Thursday, March 11, 2010

GILLIGAN VS GORILLA

Janos Prohaska was a contemporary of Bob Burns and George Barrows,working in the increasingly dominant medium of 60's television. Janos played not only gorillas but a wide variety of other creatures. Perhaps his most recognizable creations were featured on STAR TREK; Janos both designed the effects suits and performed on the show as Mugato, the snow white horned ape, and as the Horta, a silicon based life form that was essentially a throbbing blob. Bob Burns related in his book IT CAME FROM BOB'S BASEMENT that Janos had a sizable ego and was fiercely competitive, resentful of Bob's entry into the narrow field of simian performers.
This episode of DUSTY'S TRAIL revolves around an escaped circus ape who runs off with one of the shows maidens. This western sitcom followed on the heels of GILLIGAN'S ISLAND's demise and is a shameless ripoff of the classic comedy. All of the character archetypes are reproduced here although that critical element of actual hilarity is in short supply. The stand-in for the Skipper is played by Forest Tucker, a gentleman that would spend a great deal more screen time with an ape shortly after this show ended. Tucker teamed up with Larry Storch and Bob Burns as Tray the Gorilla in THE ORIGINAL GHOSTBUSTERS.


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