On May 11, 8:26 am, "Bryan" <[email protected]> wrote:
> >>> And of course, by "The Wire," I meant "The Unit."
>
> And by "The Unit," you meant network TV -- and have they started
> actually showing credits now? Cuz last time I looked, they were
> squished down to the bottom (or the side) of the screen and sped
> up, making it impossible to read unless you go thru it afterwards,
> frame-by-frame. But maybe you're able to do that, on a really huge
> screen that's big enough for you to actually read everything....
On most scripted series, the major credits (stars, creator, producers,
writer, director, occasionally composer, editor, production designer,
cinematographer if they got it in their contract) are shown in a more
legible form at the top of Act I (and there are still some shows that
have title sequences longer than 5 seconds and show the stars and the
creator--"Southland" is the latest example). It often takes 5 minutes
for them to roll the list, especially if the top of the act has a lot
of expository dialogue or a big action scene, but they are there.
Just to repeat, the reason for the end titles being scrunched,
genericed and hurried is because the networks and cable channels are
afraid you're going to turn the dial when you see the credits (and
let's admit it--we are not the typical viewer). It's bad enough these
days that TV Land runs "Andy Griffith" credits generic'd (although the
Desliu logo and the bugs of the IATSE and the predecessor to AMPTP are
replicated) over the kicker scene rather than let you hear Earle Hagen
whistling one more time (on the more frequently run black-and-white
shows, you wouldn't see Andy and Opie walking back from the fishing
hole since that was replaced to cover up the General Foods logos),
since they know that "Andy Griffith" fans are on the edge of their
seats waiting for "The Cougar."
And just remember, friends--if "Friends" hadn't been a hit and
established Must-See TV back in 1994, when NBC started generic credits
with "NBC 2000," we wouldn't have this mess. For maybe another five
years.
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