Gidget Goes Hawaiian

"Gidget Goes Hawaiian" (1961) was the first Gidget (girl plus midget) sequel. James Darren continued as love interest Moondoggie but Sandra Dee was replaced by Deborah Walley. This role made Walley (a serious and talented actress) into a sudden teen sensation and probably insured that her acting would never be taken seriously. She was my first really big crush although not from this movie (I was too young to care about teen movies) but from "Summer Magic", a children's film she did for Disney several years later.

Walley, who did many of her own surfing sequences for the film, was super cute back then and had a great smile. She looks a lot like a pre-starvation diet Lindsey Lohen. She was only 5'2" and in this film looks a bit dumpy; in part because the clueless costume people gave her a particularly unflattering wardrobe and in part because she was cast opposite Vicki Trickett who would make almost any girl look bad in comparison. But Walley does an excellent job with the role and it is not hard to believe that all the boys would go for Gidget over Abby (Trickett's character).

"Gidget Goes Hawaiian" was released the same year as Elvis's "Blue Hawaii" and if you chopped up the two films and edited them together it would be difficult to tell their sequences apart. Trickett even looks like Elvis movie regular Shelley Fabares. Trickett was the first actress to use the term "best friends for life" (BFFL) in a movie; little realizing its future as a mainstay of text messaging.

The film gave teen girls pop singing star Darren. Darren sings the excellent title song along with a much weaker track titled "Wild About You". Teen girls also got a dancing Michael Callan ("Cat Ballou"). Watch for his impromptu dance sequence with Eddie Foy, Jr.

"Gidget Goes Hawaiian" is short on beautiful Hawaiian scenery and clever scripting but its target audience got plenty of Darren, Callan, and Hollywood's cutest redhead.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

Two years after the original comes this sequel, with Deborah Walley replacing Sandra Dee in the titular role of Francie Lawrence/Gidget. Like the first film, this one is nothing highbrow: just some teen-based comedy and drama revolving around the exploits and misadventures of Gidget.

Gidget and family go to Honolulu for vacation, an excellent excuse for plenty of shots of Hawaiian culture, wrapped around the usual surf and sand center.

The best parts of this film are the Hawaiiana, the dance sequences (surprisingly), and the presence of some adult actors known more for their TV work: like Peggy Cass (who had previously acted in "Auntie Mame") and Carl Reiner (known best, perhaps, for the "Dick Van Dyke Show").

Watch for Vickie Trickett---whose film career spanned only two years---in her thankless role as Abby Stewart, Gidget's main rival and a passive-aggressive gossip.

As the film goes on, it gets better, but it never rises above the level of mildly amusing.

The first "Gidget" (1959) hit the sand running, with sweet 'n' sexy Sandra Dee in the title role and James Darren (as Jeff "Moondoggie" Matthews) making as many groins throb. In that outing, Ms. Dee seemed too Holly-worldly for the part, which results in the opposite sort of problem as "Gidget Goes Hawaiian". Herein, cute 'n' perky Deborah Walley (as Frances "Gidget" Lawrence) takes the lead, in a script that appears to have been written with Dee in mind - she would have been more likely than Ms. Walley in attracting every hunk on the beach. Also, Dee would have been more believable as a rival for beautiful dark-haired Vicki Trickett (as Abby Stewart), who should have attracted more attention. No wallflower, Ms. Trickett's legs go on forever...

Conversely, Walley would have done better with the original film's script. Yet, on balance, this picture is a little bit more fun, with its appealing young cast, and older veterans like Carl Reiner and Peggy Cass lending some shtick. The plot is that "Gidget Goes Hawaiian" and is mistaken for a tramp. The story suggests a young woman having sexual intercourse faces a battle more daunting than drug addiction. The main men vying for Walley's attention, Mr. Darren and Michael Callan (as Eddie Horner), handsomely hold the camera's spotlight, with dreamy singing and dancing numbers. Both men were named "Stars of Tomorrow" by Quigley Publications, in 1960 and 1962, due to "Gidget" films. And, Walley received a "Photoplay" newcomer of 1961 award.

***** Gidget Goes Hawaiian (6/2/61) Paul Wendkos ~ Deborah Walley, James Darren, Michael Callan, Carl Reiner

In my honest opinion,Deborah Walley was the definitive gidget.I also believe this was the best of the movies.

The supporting cast is really terrific,and although it may seem a little dated and corny,if you watch it with an open mind, it is definitely entertaining.

Peggy Cass gives the film's true standout performance as the mother of Gidget's nemesis.

Fun and involving beach comedy-melodrama. Walley and Darren try to get each other jealous before flinging up their arms to stay together. Walley is cute and conveys some subtlety in the "Girl Midget" role she inherited. One odd aspect of the film is its seemingly outdated jazz-style music. But maybe by the early 60s the rock thing really WAS out (I wasn't there, so I don't really know).

The production numbers are smart and fairly well-written, especially Gidget's dream of being a "fallen woman." You don't usually see things like this in a beach movie, and that's what makes this one of the better beach party movies. It's equally as good as AIP's beach movies (in which Walley appeared), though without quite as good a cast.

Walley was eventually married to and then divorced from actor/musician/filmmaker John Ashley. She more or less retired from acting in the 70s after making the original "Benji", and in the 80s and 90s she appeared at numerous conventions (where she was always a very friendly presence that I'm sure a lot of people appreciated as much as I did). She passed away a couple of years ago, and I guess this classic beach film is now a kind of monument to her. Because I think people will be watching and enjoying this movie many, many years into the future. I don't know if they will respect it, or like it, or hate it, but they will probably enjoy it