In the summer of 1960 there really wasn't much happening in the suburbs. Especially if you were a twelve year-old girl named Megan Flannagan. Meg, that's what all the boys called her. Actually, the girls called her that too. But not many of either called her anything because she was a bit different.
Hard to say how she was different. But kids know when one of their tribe is somehow not quite one of them. Meg, as many kids do, developed an attitude. A kind of, to hell-with-them, air.
She didn't want to play with the girls and the boys didn't want her to play with them. It was an awkward and lonely age. But she could fish. The fish didn't care if she was a gawky girl on the verge of being a teenager. They bit at her worm that dangled on her hook as if she were the most robust angler around. Her grandfather had taught her everything he knew about fishing and showed her his secret fishing holes. He was so confident in her skills, that he let her take his little twelve-foot fishing boat out everyday. She coaxed its three horsepower motor to turn-over and trolled till it was time to come home.
Her best friend was her dog, Bait. Oh, and this pesky boy who the others boys really didn't want around anyway -- Tommy. Tommy was a little puny and Megan thought he was a real bother but Tommy didn't have anyone else to hang around with and it was too much trouble to shoo him away.
That same summer, just across Lake St. Clair from Meg's Michigan home, a former touring carnival operator, Cyril Skelton, was about to open his new amusement park, The Storybook Gardens, in London, Ontario Canada.
Word had trickled down to nearly everyone who lived on the lake that something wonderful was about to appear in their neck of the woods. Most kids couldn't wait for the park to open. Tommy asked Meg if she'd ask her mom to take them up there for the opening. Both of his parents worked and he desperately wanted to be there when the gates opened. Of course, she thought it was stupid. Who'd want to go on some mechanical ride that would just make you sick? Well, Tommy did. She rolled her eyes.
The amusement park was the dream of a classic, carny hustler. After years of knocking around as a small time con artist in one carnival after another, Skelton had scraped together enough money to open his own dream park.
The centerpiece was going to be something truly unique -- a sea lion. He'd hired a team to go out to California and capture a sea lion. He was having it shipped back.
The park's foreman was filling the specially built tank in preparation for the sea lion's arrival. A sign announcing the arrival was being put up. Skelton had named his sea lion, Slippery.
It was late and Skelton was heading home. Tomorrow would be a big day. Slippery was set to arrive and the following day, the park would open.
Skelton inspected the tank, said goodnight to the foreman and slipped away. The foreman was happy to see the old guy go. He slipped his hand into his coat and took out a pint of Canadian Whiskey. Something to help him while away the hours as the tank filled.
The next day the tank was half full when Skelton arrived. The foreman had just woken up and luckily had remembered to hide his empty bottle.
As he inspected the tank, a large truck arrived. It was Slippery. Within a few minutes, Slippery was dumped out of his specially constructed container and rolled into his new home, the still filling tank.
Back at home, Meg's parents are asking her if she wants to go to the Storybook Gardens opening tomorrow. She says she'd rather go fishing. They worry about their strange child. Tommy's with her and he says he'll go but they can't take him alone. He needles her to go. She pushes him away.
It's night again. And the tank is almost full. Skelton is so nervous. Tomorrow is his big day. The foreman says it's all under control and Skelton leaves. Once again the bottle comes out. Slippery swims slowly around the tank, wondering where he is.
The foreman drinks his pint and falls asleep but the water is still pouring into the tank. It begins to spill over the side and cascade down the sheer cliff that drops into a river that leads into Lake St. Clair.
Slippery swims over to the edge. He sees the water falling over the side. He pulls himself up, looks over, hesitates and pushes off. Down he soars, like a crashing Zeppelin. Fins out, whiskers back and eyes open – it’s quite a spectacle. Within seconds he's splashed into the water. A little shocked but he senses he's free. What to do? Swim. And swim he does.
The next morning, Skelton arrives to find his foreman still passed out. He rouses him from his slumber and turns off the still gushing hose. While he yells at the sleepy guard he looks for his sea lion. He sees the cascading water, and realizes what happened.
Skelton calls the Mounties. They always get their man. Why not a sea lion? The Mounties think he’s a crank but finally agree to take on the challenge of finding the fugitive sea creature.
A manhunt or a sea lion hunt ensues. A flotilla of boats head off in hot pursuit carrying a gaggle of Mounties and veterinarians armed with rifles that shoot tranquilizer darts. At their briefing they’d been told their mission: find trap and return the fleeing Slippery. No one can be allowed to elude the reach of the Mounties --- the stability of our society depends on order. The chaos caused by the sea lion must be stopped.
In the meantime, what to do about the grand opening? Skelton works the press and creates a media circus. The empty tank is on display for all to see. Photos of the missing sea lion pop up around town. Everyone is on the lookout for the run/swimaway.
It's a terrifying journey for this lost sea lion. Dodging motorboats, skiers, fisherman, freighters and the Mountie’s boats -- it’s one hazard after another. After traveling for two days he’s in pretty bad shape. Eels have nibbled on him, he weak from not eating and he’s tired from constantly swimming. But he’s eluded his hunters and finally finds refuge in a little cove.
Meg just happens to like fishing in that same cove. She spies the frightened sea lion, befriends him (a few tasty fish slipped to the poor thing doesn't hurt) and with Tommy's help, they lead him back to her boathouse. She plans to nurse him back to health. She makes Tommy swear not to tell.
Tommy is not the best one to rely on if you want a secret kept. He has so little to share with anyone that he’s just too excited, he can’t keep it to himself. He tries but it’s inevitable that he’ll let it slip. While reading comic books at the drug store, Tommy overhears Liz, the most popular girl in school, telling her friends that she thinks the sea lion is dead. They can’t live in fresh water. Tommy, defending Slippery’s honor and prowess, blurts out his secret. Liz and her gang, shocked to hear from the nerdy little boy, mercilessly pump him for all the details. They decide they have to tell the Police. The local cops, working with the Mounties, track down Slippery in her boathouse and take him to the local veterinarian for safekeeping.
Meg could kill Tommy. Her parents are angry that she hid this from them but they are kind of proud of her too. She's just bluer than blue. She doesn't even want to fish. She goes to visit her granddad, a retired judge, who lived in a cottage on the lake. Her grandfather sympathizes and looks for a way to console his young granddaughter.
He explains “ferae naturae”, the ancient law that animals found in the sea belong to the finder. So, by rights, Slippery is hers. All she has to do is go to court and claim her property. She’s thrilled but she needs help. Granddad agrees to help.
Their work begins. There is research to be done, legal documents to prepare and papers to file – all in order to make the case to a judge. Slippery is in the custody of the vet until the case is decided.
She enlists her parents and pretty soon everyone in the family is working on Meg’s legal case. She begins to gain confidence in her ability to spring Slippery. She works hard and hardly sleeps from excitement. She can save Slippery. She can restore him to freedom.
The US Ambassador to Canada and the Canadian Ambassador to the US meet with the judge and implore him to return the sea lion to Skelton, lest 16 million Canadians rise up to claim their sea lion. This could be an international incident. The Governor is no help, he doesn’t want to get into it. The judge retreats to his study and looks up the state’s wildlife laws. He finds a way out. Since sea lions are not listed as a species in his state, he rules that it’s just a property dispute and that Slippery must be returned to Skelton. A slippery decision at best.
Meg watches as Skelton and his henchmen load Slippery into the back of a Storybook Gardens panel truck and driven away. She is devastated. She feels like she let Slippery down. It’s not fair. He won’t be free. He’ll be on display. He’ll be imprisoned in a tank, swimming in custody. He’ll be dependent on Skelton to feed him and take care of him. She knows this will not be healthy for the fun-loving sea lion. Not even her beloved Granddad can comfort her.
The only good news is that the other kids think what she did is kind off cool. She went to court and talked to a judge and everything. For the first time she gets some friendly comments from the local swells.
While this is nice, she still is plenty steamed at Tommy and he has to do something to dig himself out of this hole.
While watching the triumphant televised return of Slippery to Storybook Gardens, Tommy gets angry. He convinces Meg that they should somehow take matters into their own hands, he just doesn’t know how.
A million plans are hatched and rejected until they see a news report about a sit-down strike in South Carolina. Why not organize a protest? We could shut down the gardens and set Slippery free.
They spring into action. Within weeks they've gotten enough kids to join them in their crusade. Funds from lemonade stands, pooled allowances, the sale of the odd baseball glove, wages from baby sitting goes into the Slippery freedom fund.
Kids arrive at the boathouse on a regular basis to put together picket signs. Meg’s parents are delighted, but somewhat puzzled by their daughter’s newfound popularity.
Meanwhile, reports emerge that a lonely, despondent Slippery is not eating. His health worsens while he listlessly watches a four-foot wall being built around his pool. The kids decide they have to act now, but they have to get across the border into Canada. They need an adult who can act as field trip leader. Granddad to the rescue.
At sunrise, Granddad and the group gather at the Greyhound Station. They board the bus and head off on a mission to free Slippery.
Skelton arrives to find his park surrounded by a gaggle of shouting, little picketers.
He tries to get rid of them. He upbraids Granddad who shrugs his shoulders and picks up a picket sign. Skelton tries to bribe the kids with free passes and when that doesn't work he calls the cops. Of course, reporters appear dreaming of wonderful headlines. “Kids' park owner has kids arrested.” This story has it all – kids, animals and conflict. What could be better?
Meg's parents are not happy. Meg is grounded, as are her cohorts. The border is off limits to American kids. She sits at home and watches TV. But what's this, Canadian kids turn out to picket the next day. It's like spontaneous combustion. Picketing is more fun than riding the pukey carnival rides.
She and Tommy take her boat across the lake to the Canadian side. They sneak back to Storybook Gardens. They are amazed by what they see. It has become a movement. No one is going into the park. It’s ringed by sign-toting, chanting kids. The rides are idle and Skelton will go broke if he doesn't give in.
Skelton spots Meg and Tommy and calls the cops. The picketers run to her defense and she slips into the park. She’s headed for Slippery’s pool as Skelton is surrounded by an angry mob of youngsters.
Slippery sees her and perks up immediately. She tosses him a bucket full of sardines and he eagerly slurps them up. She jumps into the tank. He swims up to her and gives her a whiskery kiss, which she wipes off with a “yuck!”
Skelton has escaped from his captors and is headed for the pool as Meg tries to hoist Slippery over the wall. She fails and within minutes, she’s cornered. The cops have arrived and Skelton is demanding that they arrest her.
The rest of the kids have entered the pool area, followed by news crews. Skelton is questioned by the reporters. What’s he going to do? Have a twelve-year old arrested? You want to put her on display too, they ask?
Meg rises to the occasion and tells Skelton that he has only one choice ---- let Slippery go or have his park boycotted forever. The kids shout their support. Slippery barks his support. All eyes are on Skelton. Just then a sign over Slippery’s pool comes partially unhinged and squeaks it approval.
Eventually he does. He ships Slippery back to his California home and reopens with a new name --- Slippery's. The kids can't get enough. Even Meg takes a ride on a roller coaster.
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