It's A Bikini World
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''It's a Bikini World'' is a 1967 American
musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...
comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...
starring
Tommy Kirk Thomas Lee Kirk (December 10, 1941 − September 28, 2021) was an American actor, best known for his performances in films made by Walt Disney Studios such as '' Old Yeller'', '' The Shaggy Dog'', '' Swiss Family Robinson'', ''The Absent-Minde ...
, Deborah Walley and Bobby Pickett. The film features cameos by the music groups the Gentrys,
the Animals The Animals, currently billed as Eric Burdon & the Animals (featuring original frontman Eric Burdon) and also as Animals & Friends (featuring original drummer John Steel (drummer), John Steel), are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Ne ...
, Pat & Lolly Vegas, the Castaways and R&B girl group
the Toys The Toys were an American pop girl group from Jamaica, New York, which was formed in 1961 and disbanded in 1968. Their most successful recording was " A Lover's Concerto" (1965), which sold more than two million copies and reached the number ...
. Featuring a pro-
feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...
plotline, it is the only film in the beach party genre to be directed by a woman (
Stephanie Rothman Stephanie Rothman (born November 9, 1936) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter, known for her low-budget independent exploitation films made in the 1960s and 1970s, especially ''The Student Nurses'' (1970) and ''Terminal Isla ...
). This film, along with '' Catalina Caper'' (which also starred Tommy Kirk), is among the last of the beach party films. The mainstay of the once-popular genre was the series of films by
American International Pictures American International Pictures, LLC (AIP or American International Productions) is an American film production company owned by Amazon MGM Studios. In its original operating period, AIP was an independent film production and distribution c ...
(AIP), starting with the surprise hit ''
Beach Party ''Beach Party'' is a 1963 American film and the first of seven beach party films from American International Pictures (AIP) aimed at a teen audience.Smith, Gary A. Smith (2009) ''The American International Pictures Video Guide'', McFarland ...
'' in 1963 and ending with ''
The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini ''Ghost in the Invisible Bikini'' is a 1966 American fantasy comedy film directed by Don Weis. It is the seventh and last of American International Pictures' beach party films. The film features the cast cavorting in and around a haunted house ...
'' (a box-office flop) in 1966. Although AIP picked up distribution, ''It's a Bikini World'' was not an AIP film. It was produced and originally distributed by Trans American Films under the title ''The Girl in Daddy's Bikini.'' A new 35-mm print with this title was screened at the
American Cinematheque The American Cinematheque is an independent, non-profit cultural organization in Los Angeles, California, United States that represents the public presentation of the moving image in all its forms. It presents festivals and retrospectives that ...
in Hollywood on August 1, 2009.


Plot

Young surfer, local beach jock and ladies' man Mike Samson meets Delilah Dawes. At first, he tries to add her to his collection of women, but she rejects him because she finds him chauvinistic and shallow, so he disguises himself as a nerdy twin brother named Herbert. Publisher Harvey Pulp plans to start a new magazine called ''Teen Scream''. To publicize the venture, he joins forces with Daddy, a car, surfboard and skateboard customizer and owner of local music club The Dungeon. Pulp and Daddy organize a series of contests, and Delilah competes against Mike with the encouragement of Mike's fake brother and alternate identity Herbert in various events, and loses each time. However, Mike finds that he is falling in love with her. Delilah finds out about the deception. The two compete in a final race using various vehicles.


Cast

* Deborah Walley as Delilah Dawes *
Tommy Kirk Thomas Lee Kirk (December 10, 1941 − September 28, 2021) was an American actor, best known for his performances in films made by Walt Disney Studios such as '' Old Yeller'', '' The Shaggy Dog'', '' Swiss Family Robinson'', ''The Absent-Minde ...
as Mike / Herbert Samson * Bob Pickett as Woody * Suzie Kaye as Pebbles * Jack Bernardi as Harvey Pulp * William O'Connell as McSnigg * Jim Begg as Boy * Lori Williams as Girl * Pat McGee as Cindy *
Sid Haig Sidney Eddie Mosesian (July 14, 1939 – September 21, 2019), known professionally as Sid Haig, was an American actor. He was known for his appearances in horror films, most notably his role as Captain Spaulding in the Rob Zombie films '' House ...
as Daddy *
The Animals The Animals, currently billed as Eric Burdon & the Animals (featuring original frontman Eric Burdon) and also as Animals & Friends (featuring original drummer John Steel (drummer), John Steel), are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Ne ...
as Themselves - Rock Group *
The Toys The Toys were an American pop girl group from Jamaica, New York, which was formed in 1961 and disbanded in 1968. Their most successful recording was " A Lover's Concerto" (1965), which sold more than two million copies and reached the number ...
as Themselves - Rock Group * The Gentrys as Themselves - Rock Group * The Castaways as Themselves - Rock Group


