'Gilligan's Island' Star Russell Johnson Dies of Kidney Failure

ABC.com ^ | January 16, 2014 | LESLEY MESSER

[Timber Rattler]

Russell Johnson, the actor best known for playing the Professor on "Gilligan's Island," has died.

ABC News confirmed with the actor's wife, Constance, that the 89-year-old TV star died early this morning of kidney failure.

"He died at home, peaceful, in his sleep at 5:21 am today," she said. "[He was] a very brave guy who knew what he wanted, and he wanted to be at home."

[Red Badger]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilligan%27s_Planet

[Red Badger]

Yes, and it wasn’t as funny as the re-cast TV shows.......

[GreenHornet]

All of their names were given in a radio report on the first episode.

The only character whose full name was never given on the show was Gilligan. Producer Sherwood Schwartz once said in an interview that, should there be a need for him to have a first name in one of the episodes, it would have been "Willie."

[GeronL]

Willie? seriously?

[knarf]

For me, the 60's kind'a melded with the 70's ..... y'know

/;^)

[Gen.Blather]

“ALL those 70’s shows were fun shows ... no one trying to make political statements, etc.”

They were all brilliantly written. Then, we had the writer’s strike which the writer’s guild “won.” They got huge increases for scripts and treatments. Nobody could afford them and we started getting “unscripted” reality shows. Nothing has been worth watching since. But the writer’s guild won, by knocking out all the competition...well, except the “unscripted” shows. (Which can’t be unscripted because you have to have something happening. But I imagine it’s like porn. “Okay, Joe, you and Alice have sex. Then do...”)

[22202NOVA]

“Was a vet who won a bronze star, if I recall, landing planes in the Pacific.”

Didn’t “win” a Bronze Star. “Earned” a Bronze Star.

[ZirconEncrustedTweezers]

Not really. The original Stepford Wives was a little before my time, and I’ve still never seen it.

[LS]

My bad.

[FredZarguna]

Sounds like the kind of man who deserves to live almost 90 years and then die peacefully in his sleep.

Ruhe in frieden.

[FredZarguna]

I thought Gilligan was his first name.

[SevenofNine]

I think only person still alive is Mary Ann and Ginger

[SevenofNine]

LMAO on Mystery science theatre 3000 reference ROFL

[greene66]

That’s correct. The pilot was flat and unimpressive. The final cast really hit paydirt. Just melded together like a well-oiled machine. But it shouldn’t be a surprise, these were some actors that had the chops.

One thing I wish would ‘officially’ come out on dvd would be Alan Hale Jr.’s early-1950s series, “Biff Baker, USA.” It was like an espionage-version of “Mr. and Mrs. North.” Being public-domain, a number of episodes circulate on cheap dvd labels, but I’d love for the whole (albeit short) run to be made available.

[lee martell]

I get the impression, Tina has always been embarrassed at being famous for this role far above anything else she’s done. Some folks cannot be pleased. If I could be part of a well known, family oriented series, even if I had to play an Eggplant, I would be thrilled, but that’s just me.
I don’t guess she was too bothered about all those royalty checks coming in decade after decade.

[MrNeutron1962]

“Attack of the Crab Monsters” scared the daylights out of me as a grade school child. We had a radio tower in the backyard of our house, and I expected them to come over the hill any moment and snip off my head.

[RckyRaCoCo]

Thought I read somewhere that the cast never received royalties for the decades it ran in syndication?

[NCC-1701]

Kennedy’s assasination?

[MNDude]

OMG! I have to go play 20 questions “who died” before everyone knows.

[Las Vegas Ron]

Roy Hinkle

Pretty sure it was Hinkly

RIP in any event, one of my all time favovorites as a kid.