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Show EDITORIALS IN OUR VIEW a cultural icon Carolina of complications from cancer treatment. The 70-year-old leave your name, hometown and phone number with your Island.” (You get a bonus pointif See below for the answer.) The show was oneofthe first situation comedies toair on television, running for three seasons between 1964 and 1966. The genre changed television for a generation. Forthose of you new to Planet Earth who are unfamiliar with “Gilligan's Island,” the show fol- lowed the exploits of Gilligan; the should be no longer than 30 seconds. Anonymous and unverifiable responses will not be published. The Daily Heraldwill publish commentson Sept. 18. attractive today, with terrorism, island in innumerable ways but, inevitably, Gilligan would goof up the effort, stranding them for yet another week. Whocan't sing the show’s theme | | | | | ment was still facing resistance are stranded on a South Pacific fessor and Mary Ann — after they | eee island during what was supposed to be a three-hour boat tour. The castaways would try to get off the war, high gas prices and other Forus, the show recalls a time when you could draw laughter withoutresorting to dirty joke. ite episode? The show has sothoroughly permeated global culture that few placesexist where people Dawn Wells, who played Mary tension, usually generated by Tina Louise's portrayalof actress Gin- rest” version or the revised “Pro- fessor and Mary Ann”rendition)? Whocan'trecall at least one favor- haven't heardofit. Ann, wastraveling with a group touring the South Pacific when an islander called out “Mary Ann!” Theislander explained that she had watched“Gilligan's Island” reruns, while going to school. A Google searchof the phrase “Gilligan's Island”uncovers2.1 million Websites thatrelate to the show in some way, shape or form. The series even spawned a reality showin which contestants gothroughchallenges based on “Gilligan's Island” episodes, So why do peoplestill find “Gilli- gan’s Island" so popular today? Unlike “Star Trek,” the other 1960s TV blockbuster,“Gilligan's Island”didn’t pose any great social gerGrant,it was always innocent and in good fun. The humorcamelargely from slapstick between the Skipper and Gilligan, as well as the absurdity of their situation. For example, why would the Howells, Ginger and Mary Ann bringan entire wardrobe with them for a threehourtour? And howcome,if the Professor was smart enough to make a washing machine, a car and other high-tech gadgetsout of coconutshells and bamboo, couldn't he build a boat to take everyone home? (OK, he did make a super-super glue to repair the planksof the Minnow, butit came unstuck at show's end.) And how questions;it simply parodied the quirksof human relations. There wereno preachylessons on racism,substance abuseorotherills. could anyisland long remain “uncharted” when guest stars were Theclosest thing to social commentary creator Sherwood Unfortunately, today’s television producers consider the concept of Schwartz's decision to namethe castaways’ after FCC ship,the S.S. Minnow, chairman Newton Mi- now, who famously declared tele- vision a “wasteland.” so regularly washed up onits shores? The program provided an escape the showis in syndication) through simple, wholesome comedy. You could give your minda break. When“Gilligan’s Island”first cameout, the Vietnam War was rampingup,thecivil rights move- “sophisticated” viewer. Today audiences prefer “Sex in the City” But we question that wisdom. Thefact that “Gilligan’s Island” remains favorite in syndication provides ampleevidencethat the experts are wrong. Andthat’s not a badlegacy for Bob Denverto leave behind. Oh,nea— Gilligan'sfirst name was Wi MEDIA VOICES U.S. must conserve gas long after Katrina recovery FromThe Lawrence Journal- World, Sept. 6, 2005 temporarycircumstance. It may be ourfuture,andit’s not a future the United States has plannedfor | t will be interesting to see how the American drivingpublic re- sponds to the message sent out by. President Bush last Thursday: “Americans should be prudentin their use of energy over the course ofthe next few weeks,” he The currentsituation is a reminder ofjust how dependent weareonoil andgas. It fuels our economy and ourlifestyle, Being