# Billing as "MISS...." **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 6, 2019, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billing-as-miss/836623 "2019-07-06T13:46:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2019, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billing-as-miss/836623/21 "2019-07-06T22:43:09Z")
Well, there already was a Bamboo Harvester enrolled with the Screen Actors Guild. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2019, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billing-as-miss/836623/22 "2019-07-07T00:06:18Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > IIRC Michael Learned was billed as Miss Michael Learned on the Waltons, I think to remove the gender ambiguity of her first name This was my first thought in this thread. Now I’m wondering whether “Mr.” has been used to remove the gender ambiguity of a male actor’s given name, e.g. “Mr. Carrol O’Connor” or “Mr. Marion Morrison.” ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2019, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billing-as-miss/836623/23 "2019-07-07T00:09:51Z")
Miss Barbara Stanwyck was a successful movie star that agreed to do weekly tv. The show wanted to give Stanwyck a prominent place in the credits. It’s a sign of respect for her distinguished career. It’s true that her movie career had slowed down. But they still wanted to treat her like a star. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2019, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billing-as-miss/836623/24 "2019-07-07T00:33:19Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Miss Barbara Stanwyck was a successful movie star that agreed to do weekly tv. > > The show wanted to give Stanwyck a prominent place in the credits. It’s a sign of respect for her distinguished career. > > It’s true that her movie career had slowed down. But they still wanted to treat her like a star. This. I was just going to post that she was a Grande Dame of cinema along with the likes of Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. Also, unlike today, keeping your maiden name or hypenating it when married was uncommon, so if Stanwyck was married (she was single), Mrs. Barbara Stanwyck would have been incorrect since legally she would likely have taken her hushand’s surname. In Lucille Ball’s case, AFAIK, she was legally Lucille Arnez until they divorced and Lucille Ball was her stage name while they were married. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2019, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billing-as-miss/836623/25 "2019-07-07T00:36:17Z")
The pilot for Big Valley could have easily been a movie. The tension when the illegitimate son (Heath) confronts the family was done really well. Nick of course wanted to attack him. Jarrod tries paying him off to leave. They want to shield their mother from the scandal. Stanwyck has a scene with Heath where she encourages him to stay without acknowledging her husband’s infidelity. It required a skilled actor like Stanwyck. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2019, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billing-as-miss/836623/26 "2019-07-07T12:03:07Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Miss Barbara Stanwyck was a successful movie star that agreed to do weekly tv. > > The show wanted to give Stanwyck a prominent place in the credits. It’s a sign of respect for her distinguished career. > > It’s true that her movie career had slowed down. But they still wanted to treat her like a star. That’s what I thought at the time. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2019, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billing-as-miss/836623/27 "2019-07-07T15:31:18Z")
> [@mbh](#): > > Is is possible that “Barbara Stanwyck” was under contract to a different studio, and she had to use a different name to work for ABC? I have heard that musicians often have to use pseudonyms when they change record labels. No. By the time _The Big Valley_ aired, the studio system no longer existed and actors weren’t under contract. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2019, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billing-as-miss/836623/28 "2019-07-07T16:23:55Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Well, there already was a Bamboo Harvester enrolled with the Screen Actors Guild. The established response to that is make up a middle name and bill yourself as “Bamboo _ **J.** _ Harvester.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billing-as-miss/836623.md?page=1)