Aug. 14, 1963 - Opening today is “Flipper,” an adventure film released by MGM. Directed by James B. Cark, the film centers on a 12-year-old boy (Luke Halpin) living with his parents in the Florida Keys who befriends an injured wild dolphin. The boy and the dolphin become inseparable, eventually overcoming the misgivings of the boy's fisherman father (Chuck Connors). Co-creator Ricou Browning said he originally conceived the story after seeing his children intently watching the television series “Lassie.” Browning was inspired to create a similar story with a dolphin in place of the dog. The film has several underwater sequences along with scenes of the trained dolphin performing stunts. Flipper is played by Mitzie (born in 1958), a female dolphin trained at the Santini Porpoise School by Milton and Virginia Santini, who are credited in the film. In addition to Mitzie, four other dolphins were filmed for the movie.
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