Billie

Based on a decade old play Time Out For Ginger which was a one set comedy in the living room of the house of the protagonist Carol family, Billie was considerably expanded with many new characters introduced and the story takes us all over the small town where Jim Backus is trying to unseat Billy DeWolfe as mayor.

Expanded I say, but hardly updated. You would absolutely never know there was a counterculture revolution of the Sixties going on in seeing this film. It could have been and maybe should have been made in the Fifties.

Patty Duke plays the title role and the film property is produced by John Ross who was her legal guardian and career Svengali at that point. He was taking Patty's American character from the Patty Duke Show on television and making her a track star as well.

A little bit of Annie Get Your Gun is also tossed into the mix as Duke who damages a lot of the male egos on the track team has some problems landing the boy of her dreams. Warren Berlinger initially gets some pointers from Duke and she helps him make the team. But later the male dominant ego gets the better of him.

Berlinger is way too old for his part and looks it. He was 28 when he was doing Billie. Robert Diamond late of Fury was also having trouble transitioning to teen roles. He was 22 and also looks it. Diamond plays another track team member and Billy DeWolfe's son. Patty was 18 doing this, but her small build makes her look younger.

There's a subplot involving Patty's older sister Susan Seaforth who is married to Ted Bessell, but hasn't broken the news to Backus and mother Jane Greer. Why escapes me, but Backus tries to fix her up with his campaign manager Dick Sargent, this being while Seaforth is a little bit married and a little bit pregnant.

Billie's secret of her success on the track field is that she has the 'beat'. A certain innate natural rhythm that star athletes have, we all have whether we know it or not. Find your beat and ratchet it up and you too can be a star. Bearing that in mind there is a whole lot dancing in Billie and the choreography was nicely done.

Billie is a nice film that was way out of step with the times when it was released.

This is an excellent family film. Billie is a high school girl who joins a boys track team in a time when things like this just wasn't done. Lots of smiles and laughs. Great entertainment for everyone. Rates up there with Disney's Parent Trap. It stars Patty Duke when she was still a child star. Highly recommended.

Steve Kaden

Silly bit of fluff about a teenage tomboy named Billie (Patty Duke) who can run super fast due to music in her head she calls "the beat." She can run faster than all the boys, which causes the expected problems. This is an old but fun gender equality story. It's sincere in what it's trying to do even though it's pretty dated in how it's trying to do it. Patty Duke is fun and looks cute in track shorts. 28 year-old Warren Berlinger is her friend (and potential boyfriend). He's a poor fit to play a high schooler. He even has a bald spot! Jim Backus plays the dad and Jane Greer is the mom. Backus' character is one of the more interesting in the film, seeing as how he is a politician running on a traditionalist conservative platform yet his personal views are somewhat in conflict with this. He's a hypocrite, in other words. Other familiar faces like Dick Sargent, Charles Lane, and Richard Deacon also appear. It's likable stuff but not for everybody. The scenes of Patty Duke running with that big grin on her face and the '60s music playing is pretty cheesy stuff. Patty sings some corny songs, as well. The subplot about the older sister is positively stupid. You're not going to enjoy this movie much unless you are able to not take it that seriously.

Bit of fluff about teenage Billie Carol (Patty Duke), tomboy (if in any doubt of that, the short-cropped boyish haircut tells you that fact) who joins the boys track team at her high school and faces the mild wrath of her father (Jim Backus) who is running for mayor (Billie wishes she were a boy - and so does dad - uh oh). Billie "hears the beat" when she runs and even helps the other boys on the team (none of whom can run as fast as spirited little Billie) learn the beat in a fun dance number. New boy in school, Mike, wants to become a track star so recruits Billie as his "teacher" - but can't keep his eyes off her when she dances. And meanwhile issues about "women's rights" are loosely brought into the film as Billie gets upset 'cause the boys treat her "like a girl and not an equal". A subplot involves big sister Jeannie who returns from college with a secret she only reveals to sis Billie.

This film is pretty light fare, nostalgic fun that reminded me so much of the 60s teenage films I liked as a kid - it's also a semi-musical with one good dance number, plus a few sort of catchy, a few not so catchy songs thrown in. As a fan of Patty Duke (one of my favorite old TV shows since childhood is the rarely seen "Patty Duke Show") it was great to see her in this fun, teenage role - she's very energetic, likable and cute in this (even though forced into appearing on screen in this rather ugly powder blue short set as well as a pretty hideous powder blue dress, amongst other things - and what's with that bleached blonde hairdo?!). 60s TV is also well-represented as this film is jam-packed with numerous familiar stars and character actors from popular 60s sitcoms - Bewitched, That Girl, Gilligan's Island, Leave it to Beaver - all represented here. Even well-loved character actor Charles Lane appears briefly in a few scenes as the track coach, and there's even a big "Shaggy Dog" in this. Nothing great- but enjoyable, light fun.

Roll back the clocks for this one! A very fine movie for it's nostalgia. I enjoyed seeing what teenagers were like back in the 1960's.

This is a movie/musical rolled into one. It stars, Patty Duke who plays the character "Billie", a tomboy who causes a problem with her school when she is put on the all "boys" track team by the impressed school coach. You have to remember that this movie was released in 1965 when women's rights were not as prevalent as today.

If you have never heard Patty Duke sing, then you just have to see this movie... She sings as beautiful as a songbird! Bobby Diamond, who played on the TV series, "Fury" (1955-1960), is also in this movie and sang to my enjoyment as well!

Although not intended to be funny, some parts of this movie were very comical and had me in stitches! I enjoyed watching the way the people danced back then. It looked like they were having a great time!

In conclusion I'd like to say, that "Billie" is a very fine movie for it's time period. If only there was more of it. The ending left me with wanting more...more...more!