I’m Back! Here’s Gidget!

Wow! Almost 2 years since I’ve updated Small Screen Pop! My apologies, although I do have a good excuse. I’ve had three books published in that time! For my return to SSP, I’ve chosen a retro series I’ve been watching on Prime, Gidget (1965-1966), as my first topic.

I’m not sure how much of Gidget I watched when it originally aired. Prior to viewing it recently, I distinctly remembered only one episode, “Now There’s a Face”, in which Daniel J.Travanti made a guest appearance as a photographer whom Gidget (Sally Field) falls for, hard. The episode clearly had an impact on me as a tween, because I remembered dialogue and scenes from it quite accurately almost 60 years later. As to the rest of the show, it was pretty much a blur. 

The character of Gidget began life not with TV’s Sally or film’s Sandra Dee, but in the 1957 novel Gidget, the Little Girl with Big Ideas. Its author, Frederick Kohner, based the character on his teenage daughter Kathy and her experiences surfing in Malibu. Below on the right is the dust jacket from the first edition of the novel. On the left is Sally Field as television’s first Gidget.

I have to admit that the real revelation of this show for me has been Don Porter’s portrayal of Gidget’s dad, Russell Lawrence. When I was young I thought of him as “old guy,” but now I’m quite captivated by his charm in the role, very relaxed and natural. He was a new kind of dad for the time too--more trusting of his daughter’s judgment, and striking a nice balance between friend and father. 

After finishing Gidget’s 32 episodes, I started all over again. The mid-60s are my favorite retro era, probably because that’s when I was growing up, but also because it was a fascinating cultural moment. Everything--music, fashion, politics--was changing, but things hadn’t exploded--not just yet. In the middle of this 60s sea, the storm was coming, but the waters were still calm.

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If you love all things mid-century, please check out my historical mystery series North End Girl! The Independent Book Review said about the first novel in the series:

"North End Girl is a delightfully charming mystery with a sweet romantic side plot and a cast of strong characters, elevated by its time period and setting.... It's rich with the history and culture of 1940s Boston."

Thanks and “toodles”!