Playing the titular bungling first mate on “Gilligan’s Island” might be Bob Denver’s most famous role, but right before he set sail on the S.S. Minnow, he stood out as a scruffy beatnik on the beloved CBS sitcom “The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis.”
Airing from 1959 to 1963, the series followed the trials and tribulations of Dobie Gillis (played by the late Dwayne Hickman), an ordinary American teenager whose single-minded mission in life was simple: getting a girlfriend. The show’s supporting ensemble included Frank Faylen and Florida Friebus as Dobie’s parents, alongside future Hollywood legend Warren Beatty, who played Milton Armitage, Dobie’s romantic rival. In a performance that surely paved the way for Gilligan, Denver injected some comedic energy into the lineup as Maynard G. Krebs, Dobie’s jazz-loving, bongo-playing best friend. He also ha a famous catchphrase: whenever anyone talked about their job, he’d shout, “Work?!”
Of course, playing a beatnik meant that the clean-shaven Denver had to sport facial hair, which came with its own distinct set of challenges for the actor. Denver was not a fan of Maynard’s trademark goatee. In a July 1962 interview with the Baltimore Evening Sun (via MeTV), Denver went off about the personal and professional toll it took, sharing, “In over three years of playing Maynard on ‘Dobie Gillis,’ I haven’t even been asked to play an outside role in another series or movie! And all because of this scraggly little beard.” He added, “This beard gives me the type-casting-est face in Hollywood history. People spot me a mile away and mob me.”
Bob Denver almost lost his Dobie Gillis role
Facial hair issues aside, Denver was lucky to play Maynard at all. During a 1978 interview with the Akron Beacon Journal (via MeTV), Denver recalled how close he came to losing the career-making role when he received a draft notice early in the show’s first season. “Everybody thought, ‘Well, that’s it,'” Denver told the outlet, noting that producers quickly hired Michael J. Pollard to play Maynard’s cousin with a contract for 25 episodes. However, a routine military physical revealed that Denver had a childhood neck injury that never properly healed, which allowed him back on the show.
Decades later, fans of the show still hold the classic comedy in high regard, with the show sporting a solid 7.7 rating on IMDb. Reviewer laffinsal praised the series as “one of the high points of 1960s TV, and one of the most winning sitcoms of all time,” adding that “Bob Denver is brilliant” as Maynard Krebs. User mcvouty78 wrote that “Bob Denver better deserves recognition for playing Maynard G. Krebs in this little gem of a series,” and noted that Denver was :one of the first actors to show the TV audience that people can be hip and likable at the same time.”
Following “The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis,” Denver set sail for “Gilligan’s Island,” playing the titular role from 1964 to 1967. He later reprised his iconic role as the bumbling castaway in various “Gilligan’s Island” TV movies and cartoon spin-offs throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
