Please note that we may earn a commission from purchases made via our links.
CBS Television Distribution
Devoted followers of the 1964 sitcom “Gilligan’s Island,” created by Sherwood Schwartz, have attempted to pinpoint the possible location of the famous “Island” in the Pacific Ocean. These fans, utilizing Hawaii as a reference point and incorporating known details about the S.S. Minnow, have speculated on the probable distance the boat could have drifted during a three-hour tour. Some have even factored in known tropical storm wind speeds and the maximum speed a non-functional ship could drift in the Pacific to identify the possible location of Gilligan’s deserted island. However, these calculations are built on several unconfirmed assumptions.
Fortunately, tracing the filming locations of “Gilligan’s Island” is a more straightforward task, thanks to the availability of complete records on the show’s production. Most of “Gilligan’s Island” was shot indoors at the CBS Studio Center in Studio City, California, specifically located at 4024 Radford Ave. This center came into existence in 1928 when a lettuce farm was converted into a film facility by producer Mack Sennett. Silent film icons like W.C. Fields, Buster Keaton, and Charlie Chaplin all filmed there.
In the subsequent decade, the studio was taken over by Republic Pictures, and numerous popular serials and Westerns were produced there. During the 1950s, the studio shifted its focus to TV productions, churning out successful shows like “Leave It to Beaver,” “The Big Valley,” and “The Rifleman” on a regular basis. By the early 1960s, the studio was predominantly devoted to TV production, with CBS heavily relying on the studio for shows like “Gunsmoke,” “My Three Sons,” and, of course, “Gilligan’s Island.” The sets representing the island were all interiors, with the cast filming the majority of their scenes on these constructed sets.
But what about the exteriors? These outdoor locations span far and wide. Thankfully, all notable Hawai’ian locations where “Gilligan’s Island” was filmed have been identified by the website SetJetters.
The title screen of Gilligan’s Island features shots from two different tropical islands
CBS Television Distribution
“Gilligan’s Island” also featured an outdoor lagoon, located in Studio City, which was essentially a large water tank. This Lagoon, which wasn’t heated or filtered, eventually became stagnant and unpleasant after being left uncovered all year round. The cast members had to request the producers to drain the tank and refill it with fresh water. Filming at the lagoon had to be postponed on busy traffic days due to the noise from the nearby 101 Freeway. In 1995, the lagoon was paved over and its previous location is now a parking lot.
However, the opening theme sequence of “Gilligan’s Island” was filmed in Hawaii, with most of the outdoor ocean scenes being shot off the coast of Waikiki. The marina where the S.S. Minnow was docked is the still-operational Ala Wai Harbor on Oahu’s southern coast. The opening sequence was filmed shortly after President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, hence the flags in the sequence are at half-mast.
The title card of “Gilligan’s Island” was superimposed over a distant island, supposed to represent a wide shot of the show’s primary location. For the first season’s title sequence, the island footage was taken from Sandy Cay, located in the Bahamas. Interestingly, Sandy Cay is currently up for sale for anyone with an extra $3 million. For the second season of “Gilligan’s Island,” which was shot in color, the footage of Sandy Cay was replaced with shots from Coconut Island, situated in Oahu’s Kaneohe Bay. The island is now home to the Hawaiian Institute of Marine Biology.
The color footage of the marina, used for the title sequences of the second and third seasons, was filmed in Marina del Rey, California.
The beach where the S.S. Minnow crashed is also located in Hawaii
CBS Television Distribution
The footage of the S.S. Minnow, damaged and beached, was also shot in Hawaii. In his memoir “Inside Gilligan’s Island: From Creation to Syndication,” Sherwood Schwartz recounts his search across the Hawaiian islands for the perfect boat to represent the S.S. Minnow. He needed a boat he could damage, as seen in the above image. Schwartz humorously recounts how a local old man was utterly perplexed as he and the “Gilligan’s Island” production crew set about damaging the boat on a local beach.
The remote beach was found on Kauai, one island west of Oahu. Specifically, it was Moloa’a Beach. Schwartz claims that the boat was already non-functional when he purchased it, necessitating it to be towed from Oahu to Kauai for filming.
While filming in Hawaii, the actors, according to the fansite GilligansIsle.com, lodged at the Coco Palms Hotel in Kaui, near Wailua. Unfortunately, this resort has since been demolished, and the resort that replaced it was damaged by Hurricane Iniki. Filming there took only four days, from November 18 to November 22, 1963, coinciding with Kennedy’s assassination. Following this, the cast returned to Southern California to shoot the majority of the series, all within the vicinity of the 101 Freeway.
Natalie Schafer, who portrayed Mrs. Howell, once confessed that she only took the “Gilligan’s Island” job because it offered her a brief, all-expenses-paid vacation to Hawaii.
Credit: www.slashfilm.com
