Preview ’95 : Starry, Starry Nights at the Movies

Big-name stars will be on the small screen in a big way this fall. Major actors from the film world will appear in television movies in full force--from Jessica Lange and Alec Baldwin in CBS’ “A Streetcar Named Desire” to John Turturro and Mary-Louise Parker in HBO’s “Sam & Phyllis.” Other powerhouse actors turning up in TV movies this fall include Joe Mantegna, Annabella Sciorra, Mary McDonnell, Jamie Lee Curtis, Laura Dern, Vanessa Redgrave, and Meg Tilly.

Among the many films:

ACTION-ADVENTURE

“Alistair MacLean’s Night Watch”: A pre-James Bond Pierce Brosnan plays a special agent hired by the U.N. to track down a stolen painting. William Devane and Alexandra Paul co-star. Oct. 4. USA. Family Channel.

BIOGRAPHY

“A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes”: The story of Annette Funicello’s life from her days as a Mousekeeter to her ongoing battle with multiple sclerosis. Oct. 22 at 9 p.m. CBS.

“Deidre Hall’s Story: After All”: Hall stars as herself in the story based on her real-life experience with infertility and her decision to use a surrogate mother. November. ABC.

COMEDY

“Here Come the Munsters”: Edward Herrmann stars as Herman Munster and Robert Morse is Grandpa in the Halloween-time movie based on the campy 1960s TV series about the Munster clan. TBA. Fox.

“National Lampoon’s Favorite Deadly Sins”: Joe Mantegna, Andrew Clay, Denis Leary and Annabella Sciorra star in this spoof on the sins of lust, greed and anger. Nov. 5 (tentative). Showtime.

DRAMA

“The Affair”: A black American World War II soldier has an affair with a married white British woman. Courtney Vance and Kerry Fox co-star. Oct. 14. HBO.

“Blue River”: Based on Ethan Canin’s novel. A man finds that the disheveled homeless man on his doorstep is actually the brother he once adored. TBA. Fox.

“Cagney & Lacey: Playing for Keeps”: Sharon Gless and Tyne Daly are reunited once again in their Emmy-winning roles. TBA. CBS.

“Dare to Love”: Josie Bissett stars as a woman, who with the help of a drug, recovers from schizophrenia and reclaims her life. October. ABC.

“Dazzle”: Lisa Hartman Black, Linda Evans, Dixie Carter, James Farentino and Cliff Robertson star in a four-hour drama about a prominent California family who own a ranch. Based on Judith Krantz’s bestseller. Oct. 15 and 17 at 9 p.m. CBS.

“Deadly Love”: Susan Dey stars as a woman who has it all, including a deep, dark secret: she’s really a vampire. Oct. 9 at 9 p.m. Lifetime.

“Down Came a Blackbird”: Raul Julia died shortly after completing production on the drama about survivors of politically motivated torture. Laura Dern and Vanessa Redgrave co-star. Oct. 22. Showtime.

“Full Body Massage”: Mimi Rogers and Bryan Brown star as two complex people involved in deep conversation during an erotic full body massage. Nov. 12 (tentative). Showtime.

“Have You Seen My Son”: Lisa Hartman Black plays a mother in search of her asthmatic son who has been kidnaped by her ex-husband. TBA. ABC.

“The Heidi Chronicles”: Jamie Lee Curtis stars as Heidi in this adaptation of Wendy Wasserstein’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play about the life of a contemporary woman. Tom Hulce co-stars. Oct. 15. TNT.

“In the Line of Duty: Hunt for Justice”: Adam Arkin and Nick Turturro star in this continuation of the “In the Line of Duty” movie series. A detective and an FBI special agent join forces to track down a murderer. October. NBC.

“Sam & Phyllis”: John Turturro plays legendary crime boss Sam Giancana in the story of his affair with Phyllis McGuire (Mary-Louise Parker), one of the singing McGuire sisters. November. HBO.

“The Silver Strand”: The wife of a hard-core Navy SEALs commander meets a handsome young recruit. Nicollette Sheridan stars. Oct. 15. Showtime.

