On this day in 1959, COLUMBIA PICTURES launched one of the most popular teen franchises of it’s time with GIDGET. Based on the best selling teen book of the same name, GIDGET told the story of a young girl spending summer vacation hanging with the Malibu surfing crowd. SANDRA DEE played GIDGET to perfection but only in this original. Subsequent sequels starred DEBORAH WALLEY, CINDY CAROL and (for TV) SALLY FIELD.