The Last Best Year
Encyclopedia
The Last Best Year is a drama television movie
, concerning a lonely woman who discovers that she has a terminal illness. This made-for-television movie co-starred Mary Tyler Moore
and Bernadette Peters
, two actresses known for playing comedic roles. It aired on ABC.
Jane finally faces the secret she has been hiding for years, that she gave her infant son up for adoption. As she makes peace with guilt from her troubled past and comes to terms with her fate she gains loving support from Aunt Lizzie, Wendy, and Amy and Peter, her co-workers. She returns to the faith she had turned from and makes contact with her grown son. Wendy, also, has had a troubled past and, through her relationship with Jane, resolves her own issues, especially with her mother Anne.
, and the television movie, David
. Erman suggested Peters for the film.
Riskin said of Moore and Peters "Some people may think Mary Tyler Moore and Bernadette Peters...this movie is going to be a laugh a minute. But they're brilliant dramatic actresses."
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
, concerning a lonely woman who discovers that she has a terminal illness. This made-for-television movie co-starred Mary Tyler Moore
Mary Tyler Moore
Mary Tyler Moore is an American actress, primarily known for her roles in television sitcoms. Moore is best known for The Mary Tyler Moore Show , in which she starred as Mary Richards, a 30-something single woman who worked as a local news producer in Minneapolis, and for her earlier role as...
and Bernadette Peters
Bernadette Peters
Bernadette Peters is an American actress, singer and children's book author from Ozone Park, Queens, New York. Over the course of a career that has spanned five decades, she has starred in musical theatre, films and television, as well as performing in solo concerts and recordings...
, two actresses known for playing comedic roles. It aired on ABC.
Plot summary
Jane (Bernadette Peters) visits a doctor (Brian Bedford) after becoming ill during a business trip. She is told that she has a terminal illness and is referred to a psychologist, Wendy Haller (Mary Tyler Moore), to help her in dealing with the emotional aspects of the illness. Jane, although successful at business, leads a solitary life except for occasional times she spends with her married lover, Jerry, who leaves her during her crisis. Reluctant to open herself emotionally at first, she soon warms to Wendy. Jane makes a last trip to visit her beloved Aunt Lizzie (Carmen Mathews).Jane finally faces the secret she has been hiding for years, that she gave her infant son up for adoption. As she makes peace with guilt from her troubled past and comes to terms with her fate she gains loving support from Aunt Lizzie, Wendy, and Amy and Peter, her co-workers. She returns to the faith she had turned from and makes contact with her grown son. Wendy, also, has had a troubled past and, through her relationship with Jane, resolves her own issues, especially with her mother Anne.
Cast
- Mary Tyler MooreMary Tyler MooreMary Tyler Moore is an American actress, primarily known for her roles in television sitcoms. Moore is best known for The Mary Tyler Moore Show , in which she starred as Mary Richards, a 30-something single woman who worked as a local news producer in Minneapolis, and for her earlier role as...
as Wendy Haller - Bernadette PetersBernadette PetersBernadette Peters is an American actress, singer and children's book author from Ozone Park, Queens, New York. Over the course of a career that has spanned five decades, she has starred in musical theatre, films and television, as well as performing in solo concerts and recordings...
as Jane Murray - Brian BedfordBrian BedfordBrian Bedford is an English actor. He has appeared on the stage and in film, and is known for both acting in and directing Shakespeare.-Life and career:...
as Dr. Castle - Carmen Mathews as Aunt Lizzie
- Kate ReidKate ReidKate Reid, OC was a Canadian stage, film and television actress.-Life and career:Daphne Kate Reid was born in London, England, the daughter of Canadian parents, Helen Isabel and Walter Clarke Reid, who was a former Bengal Lancer in the Indian army and a retired colonel...
as Sister Mary Rose - Kenneth WelshKenneth WelshKenneth Welsh, CM is a Canadian film and television actor . He is known to Twin Peaks fans as the multi-faceted villain Windom Earle, and has more recently played the father of Katharine Hepburn in Martin Scorsese's The Aviator.In 1984 he was nominated for a Genie Award as Best Actor for his...
as Jerry - Erika AlexanderErika AlexanderErika Alexander is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Pam Tucker on the NBC sitcom The Cosby Show, and as Maxine Shaw on the FOX sitcom Living Single. She has won numerous awards for her work on Living Single, including two NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Actress in a...
as Amy - Dorothy McGuireDorothy McGuireDorothy Hackett McGuire was an American actress.-Career:Born in Omaha, Nebraska, she began her acting career on the stage at the Omaha Community Playhouse...
as Anne - Lawrence Dane as John Dennis
- Michael Hogan as Billy Haller
- Albert SchultzAlbert SchultzAlbert Schultz is a Canadian actor, director and the founding artistic director of Toronto's celebrated Soulpepper Theatre Company.-Education:...
as Peter Hamm - Bathsheba Garnett as Mrs. Morton
- Michael J. ReynoldsMichael J. ReynoldsMichael J. Reynolds , Garda Síochána 17673G and recipient of the Scott Medal, 1945-1975.-Incident at St. Anne's Park:A native of Kilconnell, Ballinasloe, Reynolds was one of a number of Gardaí who responded to an armed robbery at the Bank of Ireland, Killester, Dublin, on the afternoon of 11...
as Wisnovsky
Production
The story in The Last Best Year is based on the experiences of the executive producer, Victoria Riskin, wife of the writer David Rintels. Peters previously worked with the director John Erman on her feature film debut, Ace Eli and Rodger of the SkiesAce Eli and Rodger of the Skies
Ace Eli and Rodger of the Skies is a 1973 adventure-comedy film, with a story by Steven Spielberg. The film centers on a stunt pilot and his son as they fly around the United States in the 1920s, and their adventures along the way.-Background:Steven Spielberg had developed the story of a flyer...
, and the television movie, David
David (TV film)
David is a drama, the true story of a child named David Rothenberg, who was burned by his father. This made-for-television film co-starred Matthew Lawrence as David, Bernadette Peters as his mother, and John Glover as his father...
. Erman suggested Peters for the film.
Riskin said of Moore and Peters "Some people may think Mary Tyler Moore and Bernadette Peters...this movie is going to be a laugh a minute. But they're brilliant dramatic actresses."