Thanks to a five year run of 139 episodes that have been in syndication for 40+ years, Larry Hagman and Barbara Eden will forever be known as Tony and Jeannie Nelson. Eden reprised her role in two made for TV movies (as well as appearing in a cameo in "A Very Brady Sequel"), but Hagman never played Major Nelson again. However, a year after "I Dream of Jeannie" went off the air, Eden and Hagman were reunited -- with a bit of role reversal -- for the 1971 movie of the week "A Howling in the Woods." They wouldn't work together again until 1990, when she did a guest-starring stint on "Dallas" as a favor to him.
Liza Crocker (Eden) decides to leave her husband Eddie (Hagman), so she returns to the Nevada lodge her father owns, where she grew up. There she is greeted by her young stepmother Rose (PSYCHO's Vera Miles) and her new step-brother Justin (John Rubinstein). The rest of the townspeople, however, aren't so anxious to greet her, and they're even less thrilled with the mysterious hound who's been baying outside the hotel. And to make matters weirder, her father has vanished to Mexico on a trip. Soon Liza uncovers a mystery revolving around the death of her childhood friend Sally's (Tyne Daly) young daughter.
The movie was filmed in the winter of '71 in Glenbrooke and Dayton, Nevada. The brisk temperatures caused production problems, and Eden claimed that during one scene it was so cold she couldn't make her lips move. But one of the problems during the shoot was off-camera. "Our outboard motorboat ran out of gas on Lake Tahoe where we were filming," said Barbara. "It was choppy and snowballs froze like ice cubes in the water. John Rubinstein look the one oar and rowed us ashore. It took 45 minutes."
Probably should note that there's several scenes featuring Rubinstein playing the piano, and it becomes increasingly clear that it's actually him tickling the ivories. In real life, John's the son of Artur Rubinstein, a renowned Polish concert pianist.
Somebody requested this movie and I was kinda shocked I'd never heard of it. Once again, I turned to those great people at CG and had it an hour later. There's a bit of a sense of deju vu, as the way the story unfolds is very reminiscent of "The Stepford Children," which Eden starred in 16 years later. Like most TV movies from its time, the film is paced slowly and some of the dialogue is laughable, but they amassed talented actors who managed to sell it. And since there's numerous scenes which feature an inordinate amount of exposition, they had to get good actors. On the downside, Hagman doesn't really show up until halfway through the film, and once he's there he has little to do. It's also kinda weird to see HER rejecting HIS advances.
As for the movie's big mystery, there's a few aspects of it that were a bit predictable (like the dog), but I still hadn't put all the pieces together until the big reveal -- and I have a lot of respect for old movies that can keep me guessing. Unfortunately, the final tag scene felt kinda forced, but considering the stars and the era, it's forgivable. All in all, it's a nifty little thriller.
The movie premiered on NBC in November 1971, garnering mostly good reviews, and it aired infrequently on TV until the mid-'90s. As was the trend at the time, it found its way into theatres internationally soon after it debuted, but doesn't seem to have had an official home video release anywhere in the world. Which leads me back to this copy. This is ripped from a broadcast on WGN in the mid-'90s; it runs 93 mins. and has a very good picture quality.
I'm baffled by the running time though. The film debuted in a 90 minute time slot in 1971 -- 1971 TV movies run 74 minutes once commercials are removed. So it's possible that this is the international version. However, imdb cites a running time of 100 mins. Running times on imdb are frequently inaccurate, so I don't know if this is longest version released or not -- and I probably won't know until the studio decides to give it a proper release (but considering what company made it, I don't see that happening any time soon). So without further ado, here's another TV obscurity!
A Howling in the Woods
1971. Not Rated. 93 mins.
Liza Crocker (Eden) decides to leave her husband Eddie (Hagman), so she returns to the Nevada lodge her father owns, where she grew up. There she is greeted by her young stepmother Rose (PSYCHO's Vera Miles) and her new step-brother Justin (John Rubinstein). The rest of the townspeople, however, aren't so anxious to greet her, and they're even less thrilled with the mysterious hound who's been baying outside the hotel. And to make matters weirder, her father has vanished to Mexico on a trip. Soon Liza uncovers a mystery revolving around the death of her childhood friend Sally's (Tyne Daly) young daughter.
The movie was filmed in the winter of '71 in Glenbrooke and Dayton, Nevada. The brisk temperatures caused production problems, and Eden claimed that during one scene it was so cold she couldn't make her lips move. But one of the problems during the shoot was off-camera. "Our outboard motorboat ran out of gas on Lake Tahoe where we were filming," said Barbara. "It was choppy and snowballs froze like ice cubes in the water. John Rubinstein look the one oar and rowed us ashore. It took 45 minutes."
Probably should note that there's several scenes featuring Rubinstein playing the piano, and it becomes increasingly clear that it's actually him tickling the ivories. In real life, John's the son of Artur Rubinstein, a renowned Polish concert pianist.
Somebody requested this movie and I was kinda shocked I'd never heard of it. Once again, I turned to those great people at CG and had it an hour later. There's a bit of a sense of deju vu, as the way the story unfolds is very reminiscent of "The Stepford Children," which Eden starred in 16 years later. Like most TV movies from its time, the film is paced slowly and some of the dialogue is laughable, but they amassed talented actors who managed to sell it. And since there's numerous scenes which feature an inordinate amount of exposition, they had to get good actors. On the downside, Hagman doesn't really show up until halfway through the film, and once he's there he has little to do. It's also kinda weird to see HER rejecting HIS advances.
As for the movie's big mystery, there's a few aspects of it that were a bit predictable (like the dog), but I still hadn't put all the pieces together until the big reveal -- and I have a lot of respect for old movies that can keep me guessing. Unfortunately, the final tag scene felt kinda forced, but considering the stars and the era, it's forgivable. All in all, it's a nifty little thriller.
The movie premiered on NBC in November 1971, garnering mostly good reviews, and it aired infrequently on TV until the mid-'90s. As was the trend at the time, it found its way into theatres internationally soon after it debuted, but doesn't seem to have had an official home video release anywhere in the world. Which leads me back to this copy. This is ripped from a broadcast on WGN in the mid-'90s; it runs 93 mins. and has a very good picture quality.
I'm baffled by the running time though. The film debuted in a 90 minute time slot in 1971 -- 1971 TV movies run 74 minutes once commercials are removed. So it's possible that this is the international version. However, imdb cites a running time of 100 mins. Running times on imdb are frequently inaccurate, so I don't know if this is longest version released or not -- and I probably won't know until the studio decides to give it a proper release (but considering what company made it, I don't see that happening any time soon). So without further ado, here's another TV obscurity!
A Howling in the Woods
1971. Not Rated. 93 mins.
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