You know the drill. You go on vacation or take a little time off from the routine. And, by now, most of you know how I feel about high adventure on these vacations. I don’t want any part of it. The diving out of planes, climbing rock faces, or the hang gliding. But taking a boat ride, in most cases, seems safe enough.
Yet, that was not the case for seven people, on this very date, 56 years ago. Not at all. They chartered a little boat, probably for fishing, or whale watching or something. And midway into the excursion, the weather started getting rough. It wasn’t a very big boat, so it was getting tossed around pretty good. There were two crewmen, and they were able to keep it afloat. But, the hull was crushed when the ran into a large reef rock. The boat landed ashore on an unknown island.
They were all okay, guests and crew — but stranded. There was Gilligan, the Skipper, too. The millionaire and his wife. The movie star. The professor. And Mary Ann.
Yes, good old Gilligan’s Island. The American sitcom, which aired on September 26, 1964. The concept, the show, was created and produced by Sherwood Schwartz. I always liked his name, because as kids, we went to Sherwood Forest swimming pool. Somehow, that made me feel I had some ownership in the show.
Anyway, it wouldn’t have been what it was without that cast. Bob Denver played the perfect goofball, Gilligan. And of course, good-natured, but stern, was the Skipper, played by Alan Hale, Jr. These two were the classic Laurel and Hardy reboot, I think. The straight-man big fellow, and the skinny numbskull. The millionaires were Jim Backus and Natalie Schafer. I can’t imagine anyone doing it better. Tina Louise filled the role of the movie star. She wasn’t quite the dumb blonde but close enough with the fire-red hair. My favorite character was the professor, Russell Johnson. Whenever my sister and I would play Gilligan’s Island, we would fight over who would be the professor. I always ended up being the Skipper, as it went. Finally, there was Mary Ann, played by Dawn Wells.
I loved the show. The gags remained the same, week after week, but they made me happy. The castaways were always fashioning a wide array of everyday objects from bamboo and coconut shells. There were simple things, like cooking utensils, and pots, and pans. But sometimes, they would make elaborate items, like the professor’s chemistry lab equipment and a lie detector.
Some weeks, there would be visitors on the uncharted island. I would always get my hopes up for a rescue. But all of those people, who were always dropping by that island out there in the Pacific, always managed to leave the island without helping the castaways. The old high and dry.
But my favorite thing was when something strange would wash up on shore. Once there was an old World War II naval mine. Another time a robot. There were explosives and even a jet pack. Most episodes had Gilligan failing, and somehow crashing into the lagoon. Oh, the high drama.
It aired for three seasons on the CBS network from September 26, 1964, to April 17, 1967. Gilligan’s Island ran for 98 episodes. The entire first season was filmed in black and white. The second and third seasons were filmed in color. I’m not sure I ever saw them, but there were three television movie sequels.
It seems like the show grew in popularity once it hit syndication.
More than anything, it was good-natured, kindhearted, and well-meaning.
And here’s the thing. I miss some things about those earlier times. I miss the wholesome, innocent, altruistic premise of Gilligan’s Island, and more than that, I miss that people had the ability to enjoy watching.
I miss the world where, for the most part, we used to be level-headed and got along. I miss our country that was once filled with good manners and civility. I miss the time when our leaders did not use hate-speech and try to pit us against one another.
But it appears that we are shipwrecked, and the big gaping hole in the hull cannot readily be fixed. I am in great hopes of an epic rescue.
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The greatness of America lies not in being more enlightened than any other nation, but rather in her ability to repair her faults.
— Alexis de Tocqueville
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The road to ruin is always in good repair, and the travelers pay the expense of it.
— Josh Billings
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If somebody dumps something noxious in my back yard, the dumper is the last one I would call on to repair the damage.
— Sylvia Earle
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