The premise of Sherwood Schwartz’s fashionable 1964 sitcom “Gilligan’s Island” is handily defined in its theme tune: 5 passengers test right into a three-hour boat tour, run by the skipper and first mate of a tiny vacationer boat known as the S.S. Minnow. The ship hits some unhealthy climate and is thrown miles off beam, touchdown on an uncharted desert isle. The seven vacationers change into seven stranded castaways. No telephones, no lights, no motorcars, not a single luxurious. Like “Robinson Crusoe,” it is as primitive as may be. The septet should be taught to reside collectively, normally to comedic impact.
Gilligan (Bob Denver) was the above-mentioned first mate, and his harmless cluelessness and tendency to bumble typically thwarted the castaways’ capability to flee. He shared the island together with his Skipper (Alan Hale), a professor (Russell Johnson), a pair of married millionaires (Natalie Schafer and Jim Backus), a farmer (Daybreak Wells), and a display actress (Tina Louise). In a refreshingly democratic twist, the castaways all appear to get alongside effectively, and their miniature neighborhood thrives; few “Gilligan’s Island” tales heart on intense interpersonal battle.
Schwartz has mentioned in interviews that the germ for “Gilligan’s Island” was merely placing seven disparate characters in a state of affairs the place they have been compelled to work together. Schwartz initially thought that an workplace constructing could be place for that, however he did not like the thought of a office drama, because the characters could be allowed to go dwelling on the finish of the day. On “Gilligan’s Island,” they have been compelled to remain collectively 24/7.
“Gilligan’s Island” was massively fashionable on the time, and, because of superior syndication offers, stayed in reruns for actually a long time thereafter. “Gilligan’s Island” is a part of American tradition now. Naturally, different showrunners and writers have thought to emulate the collection in a method or one other, and lots of of “Gilligan’s” kids may be now be loved.
Listed here are a number of reveals (and one film) like “Gilligan’s Island.”
Misplaced (2004 – 2010)
Maybe the obvious parallel to Schwartz’s present is J.J. Abrams’, Damon Lindelof’s, and Jeffrey Lieber’s ultra-popular thriller collection “Misplaced.” “Misplaced” additionally takes place on an uncharted desert isle, this time following aircraft crash survivors. Not like “Gilligan’s Island,” “Misplaced” delves deeply into every character’s backstory, and explains why they have been on that ill-fated flight to start with. However like “Gilligan’s Island,” the island itself appears to be a magnet for eerie and unexplained phenomenon. “Misplaced” includes a polar bear and a mysterious smoke monster. “Gilligan’s Island” will get visits from war-ready gorillas, robots, and the Harlem Globetrotters. Additionally not like “Gilligan’s Island,” the island on “Misplaced” has a mysterious … factor … within the floor, and it appears to be warping the material of actuality. “Gilligan’s Island,” in the meantime, passed off in a cartoonish world the place actuality was simply type of naturally warped.
“Misplaced” is way much less democratic than “Gilligan’s Island” as effectively. A number of the characters on “Misplaced” collaborate to outlive, however ersatz factions start to type, and sure characters start to type their very own schemes and objectives with out telling any of the others. “Misplaced” has protagonists and antagonists. “Gilligan’s Island” has solely associates.
“Misplaced” wasn’t only a massive hit, however popularized a sure type of “thriller field” storytelling that bled extensively all through all pop TV of the period. Viewers have been inspired to maintain watching, because the central mysteries of the present would not be defined till a lot later. On “Gilligan’s Island,” we did not want the mysteries. We may simply settle for that everybody introduced a number of trunks of garments on a three-hour tour.
Dusty’s Path (1973 – 1974)
A decade after “Gilligan’s Island,” Sherwood Schwartz tried to recreate his present’s success by primarily repeating the same premise in a brand new style. “Dusty’s Path” additionally starred Bob Denver and a equally bumbling character, and Forrest Tucker performed his very Skipper-like captain. There was additionally an mental (Bud Cort), a glamorous dancehall woman (Jeannine Riley), a farmer (Lori Saunders), and a pair of married millionaires (Lynn Wooden and Ivor Francis). Solely this time, as a substitute of being misplaced on a desert island, the septet could be misplaced on the American frontier within the Eighties.
The S.S. Minnow was now a stagecoach on its strategy to California, however it will change into separated, and the primary characters would spend the collection wandering across the deserts of the Previous West, unable to get again on monitor. Provided that it is easy to navigate by the solar and the celebs, this premise appeared much less believable. “Dusty’s Path,” in its setup, was extra like “Wagon Prepare” than “Gilligan’s Island.”
