For seven long years, Ricardo Montalbán lived his fantasy of being an actor while also embodying his character’s world on Fantasy Island, where he played Mr. Roarke.

Montalbán’s portrayal helped make Roarke iconic: calm, elegant, and always delivering the famous line: "Smiles, everyone… smiles."

He was all smiles himself during the series’ run. According to a 1984 interview with the Kentucky New Era, Montalbán said his mornings felt strange once the show ended. After years of a tightly structured routine, the working actor suddenly found himself with unexpected free time.

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With a strong work ethic and a new level of fame following Fantasy Island, many expected him to jump quickly into his next role. Instead, Montalbán wanted to hit the snooze button and sleep in.

"After seven years on the tube, I think I’m ready for a respite," Montalbán said. "I’ve turned down offers to appear on series like The Love Boat and Hotel. I think it will be good for me to be scarce for a while."

"Of course, there’s always the possibility of 'out of sight, out of mind,'" Montalbán added. "But I think I will take a year off, and then try to find something good for me to do, so the audience will be glad to see me back."

Montalbán said he was grateful for Fantasy Island because it gave him both freedom and fame. It also allowed him to be more selective about his roles rather than rushing from one job to the next.

"I’m very grateful for Fantasy Island because of it I have, if not great wealth, at least financial security," Montalbán said. "And I have great affection for the people I worked with, the best crew I’ve known in my career. We went through births, marriages and death together. We became part of the fabric of each other’s lives. But in our business, that fabric doesn’t unravel slowly—it ends abruptly, and that is hard to get used to."

According to the interview, he was not entirely without work during his break from TV. At the time, he was marking his 12th year as a spokesperson for Chrysler, and he and his wife were building a Mexican-style home.

He was living everyone’s fantasy: success, freedom, and the ability to finally take a break.