Steven Helmer Publications

Synopsis: Kitty O'Day, a hotel switchboard operator who is obsessed with detective stories, overhears her boss, Mr. Williams, being murdered over the phone. Her boyfriend, Johnny Jones, confirms this but by the time the police arrive, the body is gone and Williams' wife, Gloria, claims he is alive and on his way to Chicago. Despite warnings from the police, Kitty continues to investigate and when more bodies turn up, she and Johnny become the primary suspects. Who's in it? The movie stars Jean Parker , Peter Cookson , Tim Ryan , Lorna Gray and Dick Elliott . Review: I ended up selecting Adventures of Kitty O'Day solely because it sounded intriguing when I read the description. I didn't know what to expect when I started watching it this morning, but it turned out to be an entertaining and funny film. The movie, as I later learned, is a sequel to Detective Kitty O'Day and one of the things I liked about this movie is, while it did reference that film (which I...

Synopsis: While working as a page at a Hollywood radio station, Frankie Ryan aspires to be an on-air comedian with his friend, Jeff Jefferson while also doing his best to convince producer Bob Farrell to give a singing audition to the beautiful Anne Mason, who works at the radio station receptionist desk. He soon finds himself caught up in a mystery when the station's top talent, Rita Wilson, is murdered during a rehearsal and a singing cowboy, Tex Barton, is later found killed.  The mystery takes a whole new urgency when the police arrest Anne for the crimes. Who's in it? The movie stars Frankie Darro , Mantan Moreland , Marjorie Reynolds, Tristram Coffin , Dick Elliott , Lorna Gray and Clyde Dilson. Review: I was recently introduced to actor Frankie Darro when watching another movie this week and was surprised when I realized he starred in Up in the Air , a movie that has been in my library for a couple months, but I just never got around to watching. After making that di...

Synopsis: When Andy ( Andy Griffith ) pulls over a woman driver ( Jean Hagan ) for doing 70 m.p.h. in a 45-m.p.h. zone, she challenges the $10 fine and his role as justice of the peace. Andy agrees to let her appeal to Mayor Pike ( Dick Elliott ) despite the jail not being equipped to house a female prisoner overnight. However, his case against her begins to fall apart as she charms his three witnesses, Barney ( Don Knotts ), Floyd ( Howard McNear ) and Opie ( Ron Howard ) into testifying on her behalf. My Thoughts: I wonder if Andy should have been investigated for misappropriation of county property . I really find it hard to believe the taxpayers are perfectly fine with him using the county's only patrol car to go fishing, especially since he had his son, his deputy, and the local barber with him. This, of course, raises another question - what would have happened if had been an emergency? All of Mayberry's law enforcement was out fishing and, at least from appearances, he...

Synopsis: Andy's ( Andy Griffith ) efforts to sell an old cannon to an antique dealer ( Max Showalter ) directly conflicts with the advice he gave to Opie ( Ron Howard ) about being honest when trading with his friends. My Thoughts: I think the thing that really stands out for me about this episode has to be the ridiculousness of trying to sell something as useless as a broken cannon.  I'm not sure why Mayor Pike ( Dick Elliott ) thought Andy and Barney ( Don Knotts ) had nothing better to do than sell it but watching them try to peddle it door to door was kind of funny. Frankly, I feel like the council was a little too quick to dismiss  Ellie's ( Elinor Donahue ) idea of donating the cannon to the historical museum. I mean, all someone would have had to do was clean it up a bit and it would be a decent exhibit. I wonder if the reason her idea was shot down so quickly was the fact she is the only woman on the council. Andy's decision to try to sell the cannon as a hist...

Synopsis: When Mayberry learns one of their own may be a direct descendant of a Revolutionary War hero, the town is excited by the news. But, when the descendant turns out to be the town drunk, Otis Campbell ( Hal Smith ), Mayor Pike ( Dick Elliott ) wants Andy ( Andy Griffith ) to arrange for someone else to accept the plaque on Otis' behalf so Mayberry doesn't suffer an embarrassment. Review: I had planned on mowing the lawn yesterday afternoon. But, since it was raining, I wound up doing my laundry instead. While waiting to switch it over from the washer to the dryer, I put this episode on. Overall, I thought it was a decent one. The main story, to be honest, was a little predictable. Despite Barney ( Don Knotts ) thinking he was the descendant, I wasn't really surprised when it ended up being Otis, mostly because he seemed like the most ridiculous choice. And, when Mayor Pike insisted Andy find someone to pretend to be Otis, I figured he wouldn't follow thr...

Synopsis: To add something different to the annual Founder's Day celebration, Mayberry decides to hold a beauty contest with Andy ( Andy Griffith ) as the judge. He immediately regrets accepting the position as everyone in town begins pestering him to select their daughter, niece, etc. and, on top of it, a misunderstanding about his new job leads to a fight with his girlfriend, Ellie ( Elinor Donahue ). Review: I was running a little bit behind today at lunch but had enough time to watch a short TV episode while eating. Since it had been a while since I've watched this show and it happened to be on Netflix (no commercials), I decided to put it on. This ended up being the episode I watched. On the surface, there are quite a few things that should have made me not enjoy this episode. For one, the ending (and the woman he ends up choosing) wound up being a little predictable. Not to mention the whole beauty pageant thing is becoming a little dated. Not to mention, Andy ha...