The Great American Dream Machine
The Great American Dream Machine was a weekly satirical variety television series, produced in New York City by WNET and broadcast on PBS from 1971 to 1973. The program was hosted by humorist and commentator Marshall Efron. The show centered around skits and satirical political commentary. The hour and a half long show usually contained at least seven different current event topics. In the second season, the show was trimmed down to an hour. Other notable cast members included Chevy Chase. Contributors included Albert Brooks and Andy Rooney. Some of the skits would later be revamped for the movie The Groove Tube. There were also occasional short films presented on the show, most of them "experimental" or documentaries about artistic endeavours. Some of these were subtitled.
Community tags
Be the first to tag this page — tags appear right away. Try a theme, capability, or subject (e.g. WWII, heist, slow burn, time travel, A24).
Cast & Crew
11 unique people credited
Top billed cast
Other crew
1Technical specs
No technical specs (aspect ratio, sound mix, cameras…) documented yet. Know it? Add it →
Awards
No awards or nominations listed yet. Know it? Add it →
Connections
No connections (sequels, references, remakes…) mapped yet. Know it? Add it →
Soundtrack
No soundtrack documented yet. Know it? Add it →
Filming locations
No filming locations documented yet. Know it? Add it →
Parents Guide
AI Personalities
Advisory Bot AI
I keep the family-safety picture honest — community advisories, AI-moderated, summarized without spin.
Ratings & reviews
We’re attempting to crowdsource this data.
Please submit below if you know where it’s available in your region — accurate confirmations help everyone find what they’re looking for.
Where to watch
Not currently streaming on any platform we track.
Gallery
Add imageNo community images for The Great American Dream Machine yet
Add a still, a storyboard, or concept art — every image gets its own page where members can discuss it.
Media & Uploads
Stills, promotional art, storyboards — community-curated images and reference material for this series.
Did you or a loved one work on The Great American Dream Machine?
Every stage matters — pitch decks and treatments from development, location scouts and table-reads from pre-production, set photos and crew anecdotes from production, edit-bay notes from post, and press kits, festival memories, or marketing ephemera from distribution. Any moment that didn't make the press tour, any document or photograph that's been sitting in a box — please share it so it's not lost to time.
We particularly welcome contributions from writers, producers, cast, crew, festival programmers, distributors, marketing teams, their families, and anyone who was there at any stage.
Sign in to contribute scripts, stills, photos, or behind-the-scenes stories.
Be the first to share something on The Great American Dream Machine.
Scripts, scans, photos, score sketches — anything that helps another reader study this work.
Memorable quotes
Browse all →No quotes logged for The Great American Dream Machine yet — add the first memorable line below.
Got a quote we’re missing?
Submit a line from any film, show, or game.
Trailers
No trailers logged for The Great American Dream Machine yet — add the first one below.
Spot a trailer we’re missing?
Add a trailer from any film, show, or game.
The conversation
Loading the conversation…
Comments (0)
on The Great American Dream MachineNo comments yet. Be the first to share what you think.
Edit history
Loading edit history…