Jencyclopedia

Mickey Gilley wants to be a successful country singer.
A woman wants a million dollars, so David Hedison gives it to her.

Roarke: When this weekend is over, Miss Harrigan will either be very rich… or very dead…
[Tattoo looks concerned.]

Come on, Tattoo. This happens every week. Why are you still surprised?

Tattoo: Boss, who’s that cowboy?
Roarke: That, Tattoo, is Mickey Gilley, a very good country western singer who has been entertaining in the honky tonks of the southern United States for twenty years.
Tattoo: Boss, I’m a big fan of country music; I never heard of him.
Roarke: That is precisely his problem, my friend.

I wonder if his agent made them say “a very good” country western singer.

Mickey Gilley is playing himself — except not himself; it’s like The Monkees playing struggling musicians on their show. And while I had never heard of him, I’m not a big fan of country music, and I wasn’t around in 1982, but I assume country music fans in 1982 had heard of him, so it’s a little weird for him to play “himself”, but not really be himself.

So maybe Fantasy Island takes place in a different universe, one where Mickey Gilley is unknown. Orrr maybe there will be time travel involved in this episode, and Mickey Gilley has to change history so he becomes famous, in which case, Fantasy Island is still in our universe. But I really don’t think that’s gonna happen, because Fantasy Island does not overthink things like that. I kinda wish it did though.

Anyway, it’s weird that Tattoo doesn’t recognize him, considering he recognizes all the other “famous” people who visit the island.

Roarke: Do you recognize the man in this picture?

Uh, yeah, duh, it’s David Hedison; he’s only on this show every other week.

Roarke: You will find one of our drivers waiting outside to take you there.
[Jean Harrigan kisses Roarke on the cheek.]
Roarke: Thank you.

Is it just me, or was that a little awkward?

I love when they make things sized especially for Tattoo, and I double love it when they are red and white.

Tattoo: Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you very much. You’ll be happy to know that Mickey will be appear under my exclusive management at the same club very soon, so I hope you’ll be all… boss, I can explain.

Roarke: Yes… and when we are alone together in my office, I intend to give you every opportunity to do so. ~Exclusive management.~

Roarke: Your fantasy will begin at the proper moment, Mr. Gilley. But there are certain, um… arrangements… which must be carried out first, none of which involve my, shall we say, overly enthusiastic assistant.
Mickey Gilley: Little country hustle on his own, right?
Roarke: That’s right, Mr. Gilley. But there is another person who is vital to your fantasy coming true.
Mickey Gilley: Not a romance, Mr. Roarke; that’s not what I’m looking for.

Mickey Gilley has seen this show before, apparently.

Jean Harrigan: We’ve met before, Mr. Camden?
Phillip Camden: You don’t remember? […] Six years ago, you returned a wallet to me containing six hundred dollars I was at Lake Mead for a little fishing…

Tattoo: The boss is going to be very disappointed; he was hoping that you’d like her.

This is interesting. This line indicates that Roarke and Tattoo talk about playing matchmaker. I’ve always had this image in my head of them sitting in Roarke’s office with piles of letters, trying to match the different fantasizers together. That’s basically what Tattoo and Ambrose were trying to digitize in “Tattoo, the Matchmaker”, but ~you just can’t leave things like that up to computers.~

It’s weird that this has sort of changed from being Mickey Gilley’s fantasy to Dennis Cole’s fantasy. Isn’t that basically the same thing that happened in 4×13 “The Man from Yesterday”, also with Dennis Cole hijacking someone else’s fantasy?

Have I ever mentioned the stained glass windows before? They’re so cute; I kinda wish they’d used them in Roarke’s office set — though it’s not very Fantasy Island chic.

It’s interesting that Mickey Gilley agreed to play “himself”, considering his self is an entitled jerk.

I’m pretty sure Linda Jenner did not write “You Don’t Know Me”.

Oh, now I understand why this story is called “Face of Fire”.

