Gidget
Gidget is a 1959 American romantic comedy teen movie about living in California. It is about a teenage girl who goes surfing. She has a romance with a young surfer.
| Gidget | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Paul Wendkos |
| Produced by | Lewis J. Rachmil |
| Screenplay by | Gabrielle Upton |
| Based on | Gidget, the Little Girl with Big Ideas 1957 novel by Frederick Kohner |
| Starring | Sandra Dee James Darren Cliff Robertson |
| Music by | Theme: Fred Karger (music) Patti Washington (lyrics) |
| Cinematography | Burnett Guffey, ASC |
| Edited by | William A. Lyon |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $1.5 million (est. US /Canada rentals)[1][2] |
The movie stars Sandra Dee, Cliff Robertson, and pop singer James Darren. The movie was based on a novel by Frederick Kohner titled Gidget, the Little Girl with Big Ideas. The movie was directed by Paul Wendkos.
Legacy
Gidget was the first beach party" movie. It was followed by two sequel movies, various television series, several made-for-TV movies, and the parody Psycho Beach Party.
Gidget is credited by numerous sources, including a documentary movie by Stacy Peralta, as being the single main influence to bring surfing and the surfing subculture into the American mainstream.[3][4]
The movie received a 1960 Golden Laurel Award nomination for Top Female Comedy Performance for actress Sandra Dee.
References
- ↑ Tom Lisanti, Hollywood Surf and Beach Movies: The First Wave, 1959-1969, McFarland 2005 , 29
- ↑ "1959: Probable Domestic Take", Variety, 6 January 1960 p 34
- ↑ "A Generation of Gidgets" Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine, by Jeff Spurrier, The Atlantic Monthly, April 2002 Retrieved 4 August 2009.
- ↑ "Surfer Girl, Forever" by Hugo Martin, The Los Angeles Times, June 17, 2006. Retrieved 4 August 2009.