Shows whose theme songs change almost every season, or even halfway through each season... (Hunter, NBC 1984-1990) ~Ben
Off the top of my head, I believe Simon and Simon, Magnum PI, and McCloud changed there theme music after the first or second seasons.
I miss when TV shows used obvious stock footage; like in Hogan’s Heroes there might be a character parachuting and the footage is immediately noticeably grainy and different looking. From somewhere else. Nature footage too. Also: sped up footage to make car chase scenes more exciting. I know Batman did it, but I think they did it on purpose, poking fun at the technique? Anyhow, it was always funny to notice.
Paul Gase wrote the following as part of a post: Benny Hill used sped up footage to make sketches even funnier. See the following:
Overall good writing, STORYTELLING, and DIALOGUE! That goes for MOVIES too. These days they just throw in a bunch of TOTALLY UNNECESSARY VULGARITY and it's considered good enough.
They are referring to more of a teaser than a cold open. The cold open in the shows you mentioned is a unique scene to set up the story before the theme song. However in these cases, the intro was a preview of a scene that would be repeated later in the episode. The Fugitive did this. The first season of Leave it to Beaver did this with a voice over from Ward (“and that’s our story tonight”).
TV shows on Saturday nights. Gunsmoke, from 1955 to 1967 (seasons 1 to 12) Have Gun - Will Travel Perry Mason, from 1957 to 1962 (seasons 1 to 5) Bonanza, from 1959 to 1961 (seasons 1 and 2) My Three Sons, from 1967 to 1971 (seasons 8 to 11) Petticoat Junction, from 1967 to 1970 (seasons 5 to 7) Hogan's Heroes, from 1967 to 1969 (seasons 3 and 4) Mission: Impossible, from 1966 to 1967 and 1970 to 1972 (seasons 1, 5, 6 and early season 7) Mannix, from 1967 to 1971 (seasons 1 to 4) Hawaii Five-O, 1980 (late season 12) The Mary Tyler Moore Show The Bob Newhart Show (CBS) The Streets of San Francisco (season 1) M*A*S*H, from 1973 to 1974 (season 2) The Jeffersons, from 1975 to 1976 and 1977 to 1978 (seasons 1 to early season 3, and season 4) The Love Boat CHiPs, from 1978 to 1980 (late season 1, all season 2 and most season 3) Taxi (three season 5 episodes in early 1983) Angie (three season 2 episodes in April 1980) The Ropers, from 1979 to 1980 (most season 2 episodes) The Bad News Bears Working Stiffs Goodtime Girls (three episodes in April 1980) Hunter, from 1985 to 1990 (late season 1, all season 2-5, and most season 6) The Golden Girls 227 ~Ben
The thing I miss most is there used to be more show and fewer commercials! I wish they'd never been allowed to add so many but just charged more. Yes, you can fast-forward on PVR/Tivo, but you still get less show because of all the ads.
That piece used two way-sped-up library music pieces I can't place my finger on. I know of Paul Lewis' mainstays from his 10" History Book Of Music LP (which I have, B.T.W.), "Ballroom" (later retroactively remaned "The Benny Hill Waltz"), "Doublet And Hose" - and, for one time only (in the strip poker scene), "Stately Home"; plus, in the army training scene, "World Cup" by Keith Papworth (from Marching Highlights; all De Wolfe Music) - but while IMDb named some selections in the "Soundtracks" entry for the theatrical compilation The Best Of Benny Hill, there was a question of what was what on two tracks identified as "Foxtrot" by Emil Cadkin and Jack Cookerly (from the Sam Fox music library) and "The Empty Jug" by Robin Cree and Stanley Glasser (from Berry Music); the former, on a Sam Fox album, is very possibly "Pleasant Neutral Foxtrot (OK-450). If this is of help, the tracks are all played at 80 RPM; can anyone who has technology to slow them down to 33⅓ speed who are experts in production music advise as to what's what? I'm presuming the former of these was used in the scenes where Maurice was going through school, and the latter as Maurice - being treated for gassing - briefly awakens in the hospital to do a jig before he collapses again from exhaustion.
I'm watching the third season of Hill Street Blues and the previews before the episodes make me cover my eyes. They spoil nearly every single plot point in the episode.
Way too young for the show i was probably an odd one out by having a Wyatt Earp action figure as a tyke Down under!
It was with a snug hat and some cool clobber but at school nobody knew who he was it was only slightly better when I had an astronaut doll from The Planet Of The Apes!