Richard Chamberlain as The Count of Monte-Cristo

Chamberlain as Edmond Dantes.

Between his TV heartthrob status as Dr. Kildare and his reign as "King of the Miniseries," Richard Chamberlain sought to expand his acting versatility. He appeared in Shakespeare plays, worked with unconventional director Ken Russell, and played a different sort of Prince Charming in a musical version of Cinderella. He also starred in four movies based on the works of Alexandre Dumas: The Three Musketeers, The Four Musketeers, The Man in the Iron Mask, and The Count of Monte-Cristo.

The last of that quartet was produced for British television and broadcast in the U.S. by NBC in 1975. Chamberlain plays newly promoted Captain Edmond Dantes, whose success in business and love incurs the jealousy of three shipmates. They frame him as one of Napoleon's spies by forging a letter. It's a weak charge, but the prosecutor has a secret he must hide at all costs: his father is a Napoleon loyalist and traitor. So, the prosecutor banishes Edmond to an island prison, where he is forgotten.

Yes, that's Trevor Howard.

After ten years of loneliness, Edmond becomes acquainted with the Abbe Faria (Trevor Howard), a fellow prisoner who has been digging a tunnel to freedom. The Abbe becomes a father figure to Edmond, teaching him about the arts and sharing a map to an alleged long-lost treasure on the island of Monte-Cristo. The Abbe also helps Edmond deduce the identities of the four men responsible for ruining his life.

Although the Abbe dies, Edmond manages to escape from his castle of captivity. His heart, though, is filled with vengeance and he dedicates his life to destroying each of the men that wronged him.

Dumas was a masterful storyteller and The Count of Monte-Cristo is an absorbing tale from start to finish. Chamberlain makes an effective transformation from a naive young man to a bitter, angry one who has aged well beyond his years. His best scenes are those with Trevor Howard as the Abbe in the prison. It was no surprise to learn that Chamberlain and Howard each earned Emmy nominations for their performances.

Nelligan pleads for her son's life.

Louis Jourdan, Kate Nelligan, and Donald Pleasance are convincing in supporting roles. The same can't be said for Tony Curtis, who walks through his villainous part with little conviction. His climatic sword fight with Chamberlain is a snooze thanks to a very obvious body double (though Richard seems to be doing his own dueling). Tyrone Power's daughter Taryn makes her English-language debut in a small part. I remember her best from Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger, which was released two years later.

Sidney Carroll, who co-wrote The Hustler back in 1961, does an admirable job of condensing Dumas' packed plot into a 103-minute movie. A couple of major subplots are jettisoned, but the end results are the same and the streamlined movie undoubtedly moves at a quicker pace. My only beef is that I wanted to know the fate of the likable smugglers who pulled a weary Dantes from the sea after his prison escape.

Three years after The Count of Monte-Cristo, Chamberlain made Centennial, the first of three blockbuster miniseries that would secure his fame in TV history. He followed it with Shogun in 1980 and The Thorn Birds in 1983.

Dr. Kildare: Perfect Television Viewing for the Summer

Richard Chamberlain as Jim Kildare.

Most of our summer viewing this year has consisted of movies and TV series on two streaming services: Acorn TV and Warner Archive. The latter features both classic films and television, including all five seasons of Dr. Kildare (1961-66). It has turned out to be the most pleasant surprise of the season! That shouldn't come as a shock, I suppose, since the 1960s produced many of our favorite television shows, including The Fugitive, The Defenders, and The Twilight Zone.

Chamberlain and Suzanne Pleshette.

However, while those three series are widely hailed as critical favorites, I don't recall a lot of praise being heaped on Dr. Kildare. While it may not reach the same heights, the first season of Kildare still boasts exceptional writing and strong acting. It helps, of course, when you have guest stars such as: Suzanne Pleshette, Charles Bickford, Anne Francis, William Shatner, Ross Martin, Ellen Burstyn, Beatrice Straight, Richard Kiley, Dorothy Malone, Glynis Johns, Rip Torn, Joan Hackett, Joseph Schildkraut, Martin Balsam, and Julie Adams. Plus, there are a number of future TV stars in small roles such as Jean Stapleton, Ted Knight, Edward Platt, and Gavin MacLeod.

Raymond Massey as Dr. Gillespie.

