Beach Party (1963): Cast, Box Office & Plot
Beach Party is a 1963 music comedy directed by William Asher, starring Dorothy Malone as Marianne, Frankie Avalon and Dick Dale. It runs 1 hour 41 minutes and earned $2.3 million worldwide.
- Released
- Runtime
- 1h 41m (101 min)
- Director
- William Asher
- Original language
-
English - Studio
- Alta Vista Productions
- After the credits
- No No extra scene
What Is Beach Party About?
The premise of Beach Party without spoilers. The whole story is in the plot summary further down.
Surf’s up on a wildly swinging beach where anthropology professor Robert Orwell Sutwell and his secretary Marianne observe teenage sexual habits. The surfing crew, led by Frankie and Dee Dee, spend more time singing, dancing to Dick Dale and the Del Tones, and battling Eric Von Zipper’s motorcycle gang than getting intimate.
Beach Party Themes & Keywords
· 50 tags- psychotronic film
- surfing
- teen sex comedy
- cult film
- beach blanket
- ukulele
- talking to a mirror
- american
- greaser
- avalon and funicello
- band the musical group
- airplane
+38 more Show fewer
- love
- professor
- motorcycle
- beach
- beach party
- nightclub
- playing cards
- slang
- waitress
- poetry
- yoga
- poem
- musician
- go go dancer
- beatnik
- dancer
- guitarist
- bongos
- teenage boy
- microphone
- dancing
- electric guitar
- tape recorder
- teenage girl
- research
- brassiere
- tour group
- looking glass
- panties
- tour guide
- hot rod
- tourist
- record player
- fistfight
- phonograph record
- electric razor
- single engine airplane
- hungarian
Beach Party Cast & Characters
Dorothy Malone leads the cast as Marianne, with Frankie Avalon as Frankie and Dick Dale. Directed by William Asher; 44 actors are credited in all.
- Director William Asher
- Dorothy Malone as Marianne
- Frankie Avalon as Frankie
- Dick Dale as themselves
- Harvey Lembeck as Eric Von Zipper
Also Starring in Beach Party
· 40 more- Annette Funicello Dolores
- Eva Six Ava
- Robert Cummings Professor Sutwell
- Vincent Price Big Daddy
- Andy Romano J.D.
- John Ashley Ken
- Jody McCrea Deadhead
- John Beach Beach Boy
- Michael Nader Beach Boy
- Roger Christian Beach Boy (uncredited)
- Morey Amsterdam Cappy
- Meredith MacRae Beach Girl
- Luree Holmes Beach Girl
- Yvette Vickers Blonde Yoga Girl (uncredited)
- Johnny Fain Surfer
- Jerry Brutsche The Ratz
Show all 44 cast members Show fewer cast members
- Ed Garner Surfer
- John Macchia The Ratz
- Alberta Nelson The Mice
- Bob Harvey The Ratz
- Mickey Dora Beach Boy
- Delores Wells Sue
- Linda Rogers The Mice
- David Landfield Ed
- Valora Noland Rhonda
- Bob Payne Tom
- Duane Ament Big Boy (uncredited)
- Candy Johnson Perpetual Motion Dancer
- Pam Colbert Surfer
- Laura Nicholson Beach Girl
- Roger Bacon Tour Guide
- Gary Usher Beach Boy (uncredited)
- Bill Parker Beach Boy (uncredited)
- Donna Russell Surfer
- Ashlyn Martin Surfer (uncredited)
- Lorrie Summers Beach Girl
- Marlo Baers Beach Girl (uncredited)
- Brent Battin Beach Boy (uncredited)
- Bill Slosky Beach Boy (uncredited)
- Susan Yardley Surfer (uncredited)
More from William Asher
More films directed by William Asher, best-rated first: Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker, Return to Green Acres, I Dream of Jeannie… Fifteen Years Later and Movers & Shakers.
Beach Party Plot Summary
What happens in Beach Party from start to finish, spoilers included, with a timeline of 13 key events. The opening is below; the full summary is a 3-minute read.
Spoilers ahead
Frankie and Dolores are a young couple heading to the beach for what Frankie believes will be a quiet, romantic escape. However, Dolores, disappointed with her relationship and not wanting to be alone with Frankie, invites several friends to join them at the beach house. This causes Frankie to feel betrayed and upset, as he was expecting a private getaway. Meanwhile, nearby, an anthropologist named Professor Robert Orville Sutwell is staying in the adjacent beach house. Unbeknownst to the others, Sutwell is secretly observing the local teenagers and their behavior, especially their surfing lingo and social interactions, as part of his research on the “wild mating habits” of Southern California youth.
Full summary
The whole story of Beach Party, scene by scene
Beach Party Box Office
Beach Party grossed $2.3 million worldwide.
Worldwide gross
$2.3M
How Well Do You Know Beach Party?
10 questions about the story, each with a hint if you get stuck. Pick an answer to see whether you were right.
Question 1 of 10
- Question 1: not answered
- Question 2: not answered
- Question 3: not answered
- Question 4: not answered
- Question 5: not answered
- Question 6: not answered
- Question 7: not answered
- Question 8: not answered
- Question 9: not answered
- Question 10: not answered
What is the name of the young couple who travel to the beach at the start of the film?
Cars in Beach Party
6 cars on screen, including the 1926 Ford Model T and the Harley-Davidson FLH Hydra Glide.
-
1926 Ford Model T Important role -
Harley-Davidson FLH Hydra Glide Minor role -
Triumph 6T Thunderbird Minor role -
Honda CB 77 Background role
Seen Beach Party?
Movies Like Beach Party
Films with a similar story, tone or audience, including The Beach Girls, Bikini Beach and Beach Blanket Bingo.
Beach Party FAQ: Cast, Box Office & Runtime
Runtime, release date, director, cast, box office and post-credit scenes of Beach Party, each answered in a sentence.
How long is Beach Party?
Beach Party runs 1 hour 41 minutes (101 minutes).
When was Beach Party released?
Beach Party was released on July 14, 1963.
Who directed Beach Party?
Beach Party was directed by William Asher.
More films by William Asher Who is in the cast of Beach Party?
Beach Party stars Dorothy Malone as Marianne, Frankie Avalon as Frankie and Dick Dale, among 44 credited actors.
How much did Beach Party make at the box office?
Beach Party grossed $2.3 million worldwide.
Does Beach Party have a post-credit scene?
No. Beach Party has no extra scene during or after the credits.
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