''Lt. Robin Crusoe U.S.N.'' is a 1966 American

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

released by Walt Disney Productions,Zibart, Eve: "Today in History Disney", Emmis Books, 2006, and starring

Dick Van Dyke Richard Wayne Van Dyke (born December 13, 1925) is an American actor, entertainer and comedian. Dick Van Dyke on screen and stage, His work spans screen and stage, and List of awards and nominations received by Dick Van Dyke, his awards includ ...

as a U.S. Navy pilot who becomes a castaway on a tropical island. Some filming took place in

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, while a majority of the film was shot on Kauai, Hawaii. The story was loosely based on Daniel Defoe's classic 1719 novel '' Robinson Crusoe''. It was Walt Disney's idea to make the adaptation, and this is the only film in which he received a story credit (as "Retlaw Yensid", which is his name spelled backwards).

Plot

While flying a routine mission for the U.S. Navy from his aircraft carrier, an emergency causes

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

Robin "Rob" Crusoe (Van Dyke), a Naval Aviator, to eject from his F-8 Crusader into the ocean. Crusoe drifts on the ocean in an emergency life raft for several days and nights until landing on an uninhabited island. He builds a shelter for himself, fashions new clothing out of available materials, and begins to scout the island, discovering an abandoned Japanese

submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...

from

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Scouring the submarine, Crusoe also discovers a NASA chimpanzee astronaut named Floyd, played by Dinky. Using tools and blueprints found in the submarine, Crusoe and Floyd construct a Japanese pavilion, a golf course, and a mail delivery system for sending bottles containing missives to his fiancee out to sea. Soon after, the castaway discovers that the island is not entirely uninhabited when he encounters a beautiful island girl ( Nancy Kwan), whom he names Wednesday. Wednesday recounts that due to her unwillingness to marry, her chieftain father, Tanamashuhi ( Akim Tamiroff), plans to sacrifice her and her sisters to Kaboona, an immense effigy on the island with whom he pretends to communicate. The day Tanamashu arrives on the island, Crusoe uses paraphernalia from the submarine to combat him, culminating in the destruction of the Kaboona statue. After the battle, Crusoe and Tanamashu make peace. When Crusoe makes it known that he does not wish to marry Wednesday, he is forced to flee to avoid her wrath. Pursued by a mob of irate island women, he is spotted by a U.S. Navy helicopter and he and Floyd narrowly escape with their lives. Large crowds turn out for their arrival on an

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and hangar facilities for supporting, arming, deploying and recovering carrier-based aircraft, shipborne aircraft. Typically it is the ...

deck, but Floyd steals all the limelight.

Cast

as LT Robin Crusoe * Nancy Kwan as Wednesday * Akim Tamiroff as Tanamashu * Arthur Malet as Umbrella Man * Tyler McVey as Captain * Peter Renaday as Pilot * Peter Duryea as Co-Pilot * John Dennis as Crew Chief * Nancy Hsueh as Native Girl 1 * Victoria Young as Native Girl 2 * Yvonne Ribuca as Native Girl 3 * Bebe Louie as Native Girl 4 * Lucia Valero as Native Girl 5 * Richard Deacon as Survival Manual Narrator (voice only, uncredited)

Production

Cameraman Robert King Baggot (son of King Baggott) died of injuries received during the filming.

Release

''Lt. Robin Crusoe, U.S.N.'' had its world premiere on June 25, 1966. Because the U.S. Navy cooperated by allowing the producers to film on the

USS ''Kitty Hawk'', Walt Disney arranged a special world premiere aboard the ship in San Diego, simultaneously with the USS ''Constellation'' docked in the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by South China, in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan island, Taiwan and northwestern Philippines (mainly Luz ...

. Disney regulars Fred MacMurray, Suzanne Pleshette and Annette Funicello were among those transported by air to San Diego for the premiere. The film began its theatrical run in Los Angeles four days later on June 29. It was paired with the live-action short ''Run, Appaloosa, Run!''

Home media

''Lt. Robin Crusoe, U.S.N.'' was released through VHS on July 26, 1986. On April 12, 2005, it was released on DVD.

Reviews

Upon its initial release, critics gave it lukewarm reviews. However, likely because of Dick Van Dyke's popularity, the film proved to be a financial hit grossing over $22 million at the box office, earning $7.5 million in domestic theatrical rentals. It was re-released to theaters in 1974. Howard Thompson of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' wrote: "It's neither funny nor new and the picture is recommended, with reservations, only for the very, very young and for television fans who think Mr. Van Dyke can do no wrong."Thompson, Howard (July 14, 1966). "Local Houses Offer a Disney Twin Bill". ''

''. 28. '' Variety'' called the film "one of Walt Disney's slighter entries. Intended as a wacky modern-day simulation of the Daniel Defoe classic, it might have borne up in reduced running-time but in its present far-overlength 115 minutes misses as sustained entertainment." Kevin Thomas of the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' wrote that "sophisticated parents might want to stay away", but Dick Van Dyke was "both ingratiating and funny" in the title role. Richard L. Coe of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' called it a "cheerfully foolish comedy" and concluded: "For sheer comic ease ... Van Dyke is without peer and if 'Robin Crusoe' is no world shaker, it still has Van Dyke." TV Guide gave the film 1 out of 5 stars, stating that "Robinson Crusoe update is wholly contrived and not really creative." Leonard Maltin's home video guide gave it the lowest possible rating of BOMB and said it had "virtually nothing of merit to recommend".

References

External links

* * * * {{Robinson Crusoe 1966 films 1960s adventure comedy films American adventure comedy films Walt Disney Pictures films Films based on Robinson Crusoe Films shot in Hawaii Films shot in San Diego Military comedy films Films about the United States Navy Films set in Oceania Films set on islands Films with screenplays by Don DaGradi Films produced by Walt Disney Films produced by Bill Walsh (producer) Films produced by Ron W. Miller 1966 comedy films 1960s English-language films 1960s American films English-language adventure comedy films Films with screenplays by Bill Walsh (producer)