Gidget Films
Gidget Films refers to a series of three movies centered around the character Gidget, inspired by Frederick Kohner's 1957 novel about his daughter. The original film, "Gidget" (1959), follows Francie Lawrence, nicknamed Gidget, a small but spirited California girl passionate about surfing and navigating teenage romance. Each film features Gidget's interactions with her main love interest, surfer Jeff "Moondoggie" Matthews, and highlights her encounters with other suitors, leading to classic romantic misunderstandings.
The franchise includes sequels "Gidget Goes Hawaiian" (1961) and "Gidget Goes to Rome" (1963), with Gidget portrayed by three different actresses throughout the series. Gidget's character is often viewed as a cultural icon, representing a blend of assertiveness and charm, appealing to teenage girls of the era who admired her adventurous spirit and popularity with boys. The success of the original film not only led to sequels but also paved the way for the beach film genre, influencing future cinematic styles. Additionally, Gidget's legacy includes two television series and several made-for-TV movies, establishing her as an enduring figure in American pop culture.
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Gidget Films
Three formulaic tales of surfing and romance featuring spirited, pint-sized heroine Gidget. These films, the first mainstream productions to bring together teenagers and beaches, launched a host of 1960’s beach films.
Origins and History
Gidget, Frederick Kohner’s 1957 novel about his daughter, gave rise to a three-film series directed by Paul Wendkos. “Gidget” (a conflation of “girl” and “midget”) was Francie Lawrence, a perky, diminutive California girl who loved surfing, beaches, and boys (in that order). Each Gidget film followed a simple formula: Though Gidget really loves surfer Jeff “Moondoggie” Matthews, she inevitably attracts the attention of other men, leading to perceived romantic triangles, multiple misunderstandings, and finally romantic reconciliations. James Darren played Moondoggie throughout the series, but Gidget was portrayed by three actresses, Sandra Dee, Deborah Walley, and Cindy Carol, respectively. In Gidget (1959), Gidget schemes to attract Moondoggie and becomes the mascot of a group of college boys who surf at Malibu. The leader, “Kahoona” (Cliff Robertson), an “older man,” takes a special interest in her, piquing Moondoggie’s jealousy; however, all is resolved in the film’s climactic luau scene. In the sequel, Gidget Goes Hawaiian (1961), the Lawrence family vacations in Hawaii. Gidget, now Moondoggie’s girlfriend, is drawn to nightclub singer Eddie Homer (Michael Callan). She becomes the target of a vicious rumor, temporarily leading to estrangement from her parents. In Gidget Goes to Rome (1963), Gidget vacations without her parents, so her father asks a friend (Cesare Danova) to keep an eye on her. Gidget misinterprets the friend’s kindly intentions as romantic overtures and complications ensue. The first Gidget film is the most successful: The appeal of Dee is lost in the sequel, and the films get worse the farther Gidget wanders from the West Coast.
Impact
The first Gidget film caught the public’s fancy, spawning two sequels, two television series (Gidget, 1965-1966, starring Sally Field, and The New Gidget, 1986-1988), and three made-for-television films. Teenage girls wanted to be Gidget, the spunky tomboy who was popular with boys and got to spend all her time on the beach. Parents approved, seeing Gidget as a wholesome, all-American ideal. However, Gidget was also an early model of assertiveness, under the guise of “perkiness.” Gidget taught herself how to surf, despite resistance from the boys she was trying to befriend. She refused to join her girlfriends on a “manhunt,” risking their disapproval, and, through sheer determination, became part of the boys’ gang in the one role open to her, “mascot.” Gidget offered a role model for teenage girls who wanted to be an initiator rather than a follower and have some fun, yet still be thought of as appealing to boys.
The Gidget series popularized a new motion-picture genre: the beach film. The film Beach Party (1963), directed by William Asher, was the first in the long-running beach party series starring Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello.
Additional Information
Gidget’s status as one of popular culture’s first feminist role models is explored in Susan J. Douglas’s Where the Girls Are: Growing Up Female with the Mass Media (1994).