Richard Chatten What a disappointment! Suzanne Pleshette playing a nymphomaniac sounds like fun, but to judge from the end result John O'Hara's 1949 novel has been so bowdlerised its hard to understand why they bothered to film it in the first place, other than the fact that 'Butterfield 8' had just been such a hit; but it's even less explicit than that. The word "slut" is liberally sprinkled throughout the film, but although we're told that there are plenty of others we actually see very little sign that there have really been that many lovers - and even less love; and it seems to be the men who always hit on her first. She actually seems to be suffering from the much more common female problem of not being able to say 'No' to jerks rather than clinical nymphomania. If only nasty Ben Gazzara had left her alone, and if Peter Graves' wife hadn't been such a belligerent lush, life would have continued to be peachy for the lovely Ms Pleshette and she would have lived happily ever after with hubby Bradford Dillman, her lovely child and her Oscar nominated wardrobe.As is often the case with material like this the most interesting characters are the women, and there are entertaining cameos by Brett Somers and Bethel Leslie as two vengeful harpies; the former as the disapproving mother of Pleshette's first real squeeze, Mark Goddard (best remembered as Don West in 'Lost in Space'), and the latter as Graves' jealous wife whose drama queen antics end up bringing the whole edifice crashing down.

Michael O'Keefe This is a spicy drama based on a John O'Hara novel. Suzanne Pleshette is terrific as Grace Caldwell, a newspaper heiress that has a problem with her sexual desires. Not really a problem for her; but an embarrassment for her family. Her many trysts threaten to destroy her wealthy family's image. While on a vacation with her widowed mother Emily (Carmen Matthews), Grace can't wait to have a fling with a young waiter. This causes her mother a fatal heart attack. This beautiful nymphomaniac promises to end her sexually wild ways after marriage. But, she's got to have it when she wants it; affair after affair. Even old friends are not safe from her wanton desires. No doubt about it, Miss Pleshette is very desirable. Walter Grauman directs a very solid cast that includes: Bradford Dillman, Ben Gazzara, James Gregory, Peter Graves, Bethel Leslie, Mark Goddard, Ruth White and Aneta Corsaut.

Poseidon-3 A rather sordid topic is given a mostly tasteful, if daring for its time, treatment in this adaptation of a John O'Hara novel. Pleshette plays a young girl who, whether purposeful or not, attracts men to her like bees to honey and decides it's something she likes. Her post adolescence is spent canoodling with boys in the backseats of cars or on family room sofas, much to the concern of her faint-hearted mother Matthews. She starts to skirt scandal when boy-toy Goddard's mother Somers catches them making out, but is redeemed by the love of optimistic and caring college man Dillman. After a rough start, they make a go of things until a) hirsute engineer Gazzara sets his sights on her and b) dignified, but badly-married Graves starts to fancy her as well. Plenty of complications ensue until the melodramatic and ironic ending comes about. Pleshette, while preposterous as a high school student in the early sequences, gives a passionate and sensitive performance, achieving the near impossible which is eliciting sympathy for a reckless nymphomaniac. She looks terrific in her (Oscar-nominated) Howard Shoup gowns and the black and white cinematography loves her eyes. She deftly portrays the sensational fact that her character has a sexual disorder and finds it hard to resist the liaisons. Dillman is also very good, aptly conveying the sensitive and disgusted colors of his role. His hair is lighter than usual (perhaps to contrast with the raven-tressed leading lady?) Gazzara is convincingly obsessive and brutish, not to mention seductive. Graves hasn't got a whole lot to do and doesn't do a whole lot with it. He would soon move on to the career-defining role of Mr. Phelps on "Mission: Impossible." Leslie, as his wife, exhibits unexpected levels of despair, though she comes more than close to unintentional comedy at times. Matthews (who, coincidentally, played Dina Merrill's mom in the film of O'Hara's "BUtterfield 8") is appropriately weary and worried. Gregory pops up as the family doctor, dispensing some interesting and amusing advice when it comes to teen love. Goddard is adorably sniveling. Like Graves, he too would soon be performing his most iconic role on TV's "Lost in Space." Furth, a Broadway fixture, has a small role as Dillman's pal. Christine, as Matthews' maid, was the well-known Folger's coffee spokeswoman in the 70's and Somers, of course, became a staple panelist on "Match Game" several years after this. One can't help feeling that this is a cousin to the earlier "BUtterfield 8", but it's different enough to retain its own level of interest. If this had been filmed in color, it may be better known than it is as many black and white films fell out of favor when it came to TV airings as color TV became prominent in the late 60's. However, the already dicey subject matter may have come across as lurid (by the day's standards) in color. The opening credits feature a striking instrumental title number by Ferrante & Teicher as the names are displayed amongst various rural settings (politely placing the black print against white items like barns or covered bridges or sky, etc…) It's no earth-shaking piece of cinema, but it's interesting for its period approach to sex and captivating thanks to its name cast and the stalwart performance of its leading actress.

Gary M. James I caught "A Rage to Live" on the fly while switching channels. The film was not very good. I thought it was a lower-grade version of the lush, trashy, morality tales like Butterfield 8. (Both movies were based on novels by John O'Hara.) Suzanne Pleshette does her best as the nymphomaniac who tries to overcome her insatiable appetite towards men. What got to me while watching this movie was how many of these actors appeared in other TV programs. Starting with Ms. Pleshette (The Bob Newhart Show) Bradford Dillman, who plays Pleshette's husband (according to IMDb, he's appeared in over 90 TV programs), Ben Gazzara (Run for Your Life), Peter Graves (Mission: Impossible), Mark Goddard (Lost In Space), James Gregory (Barney Miller), Virginia Christie (Mrs. Olsen in the Folger's Crystals coffee commercials of the 60s and 70s), and, in an uncredited role, Brett Somers (Match Game, The Odd Couple). Even director Walter Grauman is known in television as a workhorse. He's credited with directing over 200 television movies and shows.In the end, I did not have much fun watching this turgid drama but it was lot of fun playing TV trivia.