Original Mary Ann
Now, we all cannot stop raving about Dawn Wells as Mary Ann. However, she was not the initial pick for the celebrated role. Actually, if you remember the 1960’s sensation, Raquel Welch…yeah, that’s who they wanted for Mary Ann. Apparently, Raquel Welch thinks she saved her future career by not accepting the role on Gilligan’s Island. Turns out, most of the cast really were not able to land big parts once they became associated with their famous characters.
Original Mary Ann
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Maybe you didn’t catch this but Jim Backus played Thurston Howell III on the show, but that character was a small nod to another one he played. Gilligan’s Island producer, Sherwood Schwartz also had the show The Alan Young Show on which Jim Backus was playing Hubert Updyke III. So when Shwartz was pitching Gilligan’s Island, he said, “the island would be a social microcosm and a metaphorical shaming of world politics in the sense that when necessary for survival, yes we can all get along.”
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