This is one of the sillier and far fetched episodes. Professor Marvello, a posh sounding English ventriloquist, is ejected from a local circus for drunkenness. He proceeds to a beach where a bunch of kids are hanging out and conveniently uses Flipper, who is near the shore, as a target for his ventriloquism. Setting aside the impossibility of projecting his voice some 30 yards to a dolphin, he creates enough amazement to fund raise off the kids.
Bud and Sandy come upon the scene and resist giving funds and explain who their Dad is. As you'd expect, Bud is more gullible and Sandy more skeptical. However Marvello appears to have Flipper say that he'll come and work with him and he proceeds to persuade his old employer to have Flipper in a pool jumping with Marvello having him 'speak'. Marvello comes to the Ricks home when the boys are at the dock and finally manages to sway Sandy into thinking that Flipper has said he'll work with Marvello after further ventriloquist tricks.
Porter finds his sons all glum and they tell their Dad what's happened and he then goes out to ask Flipper who of course just answers in dolphin gibberish.
The whole scheme collapses despite the circus owner sending a truck load of thugs to capture Flipper when Bud tries to stop them and Porter and Sandy run along the beach to rescue Bud who was wrapped in a net. Marvello is contrite and changes his mind and drives off the thugs with a fake police siren.
Lots of excessive stretches of the imagination needed in this episode not the least of which is Sandy buying Marvello's story when he is normal quite skeptical about things like this.
Bud and Sandy come upon the scene and resist giving funds and explain who their Dad is. As you'd expect, Bud is more gullible and Sandy more skeptical. However Marvello appears to have Flipper say that he'll come and work with him and he proceeds to persuade his old employer to have Flipper in a pool jumping with Marvello having him 'speak'. Marvello comes to the Ricks home when the boys are at the dock and finally manages to sway Sandy into thinking that Flipper has said he'll work with Marvello after further ventriloquist tricks.
Porter finds his sons all glum and they tell their Dad what's happened and he then goes out to ask Flipper who of course just answers in dolphin gibberish.
The whole scheme collapses despite the circus owner sending a truck load of thugs to capture Flipper when Bud tries to stop them and Porter and Sandy run along the beach to rescue Bud who was wrapped in a net. Marvello is contrite and changes his mind and drives off the thugs with a fake police siren.
Lots of excessive stretches of the imagination needed in this episode not the least of which is Sandy buying Marvello's story when he is normal quite skeptical about things like this.
