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Robert Logan, who succeeded Edd “Kookie” Byrnes as the valet parking attendant on the famed ABC detective show 77 Sunset Strip and starred as the dad in a series of return-to-nature adventure movies, has died. He was 82.

Logan died May 6 of natural causes in Estero, Florida, his son, Anthony Logan, told The Hollywood Reporter. His family chose to wait until this week to announce his death.

After Gerald Lloyd Kookson III was promoted from parking attendant at Dino’s Lodge — a nightclub owned by Dean Martin — to partner and private investigator at the detective agency next door, the Brooklyn-born Logan joined Warner Bros. Television’s 77 Sunset Strip to play his replacement, another hipster named J.R. Hale.

On the swanky series that starred Efrem Zimbalist Jr. and Roger Smith as the crime solvers Stu Bailey and Jeff Spencer, respectively, Logan portrayed Hale on 50 episodes of the show’s final two seasons,...

Amazon Prime Video is the place to go for movies this month, with a plethora of original films as well as new library additions for just about every movie fan. The Emma Roberts-led original Space Cadet hits the streaming service aptly on the Fourth of July, for anyone looking for a fish-out-of-water style comedy. My Spy the Eternal City, the newest film in the Dave Bautista-led family action series also drops on July 18.

Action film fans are also in for a treat with recent films The Beekeeper and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning coming to Prime Video in July.

As far as TV shows go, the most notable addition this month is the adult animated series Sausage Party: Foodtopia, a continuation of the 2016 film Sausage Party.

Here’s everything coming to Prime Video and Freevee in July – Amazon originals are designated with an asterisk.

New on Amazon Prime Video...

George Segal with Ben Gazzara and Robert Vaughn during the filming of "The Bridge at Remagen" in 1968.

By Lee Pfeiffer

Actor George Segal has passed away at age 87. Segal became a rising young star in the 1960s and went on to enjoy success in both feature films and television. He made his big screen debut in "The Young Doctors" in 1961 and within a few years had appeared in "Ship of Fools" and his first starring role in "King Rat". The 1965 adaptation of James Clavell's novel found Segal as an American prisoner in a Japanese P.O.W. camp in WWII. He uses his guile and survival skills to not only stay alive but to thrive, much to disgust of British P.O.W.s who think his actions border on collaboration with the enemy. Segal's biggest break came the following year when he was cast in Mike Nichols' screen...

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By Tim McGlynn

During the pre-video/broadcast television era of the mid-seventies, college campuses were teeming with movie offerings on a weekly basis. It was the only way to see older theatrical titles in their uncensored form. My own experience at the University of Illinois provided 8 to 10 films per weekend with recent Hollywood hits, classic revivals and the occasional porn flick being the usual choices. Lecture halls, auditoriums and even church sanctuaries were converted to temporary cinemas that offered a cornucopia in 16mm. These were quality exhibitions with twin projectors, external speakers for clear dialogue and anamorphic lenses when needed. It seemed a little odd that one could view a somewhat racy movie in the same space that would be used for worship the next morning. I would often take in several titles on Friday and Saturday nights for the bargain price of...

Tarzan got a new lease on life when a film company finally went to Africa to pit the excellent ‘Lord of the Jungle’ Gordon Scott against a formidable phalanx of villains. Anthony Quayle, Sean Connery and Niall MacGinnis are perfect Dastards of the Darkest Continent. Also top-flight are the women in this jungle combat, wicked Scilla Gabel and naughty Sara Shane. Fun for adult kids of all ages!

Tarzan’s Greatest Adventure

Blu-ray

Warner Archive Collection

1959 / Color / 1:78 widescreen / 87 min. / Street Date November 13, 2018 / available through the WBshop / 21.99

Starring: Gordon Scott, Anthony Quayle, Sara Shane, Niall MacGinnis, Sean Connery, Al Mulock, Scilla Gabel.

Cinematography: Edward Scaife

Film Editor: Bert Rule

Original Music: Douglas Gamley

Written by Les Crutchfield, Berne Giler, John Guillermin from the character created by Edgar Rice Burroughs

Produced by Harvey Hayutin, Sy Weintraub

Directed by John Guillermin

Of all the big-screen Tarzans — Johnny Weissmuller, Lex Barker, Jock Mahoney,...

What’s the best true-story WW2 combat film for pure-grit, no-nonsense tanks ‘n’ bombs ‘n’ crazy mayhem action on a giant scale? This non-stop battle epic gets my vote. George Segal and Ben Gazzara’s infantry dogs are suitably tough, cynical and desperate, especially when they’re repeatedly sent into danger. The history is fairly accurate — there was indeed a race to seize the last bridge across the River Rhine.

