Claim: The Right Stuff's cast includes German actor Fred Ward.

The Right Stuff is a 1983 American epic historical drama film that was adapted from Tom Wolfe 's best-selling 1979 book of the same name about the Navy , Marine and Air Force test pilots who were involved in aeronautical research at Edwards Air Force Base , California , as well as the seven military pilots who were selected to be the astronauts for Project Mercury , the first manned spaceflight by the United States . The Right Stuff stars Ed Harris , Scott Glenn , Sam Shepard , Fred Ward , Dennis Quaid and Barbara Hershey . Levon Helm is the narrator in the introduction and elsewhere in the film , as well as having a co-starring role as Air Force test pilot Jack Ridley . In 2013 the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being `` culturally , historically , or aesthetically significant '' .