I want to go back to Pago Pago Pago yeah yeah yeah with you

The title of this blog is drawn from lyrics by The Mosquitoes[1], led by Les Brown, Jr, son of the better known Les Brown of "Band of Renown" fame. The Wellingtons are credited with singing the opening theme to Gilligan's Island in the first season, and of course they appeared as The Mosquitoes, with Les Brown, Jr guest starring as their front man. The Mosquitoes were invented for that episode, but The Wellingtons were a real act; from what I could find out, a folk trio.[2]

I heard Pago Pago referenced recently by none other than a young Richard Mulligan. I wouldn't have recognized the voice, but the depth and meter of his delivery is unmistakable. You of course remember Mulligan from Soap and Empty Nest.

I'll be downloading some Dimension-X to break up my nighttime mystery treat. I like comedy even more, but overdosed on my comedy favorites a while back and have lately turned to mysteries in the evenings.

Click Here to Listen to "You Can Die Again" from CBS Radio Mystery Theater, Starring Richard Mulligan


[1]
If you ever want to demonstrate your 60's TV trivia knowledge, the Mosquitoes were Bingo, Bango, Bongo and Irving. Mrs Howell was always trying to give Irving a haircut. Irving didn't talk much, just an occasional yelp at the sight of Mrs Howell and her scissors. Of course, successfully demonstrating trivia knowledge only works when the listener says "Oh, yeah, I remember them! Man, your memory is good." If they don't know what you're talking about, they look at you like "That's nice, now please don't bother us again."

This is short, enjoy. Click here to watch The Mosquitoes play "He's a Loser."➚  Les Brown, Jr is on drums.

[2]
Read the script for Episode #48, "Don't Bug The Mosquitoes."➚ Gilligansisle.com is a terrific site for Gilligan enthusiasts; I know it looks hokey, but lots of good info there.

Know why Gilligan's Island was cancelled? Because Babe Paley, the wife of CBS president William S Paley, liked Gunsmoke, and time slot changes were threatening to cut it back to an hour (it ran 90 minutes in those days). Bill Paley had to cut something, and the half hour he chose was Gilligan's Island, which was still getting good ratings and had been renewed for a fourth season.

(How do I know that? I'm a big fan of Truman Capote (IMHO the greatest writer of this generation); Truman was a good friend of Babe Paley and this detail found its way into one of the biographies or footnotes I read a long time ago. At least, that's how I recall it; if anyone knows different, feel free to comment.)

Just goes to show it's not always who you know, but who they're married to. And that's how the world was deprived of any more insight from the social microcosm of seven people stranded on a deserted island. (More on that later, perhaps; there is probably no show more indelibly written on my memory.)