The Bridge at Remagen

Blu-ray

Twilight Time

1969 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 117 min. / Street Date June 13, 2017 / Available from the Twilight Time Movies Store 29.95

Starring: George Segal, Robert Vaughn, Ben Gazzara, Bradford Dillman, E.G. Marshall, Peter Van Eyck, Hans Christian Blech, Bo Hopkins, Matt Clark, G&uunl;nter Meisner.

Cinematography: Stanley Cortez

Film Editors: William Cartwright, Harry Knapp, Marshall Neilan Jr.

Original Music: Elmer Bernstein

Written by Richard Yates, William Roberts, Roger Hirson

Produced by David L. Wolper

Directed by John Guillermin

Who...

New York -- Robert Vaughn, the debonair, Oscar-nominated actor whose many film roles were eclipsed by his hugely popular turn in television’s The Man From U.N.C.L.E., has died. He was 83.

Vaughn died Friday morning after a brief battle with acute leukemia, according to his manager, Matthew Sullivan.

The Man From U.N.C.L.E. was an immediate hit, particularly with young people, when it debuted on NBC 1964. It was part of an avalanche of secret agent shows (I Spy, Mission: Impossible, Secret Agent), spoofs (Get Smart), books (The Spy Who Came in From the Cold) and even songs (Secret Agent Man) inspired by the James Bond films.

Vaughn’s urbane superspy Napoleon Solo teamed with Scottish actor David McCallum’s Illya Kuryakin, a soft-spoken, Russian-born agent.

Photos: Stars We've Lost In Recent Years

The pair, who had put aside Cold War differences for a greater good, worked together each week for the mysterious U.N.C.L.E. (United...

Robert Vaughn, an Oscar-nominated actor who also starred in the 1960s TV series The Man from U.N.C.L.E., has died, People confirms. He was 83.

Vaughn passed away at 7:30 a.m. on Friday morning in a hospital on the East Coast after a brief battle with leukemia, his rep Matthew Sullivan tells People. Just shy of his 84th birthday, Vaughn received treatments for his cancer battle in both Manhattan and in a hospital near Ridgefield, Connecticut before passing away.

A New York native, the veteran actor received his first and only Oscar nomination in 1960 for his supporting role in The Young Philadelphians.

This Article Has Been Updated

By Lee Pfeiffer

The past year has been an especially harsh one for the entertainment industry in terms of well-known personalities who have passed away. Today's news that actor Robert Vaughn has died hits Cinema Retro especially hard and this writer in particular. He died from a battle with leukemia and was surrounded by his family in his final moments. I first met Robert in 1983 at a press conference in New York in which he and David McCallum promoted their forthcoming TV movie "Return of The Man From U.N.C.L.E." I've remained friends with them ever since and shared many an enjoyable conversation. Robert was an early supporter of Cinema Retro and contributed to numerous issues, most recently issues #33 and #34 in which he was interviewed by writer Steve Rubin about the dramatic occurrences in making the 1969 WWII film "The Bridge at Remagen...

A major talent of the New German Cinema finds his footing out on the open highway, in a trio of intensely creative pictures that capture the pace and feel of living off the beaten path. All three star Rüdiger Vogler, an actor who could be director Wim Wenders' alter ego. Wim Wenders' The Road Trilogy Blu-ray The Criterion Collection 813 1974-1976 / B&W and Color / 1:66 widescreen / 113, 104, 176 min. / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date May 30, 2016 / 99.95 Starring Rüdiger Vogler, Lisa Kreuzer, Yetta Rottländer; Hannah Schygulla, Nasstasja Kinski, Hans Christian Blech, Ivan Desny; Robert Zischler. Cinematography Robby Müller, Martin Schäfer Film Editor Peter Przygodda, Barbara von Weltershausen Original Music Can, Jürgen Knieper, Axel Linstädt. Directed by Wim Wenders

Reviewed by Glenn Erickson

This morning I 'fessed up to never having seen David Lynch's Lost Highway. Now I get to say that until now I've never seen Wim Wenders'...

