Son of Flubber first bounced into movie theaters on this day in 1963, the high-flying sequel to 1961’s The Absent-Minded Professor. Based on the short story “A Situation of Gravity” by Samuel W. Taylor, the film follows the further adventures of Professor Ned Brainard (Fred MacMurray) of Medfield College and his flying rubber, “Flubber!” This time, the professor continues his experiments to learn what else can be derived from his versatile concoction and hopes to take the world by storm with his “dry rain,” which can control the weather, and Flubbergas, which his assistant has discovered. In Disney’s publicity for The Absent-Minded Professor, they gave away the formula for Flubber. “To one pound of salt water taffy add one heaping tablespoon polyurethane foam, one cake crumbled yeast. Mix until smooth, allow to rise. Then pour into saucepan over one cup cracked rice mixed with one cup of water. Add topping of molasses. Boil until it lifts lid and says ‘Qurlp.'” Remember, if it doesn’t say, “Qurlp,” you just haven’t gotten it right.
