Character Relationship Map: Birds Do It

Characters

• Melvin Byrd (played by Soupy Sales) — protagonist

  Melvin Byrd is a janitor at a NASA laboratory whose exceptional cleaning skills lead Professor Wald to employ him, as Wald believes dust has caused failures in the American space program. After hiding...

• Lieutenant Porter (played by Tab Hunter) — supporting

  Lieutenant Porter is the inept security officer at the NASA laboratory headed by General Smithburn. He is captured by an enemy organization seeking to kill Melvin Byrd, and an operative impersonates h...

• Professor Wald (played by Arthur O'Connell) — supporting

  Professor Wald is the head scientist at the NASA laboratory and the creator of a secret ionization project. He employs Melvin Byrd for his exceptional janitorial skills, believing dust is responsible...

• General Smithburn (played by Edward Andrews) — supporting

  General Smithburn heads the NASA laboratory where Melvin Byrd works and where Professor Wald conducts his secret ionization research. He leads a congressional delegation visiting the facility after Eu...

• Congresswoman Clanger (played by Doris Dowling) — supporting

  Congresswoman Clanger is a member of the congressional delegation visiting the NASA laboratory with General Smithburn. After Melvin Byrd is ionized, she is among those who pursue him with romantic att...

• Claudine Wald (played by Beverly Adams) — supporting

  Claudine Wald is Professor Wald's daughter and is present in the story around the laboratory's ionization project. After Melvin Byrd is accidentally ionized, she is among those drawn to him, as the pr...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Claudine Wald → Melvin Byrd (Romantic Pursuer) — Claudine's attraction to Byrd adds to the complications following his transformation.

  The plot says that Claudine is among those drawn to Byrd after the ionization makes him exceptionally attractive.

• Congresswoman Clanger → Melvin Byrd (Romantic Pursuer) — Clanger's romantic attention becomes one of the complications Byrd faces after the ionization makes him exceptionally attractive.

  After Byrd is ionized, the plot says that a Congresswoman is among those pursuing him with romantic attention; the character information identifies Co...

• General Smithburn → Lieutenant Porter (Professional Commanding Officer And Security Officer) — Porter serves as security officer at the laboratory headed by Smithburn; Porter is captured during the plot against Byrd.

  Smithburn heads the NASA laboratory, and Porter is its security officer.

• Professor Wald → Claudine Wald (Family Father And Daughter) — Claudine is Wald's daughter and becomes involved in the events surrounding Byrd after his accidental ionization.

  The character information identifies Claudine Wald as Professor Wald's daughter.

• Professor Wald → Melvin Byrd (Professional Employer And Employee) — Wald hires Byrd to keep the laboratory clean, connecting Byrd's janitorial work to Wald's concerns about the space program.

  Professor Wald employs Byrd because of his excellent janitorial skills and believes dust caused failures in the American space program.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Lieutenant Porter → Melvin Byrd (Narrative Compromised Protector) — Porter's capture and impersonation compromise the laboratory's security and facilitate the threat against Byrd.

  Porter is the laboratory's inept security officer, and the organization targeting Byrd captures him so an operative can impersonate him in an attempt...

Story Analysis

A NASA janitor is drawn into an assassination plot and accidentally transformed by a secret ionization experiment.

Plot Progression

1. A Cleaner at the Center of Danger — An unknown organization repeatedly targets Byrd, while Wald hires him for his exceptional cleaning skills. Byrd's work reflects Wald's belief that dust has contributed to failures in the space program...
2. The Secret Ionization Project — Wald develops an ionization process intended to create anti-gravity, with exceptional attractiveness as a side effect. Meanwhile, the threat against Byrd reaches the laboratory's security officer, Por...
3. A Visit and an Accident — Smithburn brings a congressional delegation to the laboratory. Byrd hides in the ionization machine during the visit and is accidentally exposed to the process.
4. The Unsteady New Normal — After the ionization, Byrd finds he cannot stay on the ground for more than brief periods. His new attractiveness draws attention from Clanger and Claudine while the assassins remain a danger.