Gidget

One interesting note about this show is that it is based on a real story/situation.

The real life Gidget was the daughter of a professor at Malibu's Pepperdine College. She hung out at the beach, surfed and generally amused her dad enough that he wrote a story about her life. This story later was turned into the movie 'Gidget' and then turned into this TV show.

My mom herself was a surfer in the late 50's so I always found this show interesting when I watched it on re-runs as a kid. Or course it doesn't hurt that Sally Field is unbelievably adorable! The show airs on TV Land right now and is surprisingly fun to watch.

Long before shows like "Saved By the Bell" and "Moesha" we had Gidget. This was a pretty interesting look at kids in the mid-1960's and how teen-agers were looked at in those days. It was an okay show for its times, even though it did seem kind of corny. You never would have guessed that this would be the launching point for one of the finest actresses in her era in the person of Sally Field. She gives a good performance of everyone's favorite surfer girl and is probably her third most famous character behind "Norma Rae" and Sister Bertrille. Perhaps the funniest, as well as the most annoying, part of this series were her sister and brother in law. Anne was pretty much a control freak and along with her wannabe Freud husband John were the prototype yuppies before the term was even invented. This was definitely a product of its time.

Frances 'Gidget' Lawrence, was adorable young Sally Field (Forest Gump), the girl who was always going to the beach with a wind breaker. Her best friend was always all covered up except for her face, which was well shaded by the huge hat. She was allergic to the sun! I always wondered why they had to wear wind breakers to go to the beach. Later I lived in California and found that the water of the Pacific Ocean is very cold. The beaches were hilly. I don't remember where the series actually took place. The series was black and white. I watched it dubbed. I remember the show as a whole but not much detail. Gidget herself was a lot of fun. I have good memories of the series.

This series was based on the popular movie series of the same name starring Sandra Dee. Newcomer Sally Field is perfectly cast as Frances "Gidget" Laurence. Sally Field is the star of the show along with Don Porter who played her father, Dr. Russell Lawrence, professor. Betty Connor played her sister, Ann, and she has a brother-in-law. Her best friend, Larue is hysterical. The series was light-hearted with plenty of memorable guest stars like Bonnie Franklin, Richard Dreyfuss, and more. While the series only lasted a season with 32 episodes, it's still enjoyable and light-hearted perfect for the summer months. It's hard to believe that it has been 50 years since Sally Field debut on to our hearts as lovable Gidget. Who would have imagined that she would go on to play the flying nun, win 2 Academy Awards, an Emmy, and more in her long career. It's time that Sally Field got the highest honor of the Kennedy Center Honors.

America's favorite beach girl Gidget after being played by Sandra Dee on screen came to the small screen and it gave Sally Field her first big break. But it was a double edged sword. Who but Field suspected she actually had acting chops. But this show and The Flying Nun left her type cast for years before she showed what she could do in Norma Rae and Places In The Heart.

Not much difference in the big screen and small screen Gidgets. Francine 'Gidget' Lawrence is a happy go lucky teen with surfing and boys on her mind. Her family unit was her widowed father Don Porter and married sister Betty Conner, her rather dense but lovable husband Peter Deuel and what we would now call her BFF Larue, Lynette Winter.

Every week Gidget would get into her usual teen troubles and get out of them after consultation with dear old Dad.

One thing I liked about this show was Don Porter. If you think Hugh Beaumont or Lorne Greene was the wisest TV dad than you never saw Gidget. Always professorial for that's what he did and totally unflappable in any situation Don Porter to me was the ideal TV dad. This man never, ever lost his cool in any situation. Granted these were G rated teen situations still the man was amazing.

If you were to predict Sally Field's career would boast two Oscars within the next quarter century when Gidget was on you would have been sent forthwith to the rubber room. One never knows what lies ahead.