Russell Johnson, who played The Professor on "Gilligan's Island," dies at age 89January 16, 2014
Johnson's agent told Fox News that the actor passed away at his home in Washington State on Thursday morning of natural causes, with his wife and daughter by his side.
Johnson's co-star Dawn Wells, who played Mary Anne on the show, posted on her Facebook page: "My 2 favorite people are now gone. The professor past (sic) away this morning. My heart is broken."
"Russell was a true gentleman, a good father, a great friend, and 'the rest,'" Wells wrote.
Wells and Tina Louise, who played Ginger, are the show's last two surviving cast members.
Johnson starred on "Gilligan's Island," a classic TV comedy about a mismatched set of castaways stranded on a deserted island, from 1964 to 1967.
His character, high school science teacher Roy Hinkley, built generators and other gadgets out of scraps of junk found on the island. Johnson later joked that the one thing The Professor never figured out how to do was to fix the leaky boat so the group could get back to civilization.
Johnson started out in westerns and sci-fi movies, including "It Came From Outer Space." After "Gilligan's Island" he worked regularly with small parts on television.
JOHNSON, Russell (Russell David Johnson)
Born: 11/10/1924, Ashley, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
Died: 1/16/1914, Bainbridge Island, Washington, U.S.A.
Russell Johnson’s westerns – actor:
Rancho Notorious – 1952 (Chuck-A-Luck player)
Seminole – 1953 (Lieutenant Hamilton)
Law and Order – 1953 (Jimmy Johnson)
Column South – 1953 (Corporal Biddle)
The Stand at Apache River – 1953 (Greiner)
Tumbleweed – 1953 (Lam Blanden)
Ride Clear of Diablo – 1954 (Jed Ringer)
Taza, Son of Coshise – 1954 [narrator]
Many Rivers to Cross – 1955 (Banks)
Strange Lady in Town – 1955 (Shadduck)
The Lone Ranger (TV) – 1955 (Tom Levering)
Circus Boy (TV) – 1956 (Dr. Ben Osgood)
The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin (TV) – 1956, 1957 (Greene, Sergeant Stan Powers)
Casey Jones (TV) – 1957 (Jeff Tyler)
Tales of Wells Fargo (TV) – 1957, 1962 (William Dodd, Normalie Hall)
Wagon Train (TV) - 1957, 1958, 1962 (Craig Manson, Steve Marshall, Major Dan Marriott)
Gunsmoke (TV) - 1957, 1959, 1969, 1972 (Stanger, Harry Webb, Diggs, Link Parrin,
Jefferson Drum (TV) – 1958 (The Sundown Kid)
The Saga of Hemp Brown – 1958 (Hook)
Badman’s Country – 1958 (Sundance)
The Californians (TV) – 1958
Lawman (TV) – 1959 (Wade Hogan)
Riverboat (TV) – 1959 (Darius)
Black Saddle (TV) – 1959-1960 (Marshal Gib Scott)
The Deputy (TV) – 1961 (Albee Beckett)
Death Valley Days (TV) – 1961, 1962, 1968 (Noble, Sergeant Tate, Matthew Reynolds)
Laramie (TV) – 1961, 1962, 1963 (Stanton, Wayne Cady, Bob Murkland, Al Denning, Bob Talmadge)
The Wide Country (TV) – 1962 (Arch McHugh)
The Dakotas (TV) – 1963 (Lieutenant Clyde Mariot)
Empire (TV) – 1963 (Bill Carey)
Rawhide (TV) – 1963 (Burt Harvey)
Temple Houston (TV) – 1963
A Distant Trumpet – 1964 (Captain Brinker)
Invitation to a Gunfighter – 1964 (John Medford)
The Big Valley (TV) – 1968 (Davey Dunigan)