The strength of Dr. Kildare, though, is the casting of the leads. Richard Chamberlain earned his reputation as a fine actor after he left Kildare (and appeared on stage as Hamlet and became "King of the Miniseries"). But the truth is that he's quite good as the inexperienced intern in Dr. Kildare. Naturally, it helps when you're acting opposite Raymond Massey, who is marvelous as Jim Kildare's mentor Dr. Gillespie. I have no idea how Massey wasn't nominated for at least one Emmy during his five years in the role. He and Chamberlain share some brilliant scenes during the show's first season.

The writers do a nice job of showing the challenges of being an intern in a large hospital. Jim Kildare makes $60 a month (about $500 today), works long hours, rotates through the various medical departments, and sometimes has accurate diagnoses overruled by more senior physicians. Kildare greatly admires Gillespie, but his mentor often admonishes him for his behavior. Jim would never consider himself Gillespie's favorite, but others have taken note (one bitter doctor refers to Kildare as "Gillespie's fair-haired boy").

Richard Chamberlain and Anne Francis.

Most of the episodes take place at Blair General Hospital, but the series still ventures outside those antiseptic walls. In "The Lonely Ones," Jim visit his parents and we learn that his father is a small-town general practitioner. In "A Million Dollar Property," Jim spends a weekend with an insecure actress (Anne Francis) who wants to find more meaning in her life.

The plots deal with a wide range of medical and social issues. Examples include: a smallpox scare in "Immunity"; an ageing surgeon who may no longer be competent in "Winter Harvest"; drug addiction in "The Lonely Ones"; malpractice in "Admitting Service"; and a mercy killing in "For the Living." In "The Patient," an episode with comedic overtones, Kildare injures his back and learns what it's like to be a patient.

If you've never seen Dr. Kildare or haven't watched it in a long time, then we recommend that you check out the first season. I can't vouch for seasons 2-5, but the inaugural one is quality television that will keep you entertained and make you think. Who could ask for more in terms of summer TV viewing?

Here's a clip from Dr. Kildare that includes Dick York and Dick Sargent--the two future Darrins in Bewitched--in back-to-back episodes. How's that for foreshadowing? You can view this scene full-screen on the Classic Film & TV Cafe's YouTube Channel. You can also stream the entire Dr. Kildare series at warnerarchive.com.

Snack-sized Reviews: "The Mark" and "Twilight of Honor"

Stuart Whitman in The Mark.

The Mark (1961) - This well-made Irish film tackles a controversial subject with restraint and intelligence. Stuart Whitman plays an American named Jim Fuller, who has been recently released from prison. His psychiatrist (Rod Steiger), his boss (Donald Wolfit), and the local police are the only people that know the nature of Whitman's crime: He plead guilty to child seduction with intent to assault. Although he has been deemed cured, Fuller struggles to fit into society and lead a "normal" existence. His daily challenges are complicated by a disturbingly maternal landlady (Brenda de Banzie) and a mutual attraction with a co-worker named Ruth (Maria Schell). She knows that Jim is a former convict, but she doesn't know the nature of his crime. She also has a young daughter who forms an instant bond with Jim. For most of its running time, The Mark is a potent film that shows both Jim's struggles and the general public's fear that arises when his secret is revealed. In one of its best scenes, the police pick up Jim with no explanation. He waits in agony for two hours, not knowing why he is being detained. When he's finally released, Jim learns that a young girl was assaulted and murdered...and naturally, the police suspected him until his alibi could be verified. Stuart Whitman shines as Fuller, his face conveying a tormented man who doesn't believe he deserves happiness. The performance earned Whitman a Best Actor Oscar nomination (he lost to Maria Schell's brother Maximillian, who won for Judgment at Nuremberg). My only quibble with The Mark is that it ultimately plays it safe. The ending doesn't ring true and I also wonder how audiences would react to the film if Fuller had really been a child molester.

Chamberlain and Heatherton.

