Paul WilliamsFilmography

Who is Harry Nilsson (And Why is Everybody Talkin' About Him)?

Actors: Harry Nilsson, Jimmy Webb, Micky Dolenz, Rick Jarrard, Doug Hoefer

Desert Heat

Crew: Songwriter

Actors: Gregory Scott Cummins, Neil Delama, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Noriyuki "Pat" Morita, Danny Trejo, Gabrielle Fitzpatrick

Synopsis: A group of bullies terrorizing a small town meet their match in the Muscles From Brussels in this action drama. Eddie Lomax (Jean-Claude Van Damme) is a drifter who has been in a suicidal funk since the death of his close friend Johnny (Danny Trejo). Riding his motorcycle into a small desert town Read More

A Kind of Hush

Actors: Harley Smith, Marcella Plunkett, Ben Roberts, Paul Williams, Nathan Constance

Synopsis: Brian Stirner made his directorial debut with this British drama about child abuse, as seen in the attitudes of a half-dozen traumatized London teens -- a gang run by Stu (Harley Smith) amid homeless street people, hustlers, hookers, alcoholics, and junkies at Kings Cross. Vigilante gang members Read More

Markus 4

Actors: Bentley Mitchum, John Savage, Robert Carradine, Sherrie Rose, Joseph Culp

Synopsis: In this sci-fi thriller, a young musician living on another planet sets off for revenge against the egomaniacal corporate fiend responsible for the murder of his twin brother. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide Read More

Headless Body in a Topless Bar

Synopsis: The lurid title of this black comedy comes from a New York Post headline for the story on which this film is based. It begins in a seedy bar late at night where a small crowd of customers disinterestedly eye the listless gyrations of Candy, a topless dancer. Among the customers are a corporate Read More

Hart to Hart: Old Friends Never Die

Synopsis: In this made-for-TV movie inspired by the popular series Hart to Hart, jet-setting Jennifer and Jonathan Hart (Stephanie Powers and Robert Wagner) are attending a party for a successful publisher on his private island resort. Jennifer happens to overhear two men discussing a murder they plan to Read More

Phantom 2040: The Ghost Who Walks

Synopsis: Kit Walker is the 21st Century Phantom, one of a long line of superheroes who have lived in the jungles and dutifully defended mankind's precious natural resources. After the cataclysmic Resource War, Kit moves to the urban jungles of Metropia, looking to thwart the baddies. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Read More

A Million to Juan

Actors: Paul Rodriguez, Polly Draper, Pepe Serna, Bert Rosario, Jonathan Hernandez

Synopsis: This comedy, set in the barrios East L.A. is loosely based upon Mark Twain's parable The Million Pound Bank Note. The new version tells the tale of Juan Lopez a nice, but uneducated hombre trying to earn enough money to support his little boy. Though Juan was born in the States, he lacks proper Read More

Hart to Hart Returns

Actors: Stefanie Powers, Lionel Stander, Robert Wagner, Ken Howard

Synopsis: Stefanie Powers and Robert Wagner return as the Harts, married private eyes who in this made-for-TV movie interrupt their carefree lives to investigate a group of corrupt government contractors. Lionel Stander also returns as their sidekick Max, with Mike Connors and Ken Howard as guest stars. Read More

The Muppet Christmas Carol

Crew: Songwriter

Actors: Michael Caine, Steve Whitmire, Jerry Nelson, Frank Oz

Synopsis: Brian Henson, the son of Muppet founder Jim Henson, took over directing duties after the untimely death of his father for The Muppet Christmas Carol, a sluggish re-telling of the Charles Dickens tale. Michael Caine, surrounded by legions of fuzzy, felt puppets, plays it straight as the crotchety Read More

Frogs!

