Flipper! |
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Died 1972 Grassy Key, Florida |
South of Miami on US 1 is Grassy Key, one of the islands of the Florida Keys, At mile marker 59, on the Gulf side, stands a 30-foot concrete statue of a mother and baby dolphin. This marks the entrance to the Dolphin Research Center (DRC) http://www.dolphins.org, a facility devoted to education and public awareness. It is also the final resting place of the most famous dolphin ever -- Mitzi, better known to the world by her stage name, Flipper.
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You will probably be surprised to learn that Flipper was a female. A male stunt dolphin, Mr. Gipper, did all of Flipper's tail-walking. But the dolphin who nudged wayward boats to safety, knocked guns out of poachers' hands with well-timed leaps, and warned Bud and Sandy whenever danger lurked, was a lady. |
Back in the early sixties, the DRC was known as Santini's Porpoise School. Milton Santini, a pioneer in dolphin husbandry and training, ran it. Mitzi, who was Santini's first pupil, was picked to star as Flipper in the original movie (with "Branded star" Chuck Connors), which was filmed at the School.
Mitzi made the film and the TV series a hit, and she became a big celebrity at Grassy Key. When she died of a heart attack, she was buried beneath a dolphin statue in the School's courtyard. The DRC maintains the grave, and in her honor they always make it the first stop on the tour. A small plaque reads:
Dedicated to the memory of Mitzi
The original Flipper
1958 -1972
Mitzi left no children but Mr. Gipper did. His daughter, Tursi, is also a fine tail-walker.
Zipper, Flipper's evil twin will be a subject of another article.
Best respects to: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/pet/flipper.html Most of the info here came from their site. Thanks! ~ Capt. John (F.Y.I. Flipper's Laugh was done by Mel Blanc)
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In the late 60's I went to school in Miami, (Miami Military Academy) and up the street from the school was Ivan Tors Studio on Biscayne Blvd. Ivan Tors (6/12/16 to 6/4/83) was the man that brought us Sea Hunt, with Lloyd Brigdes as Mike Nelson (free lance underwater investigator) and the Flipper series. Ivan Tors was also the camera man in the mid-fifties for the popular sci-fi TV Show, "Science Fiction Theatre". |
If you can remember that program, you are older than dirt like me. See my tribute to Mike Nelson at: http://www.scubatampa.com/fla.html and http://www.scubatampa.com/nl.09.03.html.
Theme to "Flipper" (The TV Series)
(Beginning of show)
They call him Flipper, Flipper, faster than lightning,
no-one you see, is smarter than he,
and we know Flipper, lives in a world full of wonder,
flying there-under, under the sea!
(End of Show)
Everyone loves the king of the sea,
ever so kind and gentle is he,
tricks he will do when children appear,
and how they laugh when he's near!
They call him Flipper, Flipper, faster than lightning,
no-one you see, is smarter than he,
and we know Flipper, lives in a world full of wonder,
flying there-under, under the sea!
Don't Drink it, Dive it!