Glenn Ford: A Life

14. "Devil or Angel"

14 “Devil or Angel” M y father inevitably drifted into television. It was a drop in prestige for most movie stars, but others had preceded him: Barbara Stanwyck, James Stewart, and Oscar winner Donna Reed come to mind. But working on a major network series paid well enough, attracted a huge audience, and, just as important to my father, allowed him to remain a star and leading man; a switch to character parts at this time in his life was something his pride and machismo would not have allowed. As I’ve mentioned, my father had appeared on television as early as 1949, when he and my mother were guests on a local CBS show in New York City called We the People. Over the next two decades he appeared on at least half a dozen other shows, including my mother’s TV show, The Faith of Our Children, two episodes of This Is Your Life celebrating fellow actors (Tom Moore and Walter Brennan), and an occasional syndicated TV game show like The Movie Game. In March 1970 he first dipped his toes in the water as the host-narrator of a one-hour prime-time national special called America. Dad and I spent two weeks taping the segments at historical sites across America. Guests who sang tributes to our great nation included Connie Stevens, Lou Rawls, Bill Medley, Gary Plunkett, and Mac Davis. Stops included Washington, D.C., Arlington National Cemetery, and Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia. The whole show was a culturally enriching trip for us, 252 253 and we drew closer. I’m sure the experience was financially remunerative for Dad, and I also earned a few dollars as the show’s dialogue director. He took the next step in 1970 with the opening of the sixth season of CBS’s Thursday Night Movie and a leading role in The Brotherhood of the Bell. This was a suspense tale about a professor in conflict with a powerful secret society within his university, what was referred to as a “WASP mafia,” based on Yale’s notorious Skull and Bones organization. Nowadays the film is considered by some to be a cult classic, and my father found the job to be very satisfying, working with a terrific director, Paul Wendkos, and a well-written script by David Karp. Both Wendkos and Karp were nominated for Emmy Awards for my father’s first made-for-TV film. When talk of him doing a full-time network series came up, he was now ready to listen. The banner headline on page 1 of the April 17, 1970, Daily Variety read: “Glenn Ford Gets 500G CBS-TV Half-Hour Series Deal.” At first, the network suggested a half-hour sitcom about a policeman running a halfway house for juvenile delinquents, no doubt with memories of Blackboard Jungle in someone’s mind, but this, thankfully, did not pan out. By the fall of 1970 the plan had evolved into a one-hour series with the lead (Dad’s role) a sheriff riding a jeep in place of a horse in the modern West. Dad and a creative team got busy developing the show that eventually would be named Cade’s County after his character, the tough but low-key Sam Cade. Dad was restless where work and women were concerned. I was luckier: Lynda was a keeper who tolerated my youthful wanderings and persevered with me. We were married on Sunday, December 6, 1970, in the living room of my father’s home, bathed in the glow of a lighted Christmas tree festooned with ornaments. The Reverend Wales Smith, Ken Wales’s (actor, producer, and electronics wizard) father, performed the ceremony. In attendance were my mother, my grandmother Hannah, her caregiver, and assorted friends, including two of Lynda’s sorority sisters, Pam Baker and Mimi Stermer. After the ceremony my mother hosted a dinner at Don the Beachcomber ’s restaurant in Hollywood. Our reception was held the following Saturday with guests who included next-door neighbor Rita Hayworth, Jim Nabors, Cesar Romero, Edgar and Millie Buchanan, Jack Oakie, George Montgomery, and, of course, my mother, joining our family and friends at Dad’s home. We cut the chocolate wedding cake with my grandfather Newton’s cavalry sword. Cade’s County was custom-designed from the start. Dad would play an archetypal “Glenn Ford role” as...