Jonathan Livingston Seagull (film) Jonathan Livingston Seagull (film) Jonathan Livingston Seagull is a 1973 American drama film directed by Hall Bartlett, adapted from the novella of the same name by Richard Bach. The film tells the story of a young seabird who, after being cast out by his stern flock, goes on an odyssey to discover how to break the limits of his own flying speed. The film was produced by filming actual seagulls, then superimposing human dialogue over it. The film's voice actors included James Franciscus in the title role, and Philip Ahn as his mentor, Chang. Whereas the original novella was a
Jonathan Livingston Seagull you really want to do it well it takes a bit of practice, but it's a nice-looking thing, don't you think?" "It's, it's...beautiful, is what it is! But you haven't been around the Flock at all. Who are you, anyway?" "You can call me Jon." Jonathan Livingston Seagull is named after John H. Livingston, a Waco Aircraft Company test pilot who died of a heart attack at 76 just after test flying an acrobatic home-built Pitts Special. The book was rejected by several publishers before coming to the attention of Eleanor Friede at Macmillan in 1969. She convinced Macmillan to