Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid

Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid
225px Theatrical Film Poster
Directed by	Irving Pichel
Produced by	Nunnally Johnson Gene Fowler, Jr. (associate producer)
Written by	Guy Jones (novel) Constance Jones (novel) Nunnally Johnson
Starring	William Powell Ann Blyth Irene Hervey
Music by	Robert Emmet Dolan
Cinematography	Russell Metty
Production company	Nunnaly Johnson Productions
Distributed by	Universal-International
Release dates	August 11, 1948 (1948-08-11) (United States)
Running time	89 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid is a 1948 fantasy film starring William Powell and Ann Blyth in the title roles. Irene Hervey played Mr. Peabody's wife. The film was based on the 1945 novel Peabody's Mermaid by Guy and Constance Jones. Sequences were shot at the Weeki Wachee Springs in Florida.

Plot

The film stars William Powell as Arthur Peabody, who is undergoing a midlife crisis as he approaches his 50th birthday. Much of the story is shown in flashback as Peabody tells his skeptical doctor the source of malaise.

Peabody goes on vacation with his wife Polly (Irene Hervey) to a Caribbean resort. While there, he hears singing coming from a distant key (small island) and takes his boat to do a little fishing. To his surprise, he reels in Lenore, a beautiful mermaid played by Ann Blyth.

Although mute, Lenore is mischievous and childlike and more than a little bit alluring – so much so that before long Peabody has taught her to kiss. He hides Lenore by letting her soak in a suds-filled bathtub and then in the resort’s fish pond. But confusion ensues as his wife thinks he has a big fish in their bathtub and later suspects him of infidelity with Cathy Livingston (Andrea King), a vacationing singer.

Things get even more complicated when, after Polly returns home without Peabody, police suspect him of murder. But by the film's conclusion, Peabody and his wife are happily back at home in Boston with only Lenore’s comb left to prove the reality of his adventure.

Cast

• William Powell as Arthur Peabody
• Ann Blyth as Lenore the Mermaid
• Irene Hervey as Mrs. Polly Peabody
• Andrea King as Cathy Livingston
• Clinton Sundberg as Mike Fitzgerald
• Art Smith as Dr. Harvey
• Lydia Bilbrook Voice (uncredited)

Home release

The film was initially released by on DVD by ATI Corp, and was re-released by Olive Films (Distributed by Paramount Pictures) on DVD and Blu-ray on July 8, 2014.

Reception

American Film Institute Lists

• AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions - Nominated
• AFI's 10 Top 10 - Nominated Fantasy Film

Trivia

There is a famous photograph of a smiling Ann Blyth as the mermaid being held in the arms of Glenn Strange as the Frankenstein Monster, although unfortunately this is only a backstage publicity photo.

See also

• Mermaids in popular culture

External links

• Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid at the TCM Movie Database
• Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid at IMDb