Dawn Wells

She will best be remembered for her character as stranded castaway Mary Ann Summers in the popular 1960s CBS sitcom ‘Gilligan’s Island,’ which aired from 1964 to 1967. The former beauty queen represented the state of Nevada in the 1959 Miss America pageant and appeared on several television shows before being cast on the series about 7 passengers who were stranded on a deserted isle. After the series ended, the prolific actress would go on to appear in several television shows and made-for-TV movies, such as ‘Bonanza,’ ‘The Invaders,’ ‘The F.B.I.,’ ‘Return to Boggy Creek,’ ‘Vega$,’ ‘The Love Boat,’ ‘Fantasy Island,’ ‘Matt Houston,’ ‘Herman’s Head,’ ‘Three Sisters,’ ‘Pastor Greg,’ ‘Roseanne’ and ‘Heaven’s Waiting Room.’ Wells would also reprise her role as Mary Ann on ‘Gilligan’s Island’ reunion shows ‘Rescue From Gilligan’s Island,’ ‘The Castaways on Gilligan’s Island,’ ‘The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan’s Island’ and ‘Gilligan’s Planet.’ Wells also had a long career onstage, appearing in the national tours of ‘Chapter Two’ and ‘They’re Playing Our Song’ as well as in ‘Fatal Attraction,’ ‘The Odd Couple,’ ‘Steel Magnolias’ and ‘The Vagina Monologues.’ She also published several books, including ‘Mary Ann’s Gilligan’s Island Cookbook’ and ‘What Would Mary Ann Do? A Guide to Life.’