Production

''It's a Bikini World'' was partly financed by
Roger Corman Roger William Corman (April 5, 1926 – May 9, 2024) was an American film director, producer, and actor. Known under various monikers such as "The Pope of Pop Cinema", "The Spiritual Godfather of the New Hollywood", and "The King of Cult", he w ...
, who disliked musicals on the whole but invested in some beach movies such as this and ''Beach Ball''. He hired his protégé Stephanie Rothman to direct and Rothman's husband Charles S. Swartz to produce, and Rothman and Swartz co-wrote the script.'Exploiting Feminism: An Interview with Stephanie Rothman (Part One)' ''Confessions of an Aca Fan: The Official Weblog of Henry Jenkins'', Oct 16, 2007
/ref> Rothman said “This was one of the last beach pictures made, possibly the last. I doubt that anyone ever chose to make a beach picture because they were attracted to the genre. I certainly didn’t. It was simply my first chance to make a feature film.”"Peary p 181 Rothman later stated her rationale for the script:
Girls in beach pictures were usually very passive. The idea that she would assume her athletic prowess could be as good as his was very alien. We wanted a story in which the two characters each had a very strong sense of self-esteem: the boy not wanting to admit that the girl could be as worthy as he, the girl not willing to let him believe that he was better than her.Terry Curtis Fox, 'Fully Female', ''Film Comment'' 12. 6 (Nov/Dec 1976): 46-50,68
The movie was originally entitled ''The Girl in Daddy's Bikini''. In October, 1965 Kirk signed on to do the film, which then was to be released by
Paramount Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to: Entertainment and music companies * Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS. **Paramount Picture ...
. He had just finished '' Ghost in the Invisible Bikini'' with Deborah Walley who was also hired.


Filming

''It's a Bikini World'' was filmed in November1965 but not released until the spring of 1967. The fact that the film was shot off-season (when the beaches were less crowded, which was typical for beach party films) is noticeable from the foliage and the
Hollywood Boulevard Hollywood Boulevard is a major east–west street in Los Angeles, California. It runs through the Hollywood, East Hollywood, Little Armenia, Thai Town, and Los Feliz districts. Its western terminus is at Sunset Plaza Drive in the Hollyw ...
Christmas decorations appearing onscreen. Trans American made an effort to copy AIP's style. Both Kirk and Walley had appeared in previous AIP films, Kirk in '' Pajama Party'' and Walley in both '' Beach Blanket Bingo'' and ''
Ski Party ''Ski Party'' is a 1965 American teen musical comedy film directed by Alan Rafkin and starring Frankie Avalon and Dwayne Hickman. It was released by American International Pictures (AIP). ''Ski Party'' is considered as a beach party film spi ...
'', and they had just starred together in ''
The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini ''Ghost in the Invisible Bikini'' is a 1966 American fantasy comedy film directed by Don Weis. It is the seventh and last of American International Pictures' beach party films. The film features the cast cavorting in and around a haunted house ...
''. Bobby Pickett's character Woody, with his goofy hats and dim wit, is a riff on the character Deadhead/Bonehead that
Jody McCrea Joel Dee "Jody" McCrea (September 6, 1934 – April 4, 2009) was an American actor. He was the son of actors Joel McCrea and Frances Dee. Career McCrea had small roles in his father's film, '' Wichita'' (1955). He was also in '' Lucy Gallant' ...
portrayed in several of the AIP beach party films.
Sid Haig Sidney Eddie Mosesian (July 14, 1939 – September 21, 2019), known professionally as Sid Haig, was an American actor. He was known for his appearances in horror films, most notably his role as Captain Spaulding in the Rob Zombie films '' House ...
's character of Daddy, with his
Kustom Kulture Kustom Kulture is the artworks, vehicles, hairstyles, and fashions of those who have driven and built custom cars and motorcycles in the United States of America from the 1950s through today. It was born out of the hot rod culture of Southern C ...
design merchandise empire, is a take-off on Ed "Big Daddy" Roth, whose designs were tied to the AIP films as well. For example, Roth's trademark hat, the Hillbilly Crash Helmet, was worn by McCrea in a couple of AIP films, and Roth's Surfite custom car appears in AIP's ''Beach Blanket Bingo''. The role of Woody was originally offered to
Aron Kincaid Aron Kincaid (born Norman Neale Williams II; June 15, 1940 – January 6, 2011) was an American actor, known for voicing Killer Croc on '' Batman: The Animated Series'' and Sky Lynx on '' The Transformers''. He also voiced characters for ' ...
, who turned it down.Tom Lisanti, ''Hollywood Surf and Beach Movies: The First Wave, 1959-1969'', McFarland 2005, p337-342 Pickett recalled Walley as being "flirtatious" and Rothman as "very sweet." Rothman said "“I thnk that it had pretty interesting photography for the time." Shooting took place over the course of two weeks at a number of locations, including Malibu Beach and a theatre in the Palisades. The location used for Daddy's "dungeon" in the film is the notorious Hollywood Boulevard club The Haunted House, notable for its bizarre stage in the shape of the mouth of a giant fanged monster. The club also appears as the setting for Ted V. Mikels' go-go exploitation film ''
Girl in Gold Boots ''Girl in Gold Boots'' is a 1968 crime film, crime/Drama (film and television), drama film about the seedy underworld of go-go dancing, directed by Ted V. Mikels, who also directed ''The Astro-Zombies''. It was Mikels's first movie for his own c ...
'', released a year later in 1968. Surfboards used in the film were provided by Hobie. The Gentrys later recalled shooting their scene took "about three hours" and "was fun".


Music

The Animals The Animals, currently billed as Eric Burdon & the Animals (featuring original frontman Eric Burdon) and also as Animals & Friends (featuring original drummer John Steel (drummer), John Steel), are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Ne ...
perform their hit "
We Gotta Get out of This Place "We Gotta Get Out of This Place", occasionally written "We've Gotta Get Out of This Place", is a rock song written by American songwriters Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil and recorded as a 1965 hit single by English band the Animals. It has become ...
" and the teen garage band the Castaways perform their hit " Liar, Liar."
The Toys The Toys were an American pop girl group from Jamaica, New York, which was formed in 1961 and disbanded in 1968. Their most successful recording was " A Lover's Concerto" (1965), which sold more than two million copies and reached the number ...
perform "Attack," the Gentrys perform "Spread It on Thick" and Pat & Lolly Vegas perform "Walk On (Right Out of My Life)." The soundtrack is by
Mike Curb Michael Curb (born December 24, 1944) is an American politician, record executive, and philanthropist who served as the 42nd Lieutenant Governor of California, lieutenant governor of California from 1979 to 1983. He is the founder of Curb Recor ...
and features an early
Moog synthesizer The Moog synthesizer ( ) is a modular synthesizer invented by the American engineer Robert Moog in 1964. Moog's company, R. A. Moog Co., produced numerous models from 1965 to 1981, and again from 2014. It was the first commercial synthesizer ...
cut. The kinetic surf instrumental used over the opening and closing credits, and as a signature throughout the film, is by Bob Summers.


Release

The film was released in April 1967, finding limited release in the big cities and mostly playing Southern drive-ins.


Critical reception

According to a contemporary review, the film, which was playing on a double bill with ''Teenage Rebellion'', "is filled with bikinis filled with girls, as advertised. It is also filled with combos who call themselves the Animals, The Castaways, The Gentrys and things like that. What it is not filled with is entertainment. Deborah Walley and Tommy Kirk work as hard as if they were in a really great film like ''Beach Blanket Bingo'' but director Stephanie (!) Rothman's efforts, I'm afraid, fall far short of that classic." A review of the film in
TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media In mass communication, digital media is any media (communication), communication media that operates in conjunction with various encoded machine-readable data formats. Digital content can be created, vi ...
describes it as "Not one of the better films in the 'Beach Party' genre," but that " me great 1960s bands ..are featured." A modern review by Graeme Clark reported that the film "unintentionally has an oddly forlorn mood to its silliness," that it "had more of a proto-feminist theme to it than anything
Frankie Avalon Francis Thomas Avallone (born September 18, 1940), better known as Frankie Avalon, is an American singer, actor and former teen idol. He had 31 charting U.S. ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' singles from 1958 to late 1962, including Record ...
ever had to contend with from
Annette Funicello Annette Joanne Funicello (October 22, 1942 – April 8, 2013) was an American actress and singer. She began her professional career at age 12, becoming one of the most popular Mouseketeers on the original ''The Mickey Mouse Club, Mickey Mouse Cl ...
," and that " r nostalgists, this is a far more promising prospect for entertainment than anyone else, but that casual melancholy informs the proceedings, not something that would have struck many at the time." Tommy Kirk later said that he was embarrassed by the movie. "It was ... basically the end of my career, one of the worst pieces of shit that I've ever been in in my life. I can't believe that I could be so stupid. Poor Deborah Walley, poor me."Minton, Kevin, "Sex, Lies, and Disney Tape: Walt's Fallen Star", ''Filmfax'' Issue 38, April 1993 p 70 Stephanie Rothman later said that she "... became very depressed after making
he film He or HE may refer to: Language * He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads * He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English * He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana) * Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter cal ...
" She also said, "I had very ambivalent feelings about continuing to be a director if that was all I was going to be able to do. So I literally went into a kind of retirement for several years until more than anything in the world, I wanted to make films."


See also

*
List of American films of 1967 This is a list of American films released in 1967. '' In the Heat of the Night'' won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Box office January–March A-D E-H I-P R-Z Documentaries Other See also * 1967 in the United Stat ...


References


Notes

*


External links

* *
''It's a Bikini World''
at AFI

at Brian's Drive in Theatre {{DEFAULTSORT:It's A Bikini World 1967 films 1967 musical comedy films 1967 romantic comedy films American musical comedy films American rock musicals American romantic comedy films American romantic musical films 1960s English-language films Bikinis Beach party films Teensploitation 1960s American films Films directed by Stephanie Rothman English-language romantic comedy films English-language musical comedy films English-language romantic musical films