Magic Town (1947) is a comedy film directed by William A. Wellman, starring James Stewart and Jane Wyman. It is one of the first films about the then-new science of public opinion polling. The movie was inspired by the Middletown studies. Lawrence 'Rip' Smith (played by James Stewart), disappointed with inaccuracies from polling results, searches for a community in the middle of the United States that can give perfect results when used for polling. When he finally finds a town where citizens' opinions perfectly mirror those of the American people as a whole, he sets up an undercover operation there. Over time, he gets involved with town inhabitants, and eventually the true nature of his operation is revealed. The town transforms almost overnight; citizens, aware of their special status, begin giving outlandish polling answers instead of the sensible ones they gave in the past. The town's reputation is ruined, together with Smith's plan. Smith however decides to save the town from itself. The film was a notorious box office flop at the time of its release.