In this third entry of the popular Airport franchise, James Stewart is an ultra-rich art collector who is transporting his invaluable collection on a jumbo jet, complete with a stressed-out pilot (Jack Lemmon), Lemmon’s love interest/co-worker (Brenda Vaccaro) and a handful of passengers (amongst them the over-the-top Lee Grant, Olivia de Havilland, Christopher Lee, Joseph Cotton and Darren McGavin). What pilot Lemmon doesn’t know is a large part of his crew are thieves intent on skyjacking the plane to make off with the treasures. The attempt goes haywire when Lemmon is forced to fly the plane so low in a fog bank, it clips an oil derrick, causing the jet to sink into a hundred feet of water, perched on the edge of a bottomless trench. Will stalwart George Kennedy, piloting a rescue vessel rushing to the scene, arrive before time runs out? Co-star Vaccaro allegedly contracted pneumonia from being immersed in ice- cold water for hours on end.
Marc Edward Heuck discusses Airport ’77 on the New Beverly blog.
Howard S. Berger discusses director Jerry Jameson on the New Beverly blog.
