"Flipper's Monster" was the series' gift to horror movie buffs, even though it had no horror in it. The entire show is built around the filming of an underwater monster movie at Coral Key, the fictional setting of the series. This may have seemed like a bit of a cheat at the time, with some faux horror movie-type thrills in the coming attractions from the previous week, showing star Brian Kelly battling with an undersea "monster" (kids must have wondered what had happened to the child-friendly stories) -- but for the knowing and the knowledgeable viewer, it was all a treat. The actor portraying the "monster" in the episode is played by none other than Ricou Browning (who, as it happened, also created Flipper and directed this episode, in addition to handling second-unit and underwater shooting for the entire series); and Browning had started his screen career a decade earlier, in the early 1950's, portraying the "Gillman" monster of Creature From The Black Lagoon fame, and in its two sequels. In this production, he actually gets to speak lines, albeit from behind a mask, making his part here a kind of self-referential role. And to top it off, as a special treat for horror movie buffs, the undersea monster depicted in this episodes uses the mask and makeup designed by Jack Kevan (another old hand from Creature From The Black Lagoon) for the film The Monster of Piedras Blancas. And to add still more internal resonances for the adventure and horror movie buff, the female lead in this episode is none other than Wende Wagner (best remembered today from the TV series The Green Hornet), who spent years as a swimmer/stunt double on Sea Hunt and other series and movies, being menaced by all manner of undersea threats, before she turned to formal acting. The whole shoot was something of a friends-and-family affair, as Wagner had worked with Browning for years, and was even playing opposite Courtney Brown, her first husband, who portrayed another member of the crew. The entire episode radiates a good feeling, as well as resonating with the gentle humor of an in-joke, and being almost a film-a-clef about Ricou Browning.
by Bruce Eder
review
