by Mj Ferruzza

Created on: March 08, 2007   Last Updated: May 09, 2007

Gilligan's Island as metaphor for the Seven Deadly Sins

There has been talk for years that Sherwood Schwartz created
Gilligan's Island as a way to hang a mirror up and show the
television viewers society's fallibility and sins. Gilligan
island is a life play. The characters are easy to recognize
because they resemble the sins in all of us.

The Seven Deadly Sins and the Gilligan Island Characters:

1. Sloth - Gilligan (Secondary) Mr. Howell, Mrs. Howell
2. Greed - Mrs. Howell (Secondary) Mr. Howell
3. Envy - Mary Ann
4. Anger - The Skipper
5. Pride - The Professor (Secondary) Mrs. Howell
6. Glutton - Mr. Howell (Secondary) The Skipper
7. Lust - Ginger

As sinners, the Castaways were never going to be able to
leave their island, or purgatory. As a matter of fact,
in the TV movie which centered on their rescue from the Island,
the Ginger character was replaced and played by another actress.
This woman did not possess the recognizable assets of the lustful
character Ginger played by Tina Louise. Thus, with no Ginger,
the characters could finally get off the Island.

Sherwood Schwartz must have been proud to get them off the
Island because it solidified his protection over the Gilligan
property. No network could revamp the series for today's
TV audience, if we currently know they all got off the Island.

There have been rumors of a feature film, but again, the only
way this would work is if they create each character NOT in
the mold of the original actors from the series, but as some
incarnation to show them as the original seven deadly sins.

As a footnote to the series itself, Gilligan's Island was
canceled due to a scheduling conflict with Gunsmoke.
The Head of CBS, William S. Paley was prepared to shelve the
western Gunsmoke until his own wife voiced her feelings.
She preferred Marshall Dillon over silly (yet good ratings) Gilligan.
Paley listened to his wife and cut Gilligan. Now! Did Paley's decision
come from greed, pride, lust, envy, etc...
You get the picture!

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