Sunday Showcase (TV Series) What Makes Sammy Run?: Part 2 (1959) User Reviews

An excellent conclusion.

[planktonrules · 9/10 · 21 March 2013]

"What Makes Sammy Run" is an incredibly jaded look at Hollywood. It follows the career of Sammy Glick--a guy who would probably shoot his own mother if he thought it would help his career! And, it makes for a very interesting and very jaded look at Hollywood--much in the tradition of films like "The Great Man", "Death of a Scoundrel" and "What Price Hollywood?". But we all know that unlike this movie, Hollywood couldn't possibly filled with such conniving, dishonest jerks (ha!!).

This film is based on a best-selling novel by Bud Schulberg--the screenwriter and son of one of Hollywood's biggest execs (B.P. Schulberg was the head of production for Paramount for some time). You assume as the big wig's son, he got his fill of phonies and jerks--and this fills this film from start to finish.

This review is part for two of the film. It was shown on two subsequent Sunday evenings on American television but is available now on DVD. Unfortunately, the DVD producers are jerks and FORCE you to watch commercials before you can actually see the movie--a bad trend I am noticing more and more. But, considering how good the acting and (especially) the writing are, it's worth putting up with this bull.

We pick up with Sammy Glick after he's completed his first film. Now, his goals become higher and higher--moving up the studio food chain until he's within sight of becoming head of the studio. All the while, you see the story told from the point of view of a man who can't stand Sammy--Al (John Forsythe). Like part one, this one is jaded and fascinating from start to finish--and well worth your time.

Part 2 of the TV adaptation of "What Makes Sammy Run?" was even better than the first

[tavm · 10/10 · 12 May 2010]

After watching and reviewing the first part of the TV adaptation of Budd Schulberg's "What Makes Sammy Run?" (which he collaborated with his brother Stuart on the teleplay), I immediately viewed the second hour part on the DVD. In this part that aired the following week, Sammy Glick (Larry Blyden) has had a successful run of hit movies of which some credit goes to one of his writers-and former dating partner-Kit Sargent (Barbara Bush). One of those other writers, however, a one Al Manheim (John Forsythe), who was also one of Glick's former New York paper colleagues, decides to get back to his former grounds at the Big Apple as he reluctantly says goodbye to Kit as he's fallen for her. It's only when Glick needs someone to write a newspaper picture that he manages to get Manheim back...This second part was even better than the first as producer/directer Delbert Mann hits on all cylinders as he pushes the drama forward. Besides the three leads I mentioned, there were also very compelling performances by Sidney Blackmer as studio head H. L. Harrington, Dina Merill as his daughter Laurette, David Opatoshu as head of production Sidney Fineman, and, in a nice surprise from his later better-known role of Mr. Roper on "Three's Company", Norman Fell as Seymour Glick, Sammy's closer-to-his-roots brother. Fell, especially, is very effective in his role. So on that note, these episodes of the anthology series "Sunday Showcase" were a nice surprise discovery when I checked these out from my local library. They're well worth seeing.