Remembering Dawn Wells

 

I was truly shocked and saddened today to learn of the death of
actress Dawn Wells, apparently due to complications
 from the COVID-19 virus.  Ms. Wells was best known for her 
role as the pert and pretty Kansas farm girl Mary Ann Summers
 on the classic 1960's television sitcom, "Gilligan's Island".

Dawn Wells as  Mary Ann on "Gilligan's Island."

Dawn Elberta Wells was born on October 18, 1938 in Reno, Nevada.
A former Miss Nevada, Dawn represented her state at the Miss America 
pageant in Atlantic City in 1960.

She made her debut in Hollywood in the early 1960's 
 on the ABC television program, "The Roaring Twenties".
  Before landing her role on "Gilligan's Island" in 1964, the lovely
   brunette actress appeared in the episodes of many television series,
    including westerns like "Wagon Train" "Cheyenne", "Maverick" and
  "Bonanza"; the detective shows, "77 Sunset Strip" and "Hawaiian Eye";
and on the sitcom, "The Joey Bishop Show".

In one of my favorite television western
 series, "Maverick"  Dawn played a young woman 
named Caprice smitten with an outlaw who bears
a striking resemblance to Bart Maverick (actor 
Jack Kelly above, in a dual role) in the episode,
 "The Deadly Image".
(1961)

After Gilligan's Island ended, Dawn continued to act in movies and
on television.  She returned as Mary Ann in three post-"Gilligan"
    movies: "Rescue From Gilligan's Island" (1978); 
"The Castaways On Gilligan's Island" (1979); and "The Harlem
Globetrotters On Gilligan's Island" (1981).

 One of the more unusual roles Dawn played was the mother
 of three children who becomes lost in a swamp during a
 hurricane. She and the kids are later rescued by a mysterious 
creature in the 1977 movie thriller, "Return To Boggy Creek".

 In the 1980's she was a contestant on celebrity episodes of
the game show, "Family Feud" and guest starred on hit television
series like "Alf"  and "Growing Pains". She also did the voices of both 
Mary Ann and Ginger in the short-lived cartoon, "Gilligan's Planet".

In the 1990's she appeared in episodes of "Baywatch" and "Roseanne"
plus, she revealed the secret ingredients for her famous, "Coconut Cream Pie"
as well as many other delicious recipes when she wrote,
"Mary Ann's Gilligan's Island Cook Book" in 1993.

In 2001, she joined fellow "Gilligan's Island" cast members Bob Denver
and Russell Johnson  ("The Professor") in the made-for-television docudrama, 
"Surviving Gilligan's Island: The Incredibly True Story Of
 The Longest Three Hour Tour In History".  

In this presentation, Dawn shared her memories of being one of
the castaways and also discussed how "Gilligan's Island" became
one of the most popular television shows in the history of
American pop culture.

    Mid-1960's headlines with focus on the ongoing space race and 
the burgeoning counter culture were clearly reflected in the
the episodes, "Nyet, Nyet, Not Yet" which featured a pair of
lost Russian cosmonauts landing in the lagoon, and later,
"Don't Bug The Mosquitos" when a foursome of hip, mop-topped
rockers, a la "The Beatles" came ashore to escape their screaming 
hordes of fans. They end up leaving the castaways behind  
 after being "bugged out" by a little female competition!

"You Need Us"
The Honey Bees
(By the way, "The Mosquitos" were played by the real life
band, "The Wellingtons" who sang the theme song
of "Gilligan's Island".)

More recently, Dawn was tapped to promote "Gilligan's Island"
on the popular nostalgia network, MeTV.  Although the series ran for
only three seasons, the hilarious mishaps of the seven stranded
castaways has never gone off the air and is broadcast
 in over 30 languages worldwide.

In one of her last interviews, Ms. Wells declared that she was,
"Grateful and proud to be an American."

"When I see Americans go into action to heal, serve, and protect,
or lend a hand to a neighborhood or community, it makes me proud to
be living in America," she said.  I don't want people to be disillusioned
by the petty infighting that seems to dominate news cycles."

Wise and beautiful words from a beautiful and talented lady.
May she rest in peace.