'70s CMS SEXINESS!

It's been kind of frustrating that I can't seem to find half a dozen CMS performances so far (all TV show guest appearances from the early and mid '70s, of course). A lot of movies and TV from that decade never saw release on home video, or are rarely if ever shown as reruns. So it makes me very happy to tell you that I have managed to find all the rest of Charles Martin Smith's output from the 1970s. And it starts just at the point when he switched from being a cute kid to a hot man! Here's a little peek at what's to come!

Rafferty and the Gold Dust Twins (1975)
Charlie strips off his clothes for Mackenzie Phillips in a fleabag hotel room in this misfit road movie (also starring Alan Arkin and Sally Kellerman).

No Deposit, No Return (1976)
Charlie makes his first appearance in a Walt Disney movie in this silly crime caper, and in my opinion this is where the hotness truly begins.

Law of the Land AKA The Deputies (1976)
Charlie appears in another western, this one is a movie-length pilot for a Quinn Martin TV series that never materialized (starring, among others, Don Johnson and Barbara Parkins).

Baretta guest appearance (1976)
Charlie plays a deaf shoeshine boy who goes after the rapist of a missionary girl! Woah!

The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams guest appearance (1977)
City slicker Charles stumbles upon bearded mountain man Adams (Dan Haggerty) deep in the wilderness and learns about his unusual bear lifestyle in this entertaining episode.

The Hazing AKA The Curious Case of the Campus Corpse (1977)
Charlie and co-star Jeff East run though the woods in nothing but their jockstraps in this goofy comedy/thriller/drama!

The Buddy Holly Story (1978)
I love watching Charles seriously rock out in this Oscar winning biopic (featuring Gary Busey's stellar performance in the title role).

Cotton Candy (1978)
Ron Howard's AWESOME (and hard to find) cult classic features Charles in his first leading role as the super-cute leader of a high school rock band! SO good!

A Dog's Life AKA McGurk (1979)
Charles in a dog suit? This pilot for another series that (fortunately) never happened was not exactly a career highpoint.

More American Graffiti (1979)
Charles finished out the decade reprising the role that made him famous (Terry "The Toad") in this uneven but worthwhile sequel to the 1973 mega-hit.

Wow! Good stuff ahead, huh? And we haven't even gotten to his '80s movies yet: Charlie at his absolute sexiest!  Yay! I can't wait!

See you next entry with more CMS love!

TOD IS DEAD: "The Spikes Gang" (1974)

SPOILER ALERT!

Yeah, I suppose it's too late to talk about spoilers after giving this entry a title like "TOD IS DEAD". I'll not give away the whole story, but I will tell you upfront that Charlie Martin Smith's character Tod does end up deceased before the Wild West drama "The Spikes Gang" reaches its conclusion. But his character's name is also the German word for dead, a clearly intentional choice by the filmmakers, considering all the deathly foreshadowing scattered throughout the movie. Whether it's a Mexican guy on a street corner waving a skeleton doll at the protagonists shouting "Muerte! Muerte!" or the dark pearls of wisdom offered by experienced outlaw Harry Spikes (Lee Marvin), references to death are everywhere in this film.

I don't want to give the impression it's a totally depressing movie, because its not. CMS shares a few lighthearted moments here and there with his fellow actors. "The Culpepper Cattle Co." co-star Gary Grimes and "American Graffiti" co-star Ron Howard are cast with CMS again, playing three young men who have grown up together living a life lacking in adventure... until the fateful day they met Spikes. From what I've read, the filmshoot in Spain allowed opportunities for the young trio of actors to have fun behind the scenes too, including taking a trip together by train to Paris after the shoot had wrapped.

Wandering through an empty field, young friends Will (Grimes), Les (Howard), and Tod (CMS) stumble across the bleeding body of Harry Spikes (Marvin). Initially they assume he is dead, until he startles them by grabbing one of them by the leg. "Help me, boys," he rasps through parched lips. "Save me... hide me."

The guys fret for a minute, fearing involvement will get them in trouble, but being good and well-meaning young men they decide they have to help. Together, they carry Spikes to Will's family's barn, carrying him up into the rafters and laying him behind the bundles of hay. As the other two clean and dress his wounds, Tod hands him a cup of water. Aw, what sweet guys.

