''Better Late Than Never'' is a 1979 American TV film. It was written by John Carpenter and directed by
Richard Crenna
Richard Donald Crenna (November 30, 1926 – January 17, 2003) was an American film, television and radio actor.
Crenna starred in such motion pictures as ''The Sand Pebbles'', ''Wait Until Dark'', ''Un Flic'', ''Body Heat'', the first three ' ...
.
[Two New Movies Premiere Tonight: 'Better Late Than Never'
Thomas, Kevin. Los Angeles Times 17 Oct 1979: f21.]
Plot
Harry Landers (Harold Gould) resides in a
retirement home in a quaint corner of
. Strongly averse to the idea of being confined within the walls of this retirement facility, Landers likens himself to a bird stripped of its wings. Adding to his discontent, the hospice is under the strict and somewhat sadistic management of Miss Davis (Tyne Daly), a woman known for her harsh methods.
In contrast to the resigned acceptance of impending death by other residents in the home, Harry decides he will no longer tolerate the numerous injustices perpetrated by the director. He initiates a rebellion, rallying a colonel (Donald Pleasence), a former captain (George Gobel), and all the other elderly inhabitants of the hospice. Their collective message is a powerful one: that life remains precious in every moment, even as it approaches its end.
Cast
*
Harold Gould as Harry Landers
*
Strother Martin as J D Ashcroft
*
Tyne Daly
Ellen Tyne Daly (; born February 21, 1946) is an American actress. She has won six Emmy Awards for her television work, a Tony Award and is a 2011 American Theatre Hall of Fame inductee.
Daly began her career on stage in summer stock in New York, ...
as Ms Davis
*
Harry Morgan as Mr Scott
*
Marjorie Bennett
Marjorie Bennett (15 January 1896 – 14 June 1982) was an Australian actress who worked mainly in the United Kingdom and the United States. She began her acting career during the silent film era.
Career
Bennett was born in York in Western ...
as Marjorie Crane
*
Victor Buono
Victor Charles Buono (February 3, 1938January 1, 1982) was an American actor, comic, and briefly a recording artist. He was known for playing the villain King Tut in the television series '' Batman'' (1966–1968) and musician Edwin Flagg in '' ...
as Dr Zoltan Polos
*
George Gobel as Captain Taylor
*
Jeanette Nolan as Lavinia Leventhal
*
Donald Pleasence as Colonel Riddle
*
Larry Storch
Lawrence Samuel Storch (January 8, 1923 – July 8, 2022) was an American actor and comedian best known for his comic television roles, including voice-over work for cartoon shows such as Mr. Whoopee on ''Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales'' and hi ...
as Sheriff
*
Tom Spratley
''Where the Lilies Bloom'' is a 1974 American drama film adaptation of the novel by the same name, written by Bill and Vera Cleaver. The film was produced by Robert B. Radnitz and directed by William A. Graham in Watauga County (towns of Boone ...
as Tom
*
Lou Jacobi
Lou Jacobi (born Louis Harold Jacobovitch; December 28, 1913October 23, 2009) was a Canadian character actor.
Life and early career
Jacobi was born Louis Harold Jacobovitch in Toronto, Canada, to Joseph and Fay Jacobovitch.
Jacobi began acting ...
as Milton Cohen
*Paula Trueman as Alke Elam
References
External links
*
*
*
''Better Late Than Never''at the
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...
1979 films
1979 television films
1979 comedy-drama films
1970s English-language films
American comedy-drama television films
Films about old age
Films with screenplays by John Carpenter
NBC original films
Films scored by Charles Fox
1970s American films
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