Are great/long TV intros/themes a gone forever?

Cafe Society
1

Here are some great TV intros/themes, just off the top of my head, sorta chronologically:

Musters
Addams Family
Andy Griffith Show
Monkees
Batman
Star Trek
Rockford Files
Barney Miler
Match Game
Love Boat
Taxi
Hill Street Blues
Three’s Company
A-Team
Dallas
LA Law
Cheers
TJ Hooker

It seems to taper off in the 90s, and nowadays, we have Law & Order and Lost, which have no real theme/intro to speak of. I guess CSI has one.

I can’t think of modern shows with long memorable themes you can hum with the opening credits. Maybe its just me.

2

I kindof liked the Theme to Garry Shandlings Show…

3

Just read the list in your op, and you left out Bonanza and Mary Tyler Moore. :smiley:

4

and WKRP

5

All three Law & Orders have theme songs. They come right after the first scene.

As for long theme songs, The Sopranos weighs in at just over a minute and a half.

Personally, I dislike longer theme songs. It makes shows that are already short because of endless commercials even shorter.

6

With increased ad time, they try to keep title sequences and end credits short to cram in more story.

7

The Wire had the best intro: a scene setting up the episode and then the intro, performed each season by a different artist (Tom Waits is my favorite).

8

Weeds did something similar their second season, and did a version of “Little Boxes” as the theme song each episode.

But that was on Showtime, so there was no need to cut for commercials.

And the most successful show on US TV – CSI Miami uses a theme song (as to the other CSIs).

9

**The West Wing ** was the last show to have a memorable theme song that I can think of.

I’m not sure if** Monday Night Football ** counts. I don’t like the Are You Ready for some Football, but it does stick in your head.

10

Dude! Hawaii 5-0!

For that matter the Miami Vice theme.

11

Law & Order’s theme is very short but it’s also pretty darn memorable.

12

According to TV programmers, it all goes to the American TV watcher’s short attention span.

Let’s say you’re settling back to watch (to choose one from the list) Taxi. While the opening theme is playing and the cab is driving across the bridge, you idly finger the remote control.

Next thing you know, you’re watching Seinfeld already into his third joke before Taxi has even gotten to the establishing shot in the garage.

Hour-long dramas are a little better because you’ve already made a preliminary commitment to give it an hour. But compare the openings to CSI or Law & Order to the openings of, say, Bonanza or *Dynasty.

13

Actually, many HBO/Showcase series have really interesting/memorable opening credits - others have already mentioned Weeds, The Wire and Sopranos, but two of my other favourites:
Six Feet Under (clocks in at 1:42)
Dexter (clocks in at 1:46)

14

Have you forgotten the sheer brilliance of Kim Possible?

15

The British show Shameless has what I consider to be a particularly long and somewhat unique intro. The original intro introduced every character in the show, every week. But it changed every season because they kept gaining and losing characters. It got odd. The last season’s intro was just as long but they gave up on introducing characters and replaced it with a different monologue.

The show does have a “theme song” too but it’s not played until the closing credits.

16

There has been a soap opera-esque thing going on in Canada over the HNIC theme song lately.

17

Battlestar Galactica has a long intro and theme music.

18

The Nanny had a cool retro opening thme.

19

I think this is the main reason themes are getting shorter. With less and less time for the actual show, burning up time with a long theme song is becoming something the writers, producers, etc. are increasingsly loath to do. Didn’t Numb3rs do away with its opening credits theme to have more time for story?

20

Monk. They even had an episode (with Sarah Silverman!) in which they talked about the theme song! Psyche has one, too, for that matter, done by the band of the creator of the show.

Veronica Mars had a great theme, and they switched up for a more maudlin and spooky version of the song in season three.

Smallville has coasted for, what, six years on “Somebody Save Me.”

The Tudors has a great theme - definitely hummable. For that matter, John Adams had an awesome Last of the Mohicans vibe.

Two great Fox themes - House and Bones.