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Title: Inside Gilligan's Island : A Three-Hour Tour Through The Making Of A Television Classic by Sherwood Schwartz ISBN: 0-312-10482-0 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: 15 April, 1994 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $15.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.8 (5 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: True, "No man is an Island," but Donne forgot about Gilligan
Comment: Whatever you think of "Gilligan's Island" (a classic "idiot" sitcom comes to my mind) you have to appreciate that the show's creator Sherwood Schwartz is the one that wrote "Inside Gilligan's Island." The volume promotes itself as "A three-hour tour through the making of a television classic," and within these pages fans of the show will find out where the Howells got all those clothes, learn if Gilligan and the Skipper ever got hurt when the coconuts hit them on the head, discover what was "Lovey's" real name, and shudder to find out what kind of a pet the studio almost gave Gilligan. All of the cast members, even Tina Louise, make brief appearances in the book's Forewords, and the pages are filled with the rare publicity stills you would hope to find, including some nice color shots.
"Inside Gilligan's Island" is worth reading for students of television simply for the story of how Schwartz got the show on the air in the first place, which includes the "original" calypso version of the theme song ("Off Florida coast many hundred miles, Is tropical sea full of tropic isles...") and the "complementary" casting of Dawn Wells and Tina Louise (whatever disparaging comments you may rightful inflict upon this television show the Mary Ann or Ginger choice is now a time honored right of passage for adolescent males in this country). Actually, most of the book is devoted to the story of how "Gilligan's Island" got on the air. The show does not actually do so until chapter 22 of 35. Despite all the jokes about the show, it was a hit that managed to win its time period the first three years on the air despite being on three different nights and three different time periods. The final half-dozen chapters have to do with the assorted sequels that found the Castaways rescued, dealing with the Harlem Globetrotters, and other strange fates ("Gilligan's Island: The Musical").
The result will be something of a treat for fans of the series and contain enough stories about the machinations of Hollywood to be of benefit to others as well. The first Appendix provides rather detailed synopses of the 98 episodes of "Gilligan's Island," with Schwartz even providing themes for each episode so that the reader is aware there is more than comedy going on when a crate washes into the lagoon containing a lion ("Feed the Kitty"), but a life lesson ("You can never be sure you've taken the 'wild' out of wild animals"). A second Appendix provides synopses of the various movies and specials as well.
Rating: 3
Summary: Wrote the series great, wrote the book OK.
Comment: Inside Gilligan's Island is an interesting but not spectacular book on the creation of a television phenom. If you are a Gilligan fan it will likely be a must read. If you are not it will be a mixed bag for you.
Mr. Schwartz does a great job describing the battles to get the show made and gets the pages turning as we wonder if his series will ever be what he wants it to be.
Unfortunately as the book reaches its later chapters it is evident that he has run out of things to say. The last three chapters are a positive chore to read.
The epidsode guide is interesting and is many of the behind the scenes production stories, this likely differs greatly from the cast members stories which deal more with the actual production etc.
Throughout the book however it seems that Mr. Schwartz is preaching. Now when he put wanted to make a social point with the series he wrote it funny (such as using his own example the implicet respect for marriage see episode 68 Mr. & Mrs.) and taught the lession without giving a speech, we get the speech in the book and its just dulls you away.
I did like the book, I don't know if I'd like it enough to buy it again, but I like it enough to read it again.
Rating: 2
Summary: A MODEST MAN SHERWOOD IS NOT
Comment: I have always been a great fan of Gilligan's Island but this book by its creator leaves a lot to be desired. Mr. Schwartz obviously went through a lot getting the show on the air but his description of his efforts seems to be very self-centered and like one man's battle against all odds. Even if this was true, it might have been better if someone else had written it. The book was not about the show so much as it was about Sherwood Schwartz.
Mr. Schwartz also seems to blame others for the show's demise and failure to be revived in the late 1970s following the "Rescue From Gilligan's Island" movie. I agree that I thought the show died a pre-mature death. But the success of the "Rescue From Gilligan's Island" movie was probably more attributable to curiousity than to its entertainment value. The original movie was disappointing and subsequent sequels were dismal. He deserves credit for a fun and entertaining TV show but he also deserves criticism for less fun and less entertaining TV shows thereafter.
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Title:Gilligan's Island - The Complete First Season ASIN: B0000WN1WW Publisher: Warner Home Video Pub. Date: 03 February, 2004 List Price(USD): $39.98 Comparison N/A, buy it from Amazon for $29.99 |
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Title:Rescue From Gilligan's Island ASIN: B00005KHJF Publisher: Brentwood Communications Pub. Date: 03 July, 2001 List Price(USD): $4.99 Comparison N/A, buy it from Amazon for $4.99 |
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Title:Surviving Gilligan's Island ASIN: B00006FD92 Publisher: Lionsgate/Fox Pub. Date: 24 September, 2002 List Price(USD): $19.98 Comparison N/A, buy it from Amazon for $17.98 |
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Title: Here on Gilligan's Isle/the Professor's Behind-The-Scenes Guide to Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Gilligan's Island, Including a Complete E by Russell Johnson, Steve Cox, Professor, Skipper, Mary Ann, Movie Star, Millionaire, His Wife, Gilligan ISBN: 0060969938 Publisher: Harperperennial Library Pub. Date: August, 1993 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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Title: Dreaming of Jeannie : TV's Prime Time in a Bottle by Stephen Cox, Howard Frank ISBN: 0312204175 Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin Pub. Date: 18 March, 2000 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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