Bob Denver
Author: Trudy Stroup
As a kid, I would run home from school every day to watch Gilligan's Island. My sister and I would drop our books at the door on the way inside, even though we were supposed to take them to our room, and head straight for the television. We were supposed to start our homework or housework, but we didn't start anything until we had watched our favorite shows. It was a moment in time when we were bravely rebellious because there was no one home to tell us to do otherwise.
Robert Osbourne Denver was born in New Rochelle, New York on January 9th, 1935. I have not found any information on his parents or siblings, nor have I found any information on his actual childhood. In fact, the only thing about parentage I could find was a claim that Bob is the great-great grandson of Kansas Territory governor, James William Denver, for whom Denver, Colorado is named. However, I could not substantiate the claim with proof from any other site, magazine, or newspaper at my disposal. Most biographies start with a small note that he graduated from high school in Brownwood, Texas and "the family" moved to California when Bob was accepted at Loyola University in Los Angeles. He originally pursued a career in law and graduated with a degree in Political Science.
While there, he thought he might like to work as a stage hand for the campus theatre and ended up in a very nerve-racking production as part of the cast. Bob got over the jitters and performed in five productions while a student at Loyola. After graduation, he decided he didn't want to be a lawyer after all and sought out acting; taking parts in local theatre. To supplement his income, he took a teaching position at Corpus Christi Catholic School, in Pacific Palisades, California, where he taught mathematics and physical education. In his spare time, he worked part time for the United States Postal Service. Some reports say that in 1958, his sister entered his name for a screen test for the pilot of a new show that studio executives hadn't even agreed to back. He got the call to come and read for the part of "Cool Cat" beatnik, Maynard G. Krebs, (and the G stands for Walter) in the show "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis". This show introduced the nation to the beatnik scene and many people "credit" the show for the entire hippie culture, however, the whacked out beatnik character wasn't in the original "Dobbie Gillis" books. Instead, the character was written especially for the show by writer, Max Shulman, in the hopes that the fresh, new scene would entice one of the networks to pick it up. However, the writers hired for the show didn't know what a "beatnik" was; let alone how to write for one. After Bob got the part, he spent time in the local coffee houses near the college campuses to pick up the mannerisms and vernacular of the young, burgeoning, artistic poets of the area. Bob actually cultivated the part into the person of Maynard and it worked! The pilot was bought and a network picked it up for production. The show lasted 4 years and produced 142 episodes, as well as a culture that would change the face of the American teenager.
In 1963, Bob was tapped to read for another new hopeful series. But this series would end up defining the rest of Bob's career. The idea was simple. It included a side of comedy that Bob very much wanted to explore: pratfalls. And Bob was hot off a successful series. But this time, Bob would be the lead character and not the plucky sidekick. "Gilligan's Island" had interested networks just from the script reading. If the pilot was successful, the show had a spot. The cast of characters included Captain Jonas Grumby, first mate Willy Gilligan, a very rich couple, two secretaries, and a high school teacher, stranded on an island in the Pacific Ocean, by a surprise storm, while on a three hour tour. The cast members got along great and the pilot was taped without delay. Nevertheless, the network executives wanted to make a few changes after seeing the reel. It needed to be funnier, some of the characters read differently than presented on film, and my personal favorite, Gilligan should find and make a pet of a dinosaur! After negotiations were complete, three of the actors were replaced, two characters were renamed, three characters were tweaked and the dinosaur was axed. There was a new script, a new theme song, and a new pilot to be shot and the original pilot was not seen until 1992 when it was aired on Turner Broadcasting Systems. The show was a huge success and going strong until one of the network executives wives got involved. "Gunsmoke" was slated to be cancelled and it was her favorite show. So in a last minute decision, the contract for "Gunsmoke" was renewed and "Gilligan's Island" - along with another new comedy - was cancelled instead. In an interview of the cast members of Gilligan's Island, done years after the show's finale, they said all was going well, they had scripts for several upcoming episodes, and one day they came in to start rehearsal for the next episode and were told the show was cancelled. They were flabbergasted to say the least! There was no explanation given…it was just over. After only three years and 98 episodes, "Gilligan's Island" was finished. It is unclear how the cast actually learned of the events leading up to their demise, but there was nothing to be done. The show continued to play in reruns for many years, only being bested by "M*A*S*H" for the longest airing rerun of all time. The cast remained lifelong friends, coming together to make an occasional reunion movie or special appearance, and "Gunsmoke" continued in production for another 8 years.
Bob continued to act, but parts for him were few and far between. He tried other network television series; however none of his attempts were successful. He made appearances as Gilligan; often being seen out and about in his sailor cap and took bit parts in movies, television series, and cartoon voice work. He even resurrected the part of Gilligan on an episode of "Bay Watch". Eventually, he and his fourth wife Dreama moved out of the LA basin and retired to Princeton, West Virginia. While there, they started a radio program called "Weekend with Denver and Denver" which was quite popular.
It was there in West Virginia that Bob learned that his recreational smoking had caused esophageal cancer. On September 2, 2005, following surgery to treat his cancer, Bob passed away due to complications from the treatment. Dreama continues to broadcast "Little Buddy Radio" in his honor; playing a variety of music from all eras and genres.
If you are wondering why everyone had so many clothes on a 3 hour tour as stated in the theme song for "Gilligan's Island" I encourage you to go to http://www.bobdenver.com/fun-facts/ and click on the 10 most frequently asked questions. A fan of Bob's named Jeff Taylor of North Carolina provided a very plausible answer.
© 2015-2016 Trudy Stroup. All rights reserved.
Author: Trudy Stroup
As a kid, I would run home from school every day to watch Gilligan's Island. My sister and I would drop our books at the door on the way inside, even though we were supposed to take them to our room, and head straight for the television. We were supposed to start our homework or housework, but we didn't start anything until we had watched our favorite shows. It was a moment in time when we were bravely rebellious because there was no one home to tell us to do otherwise.
Robert Osbourne Denver was born in New Rochelle, New York on January 9th, 1935. I have not found any information on his parents or siblings, nor have I found any information on his actual childhood. In fact, the only thing about parentage I could find was a claim that Bob is the great-great grandson of Kansas Territory governor, James William Denver, for whom Denver, Colorado is named. However, I could not substantiate the claim with proof from any other site, magazine, or newspaper at my disposal. Most biographies start with a small note that he graduated from high school in Brownwood, Texas and "the family" moved to California when Bob was accepted at Loyola University in Los Angeles. He originally pursued a career in law and graduated with a degree in Political Science.
While there, he thought he might like to work as a stage hand for the campus theatre and ended up in a very nerve-racking production as part of the cast. Bob got over the jitters and performed in five productions while a student at Loyola. After graduation, he decided he didn't want to be a lawyer after all and sought out acting; taking parts in local theatre. To supplement his income, he took a teaching position at Corpus Christi Catholic School, in Pacific Palisades, California, where he taught mathematics and physical education. In his spare time, he worked part time for the United States Postal Service. Some reports say that in 1958, his sister entered his name for a screen test for the pilot of a new show that studio executives hadn't even agreed to back. He got the call to come and read for the part of "Cool Cat" beatnik, Maynard G. Krebs, (and the G stands for Walter) in the show "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis". This show introduced the nation to the beatnik scene and many people "credit" the show for the entire hippie culture, however, the whacked out beatnik character wasn't in the original "Dobbie Gillis" books. Instead, the character was written especially for the show by writer, Max Shulman, in the hopes that the fresh, new scene would entice one of the networks to pick it up. However, the writers hired for the show didn't know what a "beatnik" was; let alone how to write for one. After Bob got the part, he spent time in the local coffee houses near the college campuses to pick up the mannerisms and vernacular of the young, burgeoning, artistic poets of the area. Bob actually cultivated the part into the person of Maynard and it worked! The pilot was bought and a network picked it up for production. The show lasted 4 years and produced 142 episodes, as well as a culture that would change the face of the American teenager.
In 1963, Bob was tapped to read for another new hopeful series. But this series would end up defining the rest of Bob's career. The idea was simple. It included a side of comedy that Bob very much wanted to explore: pratfalls. And Bob was hot off a successful series. But this time, Bob would be the lead character and not the plucky sidekick. "Gilligan's Island" had interested networks just from the script reading. If the pilot was successful, the show had a spot. The cast of characters included Captain Jonas Grumby, first mate Willy Gilligan, a very rich couple, two secretaries, and a high school teacher, stranded on an island in the Pacific Ocean, by a surprise storm, while on a three hour tour. The cast members got along great and the pilot was taped without delay. Nevertheless, the network executives wanted to make a few changes after seeing the reel. It needed to be funnier, some of the characters read differently than presented on film, and my personal favorite, Gilligan should find and make a pet of a dinosaur! After negotiations were complete, three of the actors were replaced, two characters were renamed, three characters were tweaked and the dinosaur was axed. There was a new script, a new theme song, and a new pilot to be shot and the original pilot was not seen until 1992 when it was aired on Turner Broadcasting Systems. The show was a huge success and going strong until one of the network executives wives got involved. "Gunsmoke" was slated to be cancelled and it was her favorite show. So in a last minute decision, the contract for "Gunsmoke" was renewed and "Gilligan's Island" - along with another new comedy - was cancelled instead. In an interview of the cast members of Gilligan's Island, done years after the show's finale, they said all was going well, they had scripts for several upcoming episodes, and one day they came in to start rehearsal for the next episode and were told the show was cancelled. They were flabbergasted to say the least! There was no explanation given…it was just over. After only three years and 98 episodes, "Gilligan's Island" was finished. It is unclear how the cast actually learned of the events leading up to their demise, but there was nothing to be done. The show continued to play in reruns for many years, only being bested by "M*A*S*H" for the longest airing rerun of all time. The cast remained lifelong friends, coming together to make an occasional reunion movie or special appearance, and "Gunsmoke" continued in production for another 8 years.
Bob continued to act, but parts for him were few and far between. He tried other network television series; however none of his attempts were successful. He made appearances as Gilligan; often being seen out and about in his sailor cap and took bit parts in movies, television series, and cartoon voice work. He even resurrected the part of Gilligan on an episode of "Bay Watch". Eventually, he and his fourth wife Dreama moved out of the LA basin and retired to Princeton, West Virginia. While there, they started a radio program called "Weekend with Denver and Denver" which was quite popular.
It was there in West Virginia that Bob learned that his recreational smoking had caused esophageal cancer. On September 2, 2005, following surgery to treat his cancer, Bob passed away due to complications from the treatment. Dreama continues to broadcast "Little Buddy Radio" in his honor; playing a variety of music from all eras and genres.
If you are wondering why everyone had so many clothes on a 3 hour tour as stated in the theme song for "Gilligan's Island" I encourage you to go to http://www.bobdenver.com/fun-facts/ and click on the 10 most frequently asked questions. A fan of Bob's named Jeff Taylor of North Carolina provided a very plausible answer.
© 2015-2016 Trudy Stroup. All rights reserved.