For males of a certain age range which includes me, a great conundrum and common question has been this: Ginger or Mary Ann? This midwestern boy’s honest answer has always been Mary Ann, whose character on the 1960’s sitcom Gilligan’s Island was played by Dawn Wells. Wells has passed away due to Covid-19. In moments of self-deprecation in my adult life I’ve often said that if I’d read a book for every fifth time I’d seen the same episodes of that goofy show I’d be a very well read individual. Like many others, I spent many an after school half-hour watching reruns of the castaways and their bumbling ways. When I was in college I had a chance encounter with Ms. Wells when she dined with her friend Marcia Wallace (The Bob Newhart Show, Match Game, the voice of Mrs. Krabappel on The Simpsons, among others) in the restaurant where I was employed at the time (she liked her onion rings). Rest in peace, Dawn, and thanks for the silly memories.
-Stephen
50th Music Anniversaries and Other Musings 
I met her when I was around 10 years old (at a MD telethon) and she wasn’t much taller than I was. I shook her hand and my mom made me wash my hand the next day because I wasn’t going to.
I also got an autographed picture that I stupidly lost somewhere in time.
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That’s fantastic. She seemed to embrace the fact she was always known as “Mary Ann,” just as Alan Hale was “The Skipper” until the day he died. I’ve heard Tina Louise resented being type-cast as a result of being “Ginger.” Not sure about the others, though Jim Backus seemed to have had a wider variety of roles in his career.
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Tina Louise did resent it….a lot. Even when they were making the show.
Dawn Wells was just so nice about it…she was perfectly fine with it. We know certain girls like Susan Dey and others were first crushes of boys…because of HEAVY syndication Mary Ann is still being seen by kids.
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The choice was easy, it was always Mary Ann!!
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Ginger… The show is now being shown at 7am and I usually have it on- that is much more fun than watching the gloom and doom on the morning news. Not a great show by any means- but fun. Stephen did you ever see the Gilligan’s Island where the Professor found a way to get off the island and Gilligan screwed it up? RIP Dawn Wells. Ginger now the only one left.
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Lol – you mean “that one” episode where Gilligan messed up the Professor’s plan?
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LOL. They had a lot of patience with Gilligan..
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