Mike pointed out that the 1999 movie Holy Joe, starring John Ritter and Meredith Baxter, included a Willys wagon. I believe the moral of the story is that if you do good in the world that someone will restore your wagon for you? At least, that’s what I got out of it!
Based on various angles, I believe this was a 1961ish 2WD Maverick, but I am open to other thoughts.You’ll note the ‘restoration’ of the wagon does not reflect an original paint scheme. The wagon makes several appearances. Here are the three longest ones.
The 11:09 minute mark before ‘restoration’:
The 51.25 minute mark before ‘restoration’:
The 1:31:37 minute mark (near end of movie) after ‘restoration’:
Other than the Willys wagon having a staring role in the film, I do not consider it academy award winning material. (if you know what I mean) After watching the film on TV back in 1999, what I gained from it was “Divine Inspiration” to finish up my 62 wagon I had bought the year earlier.
Looking at the before & after shots, it appears that two different wagons were used. I had originally thought one wagon was used with some makeup to give it an old neglected appearance. With closer study, I concluded it was two (2) wagons based on the missing trim & wood type paneling on #1, that is now apparent on restored #2. It would be difficult to remove that narrow Maverick trim just for the sake of filming.
The wood paneling most likely is Contact paper, I paneled my 1960 wagon this way back in 1969, ((the one with the Volkswagen stuffed in the back) back then, it was a unique idea.
Mike … do you think that is real wood or faux wood? I figured the two wagons were close enough that they *might* have been the same wagon. Then again, someone would have had to do a mighty quick restoration for the purposes of the film. That’s probably the biggest indicator that there were likely two wagons.
Dave, a lot of thoughts on this, so bare with me. When I first viewed this film in 1999, I seem to remember two wagons used based on the following; old un-restored wagon with split tailgate window and one piece windshield & wood paneling. & New restored, full glass in rear tailgate wagon. In this latest version, I don’t see that, only the one piece tailgate window. Another clue, the junkie wagon smoked exhaust, unless a restoration took place over a long period of time, certainly wouldn’t leave the engine smoking. These are just thoughts, not facts, and trying to substantiate my opinion of two (2) wagons.
This film always fascinated me because of the wagon I had in the past, green with wood paneling, of which I think is fake, contact paper.