Man With a Net

Man with a Net is the 75th episode of Gilligan's Island and the seventh episode of the third season. It first aired October 24, 1966.

Synopsis
Gilligan is relaxing by the Lagoon when he is accosted by a strange man with a net trying to catch a butterfly. It turns out he is Lord Beasley Waterford, a renowned but eccentric butterfly collector in pursuit of a rare butterfly called the Pussycat Swallowtail. He promises to rescue The Castaways, but as the Professor reveals, a scholar like Waterford can take weeks or even months to capture his specimen. Eager to expedite their rescue, Ginger tries to romantically cajole Beasley, and Mr. Howell tries to bribe him, but he is oblivious to their attempts. The Professor even tries crib sheets to assist Beasley in his search to bond with him, but he is exposed as a fraud. Gilligan, meanwhile, reveals he has found Beasley's flare gun, which isn't loaded when they fire it. Realizing they have been trying to shorten his quest, Beasley reveals he has hidden the flares and resorts to running the Castaways ragged in search of the butterfly, Gilligan casually waving it off at one point. Tired of Beasley's tyrannical requests, the Skipper and Professor resort to getting Beasley drunk to get the flares, using an island still to brew the local berries on the island into a potent fruity tea, but they only end up getting themselves drunk. Beasley's stout British stamina proves resistant to their island-made tea, and with everyone passed out, he casually catches the butterfly. Unfortunately, he cannot rouse the Castaways from their inebriated stupor to take them home and has no choice but to leave them. Two days later, Gilligan and the others wake up from their stupor to discover Beasley has left them behind. On the Radio, he is being interviewed and asked why he is dressed in a parka, Beasley replies there is an even rarer species of butterfly found in Antarctica. The interviewer asks about the Pussycat Swallowtail or anything about the island, and Beasely brushes it off with "It will have to wait!" in his haste to travel to the South Pole. Skipper sadly remarks by the time he returns he will forgotten all about the castaways.

Message

 * Once again, the Castaways learn the truth of Shakespeare's words, as they are "Hoist with their petard."

Highlights

 * Coming up

Credits
Main Cast
 * Bob Denver as Gilligan
 * Alan Hale Jr. as The Skipper
 * Jim Backus as Mr. Howell
 * Natalie Schafer as Mrs. Howell
 * Tina Louise as Ginger
 * Dawn Wells as Mary Ann
 * Russell Johnson as The Professor

Guest Cast
 * John McGiver as Lord Beasley Waterford
 * Maurice Dallimore as British Interviewer (uncredited)

Trivia

 * Lord Beasley's map of the island shows the channel of the lagoon bending counter-clockwise when it really bends clockwise.
 * The Professor tells Mary Ann he has six degrees, but he only listed four to the Howells in Lovey's Secret Admirer.
 * Why the Skipper just didn't hide the flare gun to keep Waterford from leaving without them is unrevealed.
 * Lord Beasley Waterford would never find the Antarctic butterfly he sets off for. The optimal temperature for butterflies is between 82-102 degrees Fahrenheit. The average temperature in Antarctica is between 14 and -70 degrees Fahrenheit.
 * In cold climates, butterflies usually hibernate or remain as caterpillars or chrysalises.
 * There are two syndicated versions of this episode. The TVLand version edits out Ginger visiting Beasley; the MeTV version edits out Mr. Howell's visit and Beasley in the scuba outfit but includes Ginger's nighttime visit.

Quotes

 * Lord Beasley Waterford - "If there's one thing I can't stand, it's an imposturous butterfly collector!

Gilligan - "We're so high up, it's probably an angel!"
 * Lord Beasley Waterford - "Something with wings is flying around up ahead!"

Ginger - "Mary Ann, the only thing I know how to catch is a man."
 * Mary Ann - "Ginger, we're supposed to be helping Lord Beasley catch a butterfly."


 * Mr. Howell - "Lord Beasley, will you please listen to me when I'm trying to bribe you!"

Gilligan - "Where else can he afford to look?" (Lord Beasley walks by wearing scuba gear looking very determined.) Mr. Howell - "Good heavens!" Ginger - "Looking for a butterfly under the water?" Mr. Howell - "That's what I call a determined man." Skipper - "That's what I call a determined nut!"
 * Professor - "We've been all over this island and were not even sure Lord Beasley has even seen a Pussycat Swallowtail."


 * Skipper - "You and your big mouth!" (after Gilligan remarks that the only place Beasley hasn't searched the mountain, and Beasley forces them to climb it)


 * Lord Beasley Waterford - "So you thought you could flatter, cajole and trick me into breaking my vow not to leave this island without the Pussycat Swallowtail. Shame on you, and after our two countries have built up a friendship of mutual trust... despite of what happened in 1776...."

Lord Beasley Waterford - "No talking in the ranks!" Skipper - "Yes, sir!" Lord Beasley Waterford - "And may I remind you that Captain Bligh was also a Britisher."
 * Skipper - "He's a regular Captain Bligh!"


 * Skipper - "Gilligan, just hold the palette steady or I'll make you purple... and black and blue too."


 * Skipper - "If there's one thing I can't stand, it's a butterfly that won't hold its colors!"

Gilligan - "I think the little devil likes it."
 * Professor - "Have you guys seen my... What are you doing? You're painting a butterfly?!"


 * Mr. Howell - "I predict that after three sips of that concoction that Lord Beasley's flare gun will go off by itself!"


 * Lord Beasley Waterford - "That's the trouble with you, Americans. You simply don't know how to hold your tea."


 * Mrs. Howell - "This is the last tea from fermented berries I'm ever serving at one of my parties."

Mr. Howell - "Well, how could he miss? He and that butterfly were the only things awake on this whole silly island!"
 * Gilligan - "He caught one?"