I watched this today because I knew Gordon MacRae featured in this episode of McCloud and had wanted to see it for a long time as I'm a big fan. The main story revolves around a madam, played wonderfully as usual, by Shelley Winters, who gets her working girls to con clients out of their credit cards. I guess back in 1974 all you had as identification was the signature, no pin numbers to worry about. One of the girls who goes to work for Winters is played by Kay Lenz, who has previously been spotted in the city with a sick baby, by our hero McCloud (Dennis Weaver). He tries to track her down, and just as well for her, as unbeknown to us early on, she's about to be also tracked down by a vicious killer, who she witnessed committing a crime. This whole scenario is well handled and keeps moving, thanks to a decent script and fine acting by Weaver, Lenz, Winters and MacRae. Gordon MacRae hadn't made a movie in 18 years until this TV drama and he's surprisingly good and very effective. It makes me wonder what other good roles he could have accomplished in drama had he either been offered them or had the will to make them. Few singers make the grade to fine dramatic acting but I thought this episode showed what he could have been. I know he could make a lot more money singing which was his first love professionally and I read a quote that he was happy with the movies that he made and didn't want to carry on with a hit and miss career like a lot of film actors, so he stuck to nightclubs and concerts.
3 Reviews
Runaway from Minnesota
bkoganbing27 January 2015
This McCloud story opens with Dennis Weaver safely tucked away on Harbor Patrol or so J.D. Cannon thinks. But sure enough while cruising through the East River McCloud and Harbor Police officer James Noble spot some suspicious activity on what was supposed to be an abandoned warehouse. One of three people in running away pulls a piece on McCloud and it costs him his life.
But that's only the beginning of a more complex than usual McCloud story that seems to have been butchered in the editing. Dennis Weaver finds a nightclub on Bleecker Street with under age bar girls who lift credit cards for their Fagin like owner Shelley Winters. One of them is Kay Lenz who is a runaway from Minnesota with a sick infant son.
But Lenz has more to worry about than getting caught in Winters activities. She's on the run having witnessed the murder of her boyfriend back in Minnesota and there's a cop played by Gordon MacRae who is on her trail.
McCloud and Winters have an interesting scene and she's an interesting character. She does provide a service of sorts in keeping some girls off the street even though it's illegal activity that's doing it. They have a delightful breakfast together at a hotdog stand.
Bad editing prevents this one from being a top rated McCloud story.
But that's only the beginning of a more complex than usual McCloud story that seems to have been butchered in the editing. Dennis Weaver finds a nightclub on Bleecker Street with under age bar girls who lift credit cards for their Fagin like owner Shelley Winters. One of them is Kay Lenz who is a runaway from Minnesota with a sick infant son.
But Lenz has more to worry about than getting caught in Winters activities. She's on the run having witnessed the murder of her boyfriend back in Minnesota and there's a cop played by Gordon MacRae who is on her trail.
McCloud and Winters have an interesting scene and she's an interesting character. She does provide a service of sorts in keeping some girls off the street even though it's illegal activity that's doing it. They have a delightful breakfast together at a hotdog stand.
Bad editing prevents this one from being a top rated McCloud story.
Just a note about the running time on this episode
milliesdad18 November 2013
Although IMDb has 'The Barefoot Girls of Bleecker Street' listed as a 90-minute episode (73 minutes without commercials), it's actually one of the two-hour episodes...Now, I'm going to copy and paste this several times, so I can post it because IMDb has that stupid rule requiring a minimum of then lines...Although IMDb has 'The Barefoot Girls of Bleecker Street' listed as a 90-minute episode (73 minutes without commercials), it's actually one of the two-hour episodes. Although IMDb has 'The Barefoot Girls of Bleecker Street' listed as a 90-minute episode (73 minutes without commercials), it's actually one of the two-hour episodes. Although IMDb has 'The Barefoot Girls of Bleecker Street' listed as a 90-minute episode (73 minutes without commercials), it's actually one of the two-hour episodes.
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