Blackbeard's Ghost

1 9 6 8 (USA)

Elsa Lanchester, a descendant of the famed pirate, is in danger of losing her home to a group of greedy racketeers, who want to convert it into a casino. College track coach Steve Walker (Jones) accidentally conjures up the old salt's spirit, leading to one riotous comedy bit after another as Blackbeard and Steve learn how to find the happy medium between their polar personalities.

Peter Ustinov starred as the title spirit, cursed by one of his many ex-wives to wander the earth until he could find it in his black heart to do a good deed.

The film featured the always-brilliant special effects work of Peter Ellenshaw, who had brought the magic of Mary Poppins to life for the studio a few years earlier. Though Blackbeard's Ghost was nowhere near as successful as that all-time favourite, the movie had more than its share of fans, who continued to enjoy its silly pleasures as the movie popped up on Disney's TV shows.