Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1964). Pan 1968 paperback film tie-in. 94 pages

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Magical Car is a children's novel written by Ian Fleming for his son Caspar, with illustrations by John Burningham. It was first published in 1964 by Jonathan Cape in London and Random House in New York, and later made into a successful film. Writer Ian Fleming took his inspiration for the car from a series of aero-engined racing cars built by Count Louis Zborowski in the early 1920s, christened "Chitty Bang Bang".

Plot summary

Commander Caractacus Potts is an inventor who renovates an old car (known then as the Paragon Panther, which was previously a three-time Grand Prix winner, but had fallen into disrepair. After repairing the car, the Pott family head off to the beach for a picnic. The family explores along the Dover coast in the car, and find a cave with some fake scary devices inside. At the back of the cave is a store of armaments and explosives. The family lights a fuse and hurries out of the cave just before it explodes. Then the gangsters/gun-runners who own the ammunition arrive. They tie up the parents in the Chitty and leave with the children to go to France. The car comes to life and the Potts chase the bandits across the English Channel to France. There they meet a French baker and his wife, and they all end up capturing the bandits and handing them over to the police. Chitty then flies the Pott family back to England, with some special French fudge that the baker knew the recipe for. (The recipe is printed at the back of the last chapter.)

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

Film

The story was made into a musical film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in 1968 with additional fantasy elements. The film is begins with the same premise as the book. During the opening credits, we see highlights from the illustrious racing career of a car which won just about every race it took part in, until one day, it crashed. The car is now in an old junkyard, and Caractacus Potts' (Dick Van Dyke) two young children, Jeremy (Adrian Hall), and Jemima (Heather Ripley), like to pretend it is a racing car. But it looks as if those happy days are soon to come to an end, because a thoroughly unpleasant man has offered to buy the car, and the junkyard owner, Coggins (Desmond Llewelyn), cannot refuse his offer. The children say that they will ask their father to buy the car. On the way home they meet the beautiful Truly Scrumptious (Sally Ann Howes), who insists on giving them a lift. We discover that the Potts live in an old windmill, where Truly Scrumptious meets the children's eccentric Grandpa Potts (Lionel Jeffries), and their father, Caractacus. She argues with Caractacus about how the children should be in school, and that he should not be allowing them to run wild in the streets. He becomes furious with her for interfering, and telling him how to raise his children, and sends her away with a fly in her ear. After Truly has gone, the family have dinner, reflecting on their happy family life, ("You Two"). Caractacus discovers that the "sweets with holes in", which he invented, can make whistling sounds, when Edison, the family dog, tries to eat one of them. He takes the sweets to a local confectioner's, where we learn that the owner, Lord Scrumptious, is Truly's father. He initially turns his nose up at the sweets, but Caractacus and Truly persuade him to reconsider, ("Toot Sweets"), and it looks as if Potts has struck gold, and could make enough money to buy the car, when all the dogs in the village suddenly appear, attracted by the sound of the whistling sweets, and wreak havoc in the sweet shop, resulting in Lord Scrumptious refusing to buy the sweets after all. Caractacus sings his children to sleep, ("Hushabye Mountain"), then goes to the local funfair, to try and make money for the car with another of his inventions, an automatic haircut machine. It goes badly wrong, but Caractacus joins a dance troupe to escape from Cyril, the furious victim of his machine ("Me 'Ole Bamboo"), and his fellow dancers are so impressed with his performance, that they give him all the money they collect from the audience. Caractacus returns home in triumph with the car. Caractacus fixes the car, and the family go for a drive, ("Chitty Chitty Bang Bang"). They meet Truly along the way, and they all go for a picnic on the beach. The children have already grown fond of Truly, and she admits that she has become fond of them as well, ("Truly Scrumptious"). After the picnic, the children ask Caractacus to tell them a story, and he begins to tell a tale of the villainous Baron Bomburst (played by actor Gert Fröbe, who had played the villain Auric Goldfinger in another Ian Fleming-based film, Goldfinger) the ruler of Vulgaria, who is out to steal Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. The rest of the film is an enactment of the story Caractacus tells. