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In the mid-1960s TV sitcom Gilligan’s Island, actress, and TV movie producer Dawn Wells, who became internationally famous as the stranded girl-next-door, died on Wednesday of coronavirus-related complications. She was already 82 years old. The publicist of Wells, B. Harlan Boll, on social media, announced her death.
Wells was a Reno, Nev. native, and started out as a queen of beauty. In 1959, she competed in the Miss America pageant as Miss Nevada. It was her ticket to show business; soon after, in shows such as 77 Sunset Strip, Maverick, Bonanza, and The Joey Bishop Show, she had minor roles. Wells became the pigtailed, wide-eyed Mary Ann in 1964, a sharp contrast to another female castaway, the sexpot film actress Ginger (played by Tina Louise). The Ginger-vs.-Mary Ann rivalry was a straight male fantasy of feminine ideals in the very mid-1960s.
She later appeared on shows such as Vega$, Growing Pains, The Bold and the Beautiful, and Baywatch, on which her character was once again named Mary Ann, after Well’s signature success in Gilligan’s Island, which ran on prime time on CBS for only three years, but endlessly for decades in syndication. In the children’s show The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants, she also voiced Gumbalina Toothington and, as a producer, brought films to CVS, Showtime, and Amazon.
But Wells was always the wholesome Mary Ann after Gilligan’s Island. Wells titled her self-help book What Mary Ann Would Do in 2014? A Life Guide.
Wells posted a holiday message and a short video on her Facebook page on Christmas Eve. She wrote, “Keep your heart light and share a few laughs and conversations with someone near and far, please find joy in the midst of the pandemic and be aware of ours overwhelmed first responders. Let’s not let our actions put a greater burden on them. I am grateful and in awe of the dedication of our health care professionals,” she said, not referring to her own health.
