Janos Prohaska

Bio
Janos Prohaska was a Hungarian-born actor and stuntman, but he is ironically best known for playing animals and monsters on television and in films, such as "The Planet of the Apes." In addition to "Gilligan's island," he also played bears and assorted creatures in "Star Trek," "Bewitched," "Lost In Space" and "The Outer Limits." In "Gilligan, Maynard and Me," Bob Denver describes Prohaska as a very nice person but a devoted actor, adding that when Prohaska was in costume, he never broke from character. In his experience with ape costumes, Prohaska was even visited by cryptozoologist and Bigfoot researcher John Green to give his opinion on the Patterson-Gimlin footage, reported to be one of the best pieces of evidence to support the existence of Sasquatch. When asked if he thought the film was faked, Prohaska replied, "I don't think so." He further added, "To me it looks very, very real." If the film was hoaxed, he thought it was remarkably realistic and sophisticated, and the best costume he had ever seen. The only plausible explanation was that someone might have glued false hair directly to an actor.

Sadly, Janos and his son died in a plane crash on March 13, 1974, around eight years after the airing of the Beauty Is As Beauty Does episode. His name was later applied as the "true identity" of Blackhawk, a Polish World War Two pilot from DC Comics.

Episodes(s)

 * Beauty Is As Beauty Does
 * Our Vines Have Tender Apes
 * The Pigeon
 * Diamonds Are an Ape's Best Friend
 * Forward March