Director John Guillermin has passed away at age 89. The British director was best known for his high profile action films including the 1974 blockbuster "The Towering Inferno" and the 1976 remake of "King Kong", a production that was plagued by troubles but ended up being quite profitable. Guillermin was despised by some in the industry for his mercurial temperament and harsh methods of directing actors. However, no one could deny his talents. He was equally adept at directing scenes of intimate drama as well as explosive, large-scale action scenes. Among his best films was the 1969 production of "The Bridge at Remagen" which was interrupted by the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia. Guillermin and producer David L. Wolper managed  to salvage the film by moving the production elsewhere, a monumental task that they completed successfully. Other Guillermin films include "Death on the Nile", "The Blue Max", "El Condor", "Shaft in Africa", "Skyjacked", "Never Let Go...

Strictly Come Dancing was Saturday's (November 30) highest-rated show, peaking with an audience of 10.27 million (45.2%).

Featuring dances from around the world, this week's show was seen by an average audience of 9.63 million (42.4%) from 7pm on BBC One.

I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! was ITV's highest-rated show, entertaining 7.85 million (38.5%) from 9.45pm.

It was preceded by The X Factor, which drew an average audience of 7.55 million (33.1%). A further 133k watched on ITV+1, while 167k (0.8%) tuned into ITV2's The Xtra Factor.

ITV's evening began with 3.4 million (15.4%) for The Chase: Celebrity Special at 7pm and ended with 2.55 million (20%) for The Jonathan Ross Show at 10.50pm.

Back on BBC One, Atlantis was seen by 3.76 million (16.7%) at 8.15pm, followed by 3.92 million (17.4%) for Casualty.

BBC One's evening ended with 2.99 million (19.5%) for Match of the Day, which featured highlights from Hull vs Manchester United and Qpr vs Leicester.

A Dad's Army repeat was once...

‘Edge of Tomorrow’ review: Tom Cruise, the Last Movie Star, makes latest alien invasion movie ‘exceptionally entertaining’ (photo: Tom Cruise in ‘Edge of Tomorrow’) Hiroshi Sakurazaka’s popular illustrated novel All You Need Is Kill was originally published in 2004, and has seen a number of adaptations and republications, including serialization as an even more popular manga in Japan and, translated from the original, an American graphic novel recently republished as Edge of Tomorrow. The latter is a better title for a movie, particularly a summer blockbuster featuring the last movie star, the full depth and breadth of his star powers at work in every scene — as he is literally in every scene — turning what would have been a serviceable military sci-fi adventure movie into an exceptionally entertaining sci-fi drama that reminds one what the purpose of a movie star is: to make the audience care about characters and events they...

We're sad to report that actor Ben Gazzara has succumbed to pancreatic cancer at age 81. Over Gazzara's nearly-sixty year career, his greatest screen moments occurred in collaboration with close friend John Cassavetes, along with actors Peter Falk, Seymour Cassel, and Cassavetes' wife Gena Rowlands. With Falk's passing last year and now with Gazzara's, it seems an opportune time to revisit a 2004 chat I had for Venice Magazine with the surviving members of the Cassavetes "company" that coincided with Criterion's release of their "John Cassavetes: Five Films" collection. Cassel was the only member not present during the conversations, which took place in the home that John and Gena shared from 1962 until his death, and which served as a location for many of their films together.

Remembering Cassavetes:

The Legacy of America’s Most Important Indie Film Pioneer Is Preserved in the Criterion Collection’s New Release John Cassavetes:...

Retro-active: The Best Articles From Cinema Retro's Archives

Bradford Dillman: A Compulsively Watchable Actor

By Harvey Chartrand

In a career that has spanned 43 years, Bradford Dillman accumulated more than 500 film and TV credits. The slim, handsome and patrician Dillman may have been the busiest actor in Hollywood during the late sixties and early seventies, working non-stop for years. In 1971 alone, Dillman starred in seven full-length feature films. And this protean output doesn’t include guest appearances on six TV shows that same year.

Yale-educated Dillman first drew good notices in the early 1950s on the Broadway stage and in live TV shows, such as Climax and Kraft Television Theatre. After making theatrical history playing Edmund Tyrone in the first-ever production of Eugene O’Neill’s Long Day’s Journey into Night in 1956, Dillman landed the role of blueblood psychopath Artie Straus in the crime-and-punishment thriller Compulsion (1959), for which he...