Actors: Scott Grimes, Shelley Duvall

Synopsis: A wicked witch ruins a teen's plan to become king of the Spring Fling in this family-oriented fable from the "Wonderworks" series. The trouble begins when the witch turns Arlo, the most popular boy in school, and his buddy Gus into slimy green frogs. The two amphibians head for the local pond and Read More

The Doors

Actors: Val Kilmer, Meg Ryan, Kyle MacLachlan, Frank Whaley, Kevin Dillon

Synopsis: Val Kilmer delivers what was considered one of 1991's best performances as Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone's hallucinatory bio-pic of the seminal 1960s rock group The Doors. Stone cuts a jagged swath through Morrison's life, starting with a childhood memory where Morrison sees an elderly Indian dying Read More

Sky Trackers

Actors: Pamela Sue Martin, Paul Williams

Synopsis: Since Sky Trackers was produced on behalf of the Disney Channel cable service, we shouldn't be surprised that the principal characters are three children. When an extraterrestrial satellite crash lands in the Australian outback, the kids search for survivors. The plot thickens when it is learned Read More

The Adventures of Ford Fairlane

Crew: Songwriter

Actors: Andrew Dice Clay, Wayne Newton, Priscilla Presley, Morris Day, Lauren Holly

Synopsis: Controversial and often offensive stand-up comedian Andrew Dice Clay made his debut as a feature film star in this crude comedy. Fairlane is a "rock and roll detective" who works in the music business, has an office on Sunset Boulevard, and drives a 1957 Ford, with clothing to match. He floats Read More

Betsy's Wedding

Crew: Songwriter

Actors: Alan Alda, Madeline Kahn, Molly Ringwald, Ally Sheedy, Anthony LaPaglia

Synopsis: Offbeat fashion student Betsy Hopper (Molly Ringwald) and her straight-laced investment-banker fiancé, Jake Lovell(Dylan Walsh), just want an intimate little wedding reception, but Betsy's father, Eddie (Alan Alda), a Long Island construction contractor, feels so threatened by Jake's rich WASP Read More

Loose Cannons

Crew: Songwriter

Actors: David Alan Grier, Gene Hackman, Dan Aykroyd, Dom DeLuise, Ronny Cox, Nancy Travis

Synopsis: Loose Cannons may be a wacky buddy-cop comedy, but it starts with a chilling premise. It seems that a film is discovered that depicts the final moments of Adolf Hitler's life. The climax features young German officer Von Metz, who is seen putting Hitler to death. Von Metz (Robert Prosky) is now Read More

Everybody Wins

Crew: Songwriter

Actors: Debra Winger, Nick Nolte, Will Patton, Judith Ivey, Jack Warden, Kathleen Wilhoite

Synopsis: Private investigator Tom O'Toole (Nick Nolte) is reluctant to take on a case offered to him by cryptically offbeat Angela Crispini (Debra Winger), but he lets himself be seduced by her. Angela believes that Felix Daniels (Frank Military) was wrongly convicted of murdering his uncle. As O'Toole Read More

Solar Crisis

Actors: Tim Matheson, Charlton Heston, Peter Boyle, Annabel Schofield, Tetsuya Bessho

Synopsis: A group of scientists are sent to the sun in 2050 to stop a giant solar flare from destroying the Earth. As the team nears the sun, some members of the team begin to suspect that someone is trying to sabotage their mission. Solar Crisis has very strong special effects and fine acting, making it an Read More

The Lost Samurai

Actors: Paul Williams

Synopsis: This time the villains want to rule the world by controlling the weather. Paul Williams plays the obligatory crusading broadcast journalist who uncovers the conspiracy. Despite the seeming cut-and-dried nature of the story, Chill Factor is honeycombed with plot twists and surprises. Without giving Read More

People Like Us

Actors: Dennis Farina, Ben Gazzara, Eva Marie Saint

Synopsis: Based on a novel by Dominick Dunne (who virtually disowned the project the minute it hit the small screen), People Like Us is a 2-part, 4-hour TV movie. Ben Gazzara plays a writer whose daughter has been murdered (much like Dunne himself). Upset that the killer's sentence is all too short, Gazzara Read More

The Old Gringo

Actors: Jane Fonda, Gregory Peck, Jimmy Smits, Patricio Contreras, Jenny Gago, Jim Metzler

Synopsis: In this historical drama based on Carlos Fuentes' novel, Harriet Winslow (Jane Fonda) is a naive woman who, hoping to broaden her horizons, accepts a job as a governess in Mexico in 1913. However, Harriet unknowingly finds herself thrown into the middle of the Mexican revolution, where she Read More

