Having made its television debut in 1964, viewers have been laughing at the seven stranded castaways of Gilligan's Island for the past 60 years, and for many of them their knowledge of Bob Denver, Alan Hale Jr, Jim Backus, Natalie Schafer, Tina Louise, Russell Johnson and Dawn Wells pretty much start and stop with the show. And while it's true their careers largely came to a standstill due to typecasting when the series came to an end in 1967 (although they did manage to work), prior to coming together, most of them actually did have extensive careers.

For instance, Alan Hale Jr — whose resemblance to his father, the famous sidekick to Errol Flynn, was unbelievable — appeared in dozens of films and a couple of television series; while Tina Louise was a model and made a name for herself on Broadway, Jim Backus was a huge radio personality, the voice of cartoon character Mister Magoo and also the star of two TV shows; and Bob Denver introduced the medium's first beatnik in the form of Maynard G. Krebs on The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis. In all, it was quite a diverse background that these seven actors brought to their characters, which you'll get a taste of in the visual profiles below.

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Bob Denver (Gilligan)

NAME: Bob Denver

CHARACTER: Gilligan

BORN: January 9, 1935 in New Rochelle, New York

BEFORE GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: Worked as a teacher, scored a few small roles before being cast as Maynard G. Krebs in The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, which aired from 1959 to 1963. The following year he was cast in Gilligan's Island.

AFTER GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: There would be guest appearances, but he also starred in the shows The Good Guys (1968 to 1970), Dusty's Trail (1973 to 1974) and Far Out Space Nuts (1975).

PERSONAL: He was married four times, Marrie Ryan (1960 to 1966), Jean Webber (1967 to 1970), Carole Abrahams (1972 to 1975) and Dreama Perry (1979 until his death). He had three children.

DIED: September 2, 2005 at the age of 75.

1957

Bob Denver made his television debut in the role of "Murph" in "The Tang's Last Shot" episode of the Navy submarine series The Silent Service, which aired between 1957 and 1958.

1959

Sandra Dee and Bob Denver in 1959's Take Her, She's Mine.

A rare color photo of Bob Denver and Dwayne Hickman, circa 1961, from the TV series The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis in which Bob played television's first beatnik, Maynard G. Krebs. The show ran from 1959 to 1963.

1963

Bob Denver plays Dr. Paul Garrett in a rare dramatic turn in the 1963 episode of Dr. Kildare, "If You Can't Believe the Truth."

1964

Bob Denver and Andy Griffith in "Divorce, Mountain Style," a 1964 episode of The Andy Griffith Show. That same year he would go on to star in Gilligan's Island.

Alan Hale Jr. (Jonas Grumby, The Skipper)

NAME: Alan Hale, Jr.

CHARACTER: Jonas Grumby, aka 'The Skipper'

BORN: March 8, 1921 in Los Angeles

BEFORE GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: He appeared in approximately 40 movies throughout the 1940s and 1950s, recurred on television's The Gene Autry Show and starred on Biff Baker, U.S.A. (1952 to 1953) and Casey Jones (1957 to 1958). Prior to being cast on Gilligan's Island, he made many guest appearances.

AFTER GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: There would be about another dozen film roles (including the 1968 Clint Eastwood Western Hang 'Em High) and more TV guest roles. Eventually he opened Alan Hale's Lobster Barrel followed by Alan Hale's Quality and Leisure Travel Office.

PERSONAL: He was married twice, to Bettina Doerr Hale (1943 to 1963) and Nora Ingram (1964 until his death). He was the father of five from his first marriage.

DIED: Alan died on January 2, 1990 of thymus cancer at age 68.

1947

Alan Hale Jr. seen as part of the big screen ensemble for the 1947 comedy Sarge Goes to College. Note that one of his co-stars is Noel Neill, who would go on to play Lois Lane in TV's Adventures of Superman in the 1950s.

1950

Alan Hale Jr. with Gordon MacRae, Doris Day. James Cagney, Virginia Mayo and Gene Nelson in the 1950 musical comedy The West Point Story.

1953

Santa Claus (Alan Hale, Jr.) with kids at a party in 1953.

1954

Alan Hale Jr fighting with Robert Taylor in a scene from the film Rogue Cop, 1954 — c'mon, how many times do you think he wanted to do that to Gilligan?

1957

Dan Duryea, Rock Hudson and Alan Ladd Jr. in 1957's Battle Hymn.

