# Old TV themes/commercials you can sing from memory **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 10, 2015, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711 "2015-03-10T18:19:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/101 "2015-03-11T21:47:33Z")
When it’s least expected, you’re elected. You’re the star today Smile- you’re on Candid Camera! With a hocus pocus, you’re in focus. It’s your lucky day. Smile- you’re on Candid Camera! It’s fun to laugh at yourself. It’s a tonic, tried and true. It’s fun to laugh at yourself Like other people do. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Tar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3da27b/32.png) [@Jack\_Tar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Tar)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/102 "2015-03-11T21:49:34Z")
_Really_ Terentii, you include Stingray, but not this one I wish I was a spaceman The fastest guy alive I’d fly you 'round the universe In Fireball XL5 Way out in space together Conquerors of the sky My heart would be a fireball, a fireball Every time I gazed into your starry eyes ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/103 "2015-03-11T21:58:01Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > - > > But Patty loves to rock’n’roll > **A hotdog makes her lose control!** > \* That was the line that always got me! :eek: 😃 ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/104 "2015-03-11T22:01:50Z")
> [@Jack\_Tar](#): > > _Really_ Terentii, you include Stingray, but not this one > > I wish I was a spaceman > The fastest guy alive > I’d fly you 'round the universe > In Fireball XL5 > Way out in space together > Conquerors of the sky > My heart would be a fireball, a fireball > Every time I gazed into your starry eyes I knew the first and second verse, but didn’t realize there were two more: > **[FIREBALL XL-5 Lyrics - BARRY GRAY | eLyrics.net](https://www.elyrics.net/read/b/barry-gray-lyrics/fireball-xl,,5-lyrics.html)** > > I wish I was a spaceman The fastest guy alive I'd fly you 'round the universe In Fireball XL5 Way out in space together Conquerors of ... They weren’t included on the CD I had of classic TV themes. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/105 "2015-03-11T22:07:43Z")
> [@koeeoaddi](#): > > \*He was innocent. > Not a charge was true. > Something somthing some-um-um-um-THING! > > **Branded**! > Something something shame. > What will you do when you’re branded? > Will you fight for your name? > \* \*All but one man died (Da-da-da-da-da!) there at Bitter Creek (Da-da-da-da-da!), and they say he ran away. Branded! Scorned as the one who ran! What do you’re branded and you know you’re a man? Branded! Marked with a coward’s shame! What do you do when you’re branded, and you fight for your name? Wherever you go for the rest of your life you must prooooooooooove you’re a man! Da-da-da-da-da-da-daaaaaaaah, dum!\* ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/106 "2015-03-11T22:11:58Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > \*All but one man died (Da-da-da-da-da!) > there at Bitter Creek (Da-da-da-da-da!), > and they say he ran away. > Branded! Scorned as the one who ran! > What do you’re branded > and you know you’re a man? > > Branded! Marked with a coward’s shame! > What do you do when you’re branded, > and you fight for your name? > Wherever you go > for the rest of your life > you must prooooooooooove > you’re a man! > > Da-da-da-da-da-da-daaaaaaaah, dum!\* I probably heard the “Stranded” version (about a guy in the john with no toilet paper) more often than the real Western theme. ---
**Author:** ![Cartoonacy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/848f3c/32.png) [@Cartoonacy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartoonacy)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/107 "2015-03-11T22:26:14Z")
At the risk of making you all waste a weekend in front of the computer: [http://www.televisiontunes.com](http://www.televisiontunes.com) I downloaded a bunch of great themes to my phone. \*Mannix \*is my current ringtone, but I’ve also used _My Favorite Martian_, _Name of the Game_, and _The Magician_. If you’re looking for a good alarm ringtone, go British: _Van Der Valk_ if you want to be wakened gently, or _Strange Report_ if you need a shock to get you up. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/108 "2015-03-11T22:28:16Z")
_Away! Away! Away rode the Rebel, Johnny Yuma! Johnny Yuma was a Rebel, he roamed through the West! Yes, Johnny Yuma was a rebel, he wandered alone! He got fightin’ mad, this Rebel lad! He was panther quick and leather tough, and he figured that he’d been pushed enough! The Rebel! Away! Away! Away rode the Rebel, Johnny Yuma! Johnny Yuma!_ \*Who is the tall dark stranger there? Maverick is the name! Ridin’ the trail to who knows where? Luck is his companion, gamblin’ is his game! Smooth as the handle on a gun, Maverick is the name! Wild as the wind in Oregon, blowin’ up a canyon, easier to tame! Riverboat, ring your bell! Fare thee well, Annabelle! Luck is the lady that he loves the best! Natchez to New Orleans, livin’ on jacks and queens, Maverick is a legend of the West! Maverick is a legend of the West!\* _Now, when the West was very young, there lived a man named Masterson! He wore a cane and derby hat,_ his name was Bat, Bat Masterson! The trail that he blazed is still there. No one has come since to replace his fame. And those with too ready a trigger forgot to “figger” on his flashing cane! Now, in the legend of the West, one name stands out from all the rest: the man who had the fastest gun! His name was Bat, Bat Masterson!\* \*I always wondered what the hell a “cane and derby hat” was… ☹ ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/109 "2015-03-11T22:32:25Z")
