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‘Gilligan’s Island’ Star Alan Hale Jr. Also Appeared as ‘The Skipper’ in Two ’80s Sitcoms

“The Skipper” was a popular character on the 1960s sitcom, “Gilligan’s Island.”

Alan Hale Jr. represented the character throughout the show’s three seasons on CBS. While “Gilligan’s Island” only lasted about 98 episodes, Hale embraced his character in a couple of other appearances years later.

‘Gilligan’s Island’ and The Skipper Years Later

According to MeTV, Hale never really strayed away from his identity as Skipper. Many actors grow to become heavily associated with their characters and have an issue with that.

Meanwhile, Alan Hale Jr. would later pull his character out of television retirement.

He pulled his costume from the depths of his closet and premiered in “The New Gadget” in an episode called “Gilligidge Island.”

“The New Gidget” was a sitcom from 1986 to 1988 starring Caryn Richman, Dean Butler, and William Schallert. The series is about a woman who gets married and changes her life from her previous free-spirited ways. However, she begins taking care of her young niece who happens to remind her of the old her.

Hale also appeared with his outfit in the television series “ALF.” This sitcom was on from 1986 to 1990. The show is about an “alien life form” who crashes onto Earth, but more specifically, onto the Tanner family’s garage. Hale appears in an episode during the second season called “Somewhere Over the Rerun.”

During the episode, ALF has started to enjoy watching “Gilligan’s Island.” He begins to dress like the characters and even sips out of a coconut as if it is also on an island. He gets up close and intimate with “Gilligan’s Island.”

The episode is a miniature reunion of the sitcom. Hale, Bob Denver, Russell Johnson, and Dawn Wells all appear as well.

Co-Stars Remember Hale

Alan Hale Jr. grew up next to acting. His father, Alan Hale Sr., had spent nearly 40 years acting in different films.

Through his father, he had many different connections in Hollywood and grew up with famous actors constantly surrounding him.

“He was a jolly guy, it was just the way he was,” Russell Johnson said in a Television Academy interview from 2013.

He always embraced his character even after the show. His co-stars always describe him as abundantly happy and full of life.

“He was so jovial and so sweet and so strong … never a cross word, never cranky … He was a wonderful man,” Dawn Wells said in her Television Academy interview.

She also explained the time that he fell during a stunt on the show and actually broke his wrist. He continued working the rest of the day and shocked everyone when he showed up the next day with a cast on his wrist.

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