Johnny Lingo

Johnny Lingo is a 1969 short film produced by Brigham Young University.[1] The film and a later remake are based on a short story by Patricia McGerr in Woman's Day.[2] Johnny Lingo is 26 minutes in length and does not specifically mention The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) outside of the credits. The film illuminates many LDS teachings, such as kindness toward others and believing in one's inherent self-worth.[1]

Johnny Lingo
Directed byWetzel Whitaker
Produced byWetzel Whitaker
Written byOrma W. Wallengren
Patricia McGerr
StarringMaKee K. Blaisdell
Naomi Kahoilua
Francis L. Urry
CinematographyRobert Stum
Edited byFrank S. Wise
Distributed byThe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Release date
  • 1969 (1969)
Running time
26 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Plot

In the story, Johnny Lingo (played by MaKee K. Blaisdell) is a shrewd, honest, and well-liked Polynesian trader. Johnny has come home to bargain for a wife. Mahana (played by Naomi Kahoilua), the young woman he desires, is considered by her neighbors and even her father, Moki (played by Joseph Ah Quin), to be of little value— sullen, ugly, and undesirable. Blaming himself for not paying enough cows for Mahana's mother, her father treats her unkindly, such as yelling, "Mahana, you ugly!"[3] As the bargaining is about to begin, women of the island brag about how many cows their husbands had given for each of them, and comment that Mahana's father will be lucky to see one cow as Lingo's offer.

The bargaining begins and— as the counselor of Moki, Me Hai, advises — He asks Johnny Lingo for three cows. The Islanders laugh derisively, then wait for Lingo to make his counter-offer, certain that he will make a devastating bargain.

Johnny, pondering on the offer, pronounces that "three cows are many... But not enough for Mahana!" He then offers the unheard-of price of eight cows for her hand in marriage.[1] After the bargaining, Johnny visits Mr. Harris, an American shopkeeper on the island, to offer him a valuable shell in exchange for a mirror. In their conversation, Mr. Harris is convinced that Johnny only paid so much to look good and be remembered. The next day, Moki and Me Hai, while waiting for Johnny to deliver the cows, convince themselves that Johnny reconsidered his deal and would not show up. In the end, Johnny brings the cows and subsequently marries Mahana that night, enduring some mocking for paying so much for a seemingly undesirable wife, all while Moki revels in his newfound prosperity. Johnny and Mahana then leave the island for many months on their honeymoon, visiting many islands.

When they come back, Harris discovers, to his astonishment, that Mahana is a beautiful, happy woman. Even Mahana's father began accusing Johnny Lingo of cheating him by saying, "[Mahana] Is worth ten cows, if she's worth a hoof!" Mr. Harris realized that Johnny paid eight cows for Mahana not to look good, but to show her she was worth more than she ever knew. Johnny, her proud husband, had proved to her that her true worth had nothing to do with what others saw, but only who she truly was.

He had made the best bargain of all—a few cows for a life with the woman that he loved.

Cast

Influence and remake

The film is licensed by Covenant Communications, and is sold on DVD by Brigham Young University's Creative Works Office.[4]

The 1993 book Hana, the No-Cow Wife continues the story and shows its effect on another, somewhat prideful young woman.[5]

In the summer of 2001, the Salt Lake Acting Company staged a live parody performance of Johnny Lingo as that year's episode of their annual theatrical spoof series Saturday's Voyeur. The act was titled Mahana, You Ugly.

A 2003 remake of this film called The Legend of Johnny Lingo was directed by Steven Ramirez and financed by the Utah-based Tahitian Noni International.[6]

Criticism

Johnny Lingo has strong elements of sexism and colonialism. The film has been criticized for "[hinging] on the idea that a woman’s self-esteem is based on the price she commands in a financial transaction between men, not on any internal sense of who she is." [7] Rather than being recognized as “industrious”, or any other personal characteristic, Lingo notes, after he has paid eight cows for Mahana, "she now knows, she is worth more than any other woman on the island". [8] Writer Holly Welker comments further, “[the movie] does not view the buying and selling of women as property as essentially or inherently wrong.” [9]

References
  1. Means, Sean P. "LDS classic "Johnny Lingo" now on YouTube", The Salt Lake Tribune, 10 June 2011. Retrieved on 14 March 2020.
  2. Heffley, Lynne. "Polynesian fairy tale", Los Angeles Times, 15 July 2004. Retrieved on 14 March 2020.
  3. Eddington, Mark. "Mormon lore is a book to sit down with", The Salt Lake Tribune, 27 December 2005. Retrieved on 14 March 2020.
  4. "LDS Film Classics: Johnny Lingo". BYU Creative Works Catalog. Brigham Young University. 2007. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  5. Sorensen, Marilou. "`HANA' AND `PUNGA' ENTERTAIN AND TEACH LESSONS", Deseret News, 30 November 1993. Retrieved on 14 March 2020.
  6. Clark, Cody. "Audiences who know the Lingo will delight in new eight-cow DVD", Provo Herald, 15 May 2004. Retrieved on 14 March 2020.
  7. ""A Price Far Above Rubies vs. Eight Cows: What's a Virtuous Woman Worth?"". Sunstone 2009. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  8. ""LDS classic 'Johnny Lingo' now on YouTube"". Salt Lake Tribune 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  9. ""A Price Far Above Rubies vs. Eight Cows: What's a Virtuous Woman Worth?"" (PDF). Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, Spring 2010. Retrieved 11 February 2019.

Further reading
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