Frog

Synopsis: A reptile-collecting high schooler is shocked to discover that one of his many frogs is actually an enchanted prince looking for a fair maiden to free him. This delightful entry from the Wonderworks series, chronicles the teens attempts to help out his froggy friend. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Read More

To Heal a Nation

Actors: Eric Roberts

Synopsis: To Heal a Nation is the true story of Jan Scruggs (Eric Roberts), a decorated veteran of the Vietnam War. In 1979, Scruggs, employed by the US Department of Labor, becomes obsessed with the dream of erecting a monument to those who died in Vietnam. In pursuit of this dream, Scruggs and his fellow Read More

Severance

Crew: Composer (Music Score)

Actors: Lou Liotta, Lisa Wolpe, Linda Christian-Jones, Carl Pistilli, Sandra Soehngen

Synopsis: Severance is a human interest story about a drunken drifter's attempts to reconcile with his long estranged daughter. Former Air Force officer Ray Ponti (Lou Liotta) fell apart and lost everything after the auto accident that kills his wife. As the film opens, he hasn't seen his daughter in years. Read More

Zombie High

Actors: Virginia Madsen, Richard Cox, Kay Kuter, James Wilder, Sherilyn Fenn

Synopsis: In this horror film, young Andrea (Virginia Madsen) discovers that the students at her new boarding school seem to be a little unusual. However, when she discovers that they are being preyed upon by a group of administrators in search of eternal youth, she must struggle to avoid meeting the same Read More

Ishtar

Crew: Songwriter

Actors: Warren Beatty, Dustin Hoffman, Isabelle Adjani, Charles Grodin, Jack Weston

Synopsis: Considered one of the great box-office turkeys of its decade, Ishtar was an attempt by writer/director Elaine May and stars Dustin Hoffman and Warren Beatty to do a modern-day road picture in the style of the much-loved Bob Hope and Bing Crosby comedy classics. Beatty is Lyle Rogers, a Read More

Twelfth Night

Actors: Gillian Jones, Jacqy Phillips, Peter Cummins, Kerry Walker

Synopsis: This production of the Bard of Avalon's famous stage comedy is based on a successful Australian stage production from the mid-1980s. It is a story of love, shipwreck, disguises and mistaken identities, and relies for much of its wit (and believability) on the willing suspension of disbelief. This Read More

My Little Pony: Escape from Catrina

Synopsis: Good ponies battle their naughty counterparts in the legendary Dream Valley, in this animated children's adventure. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide Read More

The Night They Saved Christmas

Actors: Art Carney, Jaclyn Smith, Paul Williams

Synopsis: Art Carney effectively portrays a weary, wisecracking Santa Claus (not the department store variety, but the real McCoy) in the made-for-TV The Night They Saved Christmas. Right now, Santa has very little to be jolly about: his North Pole toy factory is threatened with demolition by greedy oil Read More

Best Enemies

Actors: Sigrid Thornton, Judy Morris, Brandon Burke

Synopsis: In a muddled story that seems to have a few missing pieces floating about, Niel (Paul Williams) protests the Vietnam War as a student at the university, as does his girlfriend Patricia (Judy Morris). The war itself separates both of them for an indeterminate period of time -- he inexplicably Read More

The Muppet Revue

Synopsis: Join in the fun with Kermit and Fozzie Bear when they tell of their favorite moments from "The Muppet Show." ~ All Movie Guide Read More

Purple Hearts

Actors: Ken Wahl, Cheryl Ladd, Stephen Lee, David Harris, Cyril O'Reilly

Synopsis: This tale of doomed romance set against the backdrop of the Vietnam War was the last in a string of box office disappointments from director Sidney J. Furie before he struck gold again with Iron Eagle (1986). Ken Wahl stars as Dr. Don Jardian, a Navy medical officer assigned to duty in Vietnam. Read More

Smokey and the Bandit 3

Actors: Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Mike Henry, Colleen Camp, Pat McCormick

Synopsis: In this plotless, mindless chase movie, papa Big Enos and son Little Enos (Pat McCormick and Paul Williams) hire Cletus (Jerry Reed) to haul a Jaws-replica shark from Miami to Texas to advertise their new seafood restaurant. There is big money in it for Cletus if he can get to Texas on time. Read More

Can She Bake a Cherry Pie?

