Friday, January 26, 2007

Gilligan's Island...A Wholesome Show

Back in the early sixties, there was a daily half hour show called Gilligan's Island. The story line was plain and simple... Seven men and women are stranded on an uncharted island following a torrential storm. Now how complicated a storyline is that! The show only lasted for three seasons but during that time, it pushed out 98 episodes. The story lines were basic and yet very entertaining.

Though there were a couple of very pretty ladies in the show, sex was not a main focus. Though there was some roughhousing, there was never any violence. Also, there was never any vulgarity.



Looking back at TV shows back then, they appeared to be so much more wholesome than shows are today. So many shows today are entrenched with themes of sex and violence that we sometimes shudder while watching them. Unfortunately however, some of our children's cartoons are worse than most adult comedy shows. Fortunately, despite questionable shows being on the uprise, there are still various shows which are considered family entertainment and are very wholesome.

So, the next time you are with children or even alone for that matter and want to watch a television show, check the TV listings and consider watching something without violence or sex for a change. Now, if you have a difficult time locating this type of program, relax… You are in the same boat as the rest of us.

How unfortunate!

19 comments:

Billy said...

Gilligan's Island was one of my all-time favorites! You have brought back such wonderful memories of my youth. Thanks sweetie!

Marie-Hélène Raletz said...

Hello Dave!
I've never watched this series (it never made it to France) but I'm sure I would have loved it.
I love that song, it's so catchy and uplifting :)
Marie

Jazz said...

Ah Gilligan. They could make a radio out of a coconut, but they couldn't patch a hole in a boat. Go figure.

Cheryl said...

I loved watching Gilligan'a Island. There were so many good shows back then. I have a 13 year old who grew up on PBS. Now the shows she watches? I cringe. What bothers me the most is the casual sex. You can't escape it.

Dave said...

Hi Abbagirl!... Yes, wonderful memories they were. You are welcome! :-)

Hi Marie!... I believe there are a couple of episodes on You Tube if interested. By the way... Thanks for the Herman comics... Love them! :-)

Hi Jazz!...Good point.. I never really thought of that! LOL

Hi Cheryl!... Sex is now so casual on TV... A couple of decades ago, it would have been a thing to talk about .. Not anymore. Very unfortunate!

Dan said...

I wonder if everything goes in cycles. Perhaps twenty years from now the fashion will be shows like "Gilligan's Island" again. I wonder. Or are we just on a slippery slope downward and the trend will only continue?

Dave said...

Hi Dan!..Pleased to meet you. Nice blog you have by the way. I am somewhat of a realist (pessimist more so) when it comes to morals and society and I think that though the trend may change, it will not revert back to the old shows that we so used to enjoy. I just hope that, though, adult type humor may have its place, it won't bury what some might call wholesome shows.

Angel said...

Hi Dave!!

I happened to love Gilligan's Island. I will still watch it when I can find it on tv. And Happy Days, and The Cosby Show, Mannix(I am really showing my age here!), the Man from U.N.C.L.E., Get Smart.....I could go on forever! Some good and corny shows, tht you just can't find anymore. It's a shame.

I too love simon & Garfunkle!!!
I like you Dave.

Sunil Parashar said...

Hello Dave.
How truly said..this problem prevails everywhere.

At older times parents were excited to ask their children to watch this and that movie/opera..but now a days..it's headache for parents like What if our children watch this or that..:)

Have a nice time Dave.

Janice Thomson said...

I too faithfully watched this show along with a few others. Like everything else technology is great until it gets abused...when TV first arrived at our home in the ummm...oh never mind LOL, we used to watch the Ed Sullivan show and Patty Duke etc etc as a family...nowadays we just don't do that anymore...lifestyles are too busy and TV doesn't offer a lot for family viewing...loved seeing this here Dave :)

Jo said...

I loved Gilligan's Island. I have heard so much about a show called "Entourage" so I watched it the other night. It's a half-hour sit-com and it was on at 9:00. About five minutes into it they started using the *F* word, and didn't stop. I'm not a prude, but on a 9:00 sit-com? I don't think I'll bother watching it again.

Cheers,
Josie

Dave said...

Hi Beth!... MANNIX... Now there's a show I forgot all about!! Ther are so many shows that, once out of sight becomes out of mind. Thank goodness for DVD boxed sets! And Simon & Garfunkel ... great music...I agree! :-) Nice to meet you!

Hi Sunil Parmar!... Good to hear from you! Yes, it is too bad that you have to worry about that nowadays. By the way ... Forwarded your blog to a couple of friends... they really like it! :-)

Janice...Always good to hear from you. Doing things as a family? Now there's a novel idea! Unfortunately this situation is getting worse as families get more and more involved with outside of the family activities. Take care! :-)


Hi Josie!.... I remember when using the "F-word" was totally banned on television... How thinkgs have changed! Have a good weekend! ... Are you still being harrassed by the "Soup Nazi"?

Jo said...

Ha! The Soup Nazi. I ignore her. I bring my own lunch now, and it's much better.

Have a great weekend. It's fffrrreeezing where you are. Spring has arrived here, yay.

Cheers,
Josie

Scout said...

Hello Dave. This is a great post. We are all indeed in the same boat, like Gilligan and his pals (I loved that show as a kid, especially the black and white episodes, or was that just our old TV). I don't have trouble finding something to watch without violence, which I have a low tolerance for. But I am hard pressed to find programming without sex, which is most often gratuitous and unnecessary to the plot. These days, it seems to be included in every scene as if the script writers had run out of creative ideas.

Anonymous said...

Hi!
I lived in the states when I was a young girl and growing older I often remembered this show. I must have been very impressed by it! Such fun to find this spot in a blog I found as a link from a canadian blog of an austrian woman...
greeting from Germany!

CS said...

We watched this all the time as kids. My favorite was that giant spider. I think it lived in a cave. Weird creatures would be a problem in one show, then never appear again. Must have been a magic island.

Akelamalu said...

I used to love Golligan's Island. Most television programmes now seem to consist of sex and violence - and that's just the children's shows! :(

Akelamalu said...

I used to love Golligan's Island. Most television programmes now seem to consist of sex and violence - and that's just the children's shows! :(

Akelamalu said...

I used to love Golligan's Island. Most television programmes now seem to consist of sex and violence - and that's just the children's shows! :(