> [@Cartoonacy](#): > > _Strange Report_ if you need a shock to get you up. I watched this show (Anthony Quayle as Adam Strange! 🆒 ) when it was a summer replacement in 1968 or '69 (IIRC) and have never been able to get the theme out of my head! ---
**Author:** ![Cartoonacy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/848f3c/32.png) [@Cartoonacy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartoonacy)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/110 "2015-03-11T22:53:52Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > I watched this show (Anthony Quayle as Adam Strange! 🆒 ) I did, too, and was terribly disappointed that [Quayle](http://cult-tv-lounge.blogspot.com/2014/02/the-strange-report.html)never strapped on a jetpack and teleported to Alpha Centauri to match wits with invaders on the planet [Rann](http://www.toonopedia.com/adamstr.htm). ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2015, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/111 "2015-03-11T23:05:36Z")
Would you like to hear me whistle “The Wild, Wild West”? ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/112 "2015-03-12T01:02:46Z")
_Try a Bit o’ Licorice Try a Bit o’ Peanut Butter Every Bit o’ Honey Candy bar is A bit of fun._ ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/113 "2015-03-12T03:12:31Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > Would you like to hear me whistle “The Wild, Wild West”? On my list of the top ten best themes ever! ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/114 "2015-03-12T04:48:39Z")
Tobacco tastes best When the filter’s recessed, Smoke Parliament! Winstons taste good Like a (clap-clap) cigarette should! From the land of sky-blue wa-a-ters wa-a-ters From the land of pines, lofty balsams, Comes the beer refreshing, Hamms, the beer refreshing, Hamms! mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm Hamms! Not actually a theme: "Faster than a speeding bullet! \ More powerful than a locomotive! \ Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound! \ Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s SUPERMAN! Yes, it’s Superman! Strange visitor from another planet who came to Earth with powers and abilities _far beyond_ those of mortal men. Superman! Who can change the course of mighty rivers, bend steel in his bare hands! And who, disguised as Clark Kent (mild-mannered reporter for a great metropolitan newspaper) fights a never-ending battle for Truth, Justice, and **The American Way!** \" ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/115 "2015-03-12T05:09:22Z")
Theme from SWAT. Another good tune. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/116 "2015-03-12T13:12:10Z")
> [@BeeGee](#): > > As I tippy tippy toe through my garden > Where all the pretty flowers dwell > There’s a rare perfume in my garden > And I love to stand there and smell > > And as I tippy tippy toe along > All the pretty flowers seem to sing this song: > I wasn’t alive when that one came out, but I did watch in on a black and white tv. Derry down pip pip Dilly dilly day Hey nonny nonny Rippity pippity a ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/117 "2015-03-12T13:45:51Z")
\*When Katnip the cat sees Herman the mouse Katnip the cat packs his bags and leaves the house! Fiddle-diddle-dee, fiddle-diddle-ay, it’s just like a holiday! Fiddle-diddle-dee, fiddle-diddle-ay, Herman’s come to stay!\* This always reminds me of \*\*\*MAD Magazine’s \*\*\*“Uncle Nutsy” typical kids’ TV show: \*“This cartoon was released in 1929 … but very, very late in the year. It’s also very **educational!** Tell us what you **learned** from this cartoon, Susie?” “I learned that cats are **ugly** and **bad** , and mice are **cute** and **good** , and I’m going to bring mice into the **house** and \*\*feed \*\*them and **take care** of them, and **kill** Mommy’s Siamese cats, and…” “Very good, Susie! And now it’s time for a **commercial break!** ”\* 😃 ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/118 "2015-03-12T13:59:41Z")
H-A-double R-I-GAN spells Harrigan Proud of all the Irish blood that’s in me Divvil a man a word can say agin’ me (am I old or what???) ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/119 "2015-03-12T14:04:14Z")
Speaking of super heroes (well we’re not; but we could be): _In your satin tights, fighting for our rights and the old red, white and blue_ _Electra Woman and Dyna Girl fighting all evil deeds Each writes for a magazine hiding the life she leads_ ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711/120 "2015-03-12T14:12:25Z")
\*G-I, double-L, I, G-A-N spells “Gilligan”! He’s the hero of our mighty nation, idolized by all the population! G-I, double-L, I, G-A-N, you see! He’s a the man we adore who will keep us out of war! Gilligan! That’s me!\* [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-tv-themes-commercials-you-can-sing-from-memory/714711.md?page=7)