After dark, they sneak back out to the barn to pay Spike a visit with some rabbit stew. The boys are entranced by Spike's talk of a life more exciting than anything they have ever known in their young, inexperienced lives. The grateful outlaw, wanted in several states, shakes their hands and tells them: "I owe you. Anytime. Any place. Anywhere." Will gives Spikes a horse from the family stable and the 3 of them watch the fugitive ride off into the night.

After Will's dad seriously beats him for "losing" the horse, he decides to run away. He takes off on another horse, stopping by both of his friends' bedroom windows to whisper tender goodbyes: first Les, then Tod (who seems especially crushed by the prospect of losing a lifelong friend). Of course, Will doesn't get far before Tod and Les ride up beside him, eager to share a life of adventure and danger with him. With some hootin' 'n' hollerin', the trio ride away from their homes for the first time in their lives.

But it's not fun or glamorous out there. They run out of food and money really fast, and end up breaking into a church to eat and drink the communion wine and wafers. Despite his hunger, Tod doesn't join the other two in their act of sacrilege. It's becoming clear sensitive & gentle Tod isn't cut out for this harder lifestyle.

Soon, Tod's strongly held Christian values are put to the test. When they resort to making a try at robbing a bank, like their hero Spikes, you just know it's not going to go well. In the course of the robbery, a gun ends up in Tod's hands. The poor guy really shouldn't have been put in such a position. Because when it all goes awry, the trigger is pulled and Tod becomes a murderer.

The trio flee the scene of the crime, crossing the border into Mexico. Tod, devastated by what he has done, cries out in anguish: "I never killed nothin' in my whole life. I never even killed a rabbit! It doesn't matter [that it's an accident]! He's dead! To God and all of God's world, forever!"  Aw, poor guy. I remember the first time I watched "The Spikes Gang", I was rather annoyed with Charlie's character, thinking he was just a foolish little fuck-up. But watching again, I feel a lot more sympathy for doomed Tod.

Wracked with guilt, haunted by nightmares, poor Tod sinks into despair. The bad luck continues as the boys get more desperate. A few more unfortunate missteps finally land them in jail. Oh, crap!

They rot in a cell for weeks, Tod suffering worst of all, having more nightmares and stuff. I kind of wish the other two would cuddle up to him and comfort him, but they don't. They leave him alone: cold, shivering, and crying. Things finally start looking up when they happen to look out the window one day... and who do they see? Harry Spikes! He hears them shouting from their cell window and wanders over. It's time to repay the debt he owes them, and he springs them from jail, taking them under his wing.

First things first: get these grimy boys cleaned up. It's straight to the bath house for a soak in the tub. While Spikes talks with the boys about their unlucky recent past and their uncertain future, I take a moment to note that what I am watching is more-or-less Charlie's first nude scene.

I must point out: it is a very limited degree of flesh. All you see is from the chest up. I am sure he is covered up with some fleshtone bathing suit under the waters. But this scene is pretty much the first time he is showing some skin on camera. My problem? Charlie is still so darn young at this point in his career. How old would he be in this movie... 20? Plus I get the feeling his character is meant to be even younger.

Yeah, take a look here: where's the body hair? True, CMS has a little bit around his nipples and a smattering in his armpits, a light dusting across the forearms... but that's it. He needed to ripen a little more, as far as I'm concerned. But that's OK. CMS will be showing off more in later films, when he is older and much hotter than he is able to be here.

It's kind of interesting that the bathtub scene was used in the film's promotion, presumably to entice teenage girls with Gary Grimes in his possible nakedness. But what young lady (or young gentleman, for that matter) would be able to say no to Charlie's sweet smile?

One thing that makes me smile is when they all realise Tod is blind as a bat. I smile because this requires them pay a visit to an optometrist and slap a pair of glasses on Charlie's face! Yay, Charlie looks better already. If he got some facial hair going, I would have been even happier. But he stays baby faced to the end. 

There's another nearly-nude scene later on in the film that had me hitting the pause button and going frame-by-frame. Spikes is taking a skinny-dipping break, floating in a lake, cigar in his mouth, when the boys pounce into frame for some wet horseplay, Wait a second... is that CMS's naked left buttock?