Twilight of Honor (1963) - At the height of his Dr. Kildare fame, Richard Chamberlain starred in this courtroom drama set in New Mexico. He plays David Mitchell, a young lawyer assigned to defend a drifter (Nick Adams) who allegedly murdered the most popular man in town. David quickly learns that the defendant is all but convicted. The judge refuses to change the venue, an ambitious special prosecutor (James Gregory) has been called in, and the defendant's promiscuous wife (Joey Heatherton) wants to collect the reward for turning her husband in. Assisted by his legal mentor (Claude Rains), David bases his defense on an obscure New Mexico law (though, as it turns out, good ol' self-defense might have worked, too). A poor man's Anatomy of a Murder, Twilight of Honor is a reasonably entertaining courtroom drama that lacks the brilliant performances, humor, and sizzle that made the latter film a classic. Claude Rains heads a solid supporting cast peppered with actors destined to become known for their television roles: Pat Buttram from Green Acres, James Gregory (Barney Miller), Linda Evans (The Big Valley and Dynasty), and Paul Langton and Henry Beckman (both Peyton Place). Twilight of Honor also "introduced" Joey Heatherton, who is actually quite convincing in the "bad girl" role. Nick Adams, who gained fame on TV's The Rebel, is okay as the none-too-bright defendant. He surprisingly garnered a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for his performance (the film received another nomination for Best Art Direction-Black and White). As for Richard Chamberlain, he struggles at times, but guts out his performance. I think he grew as an actor and was quite convincing in later roles in Shogun and The Thornbirds.

The Slipper and the Rose: A Different Musical Take on Cinderella

Richard Chamberlain as the Prince.

Pleasant, but only modestly successful, The Slipper and the Rose (1976) follows in the footsteps of two better-known musical versions of Cinderella: Walt Disney's 1950 animated classic and the Rodgers and Hammerstein television musical that starred, at various times, Julie Andrews, Lesley Ann Warren, and Brandy Norwood. There are numerous other musical adaptations as well, to include 1955's The Glass Slipper with Leslie Caron. Thus, it seems odd that if one was going to produce a lavish musical fairy tale that one would pick Cinderella.

That said, The Slipper and the Rose takes an unique approach by focusing much of the plot on the Prince and emphasizing class distinctions in the monarchy of Euphrania. Richard Chamberlain plays Edward, a dashing prince being pressured into marriage to ensure the sovereignty of his tiny country. Edward rejects several potential brides on the basis that he wants to marry for love. The royal chamberlain (Kenneth More) convinces the king to throw a ball to find an acceptable spouse for his son.

Gemma Craven as Cinderella.

Meanwhile, following her father's death, Cinderella (Gemma Craven) has learned that her stepmother (a delightful Margaret Lockwood) inherited the estate. The disagreeable lady gives Cinderella two choices: become a servant (indeed, the only one) in her own home or go live in an orphanage. Cinderella's outlook is bleak until her fairy godmother (Annette Crosbie) arrives and magically arranges for her to attend the ball. When she makes her grand entrance, it's loveat first sight for Cinderella and Prince Edward. However, in this version of the fairy tale, it takes awhile before they can live happily ever after.

Brother Richard and Robert Sherman, who composed the songs, were Disney veterans known for Mary Poppins, The Jungle Book, and Bedknobs and Broomsticks. Their score for The Slipper and the Rose is agreeable without being especially memorable. The clever lyrics (as evidenced by the song title "Protocoligorically Correct") outshine the music. The exception is the lovely Oscar-nominated "The Slipper and the Rose Waltz (He Danced with Me/She Danced with Me)," which lost the gold statuette to "You Light Up My Life." (If your browser prevents you from viewing the embedded clip below, click here to view it on YouTube.)

Gemma Craven is a sweet Cinderella, but she doesn't get much screen time until the film's second half. She does have a strong scene near the climax in which she shows her character's inner strength singing the dramatic "Tell Him Anything (But Not That I Love Him)." Chamberlain does well as the prince and proves that he can carry a tune (he had a trio of Top 20 Billboard hits during in the 1960s while his Dr. Kildare TV series was popular). However, it's the veteran supporting cast that carries the film: Crosbie, More, Michael Hordern as the King, and Dame Edith Evans as the Dowager Queen. As mentioned above, Margaret Lockwood is a perfect wicked stepmother and deserved more screen time.

Margaret Lockwood's evil stepmother.

When I watch a film like The Slipper and the Rose, I sometimes wonder who was the intended audience. At a length of 143 minutes and with 13 songs, I can't imagine many kids sitting through it from start to finish. So, I can only assume it was intended as a fairy tale for adults. However, even they might get restless when it continues for a half-hour after Edward discovers the left-behind glass slipper fits Cinderella. It's an interesting idea to split up the lovebirds because of their class distinctions, but, in the end, the resolution is much too tidy with everyone getting what they want.

I suppose that's all right in this case, though, because The Slipper and the Rose is a fairy tale.