Actors: Karen Black, Michael Emil, Michael Margotta, Frances Fisher

Synopsis: After a man (Michael Emil) and a woman (Karen Black) meet and begin to become romantically involved, his confirmed bachelorhood and her post-divorce trauma start to clash. As their interactions become more complex, and they move from one scenario to the next, they begin to learn more about one Read More

Rooster

Synopsis: In this comedy, a suspicious fire brings two disparate detectives together. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide Read More

Stone Cold Dead

Actors: Richard Crenna, Paul Williams, Linda Sorenson, Belinda Montgomery, Chuck Shamata

Synopsis: This is a fast-paced, standard crime story with Sgt. Boyd (Richard Crenna) as a lone cop out to clean up the neighborhood. Kurtz (Paul Williams) is a wild gangster who manages a ring of prostitutes, and right now he has problems. Someone is shooting his hookers. A few of the undercover cops get Read More

Smokey and the Bandit II

Actors: Burt Reynolds, Jackie Gleason, Sally Field, Dom DeLuise, Jerry Reed

Synopsis: Former stuntman Hal Needham made his directorial debut with the first Smokey and the Bandit (1977) and repeated his success with the sequel, a virtual remake that substituted a live elephant for a truckload of beer. Burt Reynolds returns as law-defying anti-hero Bandit, now a washed-up alcoholic Read More

The Muppet Movie

Crew: Composer (Music Score)

Actors: Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Charles Durning, Dave Goelz

Synopsis: Kermit the Frog and Fozzie Bear, from of the large crew of loveably fuzzy characters created by puppetmaster Jim Henson, have embarked on a quest for stardom. They take a trip to Hollywood, riding in or on a wide variety of vehicles along the way. They begin their journey on a bicycle pedalled by Read More

The Wild, Wild West Revisited

Actors: Robert Conrad, Ross Martin, Harry Morgan, René Auberjonois

Synopsis: In the made-for-television film Wild, Wild West Revisited, the classic comedy/espionage/western television series is brought up to date with a story featuring government agents Jim West and Artemus Gordon leaving retirement to battle Miguelito Loveless, who is planning to conquer the earth by Read More

The Generation Gap

Nunzio

Actors: David Proval, James Andronica, Morgana King, Tovah Feldshuh, Vincent Russo

Synopsis: In this touching tale, an amiable retarded delivery boy from Brooklyn works to help support his mother. Meanwhile his older brother keeps him safe from local punks; this sometimes creates turmoil for him as he must maintain a strong exterior to mask his love. While delivering his groceries, the Read More

The Cheap Detective

Actors: Peter Falk, Ann-Margret, Eileen Brennan, Sid Caesar, Stockard Channing, Dom DeLuise, Louise Fletcher, John Houseman, Madeline Kahn, Scatman Crothers

Synopsis: Spoofing the entire 1940s detective genre, and his own performances as a bumbling private detective, Peter Falk plays Lou Pekinpaugh, a San Francisco private detective accused of murdering his partner at the instigation of his mistress, the partner's wife, Georgia Merkle (Marsha Mason). Police Read More

The End

Crew: Composer (Music Score)

Actors: Burt Reynolds, Dom DeLuise, Sally Field, Strother Martin, David Steinberg

Synopsis: At the beginning of The End, Wendell Sonny Lawson (Burt Reynolds) is informed by his doctor that he's dying from "the same thing Ali MacGraw had in Love Story." Lawson's first reaction is to cry uncontrollably, much to the discomfort of his fellow elevator passengers. He heads to a nearby church Read More

One on One

Crew: Composer (Music Score), Songwriter

Actors: Robby Benson, Annette O'Toole, G.D. Spradlin, Gail Strickland, Melanie Griffith

Synopsis: Robby Benson plays a talented but naive high school basketball star who wins a scholarship to a perfection-driven college. Here he discovers that he's way out of his league, easily outclassed athletically by his opponents and by his own team. In addition, he runs up against the sort of Read More

