The Professor Finally Made It Off ‘Gilligan’s Island’ (By That I Mean He’s Dead)

Actor Russell Johnson, the actor who portrayed Professor Roy Hinkley on the classic 1960's sitcom Gillian's Island, is dead. He was 89-years old. The cause of death has not been released, but if I had to guess, I'd say he was probably murdered by the Yakuza. But again, that's just speculation.


Gilligan's Island ran on CBS from 1964 until 1967, and maintained decent ratings. But years of syndicated reruns exposed the show to generations of viewers, catapulting it to a campy, yet iconic status. As a result, Hinkley was typecast as The Professor, and had trouble landing other roles after the show's demise. This fact is somewhat ironic considering he was one of only two cast members who were not originally mentioned by name in the show's theme song. However, The Professor's ability to craft modern conveniences out of coconuts and bamboo eventually made him one of the show's most recognizable faces, despite the fact that he couldn't build a proper raft or figure out how to repair a boat.



At any rate, R.I.P.