House on Greenapple Road (1970)

A detective investigates the disappearance of the promiscuous wife of a timid salesman, and finds that everything is not quite as it appears.

Director:

Robert Day

Writers:

Harold R. Daniels (novel), George Eckstein (teleplay)

Stars:

Janet Leigh, Julie Harris, Tim O'Connor

Cast

Credited cast:
Janet Leigh	...	Marian Ord
Julie Harris	...	Leona Miller
Tim O'Connor	...	George Ord
Walter Pidgeon	...	Mayor Jack Parker
Barry Sullivan	...	Chief Frank Untermyer
Keenan Wynn	...	Sgt. Charles Wilentz
Christopher George	...	Lt. Dan August
Peter Mark Richman	...	Sal Gilman (as Mark Richman)
William Windom	...	Paul Durstine
Burr DeBenning	...	Bill Foley
Lynda Day George	...	Lillian Crane (as Lynda Day)
Joanne Linville	...	Connie Durstine
Edward Asner	...	Sheriff Muntz
Eve Plumb	...	Margaret Ord
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Lawrence Dane	...	Reverend Ryan Hagen (as Laurence Dane)

Storyline

Told in flashbacks, L.A. detective Lieutenant Dan August investigates the disappearance of housewife, Marian Ord whose extramarital activities possibly provide clues to her absence. The police believe she has been murdered by her distraught husband George but they can't come up with a corpse and thereby hangs the mystery.

---

Plot Keywords:

morley cigarettes | based on novel | 

---

Genres:

Crime | Drama

---

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 January 1970 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Quinn Martin Productions (QM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Originally made for cinemas, it was cut by nearly 30 minutes and went straight to ABC-TV on January 11, 1970 where it was a big ratings grabber.

---

Goofs

The bloodstains shown on the refrigerator at the beginning of the movie are in a completely different location from where they appear when it is later shown whose blood it was and how it got there. In the opening sequence, the stains are on the front of the refrigerator, whereas when they are shown being put on, the streaks go above the top of the door.

---

Quotes

Chief Frank Untermyer: He's a good cop, Jack. If you take him off this case, you might destroy him.
Mayor Jack Parker: We're all good cops, Frank. It's just that some of us have learned to bend with the wind.
Chief Frank Untermyer: Yeah, who knows. Maybe for a man that just shows a lack of spine.

---

Connections

Spin-off Dan August (1970)

User Reviews

Janet Leigh's performance...and the film in general.

I would have to agree that Janet Leigh looks very beautiful in this movie, but I hope that people also notice how great of a performance she gives. This character gives her the chance to play a much more seedy part, and she plays it to the hilt.

I don't want to take away from the other great things about this movie because there are many. The plot was great, most of the actors were very good, and the use of flashbacks was COOL! The script was quite racy for a TV movie of that time.

House on Greenapple Road still holds up watching it today, and many believe it is one of the better made for TV movies.