Reading the Fine Print

How much attention do you pay to the closing credits of your favorite shows? See if you recognize these phrases commonly seen at the closing of some favorite 60s and 70s sitcoms:

Hint: Not one of the correct answers! 

A. "Train furnished by Barbary Coast, Hoyt Hotel, Portland, Oregon"

B. "Based on The Saturday Evening Post character"

C. "Based on the book Life without George by Irene Kampen"

D. "(Actor's name) courtesy of the Broadway musical Raisin"

Answers on Wednesday, unless some bright TV watcher posts them first.

Credits Where Credits Are Due

Diahann Carroll and her "frequent" co-star.

They're hugely important to many actors (and their agents), but how many viewers pay strict attention to the credits opening and closing their favorite shows? Is "also starring" better than "co-starring"? What does it mean if one actor's name is in bigger type than another's? And how did Jonathan Harris get to be a "Special Guest Star" for three full seasons on Lost in Space?

One man who took a light touch with this issue was writer-producer Hal Kanter (1918-2011), who often eschewed the standard language when giving his colleagues the credit they deserved. According to the titles for his 1968-71 sitcom Julia, the show is "frequently starring Lloyd Nolan as Dr. Chegley." On the short-lived Jimmy Stewart Show, Kanter promises us a cast that includes "very often John McGiver as Luther Quince." And on his earlier Valentine's Day (1964-65), the sponsor was introduced with non-standard phrases like, "intentionally brought to you by..."

Nowadays, most shows don't even have an opening titles sequence, per se -- they just jump right into the action, and flash the actors' names over the opening scenes. Call me old-fashioned, but I kind of miss the way things used to be -- especially when there was someone like Kanter checking to see if we were paying attention.