Alan Hale Jr as Casey Jones in the 1957 to 1958 series of the same name.

1959

James Garner, Alan Hale Jr, and Edmond O'Brien in a scene from the film Up Periscope, 1959.

1961

Alan Hale Jr and men watch as Hugh Marlowe speaks to matriarch is slugged in a scene from the film The Long Rope, 1961.

Jim Backus (Thurston Howell III, the Millionaire)

NAME: Jim Backus

CHARACTER: Thurston Howell III

BORN: February 25, 1913 in Cleveland, Ohio

BEFORE GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: He had an extensive career in radio, was featured on The Alan Young Show, starred in such films as Marilyn Monroe's Don't Bother to Knock (1952) and James Dean's Rebel Without a Cause (1955), made a whole other career out of voicing the character of Mr. Magoo, and starred in the television series I Married Joan (1952 to 1955) and The Jim Backus Show (1960 to 1961).

AFTER GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: There were about a dozen guest appearances (including three on The Brady Bunch) and several TV movies plus the various — animated and live action — Gilligan's Island revivals.

PERSONAL: Jim was married twice, to Bertty Kean (1939 to 1942) and Henny Backus (1943 until his death).

DIED: He passed away at the age of 76 on July 3, 1989.

1940s

Jim Backus on the radio.

Newspaper publicity photo for Jim Backus' more dramatic radio series.

1951

Jim Backus, Robert Mitchum, Leslie Banning and Philip Van Zandt in 1951's His Kind of Woman.

1953

Jim Backus, Jean Simmons, and Victor Mature star in the 1953 movie, The Robe. It was the first feature film to be released in CinemaScope.

1955

CIRCA 1955: Actor Jim Backus poses with his wife Henny in Los Angeles, California.

1958

Jonathan Kidd, Jim Backus, Jacqueline Scott and William Prince in 1958's Macabre.

1963

Buddy Hackett, Jim Backus and Mickey Rooney in 1963's It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.

Natalie Schafer (Eunice 'Lovey' Howell, his Wife)

NAME: Natalie Schafer

CHARACTER: Eunice "Lovey" Howell

BORN: November 5, 1900 in New York City

BEFORE GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: Natalie got her start on Broadway, appearing in 17 shows between 1927 and 1959. There were also many film roles over the years in which the vast majority of the time she was playing a woman of high society, which no no is what made Sherwood Schwartz cast her as Mrs. Howell.

AFTER GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: There would only be a few roles following the series, among them the movies 40 Carats (1973), The Day of the Locust (1975), Beverly Hills Brats (1989) and I'm Dangerous Tonight (1990). Don't feel too bad for her acting career: due to real estate investments, she had become a millionaire.

PERSONAL: She was married to Louis Calhern from 1933 to 1942, and had been a longtime companion to Maurice Hill.

DIED: Natalie died on April 10, 1991 at age 90.

1944

Natalie Schafer and Lana Turner in 1944's Marriage is a Private Affair.

1948

Natalie Schafer appears in the 1948 film The Time of Your Life. The movie is directed by H.C. Potter and stars James Cagney.

1955

Joan Crawford and Jeff Chandler seem suspicious as they participate in a card game with a couple of elderly swindlers played by Natalie Schafer and Cecil Kellaway in a scene from 1955's Female on the Beach, a steamy thriller directed by Joseph Pevney.

Tina Louise (Ginger Grant, the Movie Star)

NAME: Tina Louise

CHARACTER: Ginger Grant

BORN: February 11, 1934 in New York City

BEFORE GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: Tina had quite an extensive career going, which included her working as a model, on Broadway in shows like Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? and Li'l Abner, movies God's Little Acre and Day of the Outlaw (both 1959), The Warrior Empress (1960) and Garibaldi (1961) and she began making television guest appearances before being signed for Gilligan's Island.

AFTER GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: The one cast member who had little to do with Gilligan's Island after the show ended its run, Tina Louise has gone on to appear in about 30 theatrical and TV movies between 1967's The Seventh Floor and 2019's Tapestry. There would also be many television guest appearances between a 1967 episode of Bonanza and L.A. Heat in 1999, with a recurring part on Dallas between 1978 and 1979 and a starring role on Rituals (1984 to 1985).

PERSONAL: Tina Louise was married to Les Crane from 1966 to 1971 and is the mother of Caprice Crane.

