June 1, 1965

First mate's log:

Wow, someone else has been living on the island, for ten years! I wonder why Wrong Way never mentioned him. Anyway, his name is Dubov and he's a Russian painter who got tired of people criticizing his art. He has a transmitter but won't tell us where it is. He's very cranky. Still, we might get rescued.

June 2, 1965

Carol Martin's diary:

Alexander Gregor Dubov, the great Russian artist is on our island! I'm amazed that anyone could've been on the island for so long without us realizing it, and apparently he overlapped Mr. Feldman for many years. It makes me wonder who else might be tucked away on our island.

I'm very interested in art and I used to do some myself, in an amateur way of course, before the shipwreck. I would love to take lessons from Mr. Dubov, but he's far too irritable. Still, he's revived my interest. I've started a painting of my daughters, but even doing the preliminary sketches is difficult because they're too squirmy.

As for Mr. Dubov, he claims to have a transmitter that he won't let us use. At this point, I'm obviously dubious, or I guess dubovious. Mr. Howell has come up with a plan to trick Dubov into painting a portrait of Ginger. Then we'll all rave about it and Dubov will want to radio for rescue, since he'll be willing to return to civilization. I'd love to observe the great painter in action, but I'm sure he'd be annoyed, so I'll keep my distance until he's done.

June 3, 1965

Well, Mr. Howell had a plan to trick Mr. Dubov, but the painter found out about it. He got crankier than ever. So now Mr. Howell wants me to do a painting of the Skipper and then everyone will say how great it is, like they did with Mr. Dubov's painting of Ginger, but this time it'll make Mr. Dubov want us to get rescued so art critics can decide who's better, me or him. I told Mr. Howell I can't paint, but he says it doesn't matter because it'll be abstract, which means it doesn't have to look like anything. I'm not even sure how to use brushes and all that. (Yesterday I accidentally drank some paint thinner, which tasted better than the fosforessent dye.) But Mrs. Martin likes to paint for fun so she'll help me get started.

June 4, 1965

Mr. Howell came up with another scheme, to set Gilligan up as a rival artist. I ended up doing the abstract portrait of the Skipper. He and Gilligan have promised not to tell. We thought that competing against a lady artist might be more upsetting to Dubov than even competing against Gilligan. He's so volatile and it could've backfired.

Well, it did anyway. He decided that the island wasn't big enough for "two geniuses," so he made a raft from his paintings and sailed away. He did give Gilligan his transmitter for secret art lessons, but it turned out that the transmitter was corroded on the inside. So we never had a chance for rescue anyway.

There are no canvases left, so we can't build a raft ourselves, not that we could make one strong enough or big enough for all of us. I am still interested in art, and there are rocks and shells and so on that I can decorate with paint made from berries. We've been here almost a year and it would be nice to make our surroundings a little more pleasant. Plus, I could use another hobby. And there are many subjects, from my fellow castaways to the beautiful scenery.

June 7, 1965

Wow, I'm 21 years old and I've been adopted! I saved Mrs. Howell's life from a falling boulder, so now I'm G. Thurston Howell IV. (I didn't want to tell them that Gilligan isn't my first name.)

It should be really nice to be rich, even though money's never been that important to me, and even though it won't be the same to be rich on this island as it will be back home. But once we're rescued, Mr. Howell will get me some nice cars and send me to Harvard. The bad thing is I have to move out of the Skipper's hut and in with the Howells. But I'll see the Skipper and the others every day.

I don't know what I'll tell my real family— my parents, my brother and my sister— when I see them again, but maybe I can visit them and help them with all my money. Maybe I can help the Skipper and my other friends, too. I don't know what I'd spend the money on for myself. Maybe a motorcycle. Oh, and I could go to the movies whenever I want, and even buy large popcorn!

June 10, 1965

The Howells have adopted Gilligan, even though he's a grown man with parents back home. He saved Mrs. Howell's life so now he's living in their hut, being trained in etiquette, fashion, finance, etc. I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, I'm happy for him, since he'll never have to worry about money when we get rescued. But on the other, I worry that they'll change him too much and he won't be the sweet, simple boy we all know.

I talked to Mary Ann about it and she said that she's trying to keep her distance now that he's a rich man. He asked her to go butterfly-hunting with him, as they both like to do, but she said no. She explained to me that since she's just a Kansas farm girl, the Howells probably wouldn't think she's good enough for Gilligan.

The others, even the Skipper, are treating him differently now. I can't help it, I am, too. We all still like him, but he's not one of us anymore. He's one of the Howells. Only the children are the same as before, and they don't understand why he has less time to play with them.

June 14, 1965

I had a dream last night that I was a prince and my parents, King Thurston and Queen Lovey, wouldn't let me have any fun. And my friends just wanted me to buy them things. I don't want to be a Howell anymore. I just want to be Gilligan.

June 15, 1965

Gilligan got tired of his posh lifestyle (well, as posh as it ever gets on our island), so Ginger came up with a scheme to make the Howells disinherit him. There was a debut party for Gilligan last night. (No, he didn't dress like a debutante.) He was so rude to everyone, including his adoptive parents, that Mr. Howell kicked him out of the family.

Unfortunately, today the Skipper saved Mrs. Howell from stepping in quicksand. I mean, it's good that he saved her life, but now Mr. Howell wants to adopt him, even though the Skipper is over 40.