Roarke", Roarke even faces the devil (played by Roddy McDowall) who has come to the island to challenge him for either a guest's immortal soul or his. In "The Devil and Mandy Breem" and "The Devil and Mr. Roarke is also shown to know many seemingly immortal beings over his time on Earth, including ghosts ("The Ghost's Story"), a genie ("A Genie Named Joe"), the mermaid Princess Nyah ("The Mermaid", "The Mermaid Returns", "The Mermaid and the Matchmaker"), the goddess Aphrodite ("Aphrodite"), and Uriel the Angel of Death ("The Angel's Triangle"). Other episodes suggest that he was friends with Helen of Troy and Cleopatra. In "Elizabeth", a woman from Roarke's past appears, but it is revealed that she died over 300 years ago.
In the pilot film, he comments how the guests who come to his island are "so mortal" and there are hints throughout the series that suggest Roarke may be immortal. Welcome to Fantasy Island." This toast was usually followed with a warm smile, but sometimes - depending on the nature of a guest or their fantasy - his eyes would show concern or worry for a guest's safety. Roarke would then welcome his guests by lifting his glass and saying: "My dear guests, I am Mr. Roarke would address his assembling employees with the phrase "Smiles, everyone! Smiles!" As each visitor disembarked, Roarke would describe to Tattoo (or another assistant) the nature of their fantasy, usually with a cryptic comment, suggesting the person's fantasy will not turn out as they expected. Just prior to the guests alighting from the plane, Mr. The producers dismissed Villechaize from the series before the 1983–1984 season, which ended up being its last, and Tattoo was replaced by a more sedate butler type named Lawrence, played by Christopher Hewett, who pressed an electronic button to ring the bell rather than climb the tower.Ī Grumman Widgeon aircraft was used for the series. Roarke", Roarke stated that Julie was his god-daughter. From 1981 to 1982, Wendy Schaal joined the cast as a beautiful brown-eyed blonde assistant named Julie in the season five story "The Case Against Mr. In later seasons, he would arrive in his personal go-kart, sized for him, and recklessly drive to join Roarke for the visitor reception while the staff scrambled to get out of his way. This line, shown at the beginning of the series' credits, became an unlikely catchphrase because of Villechaize's spirited delivery and French accent.
Tattoo would run up the main bell tower to ring the bell and shout " De plane! De plane!" to announce the arrival of a new set of guests at the beginning of each episode. Roarke was known for his white suit and cultured demeanor, and he was initially accompanied by an energetic sidekick, Tattoo, played by Hervé Villechaize. Roarke, the enigmatic overseer of a mysterious island somewhere near Devil's Island, French Guiana in the Atlantic Ocean, where people from all walks of life could come and live out their fantasies, albeit for a price. Airing from 1978 to 1984, the original series starred Ricardo Montalbán as Mr.
Roarke and Hervé Villechaize as his assistant, Tattoo. The series starred Ricardo Montalbán as the mysterious Mr.
152, plus 2 TV movies ( list of episodes)įantasy Island is an American fantasy drama television series created by Gene Levitt.