| "The Little Dictator" | |
|---|---|
| Season 2, Episode 3 | |
| |
| A Latin American dictator is exiled to Gilligan's Island. Will Gilligan become a puppet ruler? | |
| Basic Info | |
| Air Date: | September 30, 1965 |
| Written By: | Bob Rodgers and Sid Mandel |
| Directed By: | Jack Arnold |
| Guest Cast: | Nehemiah Persoff as President Rodriguez |
| Episode guide | |
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| Beauty Is as Beauty Does | Smile, You're on Mars Camera |
The Little Dictator is the third episode of the second season of Gilligan's Island. It first aired September 30, 1965.
Synopsis[]
A Latin American dictator is exiled to the Island, and intends to turn the Castaways into his subjects under his own island nation. The Castaways manage to overthrow him upon realizing he has no more bullets for his gun, but he is stunned when they don't execute him, instead offering him to live in their community. Rodriguez instead decides to back Gilligan as leader of the island, but in a dream, Gilligan realizes he would make a bad leader. Going to a window, he discovers scenes of Indians attacking from the west and the country's ships sinking at sea, among other disasters. Waking up, he realizes Rodriguez only wants to use him as a puppet. Before Gilligan can act on this, he discovers sailors have come to rescue Rodriguez, after a counter-revolution in his country. The boat only has enough room for Rodriguez, and he promises to send his navy to the island in order to rescue the castaways. However, before this can be accomplished, the castaways eventually hear a news report the following day that there was more social unrest in Rodriguez' country. Rodriguez' claims about Gilligan and the castaways had caused the natives to consider him crazy and inspired yet another revolution and exile him again, only this time to the Andes Mountains, frustrating the Castaways once again.
Message[]
- "Democracy and freedom are precious, and one must fight, if necessary, to preserve them."
Highlights[]
- Gilligan dreaming he's a dictator and leader
- "Buenos Noches - Good night!" quote from Gilligan
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
- Nehemiah Persoff as President Rodriguez
- Edward Gallaher as WTOP Radio Announcer/Himself (voice only)
Trivia[]
- The title refers to Charlie Chaplin's 1940 film The Great Dictator.
- In the opening scenes, Gilligan uncharacteristically tries fighting Rodriguez for his gun.
- Gilligan fails to remember that he was already voted president of the island in President Gilligan, but then by this point, it seems the Castaways have merely reverted back to their regular routines.
- This is the first episode in which the island has been given an official name: "Equarico West."
- Mr. Howell tries to show off some Spanish when he alerted Rodriguez in Spanish about a boat in the ocean when he says "La boata en la oceano." The actual translation should have been "Hay un barco en el oceano." However he fails to mention Spanish in You've Been Disconnected when the Castaways reveal which languages they know.
- There's no tree in the proximity of the hut for Mr. Howell to string up a net to catch Rodriguez unless the Professor created a complex pulley system between two perpendicular trees in the area.
- In the dream sequence, the Castaways are part of Gilligan's cabinet. The Skipper is an Admiral, Mr. Howell is the Secretary of the Treasury, Mrs. Howell and Mary Ann are singing assistants and Ginger is a spy. The Professor is possibly Minister of Science, but he doesn't have any lines.
- Real-life Washington D.C. radio announcer Eddie Gallaher gives the news report about Rodriguez being overthrown again and exiled into the Andes.
- It is kind of hard to believe the Castaways are getting Washington D.C. news reports unless it was being transmitted through Honolulu.
- According to You've Been Disconnected, Gilligan supposedly doesn't know any Spanish, but he must have learned some from Rodriguez because after hearing the news of his second exile, he simply replies, "Buenos noches - Good night!" perfectly without flubbing the line.
- The song that Gilligan's "loyal subjects" sing during his dream is a take-off on the song "Harrigan", written by American entertainer and playwright George M. Cohan for the 1908 Broadway musical Fifty Miles from Boston and later made famous in the 1942 film Yankee Doodle Dandy, which was a biopic of Cohan's life.
- Nehemiah Persoff, who played President Rodriguez, was actually Israeli-born.
- This is Sherwood Schwartz's favorite episode.
- The Sundance TV and IFC, airings cut the end of the episode.
Quotes[]
- Gilligan "Who are you?"
Rodriguez "I am Pancho Hernando Gonzalez Enriques Rodriguez, ex-president de la Republica de Equarico."
Gilligan "And I'm George Washington, ex-President of the United States."
Rodriguez "You have been exiled, too?"
- Mr. Howell - (on encountering Rodriguez) "Heavens, Gestapo!!"
- Professor "Gentlemen, are we going to submit or subvert?"
Mr. Howell " I vote for subversion. May the Harvard Club have mercy on my soul."
- (President Gilligan looks out the window and sees his Navy ships sinking)
Skipper - "Well, the sailors are learning how to swim and the people on shore are learning to give them mouth to mouth resuscitation without getting emotionally involved."
Rodriguez - "How are you doing that?"
Skipper - "Well, it ain't easy!"
- (President Gilligan looks out window and sees Indians attacking Cowboys.)
Gilligan - "This window must face west!"
- Gilligan - "Buenos noches - Good night!"