Appearances

Title	Role	Year	Approx. Age
Flipper 1996	Bounty Fisherman #3	1996	49
Flipper - The Puppy and The Seal	Sandy Ricks	1966	19
Flipper and The Elephant	Sandy Ricks	1965	18
Flipper - Shark Hunt and Agent Bud	Sandy Ricks	1965	18
Flipper Season One - Disc 4	Sandy Ricks	1965	18
Island of the Lost	Stu	1965	18
Flipper - The White Dolphin and Flipper's Monster	Sandy Ricks	1964	17
Flipper Season One - Disc 1	Sandy Ricks	1964	17
Flipper Season One - Disc 2	Sandy Ricks	1964	17
Flipper Season One - Disc 3	Sandy Ricks	1964	17
Flipper / Flipper's New Adventure 1963 - 1964	Sandy Ricks	1963	16

The Sixties brought the world a lot of changes, but it also brought us a young actor who perfectly embodied the perennial concept of the All American Boy. Luke Halpin was born in Queens, New York in April of 1947. He came from a decidedly non-show biz family made up of the typical Mom, Dad, older brother and sister.

But in 1955, a music teacher who was not impressed with young Luke's musical abilities, suggested he try acting. And to help him along, he introduced him to an agent. Luke took to acting with suprising ease, and he was soon cast opposite Natalie Wood in the Studio One television production of Miracle at Potter?s Farm.

In the next few years Luke would appear in nearly every drama series on television, and also find time for stage roles in Annie Get Your Gun (1957), Peter Pan (1960) and Waiting For Godot (1961). But his biggest break was to come in 1963.

Producer Ivan Tors was casting for an adventure film called Flipper, and Luke went in to read for the part. Tors quickly knew he was looking at a very capable young actor, but could the kid swim? So it was off to the hotel pool where Luke stripped down to trunks and proved he was as adept in the water as on a stage.

So the role of "Sandy Ricks" now belonged to Luke, and he was soon flown to the Bahamas to train with the three dolphins who would play Flipper. It was love a first sight for this animal loving young actor and a very succesfull feature film was the result.

Ivan Tors knew a good thing when he saw it, just as NBC did. So a TV movie in 1964 followed called Flipper?s New Adventure. It too was a success, and NBC immediately gave the green light for Flipper as a full-on series.

Nominally, it was the dolphin who was the star of the show, but it was blond Luke Halpin who got the dozens of bags of fan mail each week. And why wouldn?t he? He was certainly the most "exposed", teenager on television. In each episode viewers were sure to be guaranteed that Luke would be wearing little more than his trademark cutoff jeans and golden tanned swimmer?s muscles. In fact, more than one fan magazines dubbed him a modern Adonis.

Eighty-eight episodes of Flipper aired over three seasons, and then it was over. By then Luke was serving part-time in the National Guard, but still managed a couple of film roles including If It?s Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium (1969) and Island of the Lost (1967) and Shock Waves (1977).

And like the great All American Boy he portrayed on TV, Luke managed to buy his parents a motel in Florida with his earnings from Flipper. And for himself, a hot little GTO and a nifty speed boat. So that he will always have a way to hang out with his beloved dolphin pals. And Luke?s love of Florida has continued as well. He still lives there, now working behind the camera as a boat pilot and underwater photographer on film crews.