The Flying Nun is an American situation comedy produced by Screen Gems for ABC
based on the 1965 book The Fifteenth Pelican, written by Tere Rios. It
starred Sally Field as Sister Bertrille. The series originally ran on ABC from
September 7, 1967, to April 3, 1970, producing 82 episodes, including a
one-hour pilot episode. Overview
Developed by Bernard Slade, the series centered on the adventures of a
community of nuns in the Convent San Tanco in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The
comic elements of the storyline were provided by the flying ability of a
novice nun, Sister Bertrille. In the hour-long series pilot, Chicago
native Elsie Ethrington arrives in San Juan from New York City after her arrest
for having been involved in a protest; she then adopts the name of Sister
Bertrille. It is also later learned that Sister Bertrille comes from a family of
physicians and is the only one who did not follow in their footsteps. She
became a nun, joining the Convento San Tanco, after being impressed by the
missionary work of her aunt, and broke up with her boyfriend of eight months, a
toy salesman. Sister Bertrille could be relied upon to
solve any problem that came her way by her ability to catch a passing breeze
and fly. This was generally attributed to her weighing under 90 pounds, high
winds at the Convent high on the ocean bluffs, and the large, heavily starched
cornette that was the headpiece for her habit. Her flying talents caused as many
problems as they solved. She explains her ability to fly by stating, "When
lift plus thrust is greater than load plus drag, anything can fly." The reason
behind that statement was that Sister Bertrille weighed only 90 lbs.; in one
episode, she tries to gain weight so she could stay grounded, but the attempt
failed. Additionally, in the first season episode "Young Man with a
Cornette," she specifically tells a young boy who intended to use her
cornette to fly that there were many factors other than her weight that made
her flying possible. The only time she was unable to take off was when heavy
rains or storms occurred and caused her starched cornette to lose its shape or
when she had to wear something that would keep her grounded at all times.
Characters Sally Field as Sister Bertrille, real
name Elsie Ethrington, a nun who only weighs 90 pounds, allowing her to fly
while wearing her cornette and when the wind is right. This was Field's second
sitcom role, following Gidget. Madeleine Sherwood as Reverend Mother
Placido, the sober but gentle woman who runs the convent.
Marge Redmond as Sister Jacqueline, a wise nun with a sense of humor and
Sister Bertrille's friend. Her voice is also heard as the narrator, who sets up
each episode. Shelley Morrison as Sister Sixto, a
Puerto Rican nun who always misinterprets English slang.
Linda Dangcil as Sister Ana, a younger nun who also attends to the convent.
Vito Scotti as Captain Gaspar Fomento, the local police officer and the only
character who never found out about Sister Bertrille's ability to fly.
Alejandro Rey as Carlos Ramirez, a local casino owner and playboy. Ramirez is an
orphan raised by the nuns and maintains his gratitude to them, leading him to
constantly get swept into Sister Bertrille's zany schemes, which she
concocts with alarming frequency. Production
After the cancellation of ABC's Gidget, in which Sally Field starred in the
title role, producers sought a way to keep Field on the air. As a result, The
Flying Nun was developed. However, Field refused the role at first, only to
resettle on it after her stepfather, Jock Mahoney, warned her that she might
not work again in show business if she did not accept the role. Screen Gems
dismissed its second choice, Ronne Troup, who had already begun filming the
pilot. Field recalled hanging from a crane and being humiliated by a parade
of episodic television directors, one of whom actually grabbed her shoulders and
moved her into position as if she were a prop. She credits co-star Madeleine
Sherwood for encouraging her to enroll in acting classes. Field has commented
that she has great affection for her young Gidget persona and was proud of
her work on that show, but that she was embarrassed with The Flying Nun.
Prior to the production of The Flying Nun, producers were concerned with how
the series would be received by Catholics. In an effort to prevent
religious criticism, the National Catholic Office for Radio and
Television, or NCORT, served as a series adviser with on-screen credit.
The San Juan convent courtyard exterior was actually the rear area of a house
facade at the Warner Brothers Ranch's suburban street/backlot in Burbank,
California, along Hollywood Way north of West Oak Street. The pilot episode and
the series opening and closing credits, however, were filmed on location in
Puerto Rico. A soundtrack LP featuring songs from the
series sung by Sally Field, titled Star Of "The Flying Nun," was released by
Colgems in 1967. The series gradually shifted comedic
gears in its second season, focusing more on slapstick and other forms of
broad humor. Beginning in the show's third season, changes were made to
revert the series to a "warm and slightly saccharine" tone as seen in the
first season. Another problem the show's producers had to contend with during its
last season was the fact that at the beginning of the filming schedule, Field
was noticeably pregnant with her first child. This was a logistical nightmare
for a series in which Field's character was supposed to be a religious celibate,
and skinny enough to fly away in the wind. The producers solved the problem
by using props and scenery to block view of Field's body below the chest, and
using long shots of Field's stunt double for the flying sequences.
When the show ended, Field starred in another situation comedy, The Girl with
Something Extra. She later turned to doing drama and movies as she wanted to
move from comic roles to serious ones. Broadcast history
During its first two seasons, The Flying Nun aired on Thursday nights at 8:00pm
EST, where the series competed in the ratings with Daniel Boone. The show was
an instant hit, with high ratings and was declared the "hit of the season;"
however, the ratings dropped as the season progressed. During its second
year, the series was scheduled against Daniel Boone and Hawaii Five-O. During
its final season, the series was moved to Wednesday nights at 7:30pm EST,
scheduled opposite The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour. All of the competing
shows ranked higher in the ratings than The Flying Nun, which eventually led to
its cancellation. During its three-year-run, the series was a part of
a three-show comedy block on ABC that also consisted of Bewitched and That
Girl. Despite its early popularity, the show's ratings never broke the Nielsen
top thirty. = Syndication=
Since the summer of 2011, the show has aired on weekends on Antenna TV. The
complete first season is also available on iTunes.
Awards Despite the show being unpopular with
critics, Marge Redmond was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category of
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role as Sister
Jacqueline during the 1967–68 season. She lost to Marion Lorne, who won
posthumously for her role as "Aunt Clara" on Bewitched.
Novels A series of novels based on characters
and dialog of the series was written by William Johnston and published by Ace
Books in the 1960s. DVD releases
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment released the first season of The Flying
Nun on March 21, 2006 on DVD in Region 1. This was followed by the release of
the show's second season on DVD on August 15, 2006. The third and final
season has yet to be released. On August 27, 2013, it was announced
that Mill Creek Entertainment had acquired the rights to various
television series from the Sony Pictures library, including The Flying Nun. They
re-released the first and second seasons in a 2-season combo pack DVD on October
7, 2014. References
Further reading Brooks, Tiim; Marsh, Earl. The Complete
Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946–Present. New York:
Ballantine Books. ISBN 0345455428. External links
The Flying Nun at the Internet Movie Database
The Flying Nun at TV.com The Flying Nun at epguides.com