''Ladybug Ladybug'' is a 1963 American

docudrama Docudrama (or documentary drama) is a genre of television and film, which features dramatized re-enactments of actual events. It is described as a hybrid of documentary and drama and "a fact-based representation of real event". Docudramas typic ...

film directed by

Frank Perry Frank Joseph Perry Jr. (August 21, 1930 – August 29, 1995) was an American stage director and filmmaker. His 1962 independent film '' David and Lisa'' earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay (writte ...

and written by

Eleanor Perry Eleanor Perry (née Rosenfeld; nom-de-plume Oliver Weld Bayer, October 13, 1914 – March 14, 1981) was an American screenwriter and author.''Variety'' "Eleanor Perry Obituary" March 17, 1981 Film critic Charles Champlin fondly remembered Perry ...

. The film is a commentary on the psychological effects of the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

, the title deriving from the classic

nursery rhyme A nursery rhyme is a traditional poem or song for children in Britain and many other countries, but usage of the term dates only from the late 18th/early 19th century. The term Mother Goose rhymes is interchangeable with nursery rhymes. From t ...

. It marked the film debuts of

William Daniels William David Daniels (born March 31, 1927) is an American actor, who is best known for his television roles, notably as Mark Craig in the drama series '' St. Elsewhere'', for which he won two Primetime Emmy Awards; the voice of KITT in the tel ...

Estelle Parsons Estelle Margaret Parsons (born November 20, 1927) is an American actress, singer and stage director. After studying law, Parsons became a singer before deciding to pursue a career in acting. She worked for the television program ''Today'' and ...

and

Jane Connell Jane Sperry Connell (pronounced con-NELL, née Bennett; October 27, 1925 – September 22, 2013) was an American actress and singer. Early years Connell was born in Berkeley, California, to Louis Wesley and Mary (née Sperry) Bennett. She majo ...

. The film was inspired by a ''

McCall's ''McCall's'' was a monthly American women's magazine, published by the McCall Corporation, that enjoyed great popularity through much of the 20th century, peaking at a readership of 8.4 million in the early 1960s. It was established as a small-for ...

'' magazine story about an actual incident at a California elementary school during the 1962

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the United S ...

Plot

One morning, teachers at a secluded countryside elementary school are asked to accompany the pupils to their homes after a

nuclear attack Nuclear warfare, also known as atomic warfare, is a theoretical military conflict or prepared political strategy that deploys nuclear weaponry. Nuclear weapons are weapons of mass destruction; in contrast to conventional warfare, nuclear wa ...

warning alarm sounds and the staff are unable to determine whether or not the alarm was false. One teacher and the children under her care walk through the countryside, with a slowly building sense of doom about what they believe to be the upcoming

nuclear holocaust A nuclear holocaust, also known as a nuclear apocalypse, nuclear Armageddon, or atomic holocaust, is a theoretical scenario where the mass detonation of nuclear weapons causes globally widespread destruction and radioactive fallout. Such a scenar ...

. Several of the children reach their homes; one girl cowers under a bed after her parents refuse to take the threat seriously, a boy leads his

dementia Dementia is a disorder which manifests as a set of related symptoms, which usually surfaces when the brain is damaged by injury or disease. The symptoms involve progressive impairments in memory, thinking, and behavior, which negatively affe ...

-ridden grandmother to take cover in their basement, another girl runs off in a panic after finding her house empty. When several of the children finally gain access to a

bomb shelter A bomb shelter is a structure designed to provide protection against the effects of a bomb. Types of shelter Different kinds of bomb shelters are configured to protect against different kinds of attack and strengths of hostile explosives. Air ...

, they do not allow a female fellow student to join them, claiming there is not enough room. The girl frantically searches for shelter and hides inside an old abandoned refrigerator; she is not seen again and her fate is never explained. A boy leaves the shelter to try and find her, and as he runs along outside a loud whining noise is suddenly heard overhead. The boy cowers in the shadow of planes passing in the sky above and repeatedly yells "Stop!" as the camera moves closer to his face, goes out of focus and then fades to black.

Cast (partial)

as Mrs. Maxton *

as Mr. Calkins *

James Frawley James Joseph Frawley (September 29, 1936 – January 22, 2019) was an American director and actor. He was a member of the Actors Studio since around 1961. He was best known for directing ''The Muppet Movie'' (1979) and ''The Monkees'' television ...

as Truck Driver * Richard Hamilton as JoAnn's Father *

Kathryn Hays Kathryn Hays (born Kay Piper; July 26, 1934 – March 25, 2022) was an American actress, best known for her role as Kim Hughes on the CBS soap opera ''As the World Turns'' from 1972 to 2010. Life and career Hays was born Kay Piper in Princeto ...

as Mrs. Forbes *

Judith Lowry Judith Carter Lowry (née Ives; July 27, 1890 – November 29, 1976) was an American actress. She had nearly 30 film and television roles and appeared on stage, most notably in the Off-Broadway production of ''The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in ...

as Luke's Grandmother *

Nancy Marchand Nancy Lou Marchand (June 19, 1928 – June 18, 2000) was an American actress. She began her career in theatre in 1951. She was most famous for her television portrayals of Margaret Pynchon on ''Lou Grant'' and Livia Soprano on ''The Sopranos''. ...

as Mrs. Andrews *

as JoAnn's Mother *

Miles Chapin The mile, sometimes the international mile or statute mile to distinguish it from other miles, is a British imperial unit and United States customary unit of distance; both are based on the older English unit of length equal to 5,280 English ...

as Joel *

Alice Playten Alice Playten ('' née'' Plotkin; August 28, 1947 – June 25, 2011) was an American actress known for her high-pitched, child-like voice. Life and career Born in New York City, Playten began her career at age 11 in the Broadway musical ''Gyp ...

as Harriet

References

External links

''Ladybug Ladybug''
at

IMDb IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

''Ladybug Ladybug''
at

AllMovie AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne. History AllMovie was founded by popular-cult ...

* 1963 films 1963 drama films 1960s American films 1960s English-language films 1960s thriller drama films American black-and-white films American thriller drama films Cold War films Films about children Films about nuclear war and weapons Films about the Cuban Missile Crisis Films based on newspaper and magazine articles Films directed by Frank Perry Films set in schools Films shot in Pennsylvania United Artists films {{1960s-thriller-film-stub

Plot

Cast (partial)

See also

References

External links