User Reviews

I give "The Star" a 9 star rating because it is filled with action, lots of drama, and some great acting. But there are a couple of drawbacks:

One challenge is that the story is too long for a one hour show, but not long enough for the two hours that it was given. It tends to drag in a couple of scenes. Another challenge is that there are perhaps too many characters. It is hard keeping up with the good cops, bad cops, call girls, actresses, actors, hit men, politicians, body guards, sons, husbands, and numerous other players that keep coming into the story.

However, those shortcomings are overcome by a good story line, and by the dramatic acting of Joan Fontaine. There are several exciting action scenes, including one where a hit man forces Cannon to drive his full-size Ford into an enclosed truck.

"The Star" is enjoyable... just allow yourself enough time to watch Parts I and II in sequence, without taking a break between them.

10 PLUS STARS.

"The Star" episode is not to be missed, if for old Hollywood sake. Producer Quinn Martin always had invitations out to some big names, also William Conrad, who worked with many stars in his days at Warner Brothers/ABC and Columbia Pictures. I am sure he tried to get Bette Davis on the show, although she did not do cop shows.

That all said, Oscar winner and nominee Joan Fontaine agreed to do an episode, and a two part story which is oustanding. She plays retired film legend Thelma Cain who hires Cannon to find her son who just returned home and then disappears again. As Cannon digs deeper into the case... he turns up some dirty stuff on the guy and Joan slaps him across the mug for doing too "thorough" a job.

This must have been a bizarre scene to prepare for. Suspicion switches to the "Star" herself and what her involvement is in this case. Like MANNIX, clients do not always tell the truth and Frank Cannon meets some nasty guys.

Best gag has Cannon driving into a moving van --then plows out in reverse. Menacing John Vernon returns, one of the most "requested" baddies in the biz, and with that distinctive Shakespearean voice. The supporting cast is filled with some familiar faces, such as David Hedison, who appeared earlier in this series in the famous episode with Jamie Smith Jackson. See how many popular movie and tv actors you can spot here. There's a bunch.

Joan Fontaine (who was not a tv regular) may have a been a fan of the series as it shows. In the final scene everybody is just having a good time, and Cannon (or Bill Conrad) gets an autograph, and he's blushing. I think director William Wiard just let the camera roll. For fans and collectors, there are many photos of this classic episode.

By the way, the movie star mansion is the old Max Busch house in Pasadena, once owned by the Anheiser-Busch beer family. A great trivia question?

Thank you for the memories. SEASON 5 EPISODE 14 CBS dvd box set.

This 2-Hour "Cannon" was split into TWO SHOWS for syndication.

"The Star" is a double-length episode of "Cannon" and has the distinction of starring the Oscar-winning actress, Joan Fontaine. Fontaine basically plays a version of herself--a 1940s actress who is retired and living in a lovely Beverly Hills mansion. Sadly, however, despite having her as the guest star, this is a weak episode due to the writing.

Cannon is hired to find the son (Richard Hatch) of actress Thelma Cain (Fontaine). This seemed interesting until you learn what exactly is going on...and then it makes little sense. Later, when an evil gangster takes Cain and her husband hostage, the son behaves like he has a potato in his head instead of a brain. So it's up to Cannon to save these idiots from themselves.

"The Star" easily could have been edited and made into a traditional one-hour episode. I think this would have helped, since the characters occasionally did very dumb things...and a tight edit would have eliminated some of these silly portions. Worth seeing but not a shining moment in the history of the show.