The Globetrotters on GI

Spotlight on the Harlem Globetrotters as they join the Castaways for some island fun and a little robot basketball in this 1981 "GI" TV movie.

In Russell's own words:

Sherwood, along with NBC, played around with the idea of having the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders come to the island resort. Those plans were thwarted
by scheduling problems for the Texas beauties. Instead, the Harlem Globetrotters crash-landed near the island and became the guests in the
1981 TV movie, which also involved a subplot with a robot and the Howells' nemesis J.J. Pierson. Somewhere in there, Thurston Howell the IV
(played by David Ruprecht) appeared out of nowhere to handle his
father's business affairs while the patriarch was out of town.
The new Ginger for this movie - the third titian-haired actress to play the
movie star - was Constance Forslund. She even reprised Ginger's nightclub routine, singing "I Wanna Be Loved By You". Also in the cast were guests Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, Scatman Crothers, and Bob's wife, Dreama.
This was really the end of the end and most of the original cast knew it. At
some point between Castaways and Globetrotters, Alan had suffered a blod clot in his leg that caused complications throughout his body. He was ordered by his doctors to drop some weight and to quit smoking. He was noticeably thinner in Globetrotters, and so was Jim Backus, who was so ill that he
only came in at the end of the film for a quick cameo appearance,
delivering a few lines and leaving.
When his scene was completed, Henny (Jim's wife) led him arm in arm to
the soundstage doors. They walked very slowly. The whole crew and all of
us in the cast applauded Jim because we knew this might be the last
time this trouper joined us. Jim turned and blew us all a kiss.

From Russell's book, "Here on Gilligan's Isle"