I'll take my Rockford any way I can get him, so I was thrilled when these TV movies came out. This one, however, is not in the usual lighthearted Rockford style. It's pretty heavy.
Rita (Rita Moreno) is back with her husband (Hal Linden) who is a teacher. When he's accused of child molestation because of his resemblance to a police sketch, he is put on suspension. This devastates him completely. Rita appeals to both Rockford and Beth (Gretchen Corbett) to help him.
A serious story about how the media can destroy a man - similar to the Richard Jewell case. Apparently it was filmed in 1997, probably i response to that, but wasn't released until 1999.
James Garner by this time had some trouble walking at times, due to the fact that he always did his own stunts and the series nearly killed him. And good for him, it doesn't look like he had plastic surgery. He's always good, always watchable, always adorable.
Angel was particularly bad news in this episode. All the performances were marvelous. Rita Moreno looked gorgeous and what fun earrings she wore.
All in all, well worth seeing, but don't expect a lot of humor. The '70s were over.
