A Howling in the Woods

Tonight was a good night to revisit one of my favorite Made for TV Thrillers from the 70s, A Howling in the Woods (1971) starring Barbara Eden, Larry Hagman and John Rubinstein. Barbara Eden plays Liza Crocker, a woman who plans on leaving her husband, played by Larry Hagman, and returns to her hometown to get a divorce.

Upon arriving in Stainesville, NV on the shores of Lake Tahoe, she encounters the townspeople who she grew up with are cold and hostile toward her.  She makes it to her family's lodge, Staines Lodge, on the lake.  Her father is unexpectedly out of country but her step mother and step brother are there to greet her.

Liza soon learns that a child was found killed in the lake nearby and there is the eerie sound of a howling dog in the woods that everyone in town can hear.  Liza starts putting together the pieces of the mystery of her father who she can't reach, the murdered girl, the hostile townspeople and who attacked her in the woods on a stormy night while she took the shortcut from town. Liza's husband comes to the lodge to try to make things right and soon finds himself in the middle of the mystery.

I love this thriller from the 70s.  It's got the eerie music and the spectacular scenery of Lake Tahoe which contrasts with the general feeling of unease in the town and at the lodge.  It's full of mystery and atmosphere and some great acting, including a very young Tyne Daly.  I highly recommend this movie if you can find a copy or catch it on TV. 

The Stranger Within

On a rainy summer day it was nice to stay inside and watch an old made for TV movie called The Stranger Within (1974) starring  Barbara Eden, George Grizzard and Joyce Van Patten.  Ann and David are the happily married couple until Ann discovers she is pregnant even though David had previously had a vasectomy.  That fact and the escalating strangeness of Ann's behavior soon cause a rocky marriage.  Ann starts craving way too much salt and black coffee and keeps the house cold and a mess.  She also starts speed reading through every book she can get her hands on.  We soon discover that her unborn baby is causing her to do these things.  What the baby turns out to be you'll have to watch to see.

I always like watching Barbara Eden in movies and she did a fine job acting at times crazed, erratic, and bizarre in this movie.  The setting in the sunny California hills contrasts with the shadow cast over their marriage and the coolness that permeates the film.  This is not the best Barbara Eden film from that period (see 'A Howling in the Woods') but it is an enjoyable escape on a rainy afternoon.