When it comes to its characters, although, it was an identical. Denver’s Dusty was virtually precisely the identical as his Gilligan, and the “Island” character dynamic was the identical, even with a brand new forged. If one each needed to see what “Gilligan’s Island” would seem like as a Western, “Dusty’s Path” stays prepared for discovery.
Solid Away (2000)
This can be an apparent selection, however it’s apt. “Gilligan’s Island” is about seven stranded castaways on a tropical island paradise, whereas Robert Zemeckis’ survival drama “Solid Away” is about just one. Tom Hanks performs a FedEx supply man named Chuck Noland whose aircraft crashes into the ocean, and who washes up on the wanting an uncharted desert isle. The movie particulars, step-by-step, what Chuck does to outlive. He finds coconuts to eat, teaches himself learn how to make hearth, and learns to spear crabs and fish. He finds a strategy to safe water and make rope. Chuck turns from a snug city-dweller into an island denizen. Like on “Gilligan’s Island,” he additionally makes use of random objects that wash up on shore; he constructs an axe out of a pair of ice skates, for example.
There are not any different individuals on the island with Chuck, so he creates a companion within the type of a painted volleyball he names Wilson. Wilson provides Chuck one thing to speak to and to retain his sanity.
“Solid Away” is the survival drama that “Gilligan’s Island” intentionally eschewed. Meals and water got here simply to the individuals on Gilligan’s Island, and their garments have been all the time clear. Chuck, in the meantime, did not have such magic to help him. In a approach, “Solid Away” and “Gilligan’s Island” are two sides of the identical coin. One posits that tenacity is required to outlive in isolation, whereas the opposite posits that consolation may be had in teams.
Star Trek: Voyager (1995 – 2001)
The “Star Trek” model of “Gilligan’s Island” got here in 1995 with the discharge of “Star Trek: Voyager,” a collection in regards to the title ship turning into misplaced in deep, deep house, 75 years journey from Earth. “Voyager” dealt a bit bit with the shortage {that a} starship would possibly expertise a few years from the closest ally or dependable supply of restore, however largely explored how the facility dynamic aboard a hermetically sealed, remoted starship would possibly evolve as time passes.
The denizens of “Gilligan’s Island” got here collectively and fashioned a democratic dynamic the place everybody thrived. “Voyager” noticed the title starship taking up a number of resistance fighters from a bunch known as the Maquis and assimilated them virtually instantly. As time handed, the ship’s captain (Kate Mulgrew) turned more and more authoritarian, affecting a “what I say, goes” angle.
The usS. Voyager additionally had a number of character parallels to “Gilligan’s Island.” The bumbling Gilligan character turned the jolly Talaxian Neelix (Ethan Phillips), the mental professor turned the strict Vulcan Tuvok (Tim Russ), and the flashy, “glam” character was gender-flipped to be the hotshot pilot Tom Paris (Robert Duncan McNeill). The harmless farm woman turned the naive Harry Kim (Garrett Wang), in addition to the light ethical character Kes (Jennifer Lien). The Skipper (Mulgrew) by no means hit individuals along with her hat, fortunately. As a result of “Star Trek” takes place in a post-capitalist world, there have been no married millionaires.
Survivor (2000 – current)
CBS debuted Charlie Parsons’ actuality competitors collection “Survivor” in 2000 and, applicable to its title, it has remained on the air ever since, spawning 682 episodes over the course of 47 distinctive seasons. “Survivor” was the American model of a Swedish competitors present known as “Expedition Robinson,” created by Parsons in 1997. Each “Survivors” are primarily the sport present model of “Gilligan’s Island.” Contestants, known as castaways, are cut up into two groups, or “tribes,” and despatched to a desert island the place they compete in desert island-themed survival challenges. They should reside on the island for 39 days, and contestants are often voted off the island by their teammates. The ultimate survivor wins a prize of $1 million.
“Survivor” has primarily served as a decades-long experiment to see if the egalitarian democracy of “Gilligan’s Island” would work in actual life (or as actual as competitors TV reveals enable). Would groups get alongside? And the way would the castaways really feel when one in all their very own begins letting down the entire crew? On “Survivor,” they don’t seem to be allowed to bolster their friends, as they’re compelled to vote somebody off. The makers of “Survivor” manufacture quite a lot of aggressive stress this manner.
The success of “Survivor” spawned innumerable knock-offs and imitators, till the whole development looped again round. In 2004, TBS launched “The Actual Gilligan’s Island,” which staged “Survivor”-like competitions, however with two groups of seven, every chosen as a result of they appeared just like the forged of Schwartz’s sitcom. The “Ginger” characters have been performed by real-life actresses, for example. The Millionaires have been precise millionaires. “The Actual Gilligan’s Island” solely lasted 10 episodes, nonetheless, canceled after two seasons.
