# Shows where “everyone” eventually had a part **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [October 1, 2023, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951 "2023-10-01T10:03:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2023, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/21 "2023-10-01T18:53:37Z")
Route 66 had quite a [roster of guest stars](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Route_66_(TV_series)#Guest_stars). ---
**Author:** ![Pavelb1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/439d5e/32.png) [@Pavelb1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pavelb1)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2023, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/22 "2023-10-01T19:16:00Z")
See! You know who she is! She was also in The Longest Yard and Messiah of Evil. A cult film which has better cred then Invasion of the Bee Girls…famous in its own right of course thanks to Skinemax. ---
**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:** [October 1, 2023, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/23 "2023-10-01T19:27:04Z")
For starters: _ **The Fugitive** _ _ **Combat!** _ _ **Twelve O’Clock High** _ _ **The Avengers** _ _ **The FBI** _ _ **Mission: Impossible** _ _ **The Invaders** _ _ **Hawaii Five-O** _ ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2023, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/24 "2023-10-01T20:00:24Z")
Last of the Summer Wine had an original main cast of Peter Sallis (also famous for the voice part of Wallace in Wallace & Gromit), Bill Owen, Brian Wilde and Kathy Staff. As it