I took a closer look, and I concluded that the motion blur hides the fact he's wearing fleshtone shorts. When Spikes was floating in the water at the start of the scene, he was definitely wearing shorts. The rest of the scene moves too quickly, the motion frequently blurry, to tell if any of them are really naked or not... But who knows? CMS demonstrates later in his career he isn't afraid to shuck off his clothes if the role requires it. How fearless!

After grooming and training the boys as his new gang, Spikes plans to have them assist in a more planned-out bank robbery. I think they all realize sweet good-natured Tod should be kept out of harm's way, deciding to have him serve as look-out and watch their getaway horses instead of holding a gun and helping in the bank.

But there's more bad luck a-plenty, and inevitably Tod is mortally wounded. His death takes days to arrive, and when it does Will and Les are devastated. Aw... Poor Tod. Rest in peace, fella.

I still don't think "The Spikes Gang" is one of CMS's best films, but I do have more of an appreciation for it now. I admitted before that I'm not a huge fan of westerns, so I have my personal bias crippling my judgement. Another sincere perfomance from CMS helps considerably. Director Richard Fleischer had delivered more impressive movies before helming this one ("20,000 Leagues Under The Sea"(1954), "Fantastic Voyage"(1966), "Tora! Tora! Tora!"(1970), "Soylent, Green"(1973)) but I would admit this is better than some of the stuff he worked on after ("Amityville 3-D"(1983), "Red Sonja"(1985)).  I actually haven't seen the film Fleischer directed after this one, the controversial slave-era drama "Mandingo" (1975), so I'm not sure how it stacks up against the others. One of these days, I'll have to find out.

RUSSELL THE RABBIT: "The Streets of San Francisco" (1974)

Between November 1973 and January 1975, Charles Martin Smith was featured in guest starring roles on six television series: "Love, American Style" (alongside "American Graffiti" co-star Cindy Williams), "Chase", "The Streets of  Francisco", "The Rookies" (alongside "Graffiti" co-star Bo Hopkins), "Petrocelli", and "Lucas Tanner" (alongside future "No Deposit No Return" co-star Herschel Bernardi). Unfortunately, out of those I was only able to find his episode of "The Streets of San Francisco". Damn, that's a lot of unseen CMS. I'm still on the lookout for them, but until then I have CMS in this rather compelling episode, looking quite cute in a pretty prominent role. 

The episode titled "Blockade" was first broadcast on January 24th 1974 on ABC. Along with series regulars Karl Malden and Michael Douglas, the impressive list of guest stars also includes future "The Buddy Holly Story" co-star Don Stroud, Ida Lupino, and Patty McCormack! Wow!

Before I jump into a plot rundown, I wanted to mention the location that the episode opens at: San Francisco's Cliff House. I have never eaten at the Cliff House, but I have spent a lot of time down in that vicinity, walking along Ocean Beach or the Coastal Trail, or enjoying the view from Sutro Park. The Cliff House today could be described as elegantly simple in it's appearance (perhaps even bland), but back in late 1973 when this episode was shot, it looked like a real eyesore. Oh, the horror of '70s tackiness...

The episode begins at the Cliff House late one night. As he did in "American Graffiti" (1973) and his screen debut "The Culpepper Cattle Co." (1972), CMS grabs the first shot as his character Russell Jamison walks across the Cliff House parking lot over to his friend Chet Barrow (Stroud), who is digging around under the hood of a parked car. He also once again gets the first line as he nervously blurts out, "Come on, she's gonna be off work any minute!"

Chet and Russell had crafted a plan earlier inside while they sat at table four, cruising their pretty waitress Susan (a pre-"Charlie's Angels" Cheryl Ladd!). Chet has rigged her engine to stall out after a few miles and the idea is somehow she's gonna be so happy to see them when they pull up next to her that she'll turn into a voracious nymphomaniac and service the both of them. Yikes! Their scary plan doesn't make much sense, huh? In fact, Russell seems a little sceptical too. Clearly this is Chet's idea and his pal "Russell Baby" is along for the ride. They hide behind a nearby parked car and watch as doomed Susan gets off work and hops into her tampered car.

The engine stalls out as she speeds down the Great Highway that runs along the western edge of San Francisco, just as the two schemesters planed. When they drive up and get out to offer help, she (not surprisingly) is creeped out and nervous. Chet lifts up her hood like he is going to fix the problem as Russell smiles at her through her driver's side window, but she recoils in fear and locks the door.

