On May 5, 1977, “The Love Boat,” a show set aboard a Princess Cruises ship, made its television premiere on ABC. Now, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, superintendent of the Hollywood Walk of Fame, will honor Princess Cruises and the original cast of “The Love Boat;” Gavin MacLeod (Captain Stubing), Jill Whelan (Vicki), Ted Lange (Isaac), Bernie Kopell (Doc), Lauren Tewes (Julie) and Fred Grandy (Gopher) with a Hollywood Walk of Fame Honorary Star Plaque during a ceremony on Thursday, May 10, 2018 in front of the Dolby Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard.
The show began in the mid-70s when television producer Douglas S. Cramer, who had created the television series “Love, American Style,” decided to transplant his comedy vignette series from its studio setting to the environment of a modern cruise ship. After the 1977 pilot show, which was shot aboard the line's original Sun Princess in Mexico, Cramer teamed up with television producer Aaron Spelling and “The Love Boat” went on to enjoy commercial success, continuing for 10 seasons until 1987 as one of the highest-rated, prime-time television shows in the country.
As a result of the show’s success, Princess Cruises became well-known as the primary setting of the popular series, and continues to be known as the "Love Boat" cruise line today. Pacific Princess and Island Princess were the two original ships, but “The Love Boat” was filmed aboard many Princess ships at exotic destinations around the globe.
“The Love Boat” had more than 1,000 celebrity guest stars including Tom Hanks, Florence Henderson, Charo, Debbie Reynolds, Milton Berle, Mickey Rooney, Ethel Merman and Ginger Rogers. The original “Love Boat” series is currently in worldwide syndication, having been translated into more than 29 different languages, and is viewed in more than 93 countries. Now, it can be seen on MeTV, Memorable Entertainment Television.
For more, visit www.princess.com.
Related Stories
Pacific Princess to Sail 2020 World Cruise
Princess Cruises Launches New Upgrades Onboard Sapphire Princess