Jim Backus Biography

Fast Facts

• In 1960 he was awarded with a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, for his contributions to TV
• Attended the American Academy of Dramatic Art, and while waiting to receive offers in film and TV, he performed on the radio and befriended Garson Kanin and Keenan Wynn
• Quote: "Magoo's appeal lies in our hostility toward an older generation․But he's not only nearsighted physically․ His mind is selective of what it sees, too․ That is where the humor, the satire lies, in the difference between what he thinks he sees and reality as we see it․"
• His radio character Hubert Updyke III, later became the basis for his character Thurston Howell III on "Gilligan's Island․"
• Was an avid golfer, and while playing at the 1964 Bing Crosby Pro-Am tournament he made a 36-hole cut
• Was offered the role of Abner Kravitz in "Bewitched," but since he was already working on "Gilligan's Island" he turned it down
• While attending Kentucky Military Institute, he was caught riding a horse through the hall, resulting in his expulsion