National Lampoon's Animal House

Plot summary

Faber College, 1962. Vietnam and the Civil Rights Movement are but the faintest blips on the horizon. A 1950s mentality prevails on campus, typified by the Omegas—the "nice boy" fraternity. At the other end of Fraternity Row, both literally and figuratively, stands the Delta House, a repository for every campus misfit:

Related Topics:
1962 - Vietnam - Civil Rights Movement - 1950s - Fraternity

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• Eric "Otter" Stratton, the Playboy-style sex maniac (whose room is an uncannily pristine oasis within the sheer filth of the house);
• Donald "Boon" Schoenstein, Otter's best friend who is always deciding between his pals at the Delta House and his girlfriend, Katy;
• John "Bluto" Blutarsky, an abject, drunken degenerate;
• Robert Hoover, the affable, reasonably clean-cut president of the fraternity, who desperately struggles to maintain a façade of normalcy for the Dean;
• Daniel "D-Day" Simpson Day, a tough biker with a penchant for riding up the stairs;
• Stork, who was probably borderline autistic (during his first year, many thought Stork was brain damaged);
• and the two new pledges,
• Larry "Pinto" Kroger, a shy but normal fellow
• Kent "Flounder" Dorfman, a hopeless, fat, clumsy loser—a "total zero", even by Delta standards.

Dean Vernon Wormer, in cahoots with the Omegas, is constantly plotting to revoke the Deltas' charter and drive them off campus permanently. The main Omegas include:

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• Greg Marmalard, the president of Omega House who dates Mandy Pepperidge and suffers from impotence;
• Sergeant-at-Arms Doug Niedermeyer, who is the head of the ROTC and hates the Deltas with unbridled passion; and
• Chip Diller, the Omegas' newest pledge (played by Kevin Bacon in his on-screen debut).

Other characters of importance include:

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• Professor Dave Jennings, who is bored with his job as English teacher and smokes marijuana;
• Marion Wormer, the Dean's wife, who becomes the object of Otter's charms;
• Clorette DePasto, the mayor's underaged daughter, who (possibly) sleeps with Larry;
• Otis Day, a local singer who is a campus favorite;
• Mandy Pepperidge, who dates Greg but secretly loves Otter; and
• Babs Jansen, a proper Southern belle who is turned off by crude Deltas.