Gidget is a fictional character created by author Frederick Kohner in his 1957 novel, Gidget, the Little Girl with Big Ideas. The novel follows the adventures of a teenage girl and her surfing friends on the beach in Malibu. The name Gidget is a portmanteau of "girl" and "midget". Following the novel's publication, the character appeared in several films, television series, and television movies.
Gidget, first edition dustjacket
Sandra Dee as Gidget in the 1959 film (VHS cover)
Malibu is a beach city in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, about 30 miles (48 km) west of Downtown Los Angeles. It is known for its Mediterranean climate, its strip of beaches stretching 21 miles along the Pacific Ocean coast, and for its longtime status as the home of numerous affluent Hollywood celebrities and executives. Although a high proportion of its residents are entertainment industry figures with million-dollar mansions, Malibu also features several middle- and upper-middle-class neighborhoods. The Pacific Coast Highway traverses the city and has led most residents to settle anywhere from half a mile to within a few hundred yards of it, with some residents living up to one mile away from the beach in areas featuring narrow canyons. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 10,654.
Aerial view of Downtown Malibu and surrounding neighborhoods
Seal
Adamson House, a historic house and gardens, listed on the National Register of Historic Places
"Malibu Coast, Spring" by Granville Redmond, c. 1929