But her car's thin rooftop is no match for Chet's switchblade, as he carves a hole in it. The two attackers leer down at Susan as she begins to scream and plead for mercy. "You wanna see some action tonight, Russie-Baby?" Chet says. "You're gonna see it." Eek! 

Fortunately, we the viewers don't see it, since this is TV in the mid '70s after all. The scene abruptly cuts to the next morning, as Susan's body is found floating in a pond in Golden Gate Park. Detective Mike Stone (Malden) and Inspector Steve Keller (Douglas) arrive on the scene and the investigation begins.

When we next see Russell, he's sitting on the back deck of the Potrero Hill  home he shares with his mother, Wilma (Lupino). He's looking pretty anxious as he listens to the news broadcast coming off the radio. Mom comes home and isn't too happy to find him not at work. When he tells her he feel sick, she doesn't seem too sympathetic. Just as suddenly as she arrived, she's back out the door to offer her support to Judge Cameron's daughter. Poor Russell. Mom cares more about this Judge Cameron guy and pampered daughter Jill's marriage problems than she does about her own son.

In Russell's next scene, he's on the phone with Chet, all nervous and afraid now that their crime is all over the media. When Wilma abruptly comes home, he quickly gets off the phone and plays it cool. She's still pretty annoyed at him for being home from work, and she's not too happy that he associates with "that Chet Barrow" either. Then she conveniently brings up the murdered waitress when she reads the murder headline on a newspaper laying on the floor, and adds how Judge Cameron has his theories about the "deviants" that must have done it.

That's when Russell snaps. "Judge Cameron!" he shouts. "What does he know? Was he there?" And suddenly mother and son are deep in an argument about her former employer the Judge. It's really sad how wounded Russell is, still hurting from his lonely latchkey childhood while mom worked for 16 years as nanny to the Judge's daughters. Right on cue, Cameron's grown daughter Jill (McCormack) shows up on Wilma's doorstep in tears. Her marriage is a disaster and she just can't take it! As she sobs in Wilma's arms, neglected Russell drags his sad sack self up the stairs to his room. Awww...

Several scenes later, we're back with Wilma comforting a tearful Jill. She goes upstairs to find Russell coming out of the closet. Literally, not figuratively, as he is carrying an armful of clothes and packing his bags to leave. Seeing he is upset, she tries to comfort him. After some motherly reassurance, Russell breaks down and confesses his involvement with Chet and the dead waitress. Suddenly the doorbell is ringing. Is it the police? Have they come to take Russell away?

It's not the police, but Chet, who was nearly arrested by Stone & Keller and now he needs a place to lay low. When Wilma insists he leave, she gets a fist in the jaw! Damn! Russell rushes to his mom's defense but is subdued by nothing more than Chet towering over him and pressing two fingers against his chest.

Oh no! It looks like Chet is gonna hide out in their place and hold them as hostages! Chet locks the front door and leers at them menacingly as Wilma and Jill cower in fear. Russell, Russell... what are you gonna do?

The episode cuts back and forth between the police closing in on them and Chet's rage-filled outbursts at his captives in the house. "You animal!" Wilma shouts at one point, which seems to amuse Chet. "You think I'm an animal?" he asks Russell. "No, you're an animal! You're... a rabbit!" Why is Russell a rabbit? I don't know, Chet never explains further. But I have to wonder... Is is a reference to CMS's cute overbite? Or perhaps something more? Little tidbits that come out about Russell's relationship with Chet make me wonder what these two might have done in their spare time alone together. How intimate were these two "buddies"? Did Russell share his rabbit hole with Chet? Who can say? My thoughts are not impartial on the matter, I must admit.

There's more action and suspense as the episode reaches it's thrilling conclusion, but I'm gonna refrain from spoiling the ending. It's a pretty solid hour of TV and I'd say it's worth watching. Besides the surprisingly engrossing story arc concerning poor lonely damaged Russell, several strong performances help elevate the material above typical '70s television. Lupino is impressive as the struggling single mother shifting from angry to concerned to terrified, and Stroud is convincing as the genuinely creepy Chet. But best of all (of course) is CMS throwing himself into a tricky role, making an accomplice to rape and murder someone you end up caring about. It doesn't hurt that he's looking rather adorable in this one too. Perhaps I'm just biased....