Flight to Holocaust

Crew: Composer (Music Score), Singer

Actors: Paul Williams

Synopsis: Though not readily apparent, Flight to Holocaust is the feature-length pilot film for a potential TV series. Crashing into the side of a high-rise building, an airplane is precariously wedged in the structure's 20th floor. Dispatched to rescue the survivors are a team of acrobatic troubleshooters Read More

Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas

Crew: Songwriter

Actors: Jerry Nelson, Marilyn Sokol

Synopsis: Featuring a heart-warming story, the trademark Jim Henson wit, and beautiful songs, Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas originally aired as an HBO special. The story is a spin on the classic "Gift of the Magi," with the impoverished Emmet and his Ma each making a sacrifice in the hopes that it will Read More

Smokey and the Bandit

Actors: Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jerry Reed, Jackie Gleason, Mike Henry

Synopsis: "Smokey," aka Sheriff Buford T. Justice (Jackie Gleason), is the prospective father-in-law of unwilling bride Carrie (Sally Field). The Bandit (Burt Reynolds), a maverick racecar driver, makes an 80,000-dollar bet that he can transport a shipment of Coors beer from Texarkana, TX, to Atlanta within Read More

Bugsy Malone

Crew: Composer (Music Score)

Actors: Scott Baio, Jodie Foster, Florrie Dugger, John Cassisi, Martin Lev

Synopsis: Here's the basic "shtick" of Bugsy Malone: it's a gangster picture enacted by children. Acted out before scaled-down sets, the film details the career of Bugsy Malone (Scott Baio), who rises to the top of the criminal ladder in 1920s New York. Whenever gunfire is called for, the kiddie crooks Read More

Griffin and Phoenix: A Love Story

Crew: Composer (Music Score), Singer

Actors: Peter Falk, Jill Clayburgh

Synopsis: Jeff Griffin (Peter Falk) is dying of cancer. Sarah Phoenix (Jill Clayburgh) is suffering from terminal leukemia. Ignored or reviled by their respective families, Griffin and Phoenix turn to each other for emotional support. Deciding to live their last months to the fullest, they indulge in Read More

The Boy in the Plastic Bubble

Crew: Composer (Music Score)

Actors: John Travolta, Diana Hyland, Robert Reed, Ralph Bellamy, Glynnis O'Connor

Synopsis: Welcome Back Kotter star John Travolta headlines the made-for-TV Boy in the Plastic Bubble. Douglas Day Stewart's fact-based teleplay casts Travolta as Tod Lubitsch, a teenager who was born without disease immunities. Tod is forced to live out his life in incubator conditions; whenever he vetnures Read More

A Star Is Born

Crew: Composer (Music Score), Musical Direction/Supervision

Actors: Barbra Streisand, Kris Kristofferson, Paul Mazursky, Gary Busey, Oliver Clark

Synopsis: The third remake of the 1932 drama What Price Hollywood?, this adaptation of A Star Is Born moved the story into the mid-1970's and changed the milieu from the movie business to pop music. John Norman Howard (Kris Kristofferson) is a rock star whose career has peaked; he is numbed by booze and Read More

Lifeguard

Crew: Composer (Music Score)

Actors: Sam Elliott, Anne Archer, Stephen Young, Parker Stevenson, Kathleen Quinlan

Synopsis: Sam Elliot stars as Rick Carlson, a thirty year old lifeguard who thinks life is passing him by. Rick loves the beach life and his job, but after attending his fifteen-year high school reunion and receiving advice from his family and friends that he's wasting his life, Rick begins to question his Read More

The Stranger Who Looks Like Me

Crew: Composer (Music Score), Singer

Actors: Patrick Duffy

Synopsis: In this 1974 TV movie, Meredith Baxter and Beau Bridges portray adult adoptees, desirous of meeting their natural parents. Through the auspices of a tracing agency, Baxter, Bridges and several others (including future TV luminary Patrick Duffy) locate their actual mothers and fathers, with results Read More

Phantom of the Paradise

Crew: Composer (Music Score)

Actors: Paul Williams, William Finley, Jessica Harper, George Memmoli, Gerritt Graham

