HALLMARK HALL OF FAME: RESTING PLACE (TV)
Summary
One in this series of dramatic specials presented by Hallmark. In this movie, the mysterious death of an army officer leads to a conspiracy investigation. The program begins in Georgia, in 1972, as Major Kendall Laird, newly appointed as a survivor assistance officer, has been given the task of escorting the body of army officer and Vietnam hero Lieutenant Dwyte Johnson back to his parents, Luther and Ada. The funeral is scheduled for that day at noon, and a surprised Laird attends the boisterous ceremony. There, Laird meets Eudora McAlister, a friend of the Johnsons. At the burial, officials refuse to allow the African-American Johnson to be buried in Rockville, Georgia, according to an ordinance stating that only Caucasians can be buried within the city limits. Laird is forced to stay in Rockville, as long as necessary, until Johnson is properly buried in the racially divided town. Next, Laird visits the Johnsons' home and asks Ada if she truly wishes to take on the town's white people and antiquated ordinances. Exploring Rockville, Laird finds a town of racists, many of whom speak out against the Johnsons' cause, especially after an anti-Johnson editorial runs in the morning paper. At the newspaper office, McAlister argues with Sam Jennings, the paper's editor, about the coverage of the cemetery kerfuffle. Then, Laird visits Jennings, trying to convince him that the town of Rockville will be remembered negatively from such publicity. Laird agrees to help Jennings by researching the reasons Dwyte's white troop members had attempted to honor his heroism. Surprisingly, Laird finds the army less-than-willing to help the cause which he and the Johnsons now share. Interviewing Bradford Erskine, Booker T. Douglas, and Kevin Porter, all of whom were Dwyte's fellow officers, Laird struggles in obtaining personal information about the slain soldier and the day he was killed. Listening to his recorded interviews later that day, Laird notices uncanny similarities between the trio's statements about Dwyte. Laird visits McAlister's home where he meets law student, Eleanor Clark, who wonders if the Johnsons might be interested in taking the city to court. After Eleanor leaves, Laird details his real reason for meeting with McAlister -- he is intrigued by how everyone seems to have found Dwyte to be a perfect man. Meanwhile, Luther and Ada sit in the church with their son's body, waiting. Next, Laird visits Mervyn Oliver and finds yet another soldier unwilling to discuss Dwyte. Frustrated, Laird continues examining the meager evidence in front of him. Later, he meets with longtime chum Sarge, to ask him if he knows of any verified cases of "fragging" -- conspiracy to assassinate one's own officer. He questions what might occur if he attempted to determine if Dwyte was fragged. Next, Laird meets with General Hauer, detailing his suspicions that Dwyte was killed by his own men before being told that such information is highly sensitive. Laird returns to Rockville, where he learns that the controversy is causing Luther to lose work as an electrician. Laird asks Luther if he would be interested in a standard military burial for Dwyte, which he refuses after showing Laird the last letter that Dwyte wrote to them. Later, Laird visits a local military bar where he again meets with Douglas, trying to get him to crack and implicate his unit in having killed Dwyte. Over dinner that night, Laird further discusses the ordeal with Sarge, detailing how he simply can't drop his investigation, despite Hauer's efforts to rush it along. Over beers, Laird talks about the pressure he's feeling and how he thinks he can get Douglas to crack. The next day he again implores Douglas to reveal the truth, at which point Douglas accidentally reveals the mysterious name "Beyer." Laird struggles to track down Beyer's identity, and finally locates the wheelchair-bound Beyer in a military hospital. There, he tries to get the disturbed Arkansas man to discuss the circumstances surrounding Dwyte's death. Beyer ultimately claims that Dwyte's death was his fault before Laird convinces him to "let go." Later, Laird and Beyer visit Dwyte's old unit where Beyer admits the truth: a fatal air strike mistake by Beyer -- which was blamed on Dwyte -- plus looming racial tension within the unit caused "all hell" to break lose. Dwyte, convinced that a troop member's death was his fault, had tried to take out the source of Vietnamese gunfire. With the men doubting Dwyte's leadership, only Beyer followed him into battle, resulting in the two becoming easy targets. Though shot, Dwyte successfully killed the snipers before dying, thus saving the lives of his men. Laird questions why the men didn't support Dwyte, yet nominated him for a prestigious posthumous medal, the Silver Star. Laird then reads them Dwyte's last letter, which has a dramatic effect. Eventually, the editor of the newspaper publishes an editorial calling for Dwyte to be buried in Rockville -- which he is, with his full unit serving as pallbearers while his parents, and the town, look on. Includes commercials.
