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Breaking Away, Home Alone, Diner or City Slickers…which is your favorite Daniel Stern film?

Stern has released his memoirs (Viva Editions, 2024) and it’s a fun, lighthearted read. Stern doesn’t settle any scores or dish dirty secrets. The one he generally makes fun of is himself. He knows he’s a lucky man, lucking in his career, lucky in love, lucky in life.

As a 17 year old kid, who could barely read and not much acting under his belt, he moved to New York to be an actor. Life was challenging, but to hear him tell it, it was fun. Stage work gave him experience, though not much money.

Good fortune befell him as director Peter Yates plucked him from obscurity and cast him as the awkward, but lovable Cyril in Breaking Away. From there, getting film roles came quickly. Barely in his 20s, Stern found his niche in characters that seemed written for him.

Even getting fired as the narrator on The Wonder Years before the pilot aired, he was quickly rehired under better terms, worked out for him. Then, after he was hired for Home Alone, a disagreement over the shooting schedule caused him to quit. Another actor was hired, but the studio realized the loss of Stern’s chemistry with Joe Pesci and wooed Stern back. Is this guy blessed, or what?

Stern and Pesci were one of the best physical comedy duos. Many people do not like the slapstick humor, but these two are the best since the Stooges. Stern almost turned down the sequel. He’s on the verge of bad choices, but intervenes.

Then came City Slickers, an experience that initially went bad, but again, worked out to Stern’s favor. His stories about his films are my favorite chapters.

Most people probably don’t know that Stern directed numerous episodes of The Wonder Years, and the film Rookie of the Year. He had a production deal at a major studio, working on scripts and projects for a few years, and then ventured into the murky waters of television when the financial incentives were hard to resist.

Two series quickly flamed-out. One of those projects he conceived, wrote, produced and starred in, but it was quickly yanked by the network. There would be other television works, which is ironic because he swore off TV as a young actor.

Stern knew the big roles would eventually dry up, and when they did, he had begun to lose interest in show biz. The first part of his career seemed magical, and although he didn’t earn big star money, he made enough money that he changed his career focus, putting his time into his family, his community and his art projects. Here’s a guy that was wise with money, had a tight family unit, and attained more than he ever dreamed of.

This is fun read, the stories are great, and Danny Stern is a guy that survived Hollywood and kept his values intact.

4.5/5