I was a big fan of Flipper since I saw the first film as a thirteen year old in 1963, and continued to follow Flipper in the second film and on TV. It's portrayal of an almost idyllic life for a boy and his pet dolphin was a wonderful fantasy for a boy who was about the same age as Sandy (Luke) at the time. The first film was a little more serious than the second: just look at that tiny fisherman's cottage the Ricks family lives in, and the dangers of the fisherman's life portrayed. The second film, despite featuring escaped convicts and a kidnapping plot is definitely light fare - the villains are stock characters and the tone is light enough to include an idyllic 'Eden" sequence much like a music video as Sandy and the girl he befriends tour the island.
The TV series, debuting in September, 1964 offered a lot of changes, mostly for reasons of budget or the target audience. Sandy's mother is now officially dead (she appeared in the first film and wasn't mentioned in the second) probably for budgetary reasons. In an era of stay-at-home moms she would have had to be in most episodes, but because Flipper was an action/adventure show and not a family sitcom, she would have had little to do.
The really big change was that Sandy now had a little brother, Bud (played by Tommy Norden). This was probably because the producers and network (NBC) aimed the show at kids, and felt they needed a younger character with whom they could identify. Even the balance of the character mix was changed: the movies had been pretty much all Sandy (Luke Halpin) who was in virtually every scene. Now Bud seemed to be the principal character, and most of the plots either were centered on him or were created by his mishaps.
The almost idyllic world depicted - a world where you ran around in nothing but shorts all day and swam around with a dolphin between adventures was irresistible to me and I sure would have wanted to be their friend.
Speaking of friends,where were their friends? Another element lost to the budgetary ax no doubt. Both Sandy and Bud were personable boys and it is often mentioned that they go to school,but the never seem to be with any friends,even though they have a house right on the ocean and a pet dolphin! A few friends would have made them seem less isolated.
Even Flipper himself changed dramatically between the movies and the TV series. His intelligence grew enormously. In the first film he does little more than play "fetch" with Sandy, and his dancing is a mere spin in the water, not his famous Tail Dance. In the second film he's adept at throwing various objects to shore.
But in the TV series there's practically nothing he can't do. He can follow the most amazingly complicated instructions, find people without being told where they might be, and even discern bad guys when everyone else believes them to be good. Well I guess it's as Bud and Sandy say in "Flipper's Treasure": "You can't fool Flipper!"
You could say that in the movies Flipper was a pet but in the TV show he became more like a Guardian Angel.
A wonderful classic TV show.
