''Green Eyes'' is a 1977 American

made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made fo ...

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by

John Erman John Erman (August 3, 1935 – June 25, 2021) was an American television director, producer, and actor. He was nominated for ten Primetime Emmy Awards, winning once for the film ''Who Will Love My Children?'' (1983). He also won two Directors Gu ...

and written by Eugene Logan and

David Seltzer David Seltzer (born February 12, 1940) is an American screenwriter, producer and director, perhaps best known for writing the screenplays for ''The Omen'' (1976) and '' Bird on a Wire'' (1990). As writer-director, Seltzer's credits include the ...

. It is a "touching and moving story" about an

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

veteran Lloyd Dubeck (

Paul Winfield Paul Edward Winfield (May 22, 1939 – March 7, 2004) was an American stage, film and television actor. He was known for his portrayal of a Louisiana sharecropper who struggles to support his family during the Great Depression in the landmark fil ...

) who went through a soul searching journey. The film was produced by

Lorimar Productions Lorimar Productions, Inc., later known as Lorimar Television and Lorimar Distribution, was an American production company that was later a subsidiary of Warner Bros., active from 1969 until 1993, when it was folded into Warner Bros. Televisi ...

and broadcast on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

. The film won a Peabody Award and a

Humanitas Prize The Humanitas Prize is an award for film and television writing, and is given to writers whose work explores the human condition in a nuanced and meaningful way. It began in 1974 with Father Ellwood "Bud" Kieser—also the founder of Paulist P ...

in 1977.

Plot

Lloyd Dubeck (

), is "a Vietnam veteran wounded both physically and psychologically." Released from a VA hospital, walking with a cane, Lloyd can’t find work and can’t seem to fit in. Lloyd's mother
Royce Wallace
, has saved up all the money that Lloyd sent her from his Army pay, plus what she earned as a cleaning woman, to enable him go to college and get a degree. Instead, Lloyd decides to return to Saigon to search for a Vietnamese woman, Em Thuy
Victoria Racimo
with whom he fathered a child he has never seen. The only thing he knows about his child, thanks to a single letter from Em Thuy, is that it’s a boy with green eyes". While in Vietnam, Lloyd meets an orphan named Trung
Lemi
who informs Lloyd that he is his son and that he has been looking for him, pointing out the resemblance in their skin color, but then tricks Lloyd and steals some of his money and his jacket. However, Trung later helps Lloyd in searching for his child by re-connecting him with an old army buddy, Noel Cousins
Jonathan Goldsmith (as Jonathan Lippe)
who has faked his death to desert the Army and is living the good life in Vietnam. Cousins advises Lloyd in the best way to go about searching for Em Thuy. Lloyd befriends a woman named Margaret Sheen (

Rita Tushingham Rita Tushingham (born 14 March 1942) is an English actress. She is known for her starring roles in films including ''A Taste of Honey'' (1961), ''The Leather Boys'' (1964), '' The Knack ...and How to Get It'' (1965), ''Doctor Zhivago'' (1965), ...

) who runs a "reception center" for orphans who are lucky enough to have been adopted. Margaret informs Lloyd that there's little hope for finding his child, saying that mixed-race children and their mothers are shunned in Vietnamese society, and that eventually many of the children are abandoned and die. She tells Lloyd that his search for his own child is pointless, saying, "If you want a child, reach out. They're all yours, all of them." Going through several orphanages in Saigon and seeing thousands of Vietnam street children, Lloyd devotes his time and the rest of his money to helping the orphaned children, befriending Margaret in the process. During the search for Em Thuy and his child, Trung accompanies Lloyd, telling the people they meet that Lloyd is his father. Cousins eventually informs Lloyd of the whereabouts of Em Thuy. Trung accompanies Lloyd to the shantytown where she lives, saying he'll wait for him. Lloyd learns that his son with Em Thuy is dead, and Em Thuy has a baby from another American serviceman. Lloyd emerges from Em Thuy's hut to find Trung gone. In despair and out of money, Lloyd decides to return home alone, thinking that Trung can take care of himself. On his way to the airport, however, he realizes his attachment to Trung and goes searching for him. Lloyd finds the boy, who says he saw green eyes when looking in the mirror. The epilogue says Trung was one of the last orphans allowed to leave Saigon.

Cast

as Lloyd Dubeck *

as Margaret Sheen *

Jonathan Goldsmith Jonathan Goldsmith (born September 26, 1938) is an American character actor. He began his career on the New York stage, then started a career in film and television. He appeared in several TV shows from the 1960s to the 1990s. He is best known ...

as Noel Cousins *Victoria Racimo as Em Thuy *Lemi as Trung *

Royce Wallace Royce K. Wallace (May 9, 1925 – November 24, 1992) was an American actress, singer and dancer who had a long, distinguished career beginning in the 1940s through the late–1980s. Biography Born in Buffalo, Nebraska or Pleasanton, Nebraska or ...

as Mrs. Dubeck *

Robert DoQui Robert DoQui (April 20, 1934 – February 9, 2008) was an American actor who starred in film and on television. He is best known for his roles as King George in the 1973 film ''Coffy'', starring Pam Grier; as Wade in Robert Altman's 1975 fi ...

as Hal *

Fred Sadoff Frederick Edward Sadoff (October 21, 1926 – May 6, 1994) was an American film, stage and television actor. Early years Sadoff was born in Brooklyn, New York to Henry and Bertha Sadoff; his older brothers Sidney and Robert were born years ea ...

as VA Officer *

Dabbs Greer Robert William "Dabbs" Greer (April 2, 1917 – April 28, 2007) was an American character actor in film and television for over 60 years. With nearly 100 film roles and appearances in nearly 600 television episodes of various series, Greer ...

as Mr. Cousins *

Claudia Bryar Hortense "Claudia" Bryar (née Rizley; May 18, 1918 – June 16, 2011) was an American actress. She is best known for portraying Emma Spool in the film '' Psycho II'' (1983). Early years Bryar was one of seven children of Ruby Elaine (née Seal ...

as Mrs. Cousins *

Jester Hairston Jester Joseph Hairston (July 9, 1901 – January 18, 2000) was an American composer, songwriter, arranger, choral conductor and actor. He was regarded as a leading expert on black spirituals and choral music. His notable compositions include " ...

as Dirk Dubeck * Vernee Watson as Rosalee Dubeck * Buck Young as Policeman

References

External links

* {{John Erman 1977 television films 1977 films 1970s war drama films ABC network original films American war drama films Peabody Award-winning broadcasts Films directed by John Erman American drama television films 1970s American films