Inside Gilligan's Island

From Creation to Syndication

By: Sherwood Schwartz

Narrated by: Mike Hennessy

Length: 9 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

While every new TV series has to face some problems, no show had to overcome greater obstacles than Gilligan's Island. In spite of that, no series has achieved greater success, as measured by the fact that Gilligan's Island has given rise to three TV movies, two animated series, and is the most rerun program in the entire history of television.

Now, Sherwood Schwartz, creator, writer, and producer of Gilligan's Island, tells the life story of the show: from the labor pains of scripting, casting, and production to its golden years of afternoon reruns. Fascinating history that could be known only by the show's creator is enhanced by wonderful photos, sketches, and other illustrations from the author's personal collection, as well as the guest forewords by all seven "Castaways." An appendix lists plots, writers and directors for every episode. All this behind-the-scenes information makes the book a special treat, not only for fans, but for anyone interested in an inside look at the television industry.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©1988, 2011 McFarland (P)2024 McFarland

Inside Gilligans Island

I never realized how much it took to get a TV show on the air. But I'm so glad he persevered with Gilligans Island. This used to be one of my all-time favorite shows when I was a kid and as an adult today, it is still one of my favorites. You couldn't help but laugh at all of the antics
Gillian got into. And in today's world, we definitely need more TV shows like this. I'm probably showing my age, but less sex and more wholesome, family comedies is what we need. 

Very Interesting read

This puts a whole new perspective on the Gilligans Island show. We watched the show growing up and all I can say is WOW!! The extent of work that went into this show, very impressive. Loved the story.

25th chapter

Background noises and bodily functions kept me losing attention.
The story, however, was solid, and well written.
There were many things I did not know, especially behind the scenes.

A view behind the making of a childhood favorite

I have some very fond memories of growing up watching reruns of Gilligan’s Island, so I was very much interested in how it was created … presuming that a peak at the personalities and stars that were involved. This was not that book. This book was primarily about the challenges encountered in the production and the struggles to keep it going. In others words … it was all about the suits. Over the years, I have seen many of my favorite TV shows disappear, sometime even at the height of their popularity, so while the book was not as expected, it was very interesting none the less … and I was completely surprised at difficult it all had turned out to be … from getting the initial idea accepted (with the benefit of hindsight it seems like the execs should have known it was be a hit) to fending off competing visions that would have completely destroyed the concept. I was particularly interested in how the same footage for the pilot was edited/recut (rather surreptitiously) to make a completely different show that allowed the original concept to prove itself (something about camels being designed by committee). So over all, I thought it was a good book, if a tad longer than it needed to be … and it scores high for gaining extra nostalgia points (s +1 over all).

I was given this free advance review/listener copy (ARC) audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

#InsideGilligansIsland #FreeAudiobkFacebkGrp

The complete Gilligan's Island story

Sherwood Schwartz told us many entertaining tales during "Gilligan's Island" run on network television, but the stories behind the scenes are quite remarkable. "Inside Gilligan's Island" documents what really goes on in Hollywood, as he describes the many obstacles he would overcome to land the show on CBS's fall schedule in 1964. The network initially rejected "Gilligan," the executives didn't understand the characters, but thanks to Schwartz, the S. S. Minnow would finally set sail.

One idea pitched to rework the show was to call it "Gilligan's Travels," as passengers would sail the S. S. Minnow, but return to the mainland in each episode. The higher ups couldn't understand how the characters could remain shipwrecked on a deserted island in the Pacific. Finally, Schwartz developed the show's iconic theme song, which explained how the castaways ended up on Gilligan's Island.

Schwartz reveals how he came up the concept of the show, and developed the beloved characters that told each hilarious tale. Bob Denver, who played Gilligan, wasn't even the first choice for the role. Schwartz wanted Dick Van Dyke's brother, Jerry, who ultimately passed to star in a series that never came to be. The Skipper was apparently the hardest character to cast, and yet, Alan Hale became The Skipper on and off the set.

From the pages of Ripley's Believe it or Not, and idea was pitched to Schwartz to have Gilligan discover a dinosaur on his island. Yet another wacky idea would have the Professor secretly be a bank robber, who would sabotage each rescue attempt to allude authorities. Yes, this was the environment that somehow wouldn't detour a resilient and determined Schwartz, who years later created another TV juggernaut, The Brady Bunch.

Schwartz also reveals the answers every fan of Gilligan's Island wants to know. Which star received the most fan mail? Why didn't Tina Louise return for the Rescue movie? What was Mrs. Howell's maiden name? Additionally, the author reveals that people wrote the Coast Guard encouraging them to rescue the cast of the show. I highly recommend this captivating audiobook!

Interesting insider view

Although probably a little dated, the book was entertaining and gave me some insight into the TV business of the 1960s-80s. It was also a trip down memory lane. The narration was excellent! I received a free audiobook code for my honest review.

Half good

The first half of the book is interesting and about how Gillian’s Island the whole second half was just space filler