One Of The Best Gilligan's Island Actors Initially Refused To Star In The Sitcom

Success is never a guarantee in the television world, so one can hardly blame Russell Johnson for being leery about signing up for a three-hour tour to "Gilligan's Island." While his career pre-"Gilligan" was mainly taken up by appearences in 1950s science fiction films like "It Came from Outer Space" and "This Island Earth," as well as Westerns like "Tumbleweed," Johnson was still reluctant to give himself entirely over to a life on TV — especially when he learned that CBS was having a hard time getting an actor to play Roy "The Professor" Hinkley. 

"They called and asked if I wanted to run a test for the part of the Professor, and I said no. They called me three times and I finally said yes," Johnson told the Press and Sun-Bulletin (as quoted by MeTV). Johnson explained that he had done multiple Westerns and narration work for CBS and films for Paramount, which meant that he had become a reliable go-to for the studio. Still, he resisted entering the television world until he was coaxed into it.

It was a tough march up the hill to fame, and he and actress Dawn Wells (Mary Anne) wouldn't even be in the show's opening credits during the first season, but "Gilligan's Island" would go on to become a cultural totem for baby boomers everywhere. Because of that, Johnson would forever be associated with the Professor whether he wanted to be or not.

One tragic detail about "Gilligan's Island" cast member Russell Johnson's life is that he would forever be changed by his time as Professor Roy Hinkley, and it definitely did a number on his career. "It's absolutely amazing how imprinted we were on people's minds," he told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer in 2001. "It was tough to get started again ... We were really pigeonholed. We were typecast, and it was very difficult."

After "Gilligan" wrapped in 1967, Johnson continued his career, landing gigs on shows like "Death Valley Days," "Lassie" and "Gunsmoke," a show that ironically caused the cancellation of "Gilligan's Island." He also turned up in a wide variety of TV movies throughout the 1970s and 1980s. 

But the Professor would always be a part of his world: he voiced the character in two Saturday morning cartoons, appeared in all of the "Gilligan's Island" TV reunion movies, and played the character on episodes of "The New Monkees," "Alf" and "Meego," the latter of which would ultimately be his final role. He may have been hesitant to join the sitcom at first, but in the end it made Johnson's name as an actor — for better or worse.