Zane Grey Theatre (TV Series) The Long Shadow (1961) User Reviews

The very history of the world

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 30 December 2016]

Ronald Reagan said that in his time at Warner Brothers the two fellow contract players who were the nicest to him and most helpful were Pat O'Brien and Dick Powell. He appeared in several films with both of them in support most notably as George Gipp in Knute Rockne All American. So it's no wonder that Reagan did a TV pilot for Dick Powell's Four Star Productions on Zane Grey Theater.

Here he's still in the army but on leave with his sergeant Walter Sande on an errand of mercy to deliver final possessions of a soldier who was killed under his command to Nancy Davis the mother of the soldier. She is also the widow of a soldier friend of Reagan's and they had history.

Some history can be propaganda however as Scott Marlowe who deserted from the army is looking to kill Reagan and does wound Sande severely. A rosy view of history has to be sacrificed for the truth.

I can see how this might have been a series with Reagan and Sande as a pair of good guy veterans helping out people every week. But if the pilot had been picked for sponsorship who knows how the very history of the world might have changed.

Just was not interesting.

[kfo9494 · 4/10 · 10 March 2016]

Perhaps I was expecting too much from this episode that featured Ronald and Nancy Reagan but I never really got into this story. The story was slow to develop and centered around one situation that made little sense with all the version of the story that was introduced.

It began with Major Sinclair (Reagan) having to ride out to the house of Amy Larson and bring her the remaining items from her son's death. It seemed that Amy and the Major were good friends and the Major was going to try to protect her son but things went wrong and everyone feels bad about the death. But some do not believe the story that the Major is telling.

When an Army deserter comes to the Larson house and tells a different version of how the son died, then it causes conflict all around. The deserter is there to kill the Major and at least one person is happy to hear the news.

When watching most episodes, time goes by quickly as the script is interesting and one is caught up with the action. However, in this tale, the story was slow and there was no flow to the plot. It was a very simple plot that moved at a snail's pace. Just was not that interesting of a story. And with the former President, I really wanted to enjoy the show.