''The Misadventures of Merlin Jones'' is a 1964 American science-fiction comedy film directed by

Robert Stevenson Robert Stevenson may refer to: * Robert Stevenson (actor and politician) (1915–1975), American actor and politician * Robert Stevenson (civil engineer) (1772–1850), Scottish lighthouse engineer * Robert Stevenson (director) (1905–1986), Engl ...

and produced by Walt Disney Productions. The film stars Tommy Kirk as a college student who experiments with mind-reading and hypnotism, leading to run-ins with a local judge.

Annette Funicello Annette Joanne Funicello (October 22, 1942 – April 8, 2013) was an American actress and singer. Funicello began her professional career as a child performer at the age of twelve. She was one of the most popular Mouseketeers on the orig ...

plays his girlfriend (and sings the film's title song, accompanied by Disneyland's very own harmony quartet, The Yachtsmen, written by the

Sherman Brothers The Sherman Brothers were an American songwriting duo that specialized in musical films, made up of Robert B. Sherman (December 19, 1925 – March 6, 2012) and Richard M. Sherman (born June 12, 1928). Together they received various accolades in ...

), with Leon Ames,

Stuart Erwin Stuart Erwin (February 14, 1903 – December 21, 1967) was an American actor of stage, film, and television. Early years Erwin was born in Squaw Valley, Fresno County, California. He attended Porterville High School and the University of ...

Alan Hewitt Alan Hewitt (January 21, 1915 – November 7, 1986) was an American film, television, and stage actor. His most prominent TV roles were Detective Brennan in ''My Favorite Martian'' and the district attorney in ''How to Murder Your Wife''. Earl ...

, Connie Gilchrist, and

Dallas McKennon Dallas Raymond McKennon (July 19, 1919 – July 14, 2009), sometimes credited as Dal McKennon, was an American film, television and voice actor, who had a career lasting over 50 years. During World War II he served in the Army Signal Corps and wa ...

rounding out the film's supporting cast. This film was followed up by a sequel called '' The Monkey's Uncle'' the following year.

Plot

Midvale College student Merlin Jones (Tommy Kirk), who is always involved with mind experiments, designs a helmet that connects to an

electroencephalographic Electroencephalography (EEG) is a method to record an electrogram of the spontaneous electrical activity of the brain. The biosignals detected by EEG have been shown to represent the postsynaptic potentials of pyramidal neurons in the neocortex ...

tape that records mental activity. He is brought before Judge Holmsby (Leon Ames) for wearing the helmet while driving and his license is suspended. Merlin returns to the lab and discovers accidentally that his new invention enables him to read minds. Judge Holmsby visits the diner where Merlin works part-time, and Merlin, through his newly found powers, learns that the judge is planning a crime. After informing the police, he is disregarded as a crackpot. Merlin and Jennifer (Annette Funicello), his girlfriend, break into Judge Holmsby's house looking for something to prove Holmsby's criminal intent, but are arrested by the police. Holmsby then confesses that he is the crime book author "Lex Fortis", and asks that this identity be kept confidential. Merlin's next experiment uses

hypnotism Hypnosis is a human condition involving focused attention (the selective attention/selective inattention hypothesis, SASI), reduced peripheral awareness, and an enhanced capacity to respond to suggestion.In 2015, the American Psychologica ...

. After hypnotizing Stanley, Midvale's lab chimp, into standing up for himself against Norman ( Norm Grabowski), the bully student in charge of caring for Stanley, Merlin gets into a fight with Norman, and is brought before Judge Holmsby again. Intrigued by Merlin's experiments, the judge asks for Merlin's help in constructing a mystery plot for his next book. Working on the premise that no honest person can be made to do anything they would not do otherwise – especially commit a crime – Merlin hypnotizes Holmsby, and instructs him to kidnap Stanley. Shocked when the judge actually commits the crime, Merlin and Jennifer return the chimp, but are charged for the theft themselves. The judge sentences Merlin to jail, completely unaware of his own role in the crime. Livid at the injustice, Jennifer persuades Holmsby of his own guilt, and the good judge admits that a little dishonesty might exist in everybody.

Cast

* Tommy Kirk as Merlin Jones *

as Jennifer * Leon Ames as Judge Holmsby/Lex Fortas *

as Police Captain Loomis *

as Professor Shattuck * Connie Gilchrist as Mrs. Gossett *

as Detective Hutchins * Norm Grabowski as Norman

Production

Though the film credits story credits to "Tom and Helen August", the names are pseudonyms for

Alfred Lewis Levitt Alfred Lewis Levitt (June 3, 1916 – November 16, 2002) was an American film and television screenwriter. He attended New York University, and served in a camera unit of the United States Air Force during the Second World War. Following the ...

and

Helen Levitt Helen Levitt (August 31, 1913 – March 29, 2009) was an American photographer and cinematographer. She was particularly noted for her street photography around New York City. David Levi Strauss described her as "the most celebrated and least ...

, who were

blacklisted Blacklisting is the action of a group or authority compiling a blacklist (or black list) of people, countries or other entities to be avoided or distrusted as being deemed unacceptable to those making the list. If someone is on a blacklist, t ...

in Hollywood. Tommy Kirk and Annette Funicello had previously starred in two films for Disney made for US television, but released theatrically in other markets, ''

The Horsemasters ''The Horsemasters'' was a 2 part episode of the ''Disneyland'' TV show from 1961 which screened theatrically in some countries. The film was one of several Disney films that were shot in England. It was Annette Funicello's first co-starring rol ...

'' and ''

Escapade in Florence ''Escapade in Florence'' is a two-part episode of the ''Disneyland'' television show which was released theatrically in some countries. Walt Disney described it as a "two-part teenage comedy adventure" which was "international in flavor". The show ...

''. This was originally made for television, but Disney decided to release it theatrically. However, Disney has never officially stated whether this film was initially two episodes of a planned television series, but at least one critic, Eugene Archer, of ''The New York Times'', wrote upon its release:

Movies made for television are commonplace these days, but the idea of screening television shows in movie theaters is still farfetched. Who is expected to spend the $2? Strange as it sounds, this seems to be the explanation behind Walt Disney's latest hit, ''The Misadventures of Merlin Jones''. It is a pastiche of two separate stories with the same set of characters, each running less than an hour (leaving time for commercials), stitched together in the middle and released yesterday in neighborhood theaters.Archer, Eugene (March 26, 1964)
"'Misadventures of Merlin Jones' Opens".
''The New York Times'' p. 40.

Filming took place in January 1963. In March 1963, NBC was pleased with Annette Funicello that they wanted Disney to make two more films with the same character. It appears that Disney then decided to release the movie theatrically.

Reception

Critical

Eugene Archer of '' The New York Times'' panned the film as "cheap situation comedy" and "the kind of picture usually dismissed by shrugging, 'Well, at least the kids will like it'. Unless that is, your children happen to be bright".

Box office

Although critics were not impressed, audiences seemed to love it, as the film grossed over $4 million in North America, surprising even Disney. E. Carton Walker, Disney's vice president in charge of advertising commented that "nobody knows what a picture will do. ''Merlin Jones'' grossed $4 million... and surprised everybody". It made enough money to encourage a sequel in 1965.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Misadventures of Merlin Jones, The 1964 films 1960s science fiction comedy films American science fiction comedy films Walt Disney Pictures films Films directed by Robert Stevenson Films produced by Walt Disney Films scored by Buddy Baker (composer) Films about technology Films about hypnosis Films set in universities and colleges Films about telepathy 1964 comedy films 1960s English-language films 1960s American films