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang reveals its ability to float, and helps the family escape the first attempt by the Baron to steal the car, ("Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (Nautical Reprise)") Here, fantasy and reality blur slightly. Caractacus takes Truly Scrumptious home, and when he has left, she reveals that she has fallen in love with him, ("Lovely Lonely Man"). But, when the story is over, they are still on the beach. Perhaps this sequence is intended to show Truly's developing feelings for Caractacus Potts. Baron Bonburst sends two Vulgarian spies to steal the car, but all their schemes are thwarted. Eventually, they mistakenly kidnap Grandpa Potts, thinking he is the inventor, and take him to Vulgaria. Terrified at first, Grandpa Potts soon adjusts to his new situation, and begins to enjoy it ("Posh!"). Caractacus, Truly and the children set off in pursuit of the kidnappers in Chitty, who can also fly. On arrival at the palace, Grandpa Potts is escorted into a workshop by the Baron, who tells him that he is expected to make the Baronial car float, with the help of six elderly inventors. The inventors assure Grandpa Potts that he will succeed, ("The Roses of Success"). Caractacus, Truly and the children arrive in Vulgaria, which is a dangerous place for Jeremy and Jemima, because children are banned - Baroness Bomburst (Anna Quayle) can't stand them. When the Vulgarians spy them from above, the Baroness immediately calls out the real villain of the film, the evil Child-Catcher (Robert Helpmann). Fortunately, a friendly toy-maker (Benny Hill), agrees to hide the children in his cellar, while he and Caractacus go to the Castle to try and rescue Grandpa Potts. Truly is left with the children, but when they complain of hunger, she goes off to try and buy food, and the Child-Catcher sees his chance and lures the children out of the cellar with free lollipops. Truly sees the children being taken away and alerts Caractacus and the toy-maker. The children are brought before Baron and Baroness Bomburst, and later taken off to be locked away in a cell. Meanwhile, the Toy-Maker takes Caractacus and Truly to a sewer where all Vulgaria's children have had to be hidden away. The children are able to tell Caractacus the whereabouts of his children, and of Grandpa Potts, but then wish to know if Caractacus intends to help them as well. Caractacus and Truly comfort a frightened boy named Peter, ("Hushabye Mountain (Reprise)"), and decide to help free the other Vulgarian children from the sewers. The next day dawns; it is Baron Bomburst's birthday. He and the Baroness sing a "romantic" duet, ("Chu-Chi Face") - romantic on the part of the Baroness, that is, as we soon see that the Baron's declarations of affection are fake - he attempts to kill the Baroness three times during the song, and has previously attempted to shoot her, when she was catapulted in the air by Chitty's ejector seat. The celebrations get underway. The Baron is bored, but the Baroness cheers him up by the summoning the toy-maker. He has two presents for the Baron; two moving dolls - Caractacus and Truly in disguise. The dolls sing and dance for the baron, ("Doll On A Music Box" / "Truly Scrumptious (Reprise)", but he becomes suspicious. Eventually, he overcomes his doubts, and dances with Caractacus to an instrumental version of "Truly Scrumptious". Under cover of this distraction, the children invade the castle and cause pandemonium. The Baron and Baroness attempt to escape by means of a rubbish chute, but slide straight into a cage, strategically positioned at the bottom of the chute. Truly and Caractacus find Jeremy and Jemima, are re-united with Grandpa Potts, and finally with Chitty. The Child-Catcher is surrounded by children, who lure him into a net. The family set off on a homeward journey on Chitty, and are waved off by the Vulgarians, who now look forward to a better life, now that children can live safely in the city. We return to the beach, with Caractacus telling the last lines of the story. The children interrupt - "And Daddy and Truly were married...". There is an awkward pause, and Caractacus is clearly embarrassed, and abruptly says that they should go home. Caractacus tells Truly that they cannot be married - the social difference is too great. Truly is insulted. At home, they find Lord Scrumptious and Grandpa Potts - it turns out that they were in the army together. Lord Scrumptious reveals that the sweets made by Caractacus are very popular with dogs. They have been re-christened "Woof Sweets", and are to be sold in the factory after all. Caractacus rushes off to find Truly, and we see a repeat of an earlier sequence - Truly drives into a lake and has to be rescued by Caractacus. They look into each others eyes for a moment, and then kiss - it is decided that they will marry after all. Song list from the film

