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Don Knotts asked Tina Louise of ''Gilligan's Island'' out once a week for an entire year
The Andy Griffith Show/Gilligan's Island crossover we never knew we needed.
It's the sort of storyline that almost feels like it could be fresh out of an episode of The Andy Griffith Show. Barney Fife pursues a beautiful woman, unaware that she has no interest in him, for far longer than he should have. In fact, this isn't a funny bit of fiction; it's a real-life anecdote from the life of Don Knotts.
Despite Knotts's performance as a bumbling comic foil to Griffith's straight man, Knotts himself was actually known as quite the ladies' man. In her book, Tied Up in Knotts: My Dad and Me, Don Knotts's daughter, Karen Knotts, wrote, "Women loved Dad because of his vulnerability and, of course, he made them laugh." Knotts had three wives throughout his life and even more romances. If you don't understand the appeal of a funny man, we're sorry for you, but Karen Knotts was kind enough to include a wonderful explanation from Nancy, the once-wife of John Ritter who had starred with Don Knotts on Three's Company.
Nancy said, "I saw Don as the man who was quiet, kind, respectful, warm with the greetings, self-contained; it's hard to achieve all that. He went from being a highly sophisticated gentleman to the biggest goofball with a rubbery face. There's almost nothing sexier than someone who can be hilarious. He makes you laugh when he's being a pro."
Of course, not everyone was falling for Don Knotts. The book recounted another story, this time from Knotts's friend, Joni Robbins. Robbins recalled Knotts telling her that he had previously tried to win the affections of one Tina Louise, one of the stars of Gilligan's Island, and he was less than successful. The book recalled, "He had a thing for redheads, and she had given him her phone number. Every week, he'd call and ask if she'd like to go out on Saturday night. She'd say, 'Oh, I'm sorry, I have other plans, but could you call me next week?' This went on for about a year until he finally realized how naive he'd been."
So while Tina Louise was immune to Knotts's charms, we need not feel too sorry for him. Because of his humor and big heart, Knotts was never short of love, both from partners and friends alike.
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49 Comments
The only other actor I can say that about is Dan "Hoss" Blocker.
They might have made a interesting team together.
Chicago's WGN was the cutting edge for kids shows in the 60's.
WGN did a terrific documentary about it, "Bozo, Gar and Ray" some 15 years ago.
Chicago had the BEST Bozo, Gar was Garfield Goose, Ray Rayner & His Friends was
Ray hosting a cartoon show. MeTV ought to consider rerunning those shows, they
might have the potential to take off and probably wouldn't cost a lot to get.
There was also Diver Dan, I loved him but then my older brothers started calling me
Diaper Dan. Boy that cheesed me off.
A fellow fan, glad to know there are others around.
Good to know they still run that documentary, my cable system dropped WGN many years ago.
I think Chicago's Bozo would appeal today, for kids of all ages, it was in color and the cast's genuine affection for each other shown through.
Plus you got a look at all the period toys that were displayed as prizes, when at the end of
each episode they pulled a kid out of the audience. He/she would try to throw a ball
into a row of 5 buckets, a bigger prize with each bucket till you got to the end and won
a red wagon. I recall that vividly because my older brother Greg constantly wrote in
trying to get audience tickets, hoping to get a shot at the goodies, I had visions of
going with him and meeting Bozo.
the show. My oldest bro remembers a bike was the big prize too, but I would have sworn it
was a wagon...maybe one season it was wagons? Anyway, thanks for sharing the memory.
I myself was partial to Mary Ann. Lol.
sources in Mayberry.
Cant see Tina running around with a.......Squirt
By the way - from personal experience - I have more respect for a woman who directly (but politely) declines to go out with me rather than asks me to keep calling back. My question to that kind of a woman is... "If you weren't really interested, why did you waste *both* of our time by giving me your number?" (Short answer...stroking her own ego! )...
"we call barney - the chicken"