Jim Backus began his acting career in the 1940s, lending his voice to countless radio dramas and animated shorts. He was a recognizable staple in Hollywood during the 1950s and 1960s, having appeared in films such as Rebel Without a Cause, Bare Hills, Man of a Thousand Faces, Zot!, It's crazy, crazy, Crazy, Crazy world" and dozens of others. Also during this same period, Bacchus voiced the oddly aged Mr. Magoo in many, many cartoons. In addition, he headlined his own sitcom The Jim Backus Show and appeared in The Untouchables. He was capable of dramatic work, comedic work and everything in between. By the time Backus played Thurston Howell III in the 1964 Sherwood Schwartz sitcom Gilligan's Island, he was a huge star, deeply entrenched in Hollywood. Backus was certainly the biggest celebrity in the series and his involvement it even led to some major last-minute rewrites.

Gilligan's Island, however, became a bigger hit than anyone could have predicted despite his not-so-successful initial pilot attempt. The story of the seven stranded missing somehow immediately penetrated deep into the American consciousness, attracting millions of viewers. And then, thanks to long-term union deals, new generations of television fans continued to watch Gilligan's Island on television for decades. The show's seven stars became deeply attached to their roles ... which ultimately hurt their careers. While all seven stars continued to work after The Island was released in 1967, they likely struggled in LA casting offices, having to convince potential directors that, yes, they were capable of doing more than just playing their characters. characters from "Gilligan's Island". .

This phenomenon stung Bacchus deeply, given his history in Hollywood. In an old interview with the Herald and Review (manually transcribed by MeTV), Backus was appalled that he became known only for his post-Gilligan's Island comedy. He knew he was capable of deeply dramatic performances, tragic twists and intense stage acting. Like any actor, he wanted to be seen as bigger than just his best-known roles.

While attentive fans of "Gilligan's Island" surely know about Backus' long, deep acting careerthe general public seemed to know him only as a comedian. And while Backus is a capable comic actor, he wanted everyone to know that he has a much wider range beyond "unknown rich man" and "unknown blind man." To the Herald and Review, he said it quite plainly:

"It really bothers me people who think the only things I've done are Mr. Magoo and Gilligan's Island." I'm a dramatic actor myself and I've done over 80 non-comedy films (...) I feel like I've ever painted myself into a corner, good, solid, dramatic parts."

Backus also noted that he recently appeared in a stage production of "Our Town," which called for tears and tragedy. “In one scene,” he explained, “I'm crying for my dead wife. How can that be funny? Fighting the stigma of a single, widespread success can be daunting for an actor. Just ask George Reeves, who deeply hated being famous for playing Superman, preventing him from getting another acting job. Or, heck, ask any of the original Star Trek actors who are still best known for that one show.

Backus, however, took solace in the fact that he had been asked to appear in so many TV commercials in his career. Ads, as many know, pay incredibly well, and Backus has accumulated a healthy amount of cash because of them. Enough money, in fact, that he could afford to be picky about his acting roles. As he said:

"(Ads are) the best thing in the world because of what we call 'FI' money." "

"FY", of course, means "f*** you". Bacchus was simply being polite when he said "take them away" instead of "turn them off". Telling a producer to quit is a rare and warm privilege in Hollywood.