• 1. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
• 2. You Two
• 3. Toot Sweets
• 4. Hushabye Mountain
• 5. Me Ol' Bamboo
• 6. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
• 7. Truly Scrumptious
• 8. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
• 9. Lovely Lonely Man
• 10. Posh!
• 11. Hushabye Mountain (Reprise)
• 12. The Roses of Success
• 13. Chu-Chi Face
• 14. Doll on a Music Box/Truly Scrumptious
• 15. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (Finale)
• 16. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (Main Title)

Theatrical versions

On April 16 2002 a stage musical based on the book and movie was directed by Adrian Noble with musical staging and choreography by Gillian Lynne at the London Palladium theatre. For full details on that production and subsequent productions see Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (musical), starring Michael Ball. This version of the show closed in September 2005. Despite some initial problems with the mechanical flying Chitty used in the show, it has enjoyed a very successful run. A Broadway version of this show opened on April 28 2005 at the Hilton Theatre in New York City. It was also nominated for, but lost, the following 2005 Tony Awards:

• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical (Erin Dilly)
• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical (Marc Kudisch)
• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical (Jan Maxwell)
• Tony Award for Best Scenic Design of a Musical (Anthony Ward)
• Tony Award for Best Lighting Design of a Musical (Mark Henderson)
• The Broadway production closed on 31 December 2005, after 34 previews and 284 regular performances.

After closing in London, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang took to the road on a UK European tour. The first stop on this was at the Sunderland Empire Theatre, where it previewed from December 9 2005 and premiered on December 13 2005. It will tour Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool, Bristol, Southampton and Edinburgh. It closesd in Southampton on 16th September 2007 and then traveled to Singapore from 2nd November 2007 to 9th December 2007.

Trivia

Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

• In the original novel by Fleming, Caractacus is not a widower; consequently, the adult female interest is represented by his wife Mimsie rather than "Truly Scrumptious." The family's adventure with Chitty takes them across the English Channel to France and involves them with a character named "Joe the Monster." By comparison, the musical adaptation transforms the original story considerably in a fairytale direction.
• Chitty Chitty Bang Bang's number plate number was GEN 11, apparently the closest to the word "genie" the UK motor vehicle registry would allow. However, by the time the film was made (1968), this UK Number Plate would have been available - as GEN 1E - as early as August 1967, when the 'E registration appeared - well before the film's launch, in December 1968. These are, incidentally, Bury (Lancashire) official registrations (both the original GEN 11, and the potential GEN 1E).
• "It's Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" is a cheat for the PC-game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, that enables cars to fly. "CHITTYCHITTYBB" is a code from Grand Theft Auto 3 with similar effect.
• During the song and dance routine, "Toot Sweets", a dog falls off the scaffolding.
• The name of Potts is believed to come from Albert William Potts, who caddied for Ian Flemming at The Royal St. Georges Golf Club, Sandwich. After asking Mr. Potts' name, Mr. Flemming commented that the name Potts was unusual.

External links

• UK Tour musical stage show website
• Broadway version
• Official site for the original car
• Details about the film production cars
• Details of the books, merchandise, and pretty much everything Chitty related
• Raul Esparza (Broadway musical production cast member) Downstage Center interview at American Theatre Wing, April 2005
• Chitty fan page
• IMDB film page