Return from Witch Mountain
Encyclopedia
Return from Witch Mountain is the 1978 sequel to Walt Disney Productions' 1975 film, Escape to Witch Mountain
. It was written by Malcolm Marmorstein and is based on the novel by Alexander Key
. Ike Eisenmann, Kim Richards
, and Denver Pyle
reprise their roles as Tony, Tia, and Uncle Bené—humanoid
extraterrestrials
with special powers including telepathy
and telekinesis. The two main villains are played by Bette Davis
as Letha Wedge, a greedy woman using the last of her money to finance the scientific experiments of Dr. Victor Gannon, played by Christopher Lee
.
A made-for-television sequel called Beyond Witch Mountain
was made in 1982.
. Uncle Bené drops them off in their flying saucer
in the Rose Bowl Stadium, after which they quickly become separated from each other. Dr. Gannon and Letha happen to see Tony using his powers, kidnap him, and successfully test the doctor's new mind-control technology on him. With Tony at his robotic bidding, Dr. Gannon hopes to achieve recognition within the scientific community and worldwide power, while Letha merely wants a return on her investment.
Tia must find Tony and foil the villains' nefarious plans. Fortunately, a group of would-be toughs, called the Earthquake Gang, and hapless truant officer Mr. Yokomoto — whom the toughs call "Yo-Yo" — come to her aid.
, a high-rise office complex, and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
museum center in Downtown Los Angeles, as well as at the restored Angels Flight
funicular. The gold-bar robbery sequence was filmed at the Natural History Museum in Exposition Park
, Los Angeles. The building facing the Park's Rose Garden was used for exterior shots of the museum. The scene in which Yokomoto's van is overturned, and breaks a fire-hydrant, was filmed near the Sunset Blvd. bridge and Glendale Blvd. underpass intersection, in the Echo Park
district.
Actors Kim Richards and Ike Eisenmann appear in at least four films together — this one, the original 1975 Disney film Escape to Witch Mountain, and the television film Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell
. Richards portrays the roadside waitress and Eisenmann portrays the Sheriff in a re-imagined remake of the original film, Race to Witch Mountain
, released in March 2009.
Jack Soo
(Mr. "Yoyo" Yokomoto) was diagnosed with esophageal cancer
in the Autumn of 1978, several months after the film's release. Return from Witch Mountain would be his final movie appearance, as he died the following January.
The emergency voice heard over Yokomoto's van radio — announcing the problem at the plutonium
plant — is that of Gary Owens
.
Escape to Witch Mountain (1975 film)
Escape to Witch Mountain is a 1975 film based on the novel Escape to Witch Mountain by Alexander Key. It was produced by Walt Disney Productions, released by Buena Vista Distribution Company and directed by John Hough.- Plot :...
. It was written by Malcolm Marmorstein and is based on the novel by Alexander Key
Alexander Key
Alexander Hill Key was an American science fiction writer, most of whose books were aimed at a juvenile audience. He became a nationally known illustrator before he became an author...
. Ike Eisenmann, Kim Richards
Kim Richards
Kimberly "Kim" Richards is an American actress, former child actress, and television personality. She had roles in several Disney movies in the 1970s and later TV shows in the late 1970s and early 80s before returning to the screen with her sister Kyle Richards on Bravo's The Real Housewives of...
, and Denver Pyle
Denver Pyle
Denver Dell Pyle was an American film and television actor. He is best remembered for playing Uncle Jesse in The Dukes of Hazzard .-Early life:...
reprise their roles as Tony, Tia, and Uncle Bené—humanoid
Humanoid
A humanoid is something that has an appearance resembling a human being. The term first appeared in 1912 to refer to fossils which were morphologically similar to, but not identical with, those of the human skeleton. Although this usage was common in the sciences for much of the 20th century, it...
extraterrestrials
Extraterrestrial life
Extraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth...
with special powers including telepathy
Telepathy
Telepathy , is the induction of mental states from one mind to another. The term was coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Fredric W. H. Myers, a founder of the Society for Psychical Research, and has remained more popular than the more-correct expression thought-transference...
and telekinesis. The two main villains are played by Bette Davis
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
as Letha Wedge, a greedy woman using the last of her money to finance the scientific experiments of Dr. Victor Gannon, played by Christopher Lee
Christopher Lee
Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee, CBE, CStJ is an English actor and musician. Lee initially portrayed villains and became famous for his role as Count Dracula in a string of Hammer Horror films...