Phew, I’m glad they actually used the words to “You Don’t Know Me” and didn’t just rip off the melody.

Jean Harrigan: It’s not gonna be easy to forget what happened to Madeline.
Roarke: Oh, she has finally found peace, Miss Harrigan.

She just died violently in a fire. Seriously? “She found peace”?

Roarke: You’ve given the richest man in the world something no amount of money could ever buy.

Really? The richest man in the world lives on Fantasy Island?

Roarke: I predict that soon — very soon — everybody will be going to Gilley’s.

Laaaame.

I remember seeing the beginning of this episode on TV, and I was kinda intrigued by the lady locked in the room — although I figured it was a Jane Eyre type thing, and she was his wife. I was expecting not to like “Gilley’s”, but I think I actually preferred that one to “Face of Fire”. I think “Face of Fire” had all the elements of a good story, and I really should have liked it, but it just wasn’t all that memorable.

• Guests:
  • Miss Jean Harrigan, a nurse from Henning, Nevada
  • Mr. Mickey Gilley, a very good country western singer
• Ominous Roarke:
  • Roarke: When this weekend is over, Miss Harrigan will either be very rich… or very dead…
  • Tattoo: Maybe what he needs is a good manager.
    Roarke: Yes… something exactly like that…
• Roarke’s drink: same old
• Ominous shot of Roarke drinking: not really
• Recurring phrases:
  • Roarke: Miss Harrigan, I must warn you… nothing in life comes to us free.
  • Mickey Gilley: Tattoo, what about my fantasy?
  • Roarke: I see clearly your problem, Mr. Sherwood. Fortunately, this is Fantasy Island.
  • Sherwood: I think we may have something here.
    Roarke: Indeed we do, Mr. Sherwood.
• Costume change:
  • Tattoo wears a brown cowboy hat to the square dance.
  • Roarke and Tattoo wear cowboy hats, red shirts, and white ascots to Gilley’s.
• Magic path:
  • Roarke: And now, to make your dream of being a big star come true, you must follow that pathway. It will lead you to Mr. Sherwood’s club.
• Reminders:
  • Roarke: But I must remind you, your fantasy can be completed only — only — in his club.
• Locations:
  • Sherwood’s
  • Gilley’s Club
• Roarke’s powers:
  • Roarke: Close your eyes and visualize the club as you would have it.
    Sherwood: Mr. Roarke–
    Roarke: Mr. Sherwood, please. Close your eyes… concentrate… that’s right… that’s right… I believe you now have what you need, Mr. Sherwood. Open your eyes please.
    [The club is completely different.]
    Sherwood: Now this is more like it. While you’re on a roll, could you give me a couple of mechanical buckin’ bulls I seen once?
    [A table and chairs slide away. A mechanical bull is transported in.]
• Religion:
  • Mickey Gilley: What kind of changes could Sherwood possibly have made in one afternoon? It would take the lord himself a whole year.
• Cancelling the fantasy:
  • Roarke: Very well. If you don’t even wish to go look at the changes in the club, then I’m prepared to cancel your fantasy and give you your money back, of course.
• He’s dead, Jim: Phillip Camden’s wife, Madeline Bryant Camden
• Leaving with another guest: Mickey Gilley with new business partner Mr. Sherwood
• Drivers:
  • To the dock: Roarke
  • Jean Harrigan’s departure: it’s hard to tell, but it might be “Steve”
  • Mickey Gilley’s departure: That Guy
• Age gap:
  • Linda Thompson: 32 / Mickey Gilley: 46 = 14 years
  • Lynn Redgrave: 39 /  David Hedison: 55 = 16 years
  • Phyllis Davis: 42 / Herbert Benkman: 63 = 21 years
• IMDb notes:
  • Linda Thompson is credited as Linda Thompson Jenner. She appears in the credits after David Hedison.
  • Linda Thompson plays Annie Clawdy
  • Phillip Camden’s butler’s name is Nigel