The Reluctant Astronaut

Infobox Film
name = The Reluctant Astronaut


caption = VHS cover
director = Edward J. Montagne Jr.
producer = Edward J. Montagne Jr.
writer = James Fritzell and Everett Greenbaum
starring = Don Knotts
Leslie Nielsen
Joan Freeman
music = Vic Mizzy
cinematography = Rex Wimpy
editing = Sam E. Waxman
distributor = Universal Pictures
released = 1967
runtime = 101 min.
country = USA
language = English
budget =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
amg_id = 107561
imdb_id = 0062190

"The Reluctant Astronaut" (1967) is a Universal Pictures feature film starring Don Knotts in a story about a kiddie-ride operator who is hired as a janitor at the Manned Space Center in Houston and is eventually sent into space. The film was produced and directed by Edward J. Montagne, Jr..

Comedian Knotts won several Emmy Awards as small-town comic sheriff's deputy Barney Fife in the 1960-1968 television sitcom "The Andy Griffith Show" but left the show as a regular at the end of its fifth season (1964-1965) to pursue a career in feature films with Universal Pictures. "The Reluctant Astronaut" followed Knotts' first film venture, "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken" (1966). Actor Paul Hartman appears in the film and would later star in "The Andy Griffith Show". The film's screenplay writers Jim Fritzell and Everett Greenbaum had served as teleplay writers for the television series. Knotts received a Golden Laurel nomination and the film's soundtrack was released. "The Reluctant Astronaut" has been broadcast on American television, and is available in both VHS and DVD formats.

Plot

Roy Fleming (Don Knotts) is fairground operator of a kiddie-spaceship ride. His father Arbuckle (Arthur O'Connell) wants better things for his son, so he sends an application to NASA. Roy later learns from his mother (Jeanette Nolan) that NASA has accepted him as a "WB-1074".

When Roy arrives at the Manned Space Center in Houston, program director Donelli (Jesse White) places him in training as a janitor. Roy accepts the disappointment and befriends veteran astronaut Major Fred Gifford (Leslie Nielsen). Roy's father and his friends Plank (Frank McGrath) and Rush (Paul Hartman) pay a surprise visit so Roy dons a space suit and pretends to be an astronaut. However, the visitors learn that Roy is a janitor.

When the Russians plan to trump NASA by sending a dentist into space, NASA moves quickly. Roy is selected as the man least likely to venture into space and sent aloft. His father watches on TV, convinced the janitor story was a ploy for security reasons. Roy gets peanut butter into the guidance system and is in danger of being lost in space. He remembers the retro rockets from the amusement ride and launches them, sending the rocket safely home. Roy is hailed as a hero, and marries his sweetheart Ellie Jackson (Joan Freeman).

Cast

* Don Knotts as kiddie-ride operator Roy Fleming
* Joan Freeman as Roy's girlfriend Ellie Jackson
* Arthur O'Connell as Roy's father Buck Fleming
* Frank McGrath as Buck's friend Plank
* Paul Hartman as Buck's friend Rush
* Jeanette Nolan as Roy's mother Mrs. Fleming
* Leslie Nielsen as Major Fred Gifford
* Jesse White as NASA program director Donelli

Awards and nominations

Knotts was nominated for the 1967 Golden Laurel Male Comedy Performance Award.

Legacy

"The Reluctant Astronaut" was a popular children's film during the Apollo space programme, and was frequently shown on weekend afternoons. According to Knotts' 1998 autobiography, the infamous "Apollo 1" fire occurred and killed three astronauts shortly after the film's scenes at Kennedy Space Center were shot. Universal Pictures was skeptical about releasing a comedy on space travel so soon after the tragedy.

oundtrack

Infobox Album
Name = The Reluctant Astronaut(Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Type = Soundtrack
Artist = Vic Mizzy


Released = 1967
Recorded =
Genre = Soundtrack
Length = 57:46
Label = Percepto Records
Producer =
Reviews =
Last album = "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken"
This album =
Next album = "Vic Mizzy - Suites & Themes"

Track listing

# Main Title 2:42
# Jeepers :45
# Age of Descent / Buck Up :54
# The Send Off / Flight Shrubbed 2:05
# N.A.S.A. 1:08
# On the Double :53
# Doneli's Man Fleming :52
# Long Distance / Short Change / Say Cheese 1:49
# Wishful Thinking 1:18
# Homecoming :34
# Stars & Stripes Forever* 1:02
# A Real Swinger 2:14
# The Imposter :56
# Flight Fright / Rear, March 1:51
# A Couple of Losers 2:24
# Depth Charge 1:33
# Jettisoned 1:50
# Over the Top / Atta boy, Roy 3:38
# Fly Guy / Getting Settled 2:26
# Crackers Away 1:18
# All Fouled Up 3:31
# Aloha Oi 1:41
# End Title :51
# End Cast :31

Bonus Tracks

# Kiddleland Rocket Ride 2:02
# Roy & Ellie at Kiddieland 2:12
# Kiddieland - back to Work 1:58
# The Space Song :36
# 1967 Special Featurette & Interview Promo
# Hosted by Dick Strout, Hollywood Commentator 12:00