During the last week of the year, for example, the palm tree will sport a 'Happy New Year' banner, and on Halloween a jack-o'-lantern can be seen in the sand. During these holidays, the scenes are played out as usual except for some detail representing that holiday or event. 'Johnny Castaway' includes Easter eggs for a number of United States holidays such as Halloween, Christmas and Independence Day. Much like the castaways of Gilligan's Island, Johnny repeatedly comes close to being rescued, but ultimately remains on the island as a result of various unfortunate accidents. While Johnny fishes, builds sand castles, and jogs on a regular basis, other events are seen less frequently, such as a mermaid or Lilliputian pirates coming to the island, or a seagull swooping down to steal his shorts while he is bathing.
It follows a story which is slowly revealed through time. The screensaver depicts a man, Johnny Castaway, stranded on a very small island with a single palm tree. Johnny Castaway is a screensaver released in 1992 by Sierra On-Line/ Dynamix, and marketed under the Screen Antics brand as 'the world's first story-telling screen saver'.