Synopsis: "He sold his soul for rock-n-roll," read the tagline for Brian De Palma's satirical Phantom of the Opera for the '70s rock scene. After hearing Winslow Leach (William Finley) perform a song from his Faust rock opera, Phil Spector-ish impresario Swan (Paul Williams) decides that Winslow's opera Read More

Battle for the Planet of the Apes

Actors: Roddy McDowall, Claude Akins, Natalie Trundy, Severn Darden, Lew Ayres, John Huston

Synopsis: The fifth and last of the original series of motion pictures based upon author Pierre Boulle's imaginative novel Monkey Planet, this science fiction film was the least-liked by the series' legion of fans. Roddy McDowall returns as Caesar, the rebellious intelligent chimp of the previous film, Conquest of the Planet of the Apes Read More

Cinderella Liberty

Crew: Songwriter

Actors: Kirk Calloway, Marsha Mason, Eli Wallach, James Caan

Synopsis: A "Cinderella Liberty" is Navy jargon for a pass that runs out at midnight. Sailor John Baggs, Jr. (James Caan) has such a pass, and intends to make the most of it while his ship is docked in Seattle. He "wins" prostitute Maggie (Marsha Mason) in a pool game, but backs off at a "wham-bam-thank you Read More

The Girls of Huntington House

Crew: Composer (Music Score), Singer

Synopsis: Made for television, Girls of Huntington House stars Shirley Jones as schoolteacher Anne Baldwin. Working at a school for unwed mothers, Anne finds she can't keep her professional life and personal life separate. With no children of her own, she becomes deeply involved in the trials and Read More

No Place to Run

Crew: Composer (Music Score), Singer

Actors: Herschel Bernardi, Scott Jacoby

Synopsis: The made-for-television No Place to Run stars Herschel Bernardi as a seriously ill 73-year-old grandparent. Despite his many ailments, Bernardi is roused into action when he is denied custody of his orphaned grandson (Scott Jacoby). Grandpa and grandson decide to skip town together, with the Read More

Dealing: or the Berkeley-to-Boston Forty-Brick Lost-Bag Blues

Actors: Charles Durning, Barbara Hershey, Buzzy Linhart, John Lithgow, Robert F. Lyons, Demond Wilson

Synopsis: Years before Coma, Jurassic Park, and Twister made him a household name, Michael Crichton co-wrote this amiable drug-oriented comedy, based on a novel Crichton co-authored with his brother Douglas under the pen name Michael Douglas. Peter (Robert F. Lyons) is a shaggy but straightlaced Harvard law Read More

Trouble Comes to Town

Crew: Singer

Synopsis: The "trouble" that comes to a small southern town is (ostensibly) Thomas Evans, an African American youth from the north. Town sheriff Lloyd Bridges, whose life was saved in Korea by Evans' father, invites the boy to live with his family. Racial tensions run high, but temporarily remain under Read More

The Watermelon Man

Actors: Godfrey Cambridge, Estelle Parsons, Howard Caine, D'Urville Martin, Mantan Moreland

Synopsis: African-American activist and actor Melvin Van Peebles directed this comedy-drama starring Godfrey Cambridge as Jeff Gerber, a white, middle class husband to Althea (Estelle Parson) and father of two who is also a mild bigot. One morning, Jeff wakes up to discover that he has become a black man Read More

The Chase

Actors: Marlon Brando, Jane Fonda, Robert Redford, James Fox, E.G. Marshall, Angie Dickinson

Synopsis: All hell breaks loose in a Texas town when an escaped convict heads home in Arthur Penn's Southern gothic melodrama. Appointed by local kingpin Val Rogers (E. G. Marshall), benevolent Sheriff Calder (Marlon Brando) manages to keep the peace in Tarl, but the situation starts to fester one Saturday Read More

The Loved One

Actors: Robert Morse, Anjanette Comer, Jonathan Winters, Rod Steiger, Dana Andrews, James Coburn

Synopsis: The satire in Evelyn Waugh's darkly comic novel The Loved One was originally double-edged. The book was not only an attack on the Southern California funeral industry but also a lampoon of Hollywood's "British colony," those clannish, cricket-playing English actors of years gone by who bemoaned Read More