TERRY THE TOAD: "American Graffiti" (1973) and the early work of CMS

It's time to get to what this blog is all about: enjoying and discussing the work of Charles Martin Smith. Let's start at the beginning, shall we? Following the IMDb listing for Charles (or Charlie, as he is credited in his early roles), I've been slowly working my way through his filmography. With the exception of an episode of "Room 222" (broadcast in November 1972) that I couldn't find, I've seen everything from that  initial 2 year period leading up to his breakthrough performance in "American Graffiti" (1973).

The first acting appearance listed is one scene in a 3rd season episode of "The Brady Bunch". First broadcast on ABC on October 8th, 1971, "The Wheeler-Dealer" is the one where Greg (Barry Williams) is stuck with a piece-of-junk car that he's trying to get rid of. Charlie plays Ronnie, the "friend" he tries to sucker into buying it. It's fun to watch CMS getting his start here. He brought an adorable awkwardness to the part, playing the first of several shy & nerdy roles to come. The episode was also directed by 50's sci-fi king Jack Arnold! How cool is that?

Charlie's big-screen debut was in "The Culpepper Cattle Co." from 1972. Normally I'm not a big fan of westerns, but I thought this one was pretty good. It has a bit of a "Little House on the Prarie" vibe to it, focusing on the more mundane and less glamorous aspects of life in the wild west of yesteryear. After the credits finish, Charlie appears right at the beginning as he shouts out the film's opening line, "Kiss my ass, Ben Mockridge!" He plays Tim Slater, who in the opening sequence engages in a horsecart race with his friend Ben (Gary Grimes). At first it looks like Tim is going to be the winner, but he is ultimately defeated.

Tim and Ben then share an ever-so-slightly homoerotic moment as Ben shows off the new gun he just acquired. While Ben displays his pistol proudly, Tim smiles and admires it. "It looks like a nice one," he gushes. Probably not the first time these two characters have shown their "pistols" to each other, I would imagine. Unfortunately, there is no more Tim Slater for the rest of the movie.

"Fuzz" (1972) features Charlie's next movie role. Once again, it's a bit part in only 2 scenes (he only has one line). He plays Baby, who wanders the Boston back alleys with his friend Jimmy (Gary Morgan) dousing passed-out street bums with lighter fluid and catching them on fire! Damn!

When Detective Steve Carella (Burt Reynolds) finally catches them near the end of the film, it's revealed they were only trying to do their part in cleaning up the neighborhood by getting rid of the drunken bums that had been such a nuisance. Gosh, what rotten little shits.

There are even more bad kids to be found in the next CMS movie I watched: the 1973 TV adaptation of the popular teen drug confessional novel, "Go Ask Alice" (first broadcast January 24th on ABC). Charlie plays Jim, one of the many students who put the "high" in high school. He appears in one scene where he asks Alice (Jamie Smith-Jackson) if she has any drugs for sale, but she's trying to get clean so she's not holding. Aww, what a bummer.

Released a few months before "American Graffiti", Sam Peckinpah's "Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid" (1973) contains one scene near the beginning with Charlie. He plays Bowdre, a young cowpoke staying in a shack with Billy the Kid (Kris Kristopherson) and a bearded 3rd friend. It's noon and they're still sleeping, but they slowly drag themselves out of bed. While the other 2 make fun of Bowdre for adjusting his morning wood a little too vigorously ("I was just scratching," he sheepishly replies), Pat Garrett (James Coburn) and his posse gather outside, weapons ready to fire.

When Bowdre steps outside to tend the horses, he gets several bullets in the stomach! Damn! Doomed from the start! The poor guy drags himself back inside. His scene in the cabin is really quite good, slowly dying in his companion's arms as he cries out in pain, "Sweet Mary's ass!" As they make their escape, the other two running off in opposite directions, poor Bowdre goes down in a hail of bullets.

CMS has died frequently enough in his films to have inspired a thread on his IMDb page devoted to listing his death scenes. It's pretty cool that for his first of many he would perform, he gets to go out with a bloody bang "Wild Bunch"-style under the direction of the great Mr. Peckinpah. It's also worth noting that almost 40 years later, CMS would cast co-star Kristopherson in a key supporting role in his recent hit film, "Dolphin Tale 3-D" (2011).

