To clear up any confusion regarding the title, Napoleon is actually Johnnie Whitaker (Family Affair), and Samantha is Jodie Foster in the 1972 Disney production family adventure, Napoleon and Samantha.
Living with his grandfather, Napoleon somehow convinces the older man to adopt a lion from a circus clown. Major, the lion, isn't in the best of shape, so tending for him is quite a task. Napoleon befriends a young man, Danny, (Michael Douglas) who helps with Major, but then abruptly leaves to tend goats in the mountains. When the old man dies, the boy, trying to avoid being sent to an orphanage, runs away with Major, a rooster and Samantha.
Hoping to find Danny, the unlikely quartet encounters several dangers along the way, including river rapids, a cougar and a bear. They finally find Danny, only to become entangled in a case of mistaken identity. All ends well however, with the lion staying in the mountains with Danny.
