Cruising on the Real Life Love Boat was a Drama!
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By Dallas Sherringham The famous Love Boat TV Show was based on a real live cruise ship that operated from Los Angeles to Acapulco along the “Mexican Riviera”. The show was an American romantic comedy-drama television series that aired on ABC in the USA and in Australia from 1977 to 1986; in addition, four three-hour specials aired. The series was set on the luxury passenger cruise ship MS Pacific Princess and revolved around the ship's captain Merrill Stubing (played by Gavin MacLeod) and a handful of his crew, with passengers played by guest actors for each episode, having romantic and humorous adventures. The ship's regular ports of call were Puerto Vallarta, Acapulco and Mazatlán. The series was part of ABC's popular Saturday-night lineup of the time. And in 1987 I was lucky enough to cruise on a version of The Love Boat to Mexico as a very young man. While there was no ‘Captain Stubing’, ‘Gopher’ or ‘Dr Bricker’ it was the Love Boat in every other way. Women went on the Love Boat in droves to find love or to have a fling. Many travelled as groups of friends, as you can imagine, there were many arguments, many jealousies, much tears and many broken hearts. There were also what may be termed ‘gigolos’ who went on cruises hoping to find a rich widow or divorcee. Once again, there were many arguments, many jealousies, much tears and many broken hearts. And I was caught up as a young innocent abroad in a mini romantic drama that could have been an episode of the show. I was inadvertently involved in a minor altercation involving a lovely lady and a male gold-digger. It all started at the first lifeboat drill where I met a group of affable ladies including an attractive lady named Joan who was at least 20 years older than me. I promised her a dance that night and managed to slip in that I was happily married and had lots of children. Anyway, we had the dance and went our separate ways until several nights later when she sent a cocktail to me, which caused much mirth amongst my fellow travel writers. I had to buy her a cocktail in return under the Aussie ‘my shout’ rule and we were chatting away innocently at the bar when we were approached aggressively by a man wearing a flash dinner suit and with his hair slicked back, rather like Michael Caine in ‘Dirty Rotten Scoundrels’. ‘Oh no, not this guy again!’ Joan whispered angrily. ‘Excuse me, sir. Can I have a word,’ he said, standing over me. I stood up and he took a step back, intimidated by my size which he hadn’t reckoned on. ‘Now look here, sonny’ he said poking me in the chest, ‘I have drinks with Joan every night. She is my lady friend so you should go now, buddy!’ I stood my ground and clenched my fists, ready for whatever followed, ‘I’m not going anywhere mate,’ I said in my best Crocodile Dundee voice. ‘You p…s off and don’t annoy her again.’ He looked at me, mouth ajar in horror, he looked at Joan for a reaction and she looked the other way. “Well, if that’s the way it is,’ said Michael Caine. ‘You haven’t heard the last of this buddy…!” With the Scoundrel finally gone, Joan confided that he had been annoying her for much of the cruise. It turned out she was the owner of the largest distribution group on the West Coast and was going through a bad divorce. It was quite possible that he had arranged to be on the same ship or had found out about her on board and made a beeline for his ‘easy mark’. I convinced her to report him to security and went with her for support and as a witness. Neither if us saw him again. One of those mysteries only The Love Boat could record. |
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