Then there's "American Graffiti" (1973). Charlie landed a major role in George Lucas's nostalgia-drenched snapshot of more innocent times, and he's been busy working hard and going strong ever since. Surprisingly, it's a film that I hadn't actually seen until just a few years ago (when my CMS obsession kicked in), although I grew up in the pop-cultural fallout after it's release, as interest was revived in late 50s/early 60s culture throughout the 70s (the "Happy Days" TV series and the "Grease" movie being the most obvious examples I can remember).

It's a film I still have some mixed feelings about. Technically, I think George Lucas created something very impressive on many levels. It captures the details of the era very vividly and convincingly. The late-night look of the film created with the assistance of famed cinematographer Haskell Wexler is fantastic. The wall-to-wall pop song soundtrack reworked into a beautiful sound montage by Walter Murch is incredible. All achieved on a budget under a million dollars too!

But a major component of the era (cars! cars! cars!) is something I have never been able to relate to. I'm not terribly fond of some of the main characters, in particular wishy-washy aspiring writer Curt Henderson (Richard Dreyfuss) and his friend Steve Bollander (Ron Howard). I find Curt annoying and Steve is a bit of a douchebag. I understand the emotional turmoil Curt's sister/Steve's girlfriend Laurie Henderson (Cindy Williams) goes through, but after a while her overwrought histrionics just irritate me. Their drama forms two of the four story threads that intertwine and separate throughout the film. More likable are drag-racing badboy John Milner (Paul Le Mat) and pre-teen Carol Morrison ("Go Ask Alice" co-star Mackenzie Phillips), whose plotline is amusing and kind of sweet. However, in my opinion, the best moments in the movie belong to Debbie Dunham (Candy Clark) and Terry "The Toad" Fields (CMS).

The film starts one night in Modesto, CA in the summer of '62. As the credits roll and the period pop tunes kick in, the sun sets figuratively on an era and literally on a Mel's Drive-In restaurant. Charlie's character grabs the first shot (as he pulls up and gently crashes his motor scooter into a wall) and the first line ("Hey, what do you say, Curt? Last night in town. You guys gonna have a little bash before you leave?"). Before the other characters go their separate ways and have their separate adventures, Steve loans his flashy '58 Impala to Terry, who takes off to cruise the strip alone, looking for fun.

Unfortunately, Terry finds mostly humiliation as he rides around. Just when he might give in to despair, he spots cute blonde Debbie walking down the street. He calls out the window, striking up a conversation and getting her attention. What do you know? She's impressed by his car's "tuck-and-roll" upholstery. Horny and excited, Terry blurts out "I'll let you feel it... the upholstery I mean." Aww, you're so adorable, Terry.

Debbie's a little kooky but she's fun, as she and Terry head out into the night for their own string of mishaps and teenage thrills. Last time around, I was giving a full-on plot rundown of their adventures together, a sea of spoilers as far as the eye can see. This time around, I'm not gonna do that. I'd rather urge you to see and enjoy the film for yourself, especially if you haven't seen it already. Plot descriptions don't really give you the full sense of the many pleasures to be found in this carefully and lovingly constructed film.

I really love the pairing of Candy Clark and CMS. They have great chemistry together, and their performances are a total joy to watch. Here's a highlight, as Terry and Debbie retreat to Lover's Lane to get a little more familiar with each other. I can't help but chuckle at Terry's bear stories (woof!)...

Initially I wasn't so fond of this movie, preferring George Lucas's sci-fi films instead, but I have to admit the film has grown on me quite a bit, and I think there is much to savor and enjoy in it besides CMS's iconic performance as the quintessential adorable nerd. He had a few more years to go before I would say he was full-on sexy, and a decade before he would reach the supreme hotness of his part in "Never Cry Wolf". But I think he is hella cute in this. Can you believe Pauline Kael called Terry "repulsive" in her "American Graffiti" review at the time of the film's release? What a fucking bitch.

Speaking of George Lucas and his sci-fi films, I wanted to share this clip of CMS screen testing for the part of Luke Skywalker in "Star Wars" (1977). Imagine how different the film would have been if he got the part instead of Mark Hamill!