STORY UPDATE JUNE 2, 2021 @ 1:45 pm PDT – Princess Cruises just released a Gavin MacLeod tribute video which is added below.
Last Saturday, we lost a national treasure: Gavin MacLeod at the age of 90. He was Captain Stubing of the long-running TV series, The Love Boat.
The Love Boat
Beginning in 1977, the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) brought cruising into the living rooms of America in prime time. Every Saturday night, Gavin MacLeod as Captain Merril Stubing would set sail at the helm of the Princess Cruise lines, Pacific Princess. This show not only brought us comedy and dramatic scenes with Hollywood’s leading actors, it promoted vacations by cruise ship. The show was produced by Aaron Spelling and Douglas Cramer in an hour-long format.
The series ran from 1977 – 1986 for 250 episodes and five special presentations. What made The Love Boat work was the fantastic casting of the Love Boat crew. A cast that was led by Gavin MacLeod as the skipper of the Pacific Princess, Captain Merril Stubing. The cast included:
- Bernie Kopell as the ships’ doctor,
- Fred Grandy as the purser,
- Ted Lange as your bartender,
- Lauren Tewes as your cruise director and
- Jill Whalen as Vicki, Captain Stubing’s daughter.
Love, exciting and new
Come aboard. we’re expecting you.
Love, life’s sweetest reward.
Let it flow, it floats back to you.
The love boat soon will be making another run
The love boat promises something for everyone
Set a course for adventure,
Your mind on a new romance.
Love won’t hurt anymore
It’s an open smile on a friendly shore.
The love boat soon will be making another run
The love boat promises something for everyone
Set a course for adventure,
Your mind on a new romance.
Love won’t hurt anymore
It’s an open smile on a friendly shore.
It’s the love boat!
The crew of The Love Boat would regularly take us to the ports of call like Puerto Vallarta and Acapulco Mexico.
Princess Cruises
Imagine that you own a business and your business gets a free, one-hour prime-time TV slot every week. This is the exposure that Princess Cruises by assisting in the production of The Love Boat. In 1975, P&O cruises had just acquired Princess Cruises. In April, 1975, Princess Cruises acquired two cruise ships that had entered service with Flagship Cruises in 1971. The ships were renamed the Pacific Princess and the Island Princess.
Princess Cruises agreed to have their cruise ships featured in The Love Boat beginning with a made-for-TV movie in 1976 and becoming a weekly series in 1977. The series was primarily filmed in a Hollywood sound stage, the ships were featured in nearly every episode.
The show was a success and the term “Love Boat” became a marketing tool for Princess Cruises. The “Love Boat” became synonymous with the MS Pacific Princess.
In the 1970’s, cruising was for the rich and famous. Due to the show’s popularity, cruising became more popular with the increase of cruise ship travel in the North American Market.
The Pacific Princess was sold by Princess Cruise Lines in 2001 but it was leased back for 2002. The final voyage for the Pacific Princess departed New York in October 2002 to Rome Italy. The ship was sold and passed to various cruise operators. The ship was ultimately sold in March 2012 for scrap.
Princess Cruises Celebrates Gavin MacLeod’s 90th Birthday
On February 28, 2021, Gavin MacLeod celebrated his 90th birthday. Princess Cruises produced this video to honor his birthday:
NEWLY ADDED PRINCESS CRUISES TRIBUTE VIDEO TO GAVIN MACLEOD:
Remembering Captain Stubing
His TV daughter, Vicki Stubing (Jill Whelan) remembers her time on The Love Boat with Captain Stubin. Her heartfelt sentiments are told through a video where she tells how Gavin MacLeod became her TV father at the age of 10. She talks about the amazing relationship that she had with him.
Bon Voyage Captain Stubing
Every week, Captain Stubing and the crew of The Love Boat would bring the world of cruising into our living rooms. Before The Love Boat, Gavin was Joseph “Happy” Haines on McHale’s Navy and newswriter Murray Slauter on the Mary Tyler Moore Show.
He took the helm of the Pacific Princess and never looked back. As an audience, he grew on us as the captain that everybody identifies with. The Love Boat turned cruising into a popular vacation mode. Princess Cruises had a goodwill ambassador for their brand.
Bon voyage, Captain Stubing.
