known as Kookie from the TV series 77 Sunset Strip. Less charming than The Girls on the Beach, Beach Ball is best known for its incredible musical line-up: Diana Ross and Supremes, The Four Seasons (who sing "Dawn"), the Righteous Brothers, the Hondells, and the Walker Brothers.

In between the musical numbers, there's a plot about Byrnes trying to get a grant (!) so his band, The Wigglers, won't have to return to their instruments to the music store. The best thing about Beach Ball is that the plot doesn't get in the way of the music. Plus, it's fun watching Byrnes trying to act super cool. When a girl asks him to leave the dance floor so they can chat, he quips: "Don't bug me, baby. I'm in orbit."

Neither of these two Paramount forays into the 1960s surf musicals compares favorably with AIP's Beach Party series (no Annette, no Eric Von Zipper!). Still, they're entertaining in a silly way and, if you're a fan of 1960s rock-and-pop music, it's a rare opportunity to watch some of the decade's biggest acts.

Who is the tall dark stranger there? Maverick is the name.

Maverick remains one of the classic TV westerns that emerged from the genre's heyday, from the mid 50s to the mid 60s. It followed the success of Cheyenne, Warner Bros. first Western to appear on television courtesy of ABC. At that time ABC was a fledgling network that needed to bolster its roster against Sunday night favorites The Steve Allen Show and The Ed Sullivan Show. It asked Warner Bros. to provide them with a series that would help increase their ratings. Cheyenne debuted in 1955 as one of three rotating dramas on Warner Bros. Presents, appearing every three weeks along with television versions of Casablanca and Kings Row. Cheyenne quickly became a favorite and set the stage for several more Warner Bros. created westerns including Bronco Lane, Sugarfoot, The Lawman, and Colt 45. For the most part these were traditionally structured westerns with recognizable good guys and bad guys with the hero always triumphant in the end. Maverick started out in the same vein when it debuted in 1957, but creator turned producer Roy Huggins had other ideas and instituted the novel changes that transformed Maverick into a landmark television show.

Maverick had been designed as a one star show, but due to its six-day filming schedule and with James Garner as the only actor, not enough episodes were being produced to fill ABC's need. The decision was made to create a brother for Brett Maverick, Bart Maverick, played by Jack Kelly. Kelly joined the series in the eighth episode. The prevailing concept was that Bart's character was to be written as if it were Brett's character and writers were told to think of Brett even when they were writing about Bart. The only difference was in the acting style of both men. Indeed, only one script was written specifically for Kelly. Kelly's character had to dress exactly like Brett, with the same colors, clothing and style. The costumes worn by the Maverick brothers were more reminiscent of the dark sinister outfits assosciated with villains.

One of the major twists developed by Huggins was to insert an element of comedy and satire into the series and presenting Brett and Bart as rather self-serving card sharks roaming from riverboat to saloon looking for an easy way to make money and avoiding serious consequences at all costs. They were not the fastest guns in the West and their confrontations usually ended in a victorious fist fight. Each week's episode featured either Brett or Bart and a few times they appeared together. There were several recurrent guest stars including Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. as Dandy Jim Buckley and Diane Brewster as Samantha Crawford, a shady lady who gave the Maverick brothers a run for their money.

Along with other writers Huggins fashioned scripts that included spoofs of Bonanza and Gunsmoke. The Gunsmoke episode was entitled Gun Shy and featured a hick Marshall named Mort Dooley. An hysterical sendup of Bonanza had the Maverick brothers involved with Joe Wheelwright and his three sons Moose, Henry, and Small Paul. In an episode titled Hadley's Hunters all of the actors from Warner Bros. other westerns appeared as their characters, with Edd "Kookie" Byrnes of 77 Sunset Strip cast as a blacksmith.

In 1960 James Garner left the show over a contract dispute and Warner Bros. brought in Roger Moore to play cousin Beau Maverick. Moore left the series complaining about the lack of quality in the scripts he was receiving. That led Warner Bros. to bring in a third Maverick relative Brent Maverick played by Robert Colbert, who lasted only one season. That left Jack Kelly appearing in 13 original episodes alternating with reruns of episodes featuring Garner until the series was canceled in 1962.

Maverick is still considered an iconic western. It was full of fun and spoofery and represented a successful attempt to imbue the traditional Western with comedic elements.