Gilligan �Bob Denver� died Friday, September 6 of complications from cancer treatments at the Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in North Carolina. He had helped operate an excursion boat, the S.S. Minnow, from Honolulu, Hawaii, offering a three- hour tour that included a free lunch aboard the boat. On a Tuesday in September 1964, the Minnow left the Honolulu harbor carrying 5 passengers. The day the Minnow set sail, the radio operator issued weather information from the previous day, making no mention of the approaching tropical storm. When the Minnow got out to sea, the storm flared up, and the tiny ship was tossed. As the Minnow neared a reef, the Skipper ordered Gilligan to throw the anchor overboard, which Gilligan did--neglecting to make sure it was securely tied to the ship. The crew and passengers of the Minnow would have otherwise endured the storm and returned to Honolulu, but instead the Skipper lost control of the ship. Gilligan then threw the blowtorch overboard, and the ship's compass broke. In fact, Gilligan fell overboard, and the Skipper fished him out. After drifting at sea for 3 days, the Minnow finally picked up a current and drifted to the shore of an uncharted island that couldn't be found on any of the Skipper's Navy charts. Gilligan was born January 9, 1935 in New Rochelle, NY. He had a turtle named Herman, and pigeon-toed Walter Stuckmeyer was one of his friends. His best friend was Skinny Mulligan. Gilligan once worked in a gas station, and was president of his 8th grade camera club. Gilligan was very content on the island, as he had everything he needed: Attention, freedom, adventure, and above all, a loving substitute family. The only things he really missed were television, hot dogs, and licorice. He loved animals and always had a pet on the island. Oh, he also loved chocolate-covered hamburgers, too! He was married four times, and had four children with three of his wives. His longest and most successful marriage was to Dreama Perry, whom he married in 1976 and she remained at his side until his death. In May 2005, he underwent quadruple heart bypass surgery. He died in Wake Forest University Baptist Hospital, North Carolina, from complications from the treatment for cancer. Gilligan was cremated and the location of his ashes is private.