The Love Bug

The Love Bug
Theatrical release poster
Directed byRobert Stevenson
Screenplay byBill Walsh
Don DaGradi
Based on"Car, Boy, Girl"
by Gordon Buford
Produced byBill Walsh
StarringDean Jones
Michele Lee
David Tomlinson
Buddy Hackett
CinematographyEdward Colman
Edited byCotton Warburton
Music byGeorge Bruns
Production
company
Distributed byBuena Vista Distribution
Release dates
  • December 24, 1968 (1968-12-24) (limited)
  • March 13, 1969 (1969-03-13) (wide)
Running time
108 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$5 million[1]
Box office$51.2 million[2]

The Love Bug (also known as Herbie the Love Bug) is a 1969 American sports adventure comedy film directed by Robert Stevenson from a screenplay by Bill Walsh and Don DaGradi, based on the story "Car, Boy, Girl" by Gordon Buford. The film is the first installment in the Herbie film series.

The film follows the adventures of a sentient Volkswagen Beetle named Herbie, Herbie's driver, Jim Douglas (Dean Jones), and Jim's love interest, Carole Bennett (Michele Lee). It also features Buddy Hackett as Jim's enlightened, kind-hearted friend, Tennessee Steinmetz, a character who creates "art" from used car parts. English actor David Tomlinson portrays the villainous Peter Thorndyke, the owner of an automobile showroom and an SCCA national champion who sells Herbie to Jim and eventually becomes his racing rival.

The Love Bug was followed by a sequel titled Herbie Rides Again (1974). The film was originally given a limited release on December 24, 1968, and was later widely released on March 13, 1969 by Walt Disney Productions. It received positive reviews from critics, and received $51.2 million against a budget of $5 million.

  1. ^ Solomon, Aubrey (1989). Twentieth Century Fox: A Corporate and Financial History. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, p. 163, ISBN 978-0-8108-4244-1.
  2. ^ "The Love Bug, Box Office Information". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on December 25, 2011. Retrieved January 9, 2012.