Davey and Goliath (1960–1977)

 

Starring young Davey Hansen and his talking dog, Goliath, this complete 12-DVD set contains over 19 hours of moral adventures that have been expertly re-mastered for the show's 50th anniversary. Along with six seasonal specials for summer, Easter, New Year's, Halloween, Christmas and back to school, Davey and Goliath: The Complete Collection features 65 other classic episodes, including ten previously lost episodes.

Enjoyed around the world throughout its 1960-1975 television run, this stop-motion series was animated by Gumby creator Art Clokey and produced through the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. Davey and Goliath remains an inspiring alternative to other children's programming, even half a century later.

Episodes:

Volume 1
"Lost in a Cave," "Stranded on an Island," "The Wild Goat"
"The Winner," "The New Skates," "Cousin Barney"

Volume 2
"The Kite," "The Mechanical Man," "All Alone"
"The Time Machine," "One the Line," "The Polka Dot Tie"

Volume 3
"The Silver Mine," "The Sudden Storm," "Pilgrim Boy"
"Ten Pin Alley," "Bell Ringer," "Boy Lost"

Volume 4
"Officer Bob," "The Runaway," "Not for Sale"
"The Shoemaker," "The Parade," "The Dog Show"

Volume 5
"Down on the Farm," "Man of the House," "The Waterfall"
"Happy Landing," "Editor-In-Chief," "Bully up a Tree"

Volume 6
"Big Apple," "The Bridge," "The Jickets"
"The Lemonade Stand," "Hocus Pocus," "Good Neighbor"

Volume 7
"A Dillar, a Dollar," "Jeep in the Deep," "Rags and Buttons"
"Who Me?," "The Stopped Clock," "To the Rescue" (30-minute special)

Volume 8
"If at First You Don't Succeed," "Kookaburra,""Finders Keepers"
"The Caretakers," "The Hard Way," "Halloween Who-Dun-It" (30-minute special)

Volume 9
"Blind Man's Bluff," "The Greatest," "Rickety-Rackety"
"Boy in Trouble," "Help!," "Christmas Lost and Found" (30-minute special)

Volume 10
"Louder Please," "The Zillion Dollar Combo," "Upside Down and Backwards"
"Six-Seven-Six-Three," "Who's George?," "New Year Promise" (30-minute special)

Volume 11
"What's His Name," "Chicken," "Kum Ba Yah"
"Ready or Not," "Pieces of Eight," "Happy Easter" (30-minute special)

Volume 12
"The Watchdogs," "Come, Come to the Fair," "The Doghouse Dream House"
"The Good Bad Luck," "School...Who Needs It?" (30-minute special)

Cromwell (1970)

 

Oliver Cromwell is a courageous and God-fearing country squire, magistrate and former member of Parliament. King Charles I's policies, including the enclosing of common land for the use of wealthy landowners and the introduction of "Popish" and "Romish" rituals into the Church of England, have become increasingly annoying to many, including Cromwell. In fact Charles regards himself as a devout Anglican, permitting his French Queen to practise Roman Catholicism in private but forbidding her to bring up the young Prince of Wales in that faith. Cromwell plans to take his family to the New World, but, on the eve of their departure, he is persuaded by his friends to stay and resume a role in politics.

Charles has summoned Parliament for the first time in eleven years, as he needs money in order to fight wars against the Scots and the Irish. Although he reluctantly agrees to execute his hated adviser the Earl of Strafford, the Parliament of England will still not grant him his requests unless he agrees to reforms that could lead to a constitutional monarchy. Committed to the divine right of kings, and under pressure from his queen to stand firm, Charles refuses. When he attempts to arrest five members of Parliament (in reality Cromwell was not one of them), war breaks out in England itself, Parliament against the king, both sides convinced that God is on their side.

When the Parliamentary forces in which Cromwell is a cavalry officer proved ineffective, he sets up the New Model Army and soon turns the tide against the king. Charles goes so far as to call on help from Catholic nations, which disgusts his Protestant supporters. He is finally defeated but, a brave man in his own way, he still refuses to give in to the demands of Cromwell and his associates for a system of government in which Parliament will have as much say in the running of the country as the king.

Cromwell—who has had to maintain discipline in the highly politicised New Model Army by hanging a ringleader of an incipient mutiny—later hears from Sir Edward Hyde, the king's once-loyal adviser, that Charles has secretly been raising a Catholic army to resume the war against Parliament. He and his supporters thus have Charles put on trial for treason. Charles, found guilty and sentenced to death, faces execution bravely and even his most ardent critics are moved by his dignity. There is little celebration or satisfaction over his death, even on Cromwell's part.

However, Parliament soon proves itself just as useless in governing the country and, like the late king, Cromwell is forced to undertake a coup d'etat. But where Charles failed, Cromwell succeeds: his troops remove the MPs from the House of Commons, leaving Cromwell sitting symbolically alone in the Chamber as virtual dictator.

The film ends with a voice-over stating that Cromwell served very successfully for five years as Lord Protector before Charles I's son, Charles II, returned as king of an England "never to be the same again".

The Cross and the Switchblade (1970)

 

The Cross and the Switchblade is a book written in 1962 by pastor David Wilkerson with John and Elizabeth Sherrill. It tells the true story of Wilkerson's first five years in New York City, where he ministered to disillusioned youth, encouraging them to turn away from the drugs and gang violence they were involved with. The book became a best seller, with more than 15 million copies distributed in over 30 languages.

In 1970, a film adaptation was released, starring Pat Boone as David Wilkerson and Erik Estrada (in his screen debut) as Nicky Cruz, the teen gang member whose life was transformed by Wilkerson's ministry. The film has been viewed by an estimated 50 million people in over 30 languages in 150 countries, according to World Film Crusade.[1]

In 1972, the book was adapted into a comic book published by Fawcett Comics under their Spire Christian Comics label.

In 1968, Cruz wrote the book Run Baby Run with Jamie Buckingham, telling the story of his life including coming to New York and being in the gang, and subsequently meeting Wilkerson and thereafter becoming an Evangelical Christian.