("Hallmark Hall of Fame" aired on NBC from 1952 to 1978; network affiliation varies after 1978.)
(Beginning with the live telecast of the opera "Amahl and the Night Visitors" on December 24, 1951, Hallmark has sponsored a series of dramatic specials which since 1952 have been titled "Hallmark Hall of Fame." From 1952 to 1955 Hallmark also presented "Hallmark Hall of Fame," a weekly half-hour dramatic anthology series hosted by Sarah Churchill. The first program, "Dr. Serocold," was televised in January 1952 under the title "Hallmark Television Theatre." This series also ran under the title "Hallmark Summer Theatre" in July and August 1952.)
Details
- NETWORK: CBS
- DATE: April 27, 1986 9:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:53:51
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:32710
- GENRE: Drama
- SUBJECT HEADING: She Made It Collection (Marian Rees).
- SERIES RUN: CBS - TV, 1986
- COMMERCIALS:
- TV - Commercials - Hallmark gifts
- TV - Commercials - Hallmark greeting cards
- TV - Commercials - Hallmark partyware
- TV - Promos - "Airwolf"
- TV - Promos - "Bridges to Cross"
- TV - Promos - "CBS Morning News"
- TV - Promos - "CBS Sunday Movie: Vanishing Act"
- TV - Promos - "Crazy Like a Fox"
- TV - Promos - "Knots Landing"
- TV - Promos - "Magnum, P.I."
- TV - Promos - "Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer"
- TV - Promos - "Simon & Simon"
- TV - Promos - "The Equalizer"
- TV - Promos - "Thursday's Child"
- TV - Promos - "West 57th"
CREDITS
- Marian Rees … Executive Producer
- Robert Huddleston … Producer
- Anne Hopkins … Associate Producer
- John Korty … Director
- Walter Halsey Davis … Writer
- Paul Chihara … Music by
- John Lithgow … Cast, Maj. Kendall Laird
- Richard Bradford … Cast, Gen. Willard P. Hauer
- Morgan Freeman … Cast, Luther Johnson
- C.C.H. Pounder … Cast, Ada Johnson
- G.D. Spradlin … Cast, Sam Jennings
- Frances Sternhagen … Cast, Mrs. Eudora McAlister
- M. Emmet Walsh … Cast, Sarge
- John Philbin … Cast, Bradford Erskine
- Brian Tarantina … Cast, Beyer
- Richard Brooks … Cast, Booker T. Douglas
- Tegan West … Cast, Mervyn Oliver
- Buck Herron … Cast, Private Kevin Porter
- Bob Hannah … Cast, Colonel Holmby
- Mert Hatfield … Cast, Police Chief
- Hugh Jarrett … Cast, Oster
- Denise Mickelbury … Cast, Eleanor Clark
- Wallace Wilkinson … Cast, Ezra Cooper
- Charles Kahlenberg … Cast, Businessman #1
- Marc Clement … Cast, Businessman #2
- Rev. Claude Ray James … Cast, The Pastor
- Elliot Street … Cast, Staff Sergeant
- Pamela Garmon … Cast, Waitress
- Joyce Leigh … Cast, Gen. Hauer's Secretary
- Sherrie Diane Lewandowski … Cast, Passerby
- Bernardine Mitchell … Cast, Singer
- Sidney Lamar Payne … Cast, Soldier
- Thomas Di Aglio … Cast, Uyehara