About This Quiz
Sally Field was such a hot commodity after starring in "Gidget" that producers felt she could make any show a hit -- even one about a flying nun. This '60s sitcom featured Field as a nun new to the habit, who helped shake things up at the convent and used her special flying skills to get her fellow sisters out of hot water more than once. Take our quiz to see how much you remember about this classic TV series!The sisters on "The Flying Nun" reside at the Convent San Tanco in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The convent sits high on a bluff, where frequent strong winds can provide a pick-me-up for certain nuns.
Sally Field plays Elsie Ethrington, a woman so impressed with the missionary work of her aunt that she decides to become a nun. When she arrives at the convent, she is renamed Sister Bertrille and fitted with a very elaborate headpiece.
Sister Bertrille serves as a kindergarten teacher for local children, including orphans. She is forced to make do with a very tight budget and few supplies or resources to help the kids in her care.
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Sister Bertrille is very petite and weighs just 90 pounds. It's her low weight, combined with her flared cornette -- that's the headpiece she wears -- that allows her to fly when the winds feel like cooperating.
Marge Redmond plays Sister Jacqueline, who not only narrates the intro to each episode, but also becomes a good friend to Sister Bertrille.
Carlos Ramirez is an orphan who was raised at the convent, then later runs the Carlos A-Go-Go Discotheque and Casino. Despite his seedy business dealings, he is a good friend to the nuns of the convent, especially Sister Bertrille.
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In the second episode of the series, Carlos sees Sister Bertrille fly for the first time. The act scares him straight, leading him to give up women, alcohol and gambling -- at least for a while, before he turns back to his old ways.
The school at San Tanco is overcrowded, and the nuns hope to build a larger one. Unfortunately, the only appropriate piece of land for the new school is owned by Carlos, who is reluctant to give up his land.
The Reverend Mother thinks Sister Bertrille is too spirited for San Tanco, and considers having her transferred to Rome. The other nuns mistakenly think Bertrille is dying after coming in contact with a hibiscus flower, only to learn that she is actually being forced to leave the convent. In the end, the Reverend Mother allows her to stay because of all the support she receives from the local community.
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After she is stricken with an ear infection, Sister Bertrille is too dizzy and disoriented to fly. Unfortunately, this leads to confusion with church psychologist Father Lundigan, who thinks the nuns are all suffering from a mental illness.
Sister Ana is the Reverend Mother's regular secretary. When she is out sick in season one, a con artist named Bobbye Starr -- girlfriend of mobster Al Caine -- temporarily takes over the job.
To raise money for the convent, the sisters develop a concoction called the Nectar of San Tanco -- which is really juice made from sea grapes. As they put the product out for sale, it ferments a few times, turning from grape juice to wine and then to vinegar. Eventually, the sisters come out of the deal twenty-five cents in the red.
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After she learns that the citizens of two villages have been feuding over which village is the real Santa Thomasina, Sister Bertrille threatens to split the statue of the matron saint in half if they can't settle their differences. The two towns agree to leave the statue at a fork in the road between the two villages and use the names East and West Santa Thomasina to resolve their feud.
When her elaborate cornette gets wet or loses its starched finish, the nun is stuck with her feet firmly on the ground.
When they are named as beneficiaries, the convent receives the contract of a boxer named Buffalo Buzzsaw -- real name Mike. Mike really, really wants to stay out of the ring, and eventually ends up with a job cooking in Carlos' restaurant.
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Sister Bertrille finds herself stranded on a desert island after crash landing in a storm. The bad news is that her cornette gets wet and torn, so she can't take off. At least she's not alone, though, after discovering that Carlos is also shipwrecked on the island -- along with his angry date April.
Sister Bertrille pens a tune for Sonny and the Sundowners, who turn it into a trippy recording perfect for fans of psychedelic '60s music. The royalties from the song will help the convent carry out their mission.
Gaspar Fomento serves as Police Captain on the show. He makes his first appearance early in season two. In his first interaction with the convent, he accuses the sisters of running a gambling ring after he loses money at their fundraising bazaar.
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When Sister Bertrille is terrified of the dentist, she gets hypnotized to ease her fears. Unfortunately, the hypnosis also leads her and the Reverend Mother to switch places every time they hear the word "red." To make things worse, this all happens just as church psychologist Father Lundigan stops by the convent.
Poor Sister Sixto is from Puerto Rico, and speaks pretty good English -- but tends to get terribly confused by certain terms -- confusing branded with brandied, for instance.
Sister Sixto is known for her amazing bread-making skills. When the nuns decide to turn her talent into a business, they are dismayed to find that mass production changes the entire appeal of the bread, stopping their business before it even gets off the ground.
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The nuns are shocked to learn that the Mother General used to be silent film star Gloria Davenport. They are worried she will be furious when they arrange to screen one of her old films to raise money for the convent.
After she receives a traffic ticket she is unable to pay, Sister Bertrille lands in jail in season three. While there, she ends up solving a robbery when her cellmate confesses the details of the crime to her.
Sister Bertrille comes from a long line of doctors. In fact, her physician sister Jennifer Ethrington came to visit San Tanco a few times throughout the series.
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Sister Bertrille hopes to earn a new washing machine for the convent by appearing in a commercial for Delight detergent. By the time the Reverend Mother approves the deal, all of the nuns are hopping on the commercial bandwagon -- because they need a new dryer for the convent too.
In the final episode of the series, Thomas Martinez mistakes the flying Sister Bertrille for a bird -- a sure sign that his death is near. He begins planning his own funeral until Bertrille reveals her secret ability, leading Martinez to get married to his sweetheart Luisa instead.
Sister Bertrille is hoping to go on a trip to Chicago, but the Reverend Mother worries that the nun will blow away in such a windy city. Bertrille tries to gain five pounds to keep her feet on the ground, and when that doesn't work, she wears lead shoes to avoid flying.
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Field was reluctant to take the role as Sister Bertrille, and only agreed to take the part after her stepfather reminded her that leading roles on TV shows were hard to get, and she might never get another offer.
It's bad enough that producers had to deal with a pregnant nun -- much less one who could fly! Field got married in 1968 and found herself pregnant by season three of the show. Producers used clever disguises and long shots to hide her baby bump and film stunt doubles flying so Field could stay safely on the ground.
"The Flying Nun" ran for 82 episodes over three seasons, from 1967 to 1970. Sally Field starred in "Gidget" before donning her famous cornette. After "The Flying Nun," Field moved on to star in "The Girl with Something Extra," about a woman with ESP.
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