Bye Bye Birdie (1963) on Netflix

A rock singer travels to a small Ohio town to make his "farewell" television performance and kiss his biggest fan before he is drafted.

Conrad Birdie is the biggest rock & roll star of the 60's ever to be drafted. Aspiring chemist and song writer Albert is convinced he can make his fortune and marry his girlfriend Rosie if he gets Conrad on the Ed Sullivan show to kiss a high school girl goodbye. Albert's mother will do anything to break him up with Rosie. Kim and Hugo, the high school steadies, live in Sweet Apple, Ohio where most of the action takes place.

—Lisa Grable <grable@unity.ncsu.edu>

Conrad Birdie, arguably the biggest rock and roll superstar in the world, has just been drafted, which brings his legion of teen-aged female fans marching in the streets in protest. One other person not happy about Birdie being drafted is struggling songwriter Albert F. Peterson, a mama's boy of a man who was finally going to hit the big time when one of his songs was to be featured in a Birdie movie. Rosie DeLeon, Albert's long suffering secretary and fiancée of six years, pitches an idea to Ed Sullivan: have Birdie appear on his television program, Toast of the Town (1948) kissing one of his fans as a symbolic goodbye to all his fans, while he sings a yet to be written song by Albert to be called "One Last Kiss". Sullivan buys the idea. Rosie is hoping that this move will bring financial security to Albert, who will then be able to support his mama, ex-vaudevillian Mae Peterson who wanted Albert to go into show business instead of his want to become a bio-chemist, and marry her (of course if Mama allows the marriage, she who doesn't even know they're engaged). The fan chosen is Kim McAfee of Sweet Apple, Ohio. Up until being chosen as the recipient of Birdie's kiss, Kim's sole focus in life was being pinned by her boyfriend, Hugo Peabody. Birdie's presence in Sweet Apple brings up many issues which may thwart Rosie and Albert's plans, including a jealous Hugo, an exasperated Harry McAfee (Kim's father), and a ballooning line-up on the show, all these problems which Rosie and Albert try to manage. The ultimate problem may be outside of Rosie and Albert's control, except for a little assistance of some bio-chemistry hopefully to solve the problem. Regardless, Rosie, in the end, may only be able to take so much of Albert siding with Mama instead of her.

—Huggo

None-too-successful songwriter Albert Peterson hatches a plot with his secretary - and long-suffering girlfriend - to get rock-and-roll phenomenon Conrad Birdie to sing one of his songs on the Ed Sullivan show. The pop star would then symbolically kiss goodbye to a young lady chosen at random from the country's womanhood, this being his last appearance before being drafted. Complicated to start with, things get more tricky as everyone including Albert's clinging mother descend on the small town where the chosen girl lives. Even Albert's chemical inventions come in useful.

—Jeremy Perkins {J-26}