Literary Gilligan's Island - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

callensensei · 01-31-2009, 05:20 PM

Hi all! I'm a newbie here (though not a new Gilligan's Island Fan -- been one of those for awhile!) and have been really enjoying the various discussions. I'm going to go back and comment on some of the episode reviews Im has put up, for a start. And here's something that's kind of related to the thread, Did Anyone Ever Get On Your Back for Watching Gilligan's Island? I thought we might turn this into a game, adding examples as we think of them. So, here goes:

If ever you hear some unenlighted soul complaining that Gilligan’s Island is dumb, just reel off a few of these examples of how high-brow Gilligan’s Island actually was. Its writers were clever, educated people who made many references to classic literary works from many cultures and time periods. Here are just a few samples of famous writers and their works featured on Literary Gilligan’s Island:

Aristophanes

In St. Gilligan and the Dragon, Mrs. Howell uses the plot of the ancient Greek comedy Lysistrata to inspire the island’s women to rebel against the men.

Aulus Gellius

In Feed the Kitty, Gilligan hopes that Leo the lion has read this ancient Roman writer’s story Androcles and the Lion, about a man whose kindness tames the savage beast.

Samuel Beckett

The Irish dramatist’s greatest absurdist play, Waiting for Godot, is alluded to in the title of Waiting for Watubi, because just like in the play, people are waiting for someone who never comes!

Edgar Rice Burroughs

Gilligan attends the costume party as Burrough’s most famous character, Tarzan of the Apes, in Love Me, Love My Skipper.

Dame Agatha Christie

Christie’s story of a group of people stranded on an island who gradually disappear one by one provides the title and the main plot of the episode named for her novel, And Then There Were None.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

The title of Water Water Everywhere comes from Coleridge’s most famous poem, The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner, where the forlorn mariner relates, “Water, water everywhere/and all the boards did shrink/Water, water everywhere/nor any drop to drink.” Gilligan certainly qualifies as the albatross around the Skipper’s neck!

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Mr. and Mrs. Howell, searching for the stone tablets in The Secret of Gilligan’s Island, announce that they want to play Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. In Gilligan’s vampire dream in Up At Bat, Gilligan envisions the Professor and the Skipper as the Victorian crime-solving duo.

William Congreve

Ginger quotes this restoration dramatist in Not Guilty, reminding Gilligan of what they say about a woman scorned. The whole quote is: "Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned, Nor hell a fury like a woman scorned." The episode Music Hath Charm owes its title and resolution to Congreve’s most famous quote, “Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast.”

Richard Connell

The Hunter borrows the plot of Connell’s most famous and often imitated short story, The Most Dangerous Game, about a crazed Russian aristocrat who lures men to his remote island in order to hunt and kill them. I wish the Gilligan’s Island episode had ended the way the short story did: there was a much stronger element of nemesis!

Charles Dickens

When Mrs. Howell calmly knits as her husband fears for his life in Where There’s a Will, Mr. Howell calls her “Madame Defarge,” a reference to the icy old lady who knits at the foot of the guillotine in A Tale of Two Cities.

Ian Fleming

Fleming’s signature character, super spy James Bond, is parodied in the longest dream sequence in The Invasion.

Felicia Dorothea Hemans

The skipper misquotes the famous opening lines of this British poet’s work, Casabianca, in Erika Tiffany Smith to the Rescue.

“The boy stood on the burning deck
Whence all but him had fled…”

Justin Huntly McCarthy

Say something romantic, urges Mrs. Howell, who wants her husband to become jealous in Mr. and Mrs.???. The Professor responds by quoting this Irish poet’s work, If I Were King:

“Ah, love, if I were king!
What tributary nations would I bring…”

Edmond Rostand

Ginger relates the plot of the play Cyrano de Bergerac, the French duelist whose love for the beautiful Roxanne is as great as his nose, to cheer Gilligan in A Nose By Any Other Name.

Sir Walter Scott:

“Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive!”
The Professor mistakenly attributes this quote to Shakespeare in Ship Ahoax, but it’s actually from the Scottish writer’s poem Marmion.

William Shakespeare

Hamlet is the most oft-quoted Shakespearean play on Gilligan’s Island. There is, of course, the Hamlet musical from The Producer, the Professor’s line “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark” in Ghost a Go-Go, and Mr. Howell’s line, “when we have shuffled off this mortal coil” in Where There’s A Will.

Mr. Howell quotes from Julius Caesar, “This was the unkindest cut of all” in Gilligan Gets Bugged.

