Now You See Him, Now You Don't is a 1972 American science fiction comedy film starring Kurt Russell as a chemistry student who accidentally discovers the secret to invisibility. It is the second film in Dexter Riley series.
Now You See Him, Now You Don't was the first Disney film to be shown on television in a two-hour time slot, in 1975. Previous television showings of Disney films had either shown them edited or split into two one-hour time slots.
Plot
At Medfield College, science buff Dexter Riley and his friends, including Richard Schuyler and Debbie Dawson, eavesdrop via a hidden walkie-talkie on a board meeting led by Dean Eugene Higgins, discussing the small college's continuing precarious finances. Later that afternoon, Professor Lufkin shows Higgins around the science laboratory where Dexter is working on an experiment with invisibility and another student, Druffle, explores the flight of bumblebees. That night, during a powerful thunderstorm, the laboratory is struck by lightning, resulting in the destruction of Dexter’s work. The next day, as Dexter examines his burnt equipment with dismay, Higgins meets with A.J. Arno, a recently released prisoner, who had also purchased Medfield's mortgage. When Dexter accidentally drops one half of his glasses into a container of his experimental formula, it appears as if the substance destroys them, but upon closer examination, Dexter realizes the frames are merely partially invisible. After several tests, Dexter places his fingers in the liquid and they disappear. Schuyler and Debbie arrive and are horrified to see Dexter with a partial hand, but Dexter insists Schuyler test the substance as well - admitting only afterward that he does not yet have an antidote and it adheres firmly to all surfaces tested - but just as quickly learn that it is water-soluble and rinses away cleanly.
Just then, Higgins brings Arno to visit the laboratory, stunning the students, as only two years earlier, Dexter was instrumental in exposing Arno's crooked gambling scheme. Dexter and the others notice that Arno is more concerned with the campus architecture than Higgins' speech. Curious about Arno's behavior, Dexter convinces Schuyler to use the invisibility formula to sneak into Arno's office that night. Despite several mishaps, the boys get inside Arno's office where Dexter finds a letter detailing that gambling is legal on the Medfield College lands due to a 1912 statute - and Schuyler finds a model of the college renovated into a gambling town.
The next day Dexter shows the photos and papers to Lufkin and Higgins. Convinced that Druffle's bumblebee study would draw attention and investments to Medfield, Higgins reacts angrily when Dexter assures him that his invisibility formula could win the top prize money in the upcoming Forsythe science contest. Not having admitted to anyone that Medfield has been dropped from the contest for being too insignificant, Higgins contacts the contest's sponsor, millionaire Timothy Forsythe, and agrees to meet over a game of golf, despite his inability to play. Upon learning of Higgins' plan and suspecting it must be connected with raising money for the college, Dexter urges Schuyler to volunteer to serve as Higgins' caddy while, hidden by the invisibility formula, he will take control of Higgins' golf ball. At the golf club, Forsythe and the state university dean, Collingsgood, are amazed by Higgins' quirky golfing abilities, which include numerous hole-in-one-shots, as is Arno who is also at the club.
After the game, Forsythe agrees to reinstate Medfield into the competition. Meanwhile, Arno accidentally sees Dexter becoming visible in the club showers and grows suspicious. When the local television news covers Higgins' extraordinary golf game, he is invited to join an exclusive tournament in nearby Ocean City. Convinced that he will win enough money to pay the college's mortgage, Higgins brashly accepts and that afternoon departs with Schuyler. Learning of the tournament too late, Dexter misses the plane and is forced to watch the competition on television where Higgins' game against two professionals, Billy Casper and Dave Hill is a disaster. Arno and his henchmen also watch the tournament and ponder Higgins' odd inconsistency. Upon returning to the college, Higgins tells Lufkin that Druffle's bumblebee experiment is the school's last chance. Both men are stunned when Druffle appears swathed in bandages after being attacked by the bumblebees, to which he is allergic. Hoping to assuage the crestfallen Higgins, Lufkin suggests that they give Dexter's unproven formula a chance and the dean reluctantly agrees.