Gilligan's Island
Gilligan's Island was created and produced by Sherwood Schwartz. The
show aired for three seasons on the CBS network
from September 26, 1964, to April 17, 1967. The series followed the comic
adventures of seven castaways as they attempted to survive on an island on
which they had been shipwrecked. Most episodes revolved around the dissimilar
castaways' conflicts and their unsuccessful attempts, (for whose failure
Gilligan was frequently responsible), to escape their plight.
Gilligan's
Island ran for 98 episodes. Thirty-six
episodes of the first season were filmed in black and white and were later colorized for syndication. The show grew in popularity during syndication, especially in the 1970s and
1980s when many markets ran the show in the late afternoon.
Jerry Van Dyke was originally offered the role of Gilligan, but
he turned it down, believing that the show would never be successful. (He chose
instead to play the lead in My Mother the Car, which premiered the following year and
was canceled after one season). The producers thought that Bob Denver, the
actor who had played Maynard G. Krebs, the goofy but lovable beatnik in The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis turned
out to be a perfect choice.
An added note:
The
music and lyrics for the theme song, The Ballad of Gilligan’s Isle,
were written by Sherwood Schwartz and George Wyle. One version was used for the first season and another
for the second and third seasons. With the
growing popularity of characters Professor and Maryanne, their names were
inserted into the lyrics in the second season. The theme song
underwent this one major change because star Bob Denver asked studio executives
to add their names to the song. The studio at first refused. Then Denver
insisted that his name be taken out of the song if they didn't include
the others. The studio caved in, and "the Professor and Mary Ann"
were added.
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