Farewell, Little Buddy
Bob Denver died on Friday.Gilligan.
I was born in 1961, in the dark days before cable. We had three channels to watch, they all sucked, and I watched them anyway. We all did.
Because there wasn't this gigantic backlog of shows built up, there were only a few syndicated shows then, and "Gilligan's Island" was one of the biggest. It seemed like it played on every station from 3:30-5:00 every afternoon for my entire childhood. As soon as it stopped playing on one station, another one would immediately pick it up. I've probably seen every Gilligan's Island episode ever made. Twice.
Think about it. This show was originally on from 1964-1967, during one of the angriest and most difficult periods in the history of our country, and it was one of the most popular shows on television.
Here was the basic plot of every Gilligan's Island episode:
1. We're stuck on this island.
2. Hey! Something happened and we might get off this island!
3. It didn't work. We're still stuck on this island.
And they stretched this out for ninety-eight episodes. Incredible.
Somehow, over thirty years later, I still vividly remember some moments from the show.
1. Gilligan eating radioactive coconut cream pie until his stomach glowed.
2. The professor building a radio from god knows what and seawater.
3. Wrong Way Corrigan flying onto the island. He's then going to fly back to the mainland and get help, but--of course--he flies off in the wrong direction.
Here was my all-time favorite, though--Gilligan winning a series of worthless oil wells from Mr. Howell because of his putting ability (the putts themselves were very funny, rolling crookedly but unerringly into the "hole"). Then they hear news from the mainland saying that the oil wells are worth millions. Mr. Howell tricks Gilligan into giving them back, then they turn out to be worthless. Cue laugh track.
I think Ginger might have put the move on Gilligan because he was wealthy at some point, but I'm not sure.
Ironically, Bob Denver was much, much funnier as Maynard G. Krebs in "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis" than he was as Gilligan.
So long, Gilligan. Thanks for being in my afternoons.
<< Home