Summer Magic

Summer Magic is a 1963 Walt Disney Productions feature film starring Hayley Mills, Burl Ives, and Dorothy McGuire in a story about a Boston widow and her children taking up residence in a small town in Maine. The film was based on the book "Mother Carey's Chickens" by Kate Douglas Wiggin and was directed by James Neilson. The film was Mills' fourth of six films for Disney, and the young actress received a Golden Globe nomination for her work.

Plot
A young widow from Boston named Margret Carey and her three children Nancy, Gilly, and Peter soon realize that their fanancial status is quickly dropping and they are forced to move. The Dramatic, yet kind-hearted, Nancy, the eldest of Margret's children, inquires the small town of Beulah, Maine about their large, yellow house, a house the family had admired on their trips there. Upon the sale of their families treasured piano ("Flitterin'"), Nancy reveles that the house is vacant and the family quickley decides to relocate to the country ("Beautiful Beulah").

When the Carey's arrive in Beulah it becomes clear that they are slightly out-of-place, but the town welcomes the new residents. The Carey find that moving to the country was teh best decision for them and they are very happy in their new home ("Summer Magic"). Howver, it quickly becomes clear after meeting the house's caretaker, Osh Popham, that the house is in a pure state of neglect. Osh, much against his wife's wishes, offers cheap labor to make the house livable as well as offering free products from his hardwear store.

Young Peter is feeling neglected with his expesive city clothes and out-of-place haircut. Osh steers him in the right direction, trading him a pair of overolls and money for a haircut for his "bustered brown suit", as well as giving his lessons in carpentry.

Not everything is perfect for the Carey's, though. Their snotty, orphaned cousin, Julia, comes to move in with them, as her adoptive parents ran into their own fanancial problems and Gilly and Nancy enertain Peter with jokes about Julia's personality and apperance ("Pink of Perfection")

As Julia arrives, she is as much of a pill as the children could have imagianed. Julia herself feels personally attacked when jumped on by Peter's large dog, Sam in the middle of the night, and she struggles to adapt to the primitive ways of Beulah, even making Osh's daughter, Lally Joy help her bathe in the kitchen, not wanting to lug the kettles of hot water up the stairs.

Osh has taken Peter on as his protege when working on the house and entertains him with stories of the bugs, something Peter never saw much of in the city ("Ugly Bug Ball"). Margret informs Osh of their still falling finances and Osh makes up a request from the houses owner, Tom Hamilton, in extchange for no rent, in hopes to keep them in town. The Carey's must have a ceremony for Mr. Hamiltion's late mother on Halloween and find a sutable place for her picture. The Carey's accept and Osh chooses a fake picture for the ceremony.

Osh's wife Mariah, who has been onto his lies since the begining, comes to the yellow house to tell the Carey's that Mr. Hamilton has no idea that they are living on his property. Before she can spill the news, Osh fakes a fall on the second story and makes Mariah take him home, claiming an ingured leg.

After church on Sunday, Nancy and Julia spot a handsome man, Charles Bryant, who has moved to Beulah to be the new school teacher. They invite him to a lawn party at the yellow house and both girls try to win his affections, Nancy trying to win him with her smarts and Julia with her looks. Julia wins and Nancy is compleatly jealous of Julia after the party ("On the Front Porch"). Later in their bedroom Nancy, in a fit of anger, reveals to Julia that her adoptive parents "dumped" Julia with the Carey's because they'd gambled away thair money. Julia, compleatly upset runs to Margret for assurance that her parents truely loved her. Margret reveals that Julia's parents are ready to take her back as their affairs are looking brighter. Nancy, who has grown to love Julia, despite her many flaws, begs her to stay, and Julia accepts, moving in permanetly with the Carey's.

As Halloween approches, everyone gets ready for the big party. Lally Joy, who harbors a big crush on Gilly, displays her ugly dress to Nancy and Julia, fretting embarassment at the party. Nancy and Julia promise to redesign the dress as they give her pointers on how to act around boys ("Feminintiy").

On the day of the party, a handsome young man appears at the yellow house and meets Nancy. She informs him that they'd been living in the house and about the party for Mr. Hamilton's mother. He leaves quickly for Osh's hardwear store, where he is revealed to be Tom Hamilton in the flesh. Osh comes clean about renting the house out to the Carey's, inspired to do kindness from young Nancy. Tom leaves the store, not at all pleased of never being informed.

As the party approches Gilly is reluctand to escort Lally Joy, but as she makes her apperance in her beautiful redesigned dress, he greatfully accompanies her to the ball. As Charles picks up Julia, Nancy becomes aware that she is the only one without a partner. After talking about it with her mother, she decideds to confidently attend on her own. As she descends the stairs she runs into Tom, whos identity is still a mystery to her. He accompanies her to the party and Nancy presents Mrs. Hamilton's picture: a very ugly and frightening looking woman. Tom, angry with Osh, puts the insult in the back of his mind as he reveals his true identity to Nancy, who is thuroghly embarassed. Tom, however, took a fancy to her and dances with her, as Osh exlaimes that things always work out in the end.

Cast

 * Hayley Mills - Nancy Carey
 * Burl Ives - Osh Popham
 * Dorothy McGuire - Margaret Carey
 * Deborah Walley - Cousin Julia
 * Eddie Hodges - Gilly Carey
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Jimmy Mathers - Peter Carey
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Michael J. Pollard - Digby Popham
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Wendy Turner - Lallie Joy Popham
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Una Merkel - Maria Popham
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Peter Brown - Tom Hamilton
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Jim Stacy - Charles Bryant
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">O. Z. Whitehead - Mr Perkins
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Eddie Quillan - Mailman
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Norman Leavitt - Barber
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Paul E. Burns - Driver
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Harry Holcombe - Henry Lord
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Jan Stine - Mr Perkins' Son
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Hilda Plowright - Mary
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Marcy McGuire - Ellen

Production Credits

 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Director - James Neilson
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Screenplay - Sally Benson
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Source Material (from novel) - Kate Douglas Wiggin
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Producer - Walt Disney
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Assistant Director - Austen Jewell
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Director of Photography - William E. Snyder
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Editor - Robert Stafford
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Music - Buddy Baker
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Songs - Richard M. Sherman
 * <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Songs - Robert B. Sherman

Songs

 * 1) <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">"Flitterin'"
 * 2) <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">"Beautiful Beulah"
 * 3) <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">"Summer Magic"
 * 4) <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">"Pink of Perfection"
 * 5) <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">"Ugly Bug Ball"
 * 6) <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">"On the Front Porch"
 * 7) <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">"Femininity"

Production notes
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">At first, Walt Disney did not care for the "Ugly Bug Ball." Songwriter Robert Sherman explained to Disney that to bugs, other bugs were not ugly, even if they looked ugly to us, beauty being in the eye of the beholder. Disney liked the idea and the song went on to become one of the popular songs of the year. It was sung by Burl Ives.

Trivia
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">"On the Front Porch" is songwriter Robert Sherman's personal favorite song from his own work.