Mrs. Howell doesn’t give direct quotes from Shakespeare, but she does refer to two Shakespearean plays. She mentions Macbeth when she says, “I always play Lady Macbeth. I love the part where she washes her hands!” in Gilligan vs. Gilligan and in The Matchmaker she compares Gilligan and Mary Ann to the star crossed lovers in Romeo and Juliet.

And of course, the following episode titles come from Shakespeare:

Good Night Sweet Skipper (from Hamlet)
A Nose By Any Other Name (from Romeo and Juliet)

What a shame no one ever quoted from The Tempest, Shakespeare’s own tale of shipwrecked castaways!

George Bernard Shaw

Mr. Howell says Henry Higgins’ task of gentrifying Eliza Dolittle in Pygmalion is far easier than own his task of gentrifying Gilligan in My Fair Gilligan. Mary Ann plays Eliza in Gilligan’s dream in And Then There Were None.

James Thurber

All right, this one’s a bit of a stretch, but Gilligan’s numerous dreams in which he plays some kind of larger than life hero (the marshal in The Sound of Quacking, the spy in The Invasion, the lord admiral in Court Marshal) may be a nod to Thurber’s tale of a shy dreamer in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.

H.G. Wells

The premise of The Friendly Physician bears an uncanny resemblance to the Victorian sci-fi pioneer’s classic, The Island of Dr. Moreau, about a mad scientist who experiments with creating human-animal hybrids in his laboratory on a remote island in the South Pacific.

Oscar Wilde

In Erika Tiffany Smith to the Rescue, the Professor tells Erica that she is terribly witty and has produced “an epigram worthy of Wilde.” In Gilligan’s dream in And Then There Were None, his dream character Dr. Gilligan’s flamboyant hairstyle, clothing, and trademark lily strongly suggest Wilde as the model. Even the trial is reminiscent of Wilde’s trial on morals charges.

Percival Christopher Wren

In New Neighbour Sam, Ginger takes the idea of dressing up dummies to look like soldiers from Beau Geste, a swashbuckling novel about the French Foreign Legion.

callensensei · 01-31-2009, 05:35 PM

As if that last post wasn't long enough, I forgot two Scottish writers: Robert Louis Stevenson and J.M. Barrie! Gilligan's dream character in And Then There Were None is based on Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, while hook-handed pirate Howell in Court Marshal is based on the prosthetic pirate villain of Peter Pan.

01-31-2009, 05:20 PM	#1
callensensei Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Jan 31, 2009 Location: Canada Posts: 233	Literary Gilligan's Island Hi all! I'm a newbie here (though not a new Gilligan's Island Fan -- been one of those for awhile!) and have been really enjoying the various discussions. I'm going to go back and comment on some of the episode reviews Im has put up, for a start. And here's something that's kind of related to the thread, Did Anyone Ever Get On Your Back for Watching Gilligan's Island? I thought we might turn this into a game, adding examples as we think of them. So, here goes: If ever you hear some unenlighted soul complaining that Gilligan’s Island is dumb, just reel off a few of these examples of how high-brow Gilligan’s Island actually was. Its writers were clever, educated people who made many references to classic literary works from many cultures and time periods. Here are just a few samples of famous writers and their works featured on Literary Gilligan’s Island: Aristophanes In St. Gilligan and the Dragon, Mrs. Howell uses the plot of the ancient Greek comedy Lysistrata to inspire the island’s women to rebel against the men. Aulus Gellius In Feed the Kitty, Gilligan hopes that Leo the lion has read this ancient Roman writer’s story Androcles and the Lion, about a man whose kindness tames the savage beast. Samuel Beckett The Irish dramatist’s greatest absurdist play, Waiting for Godot, is alluded to in the title of Waiting for Watubi, because just like in the play, people are waiting for someone who never comes! Edgar Rice Burroughs Gilligan attends the costume party as Burrough’s most famous character, Tarzan of the Apes, in Love Me, Love My Skipper. Dame Agatha Christie Christie’s story of a group of people stranded on an island who gradually disappear one by one provides the title and the main plot of the episode named for her novel, And Then There Were None. Samuel Taylor Coleridge The title of Water Water Everywhere comes from Coleridge’s most famous poem, The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner, where the forlorn mariner relates, “Water, water everywhere/and all the boards did shrink/Water, water everywhere/nor any drop to drink.” Gilligan certainly qualifies as the albatross around the Skipper’s neck! Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Mr. and Mrs. Howell, searching for the stone tablets in The Secret of Gilligan’s Island, announce that they want to play Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. In Gilligan’s vampire dream in Up At Bat, Gilligan envisions the Professor and the Skipper as the Victorian crime-solving duo. William Congreve Ginger quotes this restoration dramatist in Not Guilty, reminding Gilligan of what they say about a woman scorned. The whole quote is: "Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned, Nor hell a fury like a woman scorned." The episode Music Hath Charm owes its title and resolution to Congreve’s most famous quote, “Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast.” Richard Connell The Hunter borrows the plot of Connell’s most famous and often imitated short story, The Most Dangerous Game, about a crazed Russian aristocrat who lures men to his remote island in order to hunt and kill them. I wish the Gilligan’s Island episode had ended the way the short story did: there was a much stronger element of nemesis! Charles Dickens When Mrs. Howell calmly knits as her husband fears for his life in Where There’s a Will, Mr. Howell calls her “Madame Defarge,” a reference to the icy old lady who knits at the foot of the guillotine in A Tale of Two Cities. Ian Fleming Fleming’s signature character, super spy James Bond, is parodied in the longest dream sequence in The Invasion. Felicia Dorothea Hemans The skipper misquotes the famous opening lines of this British poet’s work, Casabianca, in Erika Tiffany Smith to the Rescue. “The boy stood on the burning deck Whence all but him had fled…” Justin Huntly McCarthy Say something romantic, urges Mrs. Howell, who wants her husband to become jealous in Mr. and Mrs.???. The Professor responds by quoting this Irish poet’s work, If I Were King: “Ah, love, if I were king! What tributary nations would I bring…” Edmond Rostand Ginger relates the plot of the play Cyrano de Bergerac, the French duelist whose love for the beautiful Roxanne is as great as his nose, to cheer Gilligan in A Nose By Any Other Name. Sir Walter Scott: “Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive!” The Professor mistakenly attributes this quote to Shakespeare in Ship Ahoax, but it’s actually from the Scottish writer’s poem Marmion. William Shakespeare Hamlet is the most oft-quoted Shakespearean play on Gilligan’s Island. There is, of course, the Hamlet musical from The Producer, the Professor’s line “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark” in Ghost a Go-Go, and Mr. Howell’s line, “when we have shuffled off this mortal coil” in Where There’s A Will. Mr. Howell quotes from Julius Caesar, “This was the unkindest cut of all” in Gilligan Gets Bugged. Mrs. Howell doesn’t give direct quotes from Shakespeare, but she does refer to two Shakespearean plays. She mentions Macbeth when she says, “I always play Lady Macbeth. I love the part where she washes her hands!” in Gilligan vs. Gilligan and in The Matchmaker she compares Gilligan and Mary Ann to the star crossed lovers in Romeo and Juliet. And of course, the following episode titles come from Shakespeare: Good Night Sweet Skipper (from Hamlet) A Nose By Any Other Name (from Romeo and Juliet) What a shame no one ever quoted from The Tempest, Shakespeare’s own tale of shipwrecked castaways! George Bernard Shaw Mr. Howell says Henry Higgins’ task of gentrifying Eliza Dolittle in Pygmalion is far easier than own his task of gentrifying Gilligan in My Fair Gilligan. Mary Ann plays Eliza in Gilligan’s dream in And Then There Were None. James Thurber All right, this one’s a bit of a stretch, but Gilligan’s numerous dreams in which he plays some kind of larger than life hero (the marshal in The Sound of Quacking, the spy in The Invasion, the lord admiral in Court Marshal) may be a nod to Thurber’s tale of a shy dreamer in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. H.G. Wells The premise of The Friendly Physician bears an uncanny resemblance to the Victorian sci-fi pioneer’s classic, The Island of Dr. Moreau, about a mad scientist who experiments with creating human-animal hybrids in his laboratory on a remote island in the South Pacific. Oscar Wilde In Erika Tiffany Smith to the Rescue, the Professor tells Erica that she is terribly witty and has produced “an epigram worthy of Wilde.” In Gilligan’s dream in And Then There Were None, his dream character Dr. Gilligan’s flamboyant hairstyle, clothing, and trademark lily strongly suggest Wilde as the model. Even the trial is reminiscent of Wilde’s trial on morals charges. Percival Christopher Wren In New Neighbour Sam, Ginger takes the idea of dressing up dummies to look like soldiers from Beau Geste, a swashbuckling novel about the French Foreign Legion.

01-31-2009, 05:35 PM	#2
callensensei Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Jan 31, 2009 Location: Canada Posts: 233	As if that last post wasn't long enough, I forgot two Scottish writers: Robert Louis Stevenson and J.M. Barrie! Gilligan's dream character in And Then There Were None is based on Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, while hook-handed pirate Howell in Court Marshal is based on the prosthetic pirate villain of Peter Pan.