without it is a matterofnational security. Katrina also reminds us that, at somepoint, high prices, short supplies and longlines maynot be a very well. Whatarethe alternatives? Wind energy? Nuclear power? Ethanol? Whatis the next generation of (jem i President Bush has issued a statement that it would weakenour country if we were to withdraw fromIraqatthis time. Talso have read that people who do notsupport our troops have no con- fuels to feed our economic engine dent, in regards to this war,is bad,in being shut down,I have neverseen the Theidea that being against the presi- but the day when we can say we don't “need”it still seems far away. During mytimeas a DJ and promot- * chestersseralGextrs:com Faxto 344-2985 Mail to P.O. Box 717, Provo, UT 84603. pi eeeeteeee and ‘ id er, | have witnessed numerous raves payne Oe na need for such use of force from police. I will never understand howlollipop- 100 and 200 words. Letters maybe edited forlength. Army, but they did not have a choice to go or notto go to war.If any soldier decided not to continue the war we know packsposed a threat worthy oftasers. include their occupation and Theyhada choice to join or not the toting teens with tickle-me-Elmo back- whattheir consequences wouldbe. Cameras wereseized because the police knew they were wrong. Yes there were ante there. Yes there I do not wish to sayif this war was legitimate or not. I wish to inform our you been to high schoollately? When president that weaknesses become strengths, Revealing a mistake is a sign ofstrength not weakness.It would showhehas character. I wonder what would happen to the “real freedom”if weall shut our mouths. Thank heavenwestill have a little of that freedom left. » Filippo Magistro, rem » Weprefer shorter letters, » Writers are encouraged to other personal information. ee Jesters, may have been someweapons, but have unpublished letters. are the police goingto storm the local junior high with choppers, assault rifles » Letters becomethe property of the Daily Herald. and body armor? This was caseofselective discrimi- i nation against teens who choose life different from the norm. Someonehas to pay the pricefor police brutality, I suggest westart at the top and work our way down. » David Johnson, Provo LEONARDPITTSJR. Katrina can’t extinguish Biloxi’sfightingspirit ILOXI, Miss. — James Edward Bates, a photographerfor the ‘Sun Herald newspaper, tells me a story as weJrive through what's left of his town. It seems thatearlier in the day he shot pictures of one CarmenStepanek, a Czech immigranthe found sweeping up hurricane debris in front of her house. In her imperfect English, she asked if he had ever seen “The Karate Kid.” Yes, he said. “How many ‘Karate Kid’ mov- ies there were?”she asked. “One, two, three?” Hesaid there wereatleast three. At which Stepanek,a gray-haired womanofa certain age,folded a black bandannainto a headband,tied it. on her brow,strucka fighter's pose and declared, “I ‘Karate Mom Six.”” “I fight,” she said. “I fight for mylife.” Bates, a soft-spoken man,tells methis story as weride through twilight. We are at the end of a long afternoon spent touring a moonscape of destruction. Thatwordis purposeful. What you encounter onthetourist strip that runs houses, buildings reduced to their wood skeletons, here andthere a shred ofwall or roofstill clinging to the structure. “prudent”in their use of gasoline, reasonto shut the party down. How to comment E-mail letters to myopinionis preposterous. Our soldiers arenotin Iraq of their ownfree will. these questions,but the need for answersseems to be drawing moreurgent. Americans can be I retired from DJ-ing and promoting raves several years ago. I know from a promoters standpoint thatit is impossible to get the permits you need. The city or county will not give perme for dancing after 1 or 2 a.m. Forthat reason only, the police had along the beach is not “damage,” but “destruction”: asphalt buckled, sewage standing in reeking pools swarmed by biting flies, debris piled higher than need them? Researchers have been asking Utah County sets up ravers for extreme punishment science. I have children and like many parents | love my children evenif they decide to go astray or make the wrong decisions.