For three seasons between 1964 and 1967, Gilligan's Island by Sherwood Schwartz thrilled unsolicited television viewers with the exploits of seven missing persons trapped on an unknown island somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. It was a sitcom the whole family could enjoy (though some parents might have been hesitant to sanction such a trope), though it didn't really find its place in popular culture until it went into syndication. When Gilligan's Island could air five times a week, it became a couch potato favorite; suddenly, people were generating wild theories about the show's underlying themes and, by sheer repetition, memorizing the plots of entire episodes.

After stumbling out of the gate with his pilot (which was missing several key cast members), the show quickly found its formulaic groove thanks in large part to the dark chemistry of its ensemble. But even though they were a perfect fit, Schwartz and his writers realized early on that her core seven couldn't carry every episode — at least, not if they wanted to make it to season two. A bit of variety was in order, which meant that the guest stars had to find their way to the island. If you're wondering how the show can do this without making fun of a key element of its premise (that the castaways can't get off the island), you're violating the silly spirit of the sitcom. The writers would put minimal effort into explaining the comings and goings of the guest stars, and viewers were happy to accept it.

After all, one of the funnest aspects of Gilligan's Island it was guest stars—and for an irredeemably funny streak, Schwartz managed to get some pretty respectable names to slip in on occasion. But which appearances did we enjoy the most?

Yes. In the third season episode titled "The Kidnapper", Don Rickles goes against type as the title character, who initially kidnaps the women on the island for ransom. When the fugitives finally manage to catch him, they let the slick criminal win them over. Their prize? He steals their wallets and some of their personal belongings. Rickles actually plays a character in this episode, so don't expect a big helping of wilting one-liners. He colors within the lines and does a great job (not that this should be a surprise; he's done great dramatic work in movies like Run Silent, Run Deep and Casino). Unfortunately, Rickles apparently became a lifelong enemy in Russell Johnson, aka The Professor, who hated working with comics. Given that Rickles was considered a sweetheart in real life, this probably says more about Johnson than it does about Mr. Warmth.

Schwartz had no idea he was scoring a coup when a 13-year-old boy landed Kurt Russell will play an orphaned young man on the first season episode "Jungle Boy". Russell had already done television before he washed up on Gilligan's Island and also made a rough impact on the big screen as the kid who kicked Elvis Presley in the shin in It Happened at the World's Fair, but he was still in big an extent unknown to television viewers at the time. Russell's character can't speak English (he can only parrot words back to the missing), but he knows the location of the natural gas mine on the island. This discovery prompts the professor to construct a hot air balloon that will carry one of the missing back to civilization, where they can call in a rescue party. Unfortunately, the jungle boy is floating in the balloon. Two years later, Russell would appear in his first Disney film, launching a career that is still brewing today.

Gilligan's Island purists might dispute this entry because, to date, no one has ever been able to confirm that Stockard Channing appeared as a female gorilla in the episode "Diamonds Are A Monkey's Best Friend." All one would have to do is ask, but apparently no one has dared to broach the subject with the Tony and Emmy-winning actor (who is probably best known for her portrayal of Betty Rizzo in the big screen adaptation of "Grease"). If Channing is indeed in that suit, she's playing an ape who inadvertently saves Gilligan from the clutches of a male ape. What does the monkey want with Gilligan? Well, he accidentally douses himself with Mrs. Howell's perfume, which is some kind of aphrodisiac for big fella Harry. I know what you're thinking and, yes, Gilligan did come perilously close to sharing a fate with Trading Places' Clarence Bix.

The King of Chutzpah was an Emmy-winning television star when he wanted to jam for an episode of Gilligan's Island. If you're wondering why a huge name like Phil Silvers would appear on a show with zero aspirations of winning an Emmy, it's as simple as the fact that his production company Gladasaya financed the show. Silvers plays the title character in the season 3 episode "The Producer" and, unlike Rickles, he's very game for type. When Silvers lands on the island, the missing hope to return to civilization in his rescue plane. Unfortunately, the jerk has to go and tick off Ginger, whose request to appear in the producer's next film is cruelly denied. The Westerners plan to win over the producer on behalf of Ginger by staging a musical version of Hamlet. Their efforts are in vain as the producer runs off without them and, to add insult to injury, steals their idea for his next film.

Was there any doubt that these hardwood legends would top the list? In 1981 made-for-TV movie Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island The basketball team's plane crash lands on the island, leaving them stranded in the jungle. They are eventually found and housed at The Castaways, the resort run by the enterprising main characters who are no longer lost. The film's plot centers on the covert efforts of a wealthy businessman (Martin Landau) to extricate the island from under the dead and mine the valuable (and completely fictional) premium ore for his own considerable financial gain. The only way to stop him is to play a winner-take-all basketball game - which seems to be overwhelmingly in favor of the Westerners thanks to their superstar guests, but they soon discover that the businessman has created basketball-playing robots. every part of the Globetrotters is equal. However, in the end, the team figures out how to defeat the robots, and the Castaways remain in the hands of our heroes.