Ben Gazzara at Cinema Retro's dinner for Robert Vaughn at New York's Players club, 2009. (Photo by Tom Stroud)

By Lee Pfeiffer

Ben Gazzara, who was born in poverty in a New York slum and rose to be a major star of stage and screen, has succumbed to cancer at age 81. Gazzara was part of a new generation of method actors that emerged in the 1950s and he studied at the fabled Actors Studio under the direction of Lee Strasberg in the company of other up-and-coming stars as Marlon Brando, James Dean and Paul Newman. The competitiveness of that talented group often meant that roles created by one actor later proved to be star-making vehicles for another actor. For example, it was Gazzara who originated the role of Brick, the hunk who is confused about his own sexuality in Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, earning one of...

New York — Ben Gazzara, whose powerful dramatic performances brought an intensity to a variety of roles and made him a memorable presence in such iconic productions over the decades as the original "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" on Broadway and the film "The Big Lebowski," has died at age 81.

Longtime family friend Suzanne Mados said Gazzara died Friday in Manhattan. Mados, who owned the Wyndham Hotel, where celebrities such as Peter Falk and Martin Sheen stayed, said he died after being placed in hospice care for cancer. She and her husband helped marry Gazzara and his wife, German-born Elke Krivat, at their hotel.

Gazzara was a proponent of method acting, in which the performer attempts to take on the thoughts and emotions of the character he's playing, and it helped him achieve stardom early in his career with two stirring Broadway performances.

In 1955, he originated the role of Brick Pollitt,...

New York — Ben Gazzara, whose powerful dramatic performances brought an intensity to a variety of roles and made him a memorable presence in such iconic productions over the decades as the original "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" on Broadway and the film "The Big Lebowski," has died at age 81.

Longtime family friend Suzanne Mados said Gazzara died Friday in Manhattan. Mados, who owned the Wyndham Hotel, where celebrities such as Peter Falk and Martin Sheen stayed, said he died after being placed in hospice care for cancer. She and her husband helped marry Gazzara and his wife, German-born Elke Krivat, at their hotel.

Gazzara was a proponent of method acting, in which the performer attempts to take on the thoughts and emotions of the character he's playing, and it helped him achieve stardom early in his career with two stirring Broadway performances.

In 1955, he originated the role of Brick Pollitt,...

Television and film producer known for Roots, The Thorn Birds and Willy Wonka

David L Wolper, who has died of heart disease aged 82, called his 2003 autobiography simply Producer. The modest, unadorned title gives no hint of the long and varied career it covers. According to Wolper: "A producer is a person who dreams. Good producers make dreams come true."

The word "producer" evokes thoughts of a crass, cigar-chomping entrepreneur, more interested in profit than art. Wolper both conformed to the stereotype and confounded it. His flamboyant showman side was on display with his staging of the spectacular Hollywood-style opening ceremony of the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, which consisted of a four-hour musical extravaganza, with 84 pianists in white tuxedos who played George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue on white grand pianos, surrounded by 300 dancers. In 1986, he produced a celebration of the 100th anniversary and restoration of the Statue of Liberty,...

This Week’s pick is yet again another World War II classic, the 1969 John Guillerman (King Kong 1976) film The Bridge At Remagen which stars George Segal (Lt. Phil Hartman), Ben Gazzara (Sgt. Angelo), Robert Vaughn (Major Paul Krueger), Bradford Dillman (Major Barnes) and screen great E.G. Marshall as General Shinner.

The film opens in March of 1945 as the American 9th Armored Div began to push elements of the retreating German army back towards the Rhine River. The German high command wants all the bridges over the Rhine destroyed in order to halt the advance of the allies from reaching the heart of Germany.

But one high ranking officer, General Von Brock (Peter Van Eyck) enlists the help of Major Paul Krueger (Vaughn) to keep one bridge, the bridge at Remagen up in order to allow the German 15th Army and its seventy-five thousand men to retreat and avoid capture. Krueger...

On Sunday, November 22, The Players, the legendary New York City private club for the performing arts, will honor member Robert Vaughn with a gala dinner. Cinema Retro Editor in Chief Lee Pfeiffer will interview Vaughn on-stage for a discussion of his remarkable career and his recent autobiography A Fortunate Life. There will be screenings of relevant clips from Vaughn's work including The Magnficent Seven, Bullitt, The Towering Inferno,S.O.B, his current hit British series Hustle, Washington:Behind Closed Doors (for which he won the Emmy), Superman 3 and, of course, The Man From U.N.C.L.E. There will also be rarely seen early career footage of Vaughn's TV appearances. Ben Gazzara, Vaughn's co-star from The Bridge at Remagen, is scheduled to speak, as is actor Joseph Sirola, who guest-starred in several episodes of U.N.C.L.E. The date has special significance for Vaughn: it is his birthday and it is...