Farewell to a pair of TV staples from my childhood: Dave Madden who played Reuben Kinkade, the Partridge Family’s manager and foil to Danny’s schemes; Russell Johnson who was Professor Roy Hinkley on Gilligan’s Island.
I want to reverse their order though because I had more memories of Russell. He did a great job helping smart people by breaking free of the stereotype TV and film often went with. The scholarly/scientific types usually wore glasses, were awkward and unattractive. The Nutty Professor would be the easiest example. A couple years ago, I read an article Mental Floss about how Russell requested an encyclopedia and other technical books to help him be more credible in the role. Sadly, the site’s search engine stinks. I cannot find it to back this up. After many afternoons of watching Gilligan, I would then get thrilled to see Russell in other roles from his past: It Came From Outer Space, The Twilight Zone and Tarantula.
Dave Madden I rarely noticed beyond Partridge. My favorite spoof is his appearance as the iconic role in The Ben Stiller Show‘s parody about U2.
These guys will be missed but I want to thank them for all the entertainment they provided. Bob Denver and Danny Bonaduce couldn’t be funny without their talent.