Fitzwilly is a 1967 film by Delbert Mann, based on Poyntz Tyler's novel, A Garden of Cucumbers, adapted for the screen by Isobel Lennart. Its title refers to the nickname of Claude Fitzwilliam, an unusually intelligent and highly educated mastermind of a butler played by Dick Van Dyke. Claude Fitzwilliam serves as butler to Miss Victoria Woodworth , an heiress whose tremendous wealth is a myth fostered by Fitzwilliam; her financier father actually left her less than $200. "Fitzwilly" has been leading the household staff on numerous raids and swindles — including the operation of a... fictional charity and thrift shop — to maintain "Miss Vicki" in the lifestyle to which she is accustomed. The staff's secret operations threaten to unravel when Miss Woodworth hires an assistant, Juliet Nowell , to assist with her creation of a dictionary that contains all possible phonetic misspellings of words. Juliet is surprised to learn from Miss Vicki that Fitzwilly graduated with honors from Williams College, and she opines that he should be doing something more "worthy" than being a butler, like joining the Peace Corps.
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| Release date: | 1967 |
| Directed by: | Delbert Mann |
| Runtime: | 102 Minutes |
| Producer: | Walter Mirisch |
| Editor: | Ralph E. Winters |
| Music by: | John Williams |
| Cinematography: | Joseph F. Biroc |
| Screenplay by: | Isobel Lennart |
| Genre: | Comedy |