| still love them. andourdesire for mobility? Will they be ready for action when we DOONESBURY -Gams Trudeau 50 HOUIS IT GOING OVER THERE, RAY? QuestioningIraq wardecision a sign ofnational strength “Gilligan's Island” too simplistic and utterly unacceptable to today's or“Seinfeld,”they say. from the worries of the world for a half-hour a week (more now that LETTERS evils in the world. On Gilligan’s uncharted island, you can still get away fromitall. If “Gilligan's Isiand” werefilmed today, you know Ginger and Mary Ann would be sleeping around with the three eligible bachelors onthe island,and quite likely with Mr. Howell as well. While the show had somesexual song (either the original “and the Ken Baldridge, Public adviser Barbara Curtis, Public adviser | comments. E-mail comments should not exceed 100 words; voice-mail comments in the South and America was recovering from the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The time was right for a bit of escapism.It's as Skipper,too;the Millionaire and His Wife; the MovieStar;the Pro- Donald W. Meyers, Editorial page editor you think? ligan’s Island” episode, and why? Send your comments ‘com to dhp orcall 344-2942.Please you know Gilligan's first name. Randy Wright, Executive Editor What wasyourfavorite “Git Denver, whofirst achieved fame the bumbling sailor on “Gilligan's Albert J. Manzi, President & Publisher be“Whatdo “The Many Lovesof DobieGillis,” will be remembered as Gilligan, as beatnik MaynardG. Krebs in DailySHevald EDITORIAL BOARD Bates uses the verb “was”a lot as he pilots his car carefully down the broken highway. Asin,“That was a Waffle House... a new condo under construction ... a Ruby Tuesday ... a Wendy’s ... a nightclub... an RV Park.” That’s what a 28-foot storm surge will do toyou. It turns “is” into “was.” | lived through the 1971 Sylmar earthquakethat wrecked a freeway interchangeandleft over 60 people dead in Los Angeles.I am a veteran of Andrew, the 1992 hurricane that ripped roofs from buildings andkilled at least 35 people in South Florida. This is the worst I have everseen. On Highway90,a casino barge — a floating “building,” you understand — sits in the parkinglot of a hotel, having beenlifted by an angry ocean and deposited there. A few blocks down, we are walking through mud anddebris whenthe suddensmell of natural gas chokes me. Wefind KennyValliaJr., retired Air Forcestaff sergeant, lugging home provisions a taxi driver friend has taken him to Mobile,Ala., to get. Vallia’s home is a second-story apartmentin a doomed building. To get there, you hike up uncertain stairs and walk along a balcony whose supports moveif you push them lightly. The apartmentis fly-swept and dark. But Vallia sees no cause to bemoan his misfortune. “The Lord brought methroughthe storm for somethin’,” he says. “Andit wasn't to sit around and wallowin self-pi A few cies later, a few miles away, Jayne and Maury Davis explain how they had to walk across debris that stood 12 feet highand four blocks deep to reach the concreteslab wheretheir home used to be. On the slab, they found a cast iron cross that used to hang ina downstairs bathroom.It was, says Mau- ry, a message from heaven,“asign that you're going to be OK, that you're not alone in all this, and keep your faith.” It’s after we haveseen and heardall ofthese things that Bates tells me the en Stepanek story. The sun is sink- ing to a placid ocean and wearereturning to the Sun Herald building, where RVsare parked in rows andpeople for whomthe loss of homes andloved ones ee aianond go about putting out a onerwords his timing is perfect. An hour later, Bates presents me with a picture of Stepanek.I plan to frameit andput it someplace whereI will see it every day and be reminded. That winds will howland watersrise and our possessions andlives be twisted into pretzelshapes. That rack and ruin are part of the human condition. But stubbornness is, too.Faithis, too. Defiance is,too. Wefight. Wefight for our lives, D Leonard Pitts Jr. is a Pulitzer Prizewinning columnist with the Miami Herald. He can be reachedat Ipitts@herald.com. MALLARDFILLMORE: Bruce Tinsley Se ae uncharted islandthis week, Actor Bob Denver died Sept. 2 in North Friday, September 9, 2005 HERALD oy SHOCKING To IMAGES OF PereSING AND ‘Gilligan S Island’ n American legend madea trip to an DAILY |
