The Star Wagon

That six people before me voted high-ratings for this long-unseen PBS broadcast from the '60s indicates that a few other people enjoyed it as I did. Anderson's play, from the '30s, featured Burgess Meridith and Lillian Gish in its original staging-- the story involves a disappointed inventor whose time-machine gives him a chance to revamp his life. Appealingly, the "early days" he and his buddy return to is a turn-of-century idyll (much of the broadcast was videotaped outside, near a lake). Orson Bean cuts a surprisingly romantic figure, and he has a lovely tenor solo of the traditional hymn "Jerusalem". But his stooge, a gnomish misfit with a compulsive belch, gets all the attention-- a very young Dustin Hoffman muttering and engagingly skulking in the shadows. Before THE GRADUATE appeared, this film anticipated the career to come. The film is once again available on videotape (priced expensively, for institutional use), and it will appear fitfully in retrospectives.

I was so excited to find this website through my search for "The Star Wagon." Fortunately, I was able to remember the title of this unique 1960's production which I watched several times on public television when I was in my 20's.

I remember being absolutely mesmerized by Dustin Hoffman's performance; it was clear he was headed somewhere big. And the storyline, ah, the delicious food-for-thought storyline about "fate" and the different paths our lives can take depending on the choices we make.

It was absolutely marvelous, I've never forgotten it and I've often wondered why I've never seen it anywhere since. If IMDb does nothing else for me ever, it has justified its existence merely by finding "The Star Wagon" for me again.

I noticed that this televised version of the Maxwell Anderson play "The Star Wagon" has glowing reviews...with 9s and 10s. Additionally, several reviewers remarked how brilliant Dustin Hoffman was in this one. Well, to both, I strongly disagree. Hoffman is a brilliant actor and I loved him in many films. Here in the script, however, he mostly burps and mumbles...and yes, that IS how his part is written. Brilliant? No. And, as far as the play goes, it really could have used a trimming and I kept hoping the story would go somewhere.

Orson Bean plays Steven, a brilliant inventor but an incredibly foolish man. The story begins with his wife, Martha, harranguing him because again and again, he practically gives away his inventions...making millions for others but leaving them poor. His unappreciative boss soon fires him when Steven tries to show him his latest invention...a machine that will transport you through time and space! Despite the possibilities, it's amazing how slow Steven is to use the machine...and when he does and goes back to 1905, the story just drags and the pacing is leaden. You really want to see this worm turn...but instead of grasping at his second chance, he's once again a bit of a putz....making many of the same choices even though he KNOWS he shouldn't. This just didn't make much sense and by the time something DOES happen, well, I just didn't care any more since the story is nearly two and a half hours long and the plot is pretty simple.

While I usually hate it when Hollywood buys the rights to a play and then hacks it apart, this production could have used such a treatment. A reworking and trimming of the script could have resulted in a marvelous story. But, as it is, it's not exactly fun and seems to drag and drag.

I suggest you see the play on YouTube and find out for yourself. Is it brilliant or a letdown...or something else?

I remember watching this in 1966, when it was on TV.

I finally got a DVD copy of it in 2022, so watched it again.....66 years later.

It was worth the wait. Sweet, moving, and profound. Dustin Hoffman got 3rd to 4th billing, which was correct for this, but he and Orson Bean really made the film.

This is the way TV used to be. We miss it.

I saw this in the late 60s and have never forgotten it. I didn't even remember the title, but decided to search for it under Orson Bean.

What a gem! I saw it along with The Miracle Worker and was blown away by both of them. My kids are the age I was when I saw this, and I definitely want them to see it.

Thank you for this site.