.
A made-for-television sequel called Beyond Witch Mountain
Beyond Witch Mountain
Beyond Witch Mountain is the second sequel to the 1975 Disney film Escape to Witch Mountain. Although Eddie Albert returned to play Jason O'Day from the original 1975 movie, the parts of Tony and Tia were recast with actors comparable only in age to Ike Eisenmann and Kim Richards when they first...
was made in 1982.
Plot
Having spent a good deal of time enjoying the company of their newfound family and friends at Witch Mountain and intensively studying and practicing their supernatural powers, it is decided that Tony and Tia deserve a vacation in Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. Uncle Bené drops them off in their flying saucer
Flying saucer
A flying saucer is a type of unidentified flying object sometimes believed to be of alien origin with a disc or saucer-shaped body, usually described as silver or metallic, occasionally reported as covered with running lights or surrounded with a glowing light, hovering or moving rapidly either...
in the Rose Bowl Stadium, after which they quickly become separated from each other. Dr. Gannon and Letha happen to see Tony using his powers, kidnap him, and successfully test the doctor's new mind-control technology on him. With Tony at his robotic bidding, Dr. Gannon hopes to achieve recognition within the scientific community and worldwide power, while Letha merely wants a return on her investment.
Filming locations
The otherwise vacant lot, upon which the children's dilapidated hideout mansion stands, is today the location for One California PlazaOne California Plaza
One California Plaza is a skyscraper located on the Bunker Hill District district of downtown Los Angeles, California. The tower is part of the California Plaza project, consists of two unique skyscrapers, One California Plaza and Two California Plaza...
, a high-rise office complex, and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles is a contemporary art museum with three locations in greater Los Angeles, California. The main branch is located on Grand Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles, near Walt Disney Concert Hall...
museum center in Downtown Los Angeles, as well as at the restored Angels Flight
Angels Flight
Angels Flight is a landmark funicular railway in the Bunker Hill district of Downtown Los Angeles, California. It has two funicular cars, Sinai and Olivet ....
funicular. The gold-bar robbery sequence was filmed at the Natural History Museum in Exposition Park
Exposition Park
Exposition Park is the name of more than one place:*Exposition Park - a neighborhood in south Dallas, Texas*Exposition Park - A former baseball park in Kansas City...
, Los Angeles. The building facing the Park's Rose Garden was used for exterior shots of the museum. The scene in which Yokomoto's van is overturned, and breaks a fire-hydrant, was filmed near the Sunset Blvd. bridge and Glendale Blvd. underpass intersection, in the Echo Park
Echo Park, Los Angeles, California
Echo Park is a hilly neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, northwest of Downtown Los Angeles and southeast of Hollywood.-History:At the end of the 19th century, when the hills were still covered with native vegetation, a horse-drawn streetcar line served the dirt road that is now Echo Park Avenue...
district.
Cast
- Bette DavisBette DavisRuth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
— Letha Wedge - Christopher LeeChristopher LeeSir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee, CBE, CStJ is an English actor and musician. Lee initially portrayed villains and became famous for his role as Count Dracula in a string of Hammer Horror films...
— Dr. Victor Gannon - Kim RichardsKim RichardsKimberly "Kim" Richards is an American actress, former child actress, and television personality. She had roles in several Disney movies in the 1970s and later TV shows in the late 1970s and early 80s before returning to the screen with her sister Kyle Richards on Bravo's The Real Housewives of...
— Tia Malone - Ike EisenmannIke EisenmannIke Eisenmann is an American actor, voice actor, producer, and sound-effects specialist who has been active in the entertainment industry since he was a preteen.-Career:...
