Mary Ann Summers

Encyclopedia : M : MA : MAR : Mary Ann Summers

-->Mary Ann Summers is a fictional Kansas farm girl who is a character in the television sitcom Gilligan's Island which ran on the CBS network from 1964 to 1967, and has run more or less continuously since in reruns.

Mary Ann was portrayed by actress Dawn Wells. She was an ingenue and a foil, as well as a friend, to glamorous Hollywood star Ginger Grant, played by Tina Louise. She is apparently regarded with some desire by both the title character of Gilligan (Bob Denver) and The Professor (Russell Johnson), but this is never allowed to develop into anything beyond mild flirtation (this was, after all, 1960s series television!). In addition, her practical domestic skills make her an indispensable member of the group.

"Ginger or Mary Ann?" is regarded as a classic pop-psychological question, one which provides insight into the personality types of males of a certain age, at least as regards to which certain female stereotypes interest them the most.

Unlike Miss Louise, who in retrospect for many years felt that her casting as Ginger Grant had largely destroyed what until then had seemed to be a promising career, Miss Wells has always, at least in public, expressed gratitude for the opportunities that the role has presented her.

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.