“A Streetcar Named Desire”: Jessica Lange stars as Blanche DuBois and Alec Baldwin is Stanley Kowalski in a new version of the Tennessee Williams play. Oct. 29 at 8 p.m. CBS.

“Trail of Tears”: Pam Dawber and Katey Sagal star as two mothers who hit the road in search of their children who were stolen by their ex-husbands. October. NBC.

“Trial by Fire”: Gail O’Grady (“NYPD Blue”) stars as a high school teacher who is charged with sexual assault when one of her students commits suicide. Keith Carradine co-stars. Oct. 1 at 9 p.m. ABC.

“The Unspoken Truth”: A young wife and mother (Lea Thompson) confesses to a murder her husband committed; her older sister (Patricia Kalember) comes to her rescue. Sept. 24 at 9 p.m. NBC.

“When Summer Comes”: Kellie Martin stars as a woman who escapes from a juvenile detention center to clear her name. November. NBC.

“When the Vows Break”: Patty Duke plays a woman whose supposedly simple divorce goes awry because of a certain jurist out to get her. TBA. Lifetime.

“The William Coit Jr. Story”: Neil Patrick Harris stars as a young man who suspects his mother (Bonnie Bedelia) is keeping a deadly secret. TBA. Fox.

“Whose Daughter Is She?”: Two women (Joanna Kerns and Stephanie Zimbalist) are involved in an emotional battle over the right to raise a child (Gaby Hoffmann) they both love. Sept. 24 at 9 p.m. CBS.

FAMILY

“Annie II”: A new, non-musical TV sequel to the story of orphan Annie starring Ashley Johnson in the title role and Joan Collins. November. ABC.

“Annie O”: Inspired by the tale of plucky Annie Oakley. A teenage girl tries out for the boys’ varsity basketball team. Oct. 29. Showtime.

“The Canterville Ghost”: Patrick Stewart and Neve Campbell (“Party of Five”) star in the contemporary version of Oscar Wilde’s novella about a haunted castle. December. ABC.

“The Great Mom Swap”: A popular cheerleader and a brainy nerd trade families for a month. With Valerie Harper, Shelley Fabares and Sid Ceasar. Sept. 23. ABC.

“Kidnapped”: Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic tale is retold in a four-hour movie featuring shipwrecks and romance. Armand Assante stars. Nov. 5 at 7 p.m. and Nov. 6 at 8 p.m. Family Channel.

“Prince for a Day”: Joey Lawrence stars in an updated version of Mark Twain’s “The Prince and the Pauper.” Richard Belzer and Lainie Kazan co-star. October. NBC.

MYSTERY

“The Turn of the Screw”: A ghost story based on the Henry James novel set in 1890s England. Valerie Bertinelli and Diana Rigg star as a governess and a housekeeper who try to save their two young charges from being possessed. Oct. 31 at 9 p.m. CBS.

SUSPENSE

“A Child is Missing”: Henry Winkler stars as a hermit suspected of kidnaping a young boy. But the boy he finds in the woods helps him reclaim his zest for life. Oct. 1 at 9 p.m. CBS.

“Degree of Guilt”: Daphne Zuniga stars in a four-hour movie based on Richard North Patterson’s suspense novels, “Degree of Guilt” and “Eyes of a Child.” Nov. 5 and 6 at 9 p.m. NBC.

“Element of Truth”: A scheming woman (Donna Mills) marries an unassuming man (Peter Riegert) and makes him, then his friends, into millionaires through a so-called lucrative investment portfolio. Sept. 26 at 9 p.m. CBS.

“Into the Fire”: A doctor tries to help a young woman accused of killing her parents--but ends up becoming the real killer’s target. Mel Harris stars. Sept. 27. USA.

“Remember Me”: Kelly McGillis stars in the thriller about a family on vacation at a summer house. Based on the mystery novel by Mary Higgins Clark. November. CBS.

WESTERN

“Larry McMurtry’s Streets of Laredo”: James Garner, Sissy Spacek, Sam Shepard, in McMurtry’s co-adaptation of his novel. November. CBS.