The Absent-Minded Professor
The most amazing discovery since laughter!
1961 | 96m | English
Popularity: 2 (history)
| Director: | Robert Stevenson |
|---|---|
| Writer: | Samuel W. Taylor, Bill Walsh |
| Staring: |
| Bumbling professor Ned Brainard accidentally invents flying rubber, or "Flubber", an incredible material that gains energy every time it strikes a hard surface. It allows for the invention of shoes that can allow jumps of amazing heights and enables a modified Model-T to fly. Unfortunately, no one is interested in the material except for Alonzo Hawk, a corrupt businessman who wants to steal the material for himself. | |
| Release Date: | Jan 20, 1961 |
|---|---|
| Director: | Robert Stevenson |
| Writer: | Samuel W. Taylor, Bill Walsh |
| Genres: | Family, Comedy, Science Fiction |
| Keywords | inventor, flubber, professor, basketball, flying car, secret formula, absent minded |
| Production Companies | Walt Disney Productions |
| Box Office |
Revenue: $0
Budget: $2,000,000 |
| Updates |
Updated: Aug 10, 2025 (Update) Entered: Apr 13, 2024 |
| Name | Character |
|---|---|
| Fred MacMurray | Ned Brainard |
| Nancy Olson | Betsy Carlisle |
| Keenan Wynn | Alonzo P. Hawk |
| Tommy Kirk | Biff Hawk |
| Leon Ames | Rufus Daggett |
| Elliott Reid | Shelby Ashton |
| Edward Andrews | Defense Secretary |
| David Lewis | General Singer |
| Jack Mullaney | Air Force Captain |
| Belle Montrose | Mrs. Chatsworth |
| Wally Brown | Coach Elkins |
| Wally Boag | TV newsman |
| Don Ross | Lenny |
| Forrest Lewis | Officer Kelley |
| James Westerfield | Officer Hanson |
| Alan Carney | Referee #1 |
| Charlie Briggs | Sig |
| Gage Clarke | Reverend Bosworth |
| Alan Hewitt | General Hotchkiss |
| Raymond Bailey | Admiral Olmstead |
| Wendell Holmes | General Poynter |
| Ed Wynn | Fire Chief |
| Bess Flowers | Wedding Guest (uncredited) |
| Paul Frees | PA Man / Air Force Dispatcher (voice) (uncredited) |
| Hank Patterson | Fisherman Spectator (uncredited) |
| Colin Kenny | Man in Crowd (uncredited) |
| Arthur Tovey | Basketball Game Spectator (uncredited) |
| Ralph Clanton | O.J. Turnball (uncredited) |
| Charles Fogel | Citizen (uncredited) |
| Name | Job |
|---|---|
| George Bruns | Original Music Composer |
| Carroll Clark | Art Direction |
| Joshua Meador | Special Effects |
| Hal Gausman | Set Decoration |
| Emile Kuri | Set Decoration |
| Robert G. Shannon | Assistant Director |
| Samuel W. Taylor | Story |
| Pat McNalley | Makeup Artist |
| Peter Ellenshaw | Special Effects |
| Ruth Sandifer | Hairstylist |
| Edward Colman | Director of Photography |
| Robert A. Mattey | Special Effects |
| Cotton Warburton | Editor |
| Eustace Lycett | Special Effects |
| Robert O. Cook | Sound Supervisor |
| Robert Stevenson | Director |
| Bill Walsh | Screenplay |
| Bob Herron | Stunts |
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Bill Walsh | Associate Producer |
| Walt Disney | Producer |
| Organization | Category | Person |
|---|
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 4 | 14 | 21 | 9 |
| 2024 | 5 | 17 | 24 | 8 |
| 2024 | 6 | 12 | 25 | 9 |
| 2024 | 7 | 13 | 22 | 8 |
| 2024 | 8 | 12 | 22 | 8 |
| 2024 | 9 | 12 | 20 | 7 |
| 2024 | 10 | 12 | 24 | 6 |
| 2024 | 11 | 11 | 20 | 7 |
| 2024 | 12 | 11 | 25 | 6 |
| 2025 | 1 | 10 | 17 | 7 |
| 2025 | 2 | 8 | 12 | 3 |
| 2025 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 1 |
| 2025 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| 2025 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| 2025 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2025 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2025 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
Trending Position
Substance X, we dub thee - Flubber! The Absent-Minded Professor is directed by Robert Stevenson and adapted to screenplay by Bill Walsh from a story by Samuel W. Taylor. It stars Fred MacMurray, Nancy Olsen, Keenan Wynn, Tommy Kirk, Leon Ames and Elliott Reid. Music is by George Bruns and cinema ... tography by Edward Colman. Out of Disney, we get the kind of wacky family friendly comedy that serves a purpose on a miserable real life day. MacMurray's professor has invented flying - gravity defying - rubber, which he christens Flubber. It can make you bounce up to incredible heights, make the prof's car fly and naturally it draws the attention of evil business man Alonzo Hawk (Wynn). A bunch of nutty scenarios ensue (the basketball match is a pure joy) and the prof has to win back the girl he keeps forgetting to marry (a radiant Olson). It's a creative piece of writing and it saw Disney take note for continued success in live action pictures. 7/10
An amusing film regarding Professor Brainard, a character I've always associated with Robin Williams having seen the 1997 remake first back when I was younger. Fred MacMurray plays the aforementioned in this, the original. He is pleasing here, giving a more than satisfying performance - even if i ... t is pretty similar to the one he gives in <em>'The Shaggy Dog'</em> back in 1959. Elsewhere, Keenan Wynn plays Alonzo Hawk - he is perfect for that role. Nancy Olson (Betsy) and Tommy Kirk (Biff) are also recognisable Disney faces, though it's MacMurray and Wynn who are the standouts by quite some distance. The special effects haven't aged well at all but I can forgive that. However, the editing is very choppy when the Flubber is in use. I get why, of course, but I feel they could've sharpened the edits up a tad. The main part that I'll remember from this is the humour, which is nicely crafted. There's a lot of set pieces with the Flubber and basically all of them give laughs to some degree. If it wasn't for the fun, I'd be rating this lower - especially after the somewhat out of place ending. I prefer the remake with Williams, though that one leaves a similar impression - with the previously mentioned actor elevating that film up tremendously. This, for a special effect-filled production from 1961, is solid.