'Twas the Fight Before Christmas... (26 Dec. 1976)

The final "Alamo" episode is set during the Christmas holidays, as McCloud helps a suicidal woman on a window ledge, deals with a psychotic stalker, and tries to rescue "Santa" Clifford and... See full summary »

Director:

Dennis Weaver

Writers:

Herman Miller (creator), Michael Sloan (teleplay),

Stars:

Dennis Weaver, J.D. Cannon, Terry Carter

Cast

Episode credited cast:
Dennis Weaver	...	Sam McCloud
J.D. Cannon	...	Peter B. Clifford
Terry Carter	...	Sergeant Joe Broadhurst
Diana Muldaur	...	Chris Coughlin
William Sylvester	...	Jason Howard
Henry Olek	...	Stranger
Linda Gray	...	Kate O'Hannah
Robby Weaver	...	Scott (as Robert Weaver)
Dean Stockwell	...	Pete Lancaster
Ken Lynch	...	Police Sergeant Grover
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Dan Barton	...	Sergeant
Bella Bruck	...	Joanne Newman
Sandy Champion	...	Officer Washington
Betty Cole	...	Lady
Ann Dusenberry	...	Peggy

Storyline

The final "Alamo" episode is set during the Christmas holidays, as McCloud helps a suicidal woman on a window ledge, deals with a psychotic stalker, and tries to rescue "Santa" Clifford and Chris, who are held hostage in a children's ward at a hospital by three drug thieves.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 December 1976 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Glen A. Larson Productions, Universal TV

Technical Specs

Runtime:

72 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The title is from "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" or "A Visit from St. Nicholas" first published anonymously in the Troy, New York Sentinel on December 23, 1823 by Clement Clarke Moore.

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Quotes

Police Sergeant Grover: Oh, eh, I wanted to talk to you about...
Sam McCloud: Not tonight Grover, I'm gonna be off in two minutes. I got a beautiful woman and a Christmas tree waiting for me. I wanna be trimmin' that tree, not hanging from it.

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Soundtracks

"White Christmas"
Written by Irving Berlin (uncredited)

User Reviews

An overlooked gem

This episode was buried on the night AFTER Christmas, and as far as I know was only rerun once (in a chopped-down version for CBS Late Night in December 1983). But it's close to, if not THE best episode of the whole series. Dennis Weaver directs with far more style and flair than any other director (besides this show, he also did a few "Gunsmokes" while playing Chester and those are highly praised; I wonder why he didn't do more). I don't know if he and Glen A. Larson (who had written the first three "Alamo" episodes) rewrote the script without credit, but it plays 10 times better than most any Michael Sloan teleplay. The edge-of-the-chair interest goes throughout the episode with some marvelous camera angles (check one in particular where McCloud comes down a hospital hallway, seen through a hole in the window, starting in full frame and gradually diminishing until only his eye is seen). There is a lot of humor in this show as well. The only real complaint I have is that MANY bit players (several cops, a whole hospital ward of kids, a TV news reporter) aren't in the credits at all. This deserved to run on, say, December 12 or 19 and get a far larger audience.