Friday, May 02, 2008

I Dream of Jeannie: Is There an Extra Genie in the House? (1966) (TV)

Alternate (and wrong, in my opinion) title: Is There an Extra Jeannie in the House?

Synopsis: Roger is entertaining a beautiful girl in his apartment; they've just had dinner and now they're having champagne; she says she has to go or else her uncle will be furious; Roger says one more sip and then he'll take her home. He goes to the kitchen for more champagne and whispers to Jeannie to show herself; the smoke is produced and Tony appears. It turns out that Roger borrowed Jeannie for the night, but Tony took her back because she was too tired after cooking 24 courses for Roger's dinner. She was also supposed to turn the clock back 3 hours so Roger could meet the midnight deadline set by the girl's uncle -- who happens to be Dr. Bellows; now Roger is in trouble. The next day Roger meets Jeannie and Tony; Jeannie suggests she summons her cousin Marilla to be Roger's own genie; Tony is contrary to the idea: one genie in Cocoa Beach is enough trouble. Roger is punished for disrespecting Dr. Bellows' curfew -- he is sent on vacation to a remote island. The janitor of the building where Roger lives offers his apartment while he is away to a couple of down-and-out magicians. Roger comes back for some notes he forgot and meets the two magicians dressed in oriental style; he thinks Jeannie has finally granted his wish -- in double! Dr. Bellows cancels his trip, and Roger thinks it's his "genii"'s work. He offers Dr. Bellows' niece a mink coat; he also ask his "genii" to make Dr. Bellows head of NASA's medical department so he gets off his back. Later, he thanks Jeannie for the favor and Jeannie phones Roger's apartment to talk to her cousin; apparently she came of her own will -- on a magic carpet -- since Jeannie never called for her; Jeannie gets suspicious and so does Tony. They go visit Roger to meet his "genii"; they are cooking dinner for Roger and his date, but it's taking too long by Jeannie's standards. Tony asks Jeannie to make the two magicians disappear; Roger says he is more powerful than Jeannie since he has two genii; he orders them to blink Jeannie out. The two magicians get freaked out by all this and reveal they were just looking for a place to stay, but they'd rather sleep under the bridge than to deal with that insanity, so they leave. Roger realizes he is in trouble again and, having promised Dr. Bellows his promotion by 10 o'clock next morning, he would be considered a lunatic. But Dr. Bellows does get promoted after all, thanks to Jeannie's intervention, and Roger escapes his punishment.

No comments: