QWhat is 'Gidget Goes Hawaiian' about?
AFrances 'Gidget' Lawrence (Deborah Walley) is devastated when her parents, Russ (Carl Reiner) and Dorothy (Jeff Donnell), spring a trip to Hawaii on her during the short vacation of her surfer boyfriend, Jeff 'Moondoggie' Matthews (James Darren), home from college for only a few weeks. That is, until Moondoggie tells her to go to Hawaii...he'll find something to do without her. Gidget takes that as a rebuff and decides to make the trip after all. She is miserable in Hawaii, and her father attempts to alleviate her suffering by bringing Jeff to Hawaii to surprise her. In the meantime, however, Gidget has decided to get out of her funk by having fun with dancer Eddie Horner (Michael Callan). Unfortunately, Abby Stewart (Vicki Trickett), a girl Gidget met on the plane, also has eyes for Eddie. Jealous of Gidget's popularity and her dancing and surfing abilities, Abby decides to start a rumor about Gidget that is sure to get her in trouble.
A"Gidget" is a melding of two words -- 'girl' and 'midget' to become 'gidget'. It was coined to make fun of a girl of small stature.
QWhy didn't Sandra Dee come back to play Gidget?
ASandra Dee was under contract to Universal Studios. She was loaned out to Columbia Studios to play Gidget in the first movie. By the time Gidget Goes Hawaiian came along, Dee was already busy doing the Tammy movies, i.e., Tammy Tell Me True (1961) and Tammy and the Doctor (1963), among others. At least, that's what the studio says.
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