The Tragic Death of 'Mr. Magoo' and 'Gilligan's Island' Actor Jim Backus

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He was the beloved voice of Mr. Magoo behind the screen and the delightfully arrogant Thurston Howell III on TV's Gilligan's Island. But in real life, he was the prolific actor Jim Backus, who died of pneumonia in 1989. This is his story.

A Closer Look

When in grade school, Jim Backus was taught by future actress Margaret Hamilton, who would later play the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz (1939).

Backus later attended the Kentucky Military Institute, where one of his classmates was another future fellow actor: Victor Mature. Backus had also been roommates with Martin Gabel.

Before finding his voice to portray the daffy but dignified animated character known as Mr. Magoo, Backus worked as a radio announcer in New York City. When he was performing radio plays, one of his characters Hubert Updyke III would serve as the inspiration for Thurston Howell III on Gilligan's Island.

In addition to giving life and bravado to Thurston Howell III on Gilligan's Island, Backus also played a criminal imposter character who impersonated Howell.

That transpired in the Gilligan's Island episode, titled, "Will the Real Mr. Howell Please Stand Up?" which originally aired in 1966. In that particular segment, the character later falls from a yacht, while drinking wine from a lady's slipper.

Beyond Magoo and Gilligan

A multi-talented performer, Jim Backus could also sing. In 1958, he reached the American Top 40 Pop charts for a few weeks with his novelty recording, "Delicious!" on Jubilee Records (which featured instrumental backing from Appleknocker and His Group).

Also in the 1950s, Backus provided the voice of Wally the Bird in the Western Airlines commercials. He had one line: "Western Airlines, the O-O-ONLY way to fly," which he repeated in the 1963 feature film comedy classic, It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World.

He was almost Mr. Kravitz on TV's Bewitched

What many do not know, is that Jim Backus was the first choice to play Abner Kravitz on Bewitched (1964), but rejected the role, as he was already appearing on Gilligan's Island. According to the book, Twitch Upon a Star, that part was eventually played by George Tobias.

In his last years, Backus suffered from Parkinson's disease in later years and had to be carried into Gilligan's Island (1964) creator Sherwood Schwartz's 70th birthday party in 1987 because he could not manage to make the steps into Schwartz's home.

Conclusion

An unmistakable talent, Jim Backus made an indelible mark in the four sectors of the entertainment industry: film, television, music, and radio.