The Barefoot Executive movie storyline. At the offices of struggling television studio United Broadcasting Corporation, mailboy Steven Post routinely annoys programming director Francis X. Wilbanks with his “tips” on how to revive the flagging ratings. Despite the warnings of Jennifer Scott, who is Steve’s girl friend and Wilbanks’ secretary, Steve continues to pester Wilbanks with ideas for shows such as Abraham Lincoln’s Doctor’s Dog , which, combining as it does three beloved elements, he believes is destined to be a hit.
When the latest ratings come in at a new low, Wilbanks fears for his job. At Jen’s that night, Steve finds her despondent because her neighbors, the Bernaduccis, have been transferred to San Francisco and must leave behind their pet chimpanzee, Raffles. Steve is horrified to learn that Jen plans to keep Raffles, whose main activity consists of watching mindless television shows. The next morning, however, Steve notes that all of the shows preferred by Raffles the night before have topped the ratings.
Later, after Raffles again chooses one of the most popular shows being broadcast, Steve grows certain that the chimp can predict public tastes. He then spends the evening charting Raffles’ viewing preferences, and in the morning is shocked and thrilled to confirm that Raffles’ choices mirror those of the audience. That night, Roger, Steve’s rival for Jen’s attentions and Wilbanks’ nephew, takes Raffles for a walk. Upon finding Raffles gone, Steve rushes out in search of them, only to discover them in front a television set in a shop window.
When Steve tries to pull Raffles away in order to protect his secret from Roger, the animal explodes in anger, breaking the shop window, and he and Roger are arrested. Later, Steve convinces Jen not to return Raffles to the Bernaduccis and buys her and Roger tickets to a baseball game. There, Jen extols Steve’s virtues, not realizing that he is at that moment breaking into a pet store to steal a chimpanzee, which he then leaves in her apartment, leading her to believe that the replacement chimp is Raffles, while he takes the real Raffles with him.
With unlimited access to Raffles, Steve plots the night’s shows and in the morning tells Wilbanks that he has a foolproof method for predicting the top ten programs. Although Wilbanks dismisses him, Steve convinces the executive’s chauffeur, Mertons, to slip his ratings predictions to the company president, E. J. Crampton, who is visiting that day. Seeing that Steve has perfectly guessed the shows ratings, Crampton asks him to accompany them to a screening of new shows that evening.
Desperate to have Raffles nearby, Steve plots to sneak the chimp into the back of the theater, disguised as a plumber. When Raffles blows audible raspberries, however, Steve hustles him into the projection room, where he can see the chimp’s reactions through the window. Raffles clearly prefers the low-budget Devil Dan show, which Crampton takes as proof that Steve is faking his prowess. Crampton schedules The Happy Harringtons to run the next day, but Steve, sure of Raffles’ skills, secretly replaces the film canister with that of Devil Dan.
The Barefoot Executive is a live-action Walt Disney Productions film released by Buena Vista Distribution in 1971 starring Kurt Russell, Joe Flynn, Wally Cox, Heather North and John Ritter (in his film debut), about a pet chimpanzee, named Raffles, who can predict the popularity of television programs. It was one of the “gimmick comedies” (geared towards children with a touch of adult humor for older viewers) Disney was known for in the 1960s and 1970s, and was frequently shown on The Wonderful World of Disney from the late 1970s through the 1980s.
The Barefoot Executive (1971)
Directed by: Robert Butler
Starring: Kurt Russell, Joe Flynn, Wally Cox, Heather North, John Ritter, Harry Morgan, Alan Hewitt, Jack Bender, Tom Anfinsen, George N. Neise, Morgan Farley, Robert Shayne
Screenplay by: Lila Garrett, Bernie Kahn
Cinematography by: Charles F. Wheeler
Film Editing by: Robert Stafford
Set Decoration by: Emile Kuri, Frank R. McKelvy
Art Direction by: Ed Graves, John B. Mansbridge
Music by: Robert F. Brunner
MPAA Rating: None.
Distributed by: Buena Vista Distribution
Release Date: March 17, 1971
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