— Tony Malone - Jack SooJack SooJack Soo was a Japanese American actor. He is best known for his role as Detective Nick Yemana on the television sitcom Barney Miller.-Early life:...
— Mr. "Yo-Yo" Yokomoto - Anthony James — Sickle
- Richard BakalyanRichard BakalyanRichard Bakalyan is an Born in Iran character actor who started his career playing juvenile delinquents he served them treats and candys in his ice cream van in his first several films. He had some fun experience having served a year's probation at age 15...
— Eddie - Ward CostelloWard CostelloEdward "Ward" Costello was an American actor, composer and lyricist. He composed and wrote the lyrics to the theme for The Gallant Hours....
— Mr. Clearcole - Christian Juttner — Dazzler
- Brad SavageBrad SavageBrad Savage is an American actor best known for his role as Danny in the 1984 movie Red Dawn, for which he received a nomination for the Young Artist Award in the category "Best Young Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture Musical, Comedy, Adventure or Drama".-Biography:Brad Savage was born in...
— Muscles - Poindexter — Crusher
- Jeffrey Jacquet — Rocky
- Stu Gilliam — Dolan
- William H. Bassett — Operations officer
- Tom Scott — Monitor
- Helene Winston — Dowager
- Albert Able — Engineer
- Denver PyleDenver PyleDenver Dell Pyle was an American film and television actor. He is best remembered for playing Uncle Jesse in The Dukes of Hazzard .-Early life:...
— Uncle Bene - Brian PartBrian PartBrian Part was an American child actor best known for his role of the adopted son of Mr. Edwards on television's Little House on the Prairie. He now writes and performs music with his wife Melody Part.-Biography:Part first developed an interest in acting at the age of five...
, Pierre Daniel — Goons - Wally Brooks — Taxi fare
- Mel Gold — Security guard
- Bob Yothers — Cop
- Casse Jaeger — School patrolman
- Larry Mamorstein — Guard
- Bob James — Gate guard
- Ruth Warshawsky — Lady in car
- Adam Anderson — Man in museum
- Rosemary Lord — Woman in museum
- Ted Noose — Policeman
- Wally Berns — Man in car
Actors Kim Richards and Ike Eisenmann appear in at least four films together — this one, the original 1975 Disney film Escape to Witch Mountain, and the television film Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell
Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell
Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell is a 1978 television movie directed by Curtis Harrington. The story centers around a suburban family and the harrowing experiences they endure from a possessed dog they innocently adopt...
. Richards portrays the roadside waitress and Eisenmann portrays the Sheriff in a re-imagined remake of the original film, Race to Witch Mountain
Race to Witch Mountain
Race to Witch Mountain is a 2009 science fiction/thriller film and a remake of the original 1975 fantasy film, Escape to Witch Mountain. Both versions of the film are based on the 1968 novel Escape to Witch Mountain by Alexander Key...
, released in March 2009.
Jack Soo
Jack Soo
Jack Soo was a Japanese American actor. He is best known for his role as Detective Nick Yemana on the television sitcom Barney Miller.-Early life:...
(Mr. "Yoyo" Yokomoto) was diagnosed with esophageal cancer
Esophageal cancer
Esophageal cancer is malignancy of the esophagus. There are various subtypes, primarily squamous cell cancer and adenocarcinoma . Squamous cell cancer arises from the cells that line the upper part of the esophagus...
in the Autumn of 1978, several months after the film's release. Return from Witch Mountain would be his final movie appearance, as he died the following January.
The emergency voice heard over Yokomoto's van radio — announcing the problem at the plutonium
Plutonium
Plutonium is a transuranic radioactive chemical element with the chemical symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is an actinide metal of silvery-gray appearance that tarnishes when exposed to air, forming a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four oxidation...
plant — is that of Gary Owens
Gary Owens
Gary Owens is an American disc jockey and voice actor. His polished baritone speaking voice generally offers deadpan recitations of total nonsense, which he frequently demonstrated as the announcer on Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In. Owens is equally proficient in straight or silly assignments and is...
.