How to Stuff a Wild Bikini (1965)

Director:

William Asher

Writers:

William Asher (writer)
Leo Townsend (writer)

Release Date:

14 July 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical

Tagline:

FOR BEGINNERS AND EXPERTS... an interesting course in THE BIRDS... THE BEES and BIKINIS

Plot:

Frankie, on naval-reserve duty in Tahiti, doesn't trust Dee Dee to stay faithful, so he hires Bwana...

Plot Keywords:

Advertising | Witch Doctor | Bikini | Witch | Teen

Cast

Annette Funicello	...	Dee Dee (formerly Dolores)
Dwayne Hickman	...	Ricky
Brian Donlevy	...	B.D. MacPherson aka Big Deal
Harvey Lembeck	...	Eric Von Zipper
Beverly Adams	...	Cassandra
John Ashley	...	Johnny
Jody McCrea	...	Bonehead
Marianne Gaba	...	Animal
Len Lesser	...	North Dakota Pete
Irene Tsu	...	Native Girl
Arthur Julian	...	Dr. Melamed
Bobbi Shaw	...	Khola Koku
Buster Keaton	...	Bwana
The Kingsmen	...	Themselves
Alberta Nelson	...	Puss

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Pathécolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Paradise Cove - 28128 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu, California, USA

Company:

American International Pictures (AIP)

Trivia:

Features the only big screen appearance by The Kingsmen, famous for their hit version of "Louie Louie". Decked out in matching yellow blazers, the band did not perform that song and instead performed "Give Her Lovin'".

Goofs:

Continuity: At the start of the road race, the starter has a green flag. When we cut away to the stock footage, the starter has a red flag.

Quotes:

Ricky: I have a simple theory - if you're not with the girl that you love, love the girl that you're with.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mama's Family: Mama on Jeopardy! (#4.19)" (1988)

Soundtrack:

Better Be Ready

Weak entry, but some minor interest

This was the last of American-International's beach musicals that starred Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello (although they'd try to continue for a few films without these two). Frankie and Annette are barely together even in the film--Frankie is more of a cameo than a major character in the plot.

Intriguingly, this musical is filled with "book numbers"--where the characters sing when they should be talking. Usually, the beach party movies just had people asking Frankie or Annette to sing at a party or at a nightclub. So, that's a change. The problem is that the songs aren't anything to write home about.

Further, the film betrays why the beach movies were losing their popularity: the surfing fad was being supplanted by a renewed interest in motorcycle culture. Only a year or two later, American-International would be making films like "The Wild Angels." This is a problem for a series where the stock antagonist, Eric Von Zipper, is a parody of Marlon Brando's biker hood in "The Wild One" (1954). The film shows a renewed interest in cycles--Annette's romantic interest, Harvey Lembeck, is an avid motorcyclist. The film tries to deal with this by transforming Von Zipper from a biker into the stereotypical 60s junior executive (a la "How to Succeed in Business"). But, you can see the structure starting to fall apart here.

There are fun moments though--particularly the opening credits (clay animation done by Art Cloakey, the creator of Gumby), and the wacky motorcycle race at the end of the film. Lastly, there's a fun cameo at the very end of the film by producer William Asher's wife...