Namu, The Killer Whale

In the mid-1960s, a killer whale was confined at the Seattle Public Aquarium and its behavior helped to dispel several myths about the species. The whale was named Namu, and it inspired the making of this film. Lansing plays a marine biologist who is studying whales when a wounded one and his mate swim into a cove. The injured one dies, and Lansing strings netting across the mouth of the cove so that he can study the survivor. The whale proves to be friendly, but the locals want it destroyed. Whales feed on salmon, and since most of the nearby residents are salmon fishermen, they have little use for Namu. The conflict heats up until Lansing finally releases Namu, w...