1954

1956

Tina Louise (right) and Julie Newmar (left) getting dressed for a Broadway stage production of Li'l Abner, 1956.

1957

Walter Matthau and Tina Louise in George Axelrod's 1957 film, Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?

Actress Tina Louise reigns as queen of the Art Student League's 82nd annual costume ball at the Hotel Roosevelt.

Actress and singer Tina Louise records her only album, It's Time For Tina, on July 19, 1957 at the C.C. Club in New York.

1960

Tina Louise, actress and future star of Gilligan's Island, interviews Elvis Presley upon his return from his 1959-60 Army tour of duty in Germany.

Tina Louise with a collection of mannequin busts, including ones of herself, Sophia Loren, Inger Stevens and Carolyn Jones, circa 1960.

1961

(Original Caption) Annual Academy Award presentations. Tina Louise and Tony Randall during awards. They presented for best achievement in art direction.

Russell Johnson (Professor Roy Hinkley)

NAME: Russell Johnson

CHARACTER: Professor Roy Hinkley

BORN: November 10, 1924 in Ashley, Pennsylvania

BEFORE GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: Following time in the U.S. Air Force and, then, World War II (where he received the Purple Heart), he used the GI Bill to study acting and went to Hollywood, where he appeared in a number of Western and Sci-Fi films like Badman's Country, This Island Earth and It Came from Outer Space. He'd also begin appearing on television shows, including The Outer Limits and The Twilight Zone.

AFTER GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: He would only have 15 more credits following the show (not counting the Gilligan reunions) from a 1967 episode of The Invaders to one from 1986's MacGyver.

PERSONAL: Russell Johnson was married three times (Edith Calhoon from 1943 to 1948, Kay Cousins from 1949 until her death in 1980, and Constance Dane from 1982 until her death in 2014). He had three children, one of whom, David, died from complicated related to AIDS in 1994.

DIED: He died on January 16, 2014 at 89.

1953

Actor Russell Johnson poses for a portrait in circa 1953.

Richard Carlson and Russell Johnson from the 1953 sci-fi movie It Came From Outer Space.

L-R: Alex Nicol, Russell Johnson and Ronald Reagan in 1953's Law and Order.

1955

Roy Rowland, Darsteller: Robert Taylor, Eleanor Parker, Victor McLaglen, Ralph Moody, Jeff Richards, Russell Johnson, Russ Tamblin in 1955's Many Rivers to Cross.

1957

Richard Garland, Pamela Duncan and Russell Johnson in 1957's Attack of the Crab Monsters.

1960

Russell Johnson on the 1959 to 1960 Western television series Black Saddle, on which he played Marshal Gib Scott.

Dawn Wells (Mary Ann Summers)

NAME: Dawn Wells

CHARACTER: Mary Ann Summers

BORN: October 18, 1938

BEFORE GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: Graduating from the University of Washington in Seattle in 1960 with a degree in theater arts and design, Dawn moved to Hollywood and quickly made her mark in television, appearing in a 1961 episode of Wagon Train and following that with 21 others prior to being cast as Mary Ann on Gilligan's Island.

AFTER GILLIGAN'S ISLAND: Like everyone else on the show, Dawn Wells had the challenge of typecasting, but never seemed to find it daunting. She certainly worked, making more TV guest appearances and scoring roles on the big screen. On top of that, she always seemed to game to spread some Gilligan's Island joy wherever possible — beyond the reunions, she participated in classic TV versions of Family Feud, she and fellow cast mate going against those of Hawaiian Eye, Lost in Space and Batman; playing Mary Ann on Alf and Baywatch, and herself in the the 2001 TV movie Surviving Gilligan's Island. Her final role was 2019's The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants.

PERSONAL: She was married to Larry Rosen from 1962 to 1967.

DIED: Dawn Wells died on December 30, 2020 at age 82.

1950s

Dawn Wells, 1950s.

1961

Dawn Wells and David Faulker in the 1961 episode of Wagon Train, "The Captain Dan Brady Story."

Let's Head Over to 'Gilligan's Island' for More:

Alan Hale Jr: 16 Surprising Facts About the Skipper From ‘Gilligan’s Island’

10 Fascinating Facts About 'Gilligan’s Island' Star Jim Backus

A Look at the 7 Shows 'Gilligan's Island' Actor Bob Denver Starred In