From the
comedy – drama, which marked Jacks Lemmon directorial debut
In Los Angeles,
seventy-two-year-old retired salesman Joseph P. Kotcher has been living with
his son and daughter-in-law, Gerald and Wilma, for several months and enjoying
the companionship of his baby grandson, Duncan. One day Wilma, who resents that
Kotch has moved into their house, decides to hire Erica "Ricci"
Herzenstiel, an orphaned teenager who lives with her brother and sister-in-law,
to baby-sit. Dubious of her abilities, Kotch joins Erica when she takes Duncan
to the park, but when her boyfriend, Vincent Perrin, arrives in his car to pick
up Erica and Duncan, Erica leaves Kotch behind. Having a keen interest in life,
the loquacious Kotch tries to start conversations with strangers in the park,
who politely ignore him.
After seeing a
little girl crying in the swimming pool, Kotch cheers her up, then pats her on
the behind to send her on her way. Mistaking his intentions, Mrs. Fisher, the
mother of the child, files a complaint that Kotch "indecently"
touched her daughter….
Smacker: Walter
Matthau
Smackee: Not credited
Director:
Jack Lemmon