Movies - TV
This Gilligan’s Island Book Put A Twisted Spin On The Series’ Characters
By WITNEY SEIBOLD
"Gilligan's Island" was the subject of many parodies and satires, including the publication of "Gilligan's Wake" by Tom Carson, the film and TV critic for Esquire Magazine.
"Gilligan's Wake," taking its title from "Finnegans Wake," was an "exposé" of the characters on "Gilligan's Island," revealing that each one of them had a dark and shady past.
The book has seven chapters, each one devoted to a different character and a style parody of an extant work of literature.
The Gilligan chapter emulates the style of Thomas Pynchon's nuclear freakout "Gravity's Rainbow" and shows the island as a web-like universe crossed with other 1960s sitcoms.
The book reveals that the skipper served on a PT Boat lost at sea during the Pacific War, and resembles something you would see in an episode of Tales from the Crypt.
The Professor worked on the atom bomb that destroyed Nagasaki, while Mary-Ann goes through a magical, centuries-long voyage. The Howells and Ginger also have their stories.
Each chapter features a cameo by Maxwell House products, such as the Howells drinking coffee, and the characters frequently drive past the brand’s billboards.
The New York Times gave "Gilligan's Wake" a positive review, saying that it wasn't as good as "Finnegans Wake," but was certainly better than "Gilligan's Island."