''Little Mo '' is a 1978 American made-for-television

biographical film A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of a non-fictional or historically-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from docudra ...

telling the life story of Maureen Connolly (September 17, 1934 – June 21, 1969), the 1950s American tennis player who was the first woman to win all four Grand Slam tournaments during the same calendar year, before an accident ended her tennis career at age 19. It stars

Glynnis O'Connor Glynnis O'Connor (born November 19, 1956) is an American actress of television, film, radio, and theater. She first gained wide attention in the mid-1970s with leading roles in the television version of ''Our Town'' and in the short-lived series ...

, Michael Learned,

Anne Baxter Anne Baxter (May 7, 1923 – December 12, 1985) was an American actress, star of Hollywood films, Broadway productions, and television series. She won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe, and was nominated for an Emmy. A granddaughter of Fra ...

Mark Harmon Thomas Mark Harmon (born September 2, 1951) is an American actor. He is most famous for playing the lead role of Leroy Jethro Gibbs in '' NCIS''. He also appeared in a wide variety of roles since the early 1970s. After spending the majority of ...

(as her husband Norman Brinker) and Leslie Nielsen.

Cast

Main cast

* Michael Learned as Eleanor 'Teach' Tennant *

as Jessamyn Connolly *

as Maureen Connolly *

Claude Akins Claude Aubrey Akins (May 25, 1926 – January 27, 1994) was an American character actor with a long career on stage, screen, and television. He was best known as Sheriff Lobo on the 1979–1981 television series ''B.J. and the Bear'', and l ...

as Gus Berste *

Anne Francis Anne Francis (also known as Anne Lloyd Francis; September 16, 1930 – January 2, 2011) was an American actress known for her ground-breaking roles in the science-fiction film ''Forbidden Planet'' (1956) and the television action-drama seri ...

as Sophie Fisher *

as Norman Brinker * Martin Milner as Wilbur Folsom * Leslie Nielsen as Nelson Fisher *

Tony Trabert Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leagu ...

as Himself * Ann Doran as Aunt Gert * Fred Holliday as Dr. Bruce Kimball * Len Wayland as Johnson * Justin Lord as Maxwell * Maggie Wellman as Susan * Jean Kar as Nancy Chaffee * Cindy Brinker as Susan Partridge * K.C. Kiner as Laura Lou Jahn * Tory Fretz as Doris Hart * Stacy Keach Sr. as Chamber of Commerce President * Beatrice Manley as Duchess of Kent * Jason Kincaid as Ben *

Tracey Gold Tracey Gold (born May 16, 1969) is an American actress and former child star known for playing Carol Seaver on the 1980s sitcom ''Growing Pains''. Acting career Tracey Gold became an actress at the age of four, first appearing in a Pepsi print ...

as Cindy Brinker *

Missy Gold Missy Gold (born Melissa Fisher; July 14, 1970) is an American psychologist and former child actress. She is known as portraying the governor's daughter, Katie Gatling, on the sitcom ''Benson'' (1979–86). Career Gold appeared on ''Eight Is Eno ...

as Brenda Brinker * Howard Culver as Tennis Match Announcer

Supporting cast

Ian Abercrombie Ian Abercrombie (11 September 1934 – 26 January 2012) was an English actor and comedian. He was best known for playing Justin Pitt (Elaine Benes' boss) during the sixth season of '' Seinfeld''. He also played Alfred Pennyworth on ''Birds of Pr ...

as Dr. Noyes (uncredited)

Historical inaccuracies

It is strongly implied that Connolly's dramatic Wimbledon match versus Britain's Sue Partridge was the first singles match that Connolly played that year at the 1952 Wimbledon tournament. It was actually a fourth-round match. The final scene, in which Connolly and her former coach (Eleanor Tennant) are dramatically reunited at a public tennis court near the end of Connolly's life, never occurred.

External links

* 1978 television films 1978 films 1970s biographical films American biographical films Biographical films about sportspeople Cultural depictions of American women Cultural depictions of tennis players Films directed by Daniel Haller Films set in the 1950s NBC network original films Sports films based on actual events Tennis films 1970s English-language films 1970s American films {{US-tv-film-stub