Don Walker Movies

Ron (Jon Blake), a young man in his late teens or early 20s, but emotionally younger, has no visible, employable assets, including the ability to articulate, yet he rails at his status in life -- blaming everyone for the fact that his dreams are not coming true. Actually, his main dream is driving down the highway in a Porsche with a sophisticated woman in the passenger seat -- and in this dream, an ominous-looking black limousine just ahead of him starts swerving back and forth and finally dives off the edge of a cliff. In order to fulfill his fantasy, he steals a Porsche and takes off down the road. While on his joy ride, he stops at a roadside eatery and meets the errant Sally, who is on her way to retrieve her baby from a pair of foster parents. The two set off together, and nothing at all goes their way -- Sally fails in her mission, Ron runs down a policeman then has to get rid of Sally and devise some way to escape the law -- now after him in force. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Jason Robards Jr. superbly re-creates his Broadway role in this 1965 film version of Herb Gardner's play. Robards plays Murray Burns, head writer of TV's popular Chuckles the Chipmunk show. Fed up with the rat race, Murray quits his job and retreats to his cluttered Manhattan apartment, where he carries on a nonconformist, laissez-faire existence with his 12-year-old nephew Nick (Barry Gordon). Though they're as close as father and son, Robards has never gotten around to legally adopting Nick, which brings him to the attention of social workers Sandra (Barbara Harris) and Albert (William Daniels). While Albert is disgusted by Murray's irreverence, Sandra falls in love with the free-spirited writer. Teaming up with Nick, Sandra tries to convince Murray to get another job. Arnold Burns (Oscar-winner Martin Balsam), Murray's agent-brother, is amused by his sibling's independence, but can find no work for him. Desperate not to lose Nick to the authorities, Murray offers to go back to Chuckles the Chipmunk -- aka Leo (Gene Saks), a neurotic bug who bullies his staff and hates kids. Young Nick is disillusioned by Murray's willingness to conform, and he throws an uncharacteristic temper tantrum. But the boy comes around to Murray's sudden realization that compromise is sometimes necessary if it's for the sake of someone you love. While the central message of A Thousand Clowns may grate on some viewers, the film is saved by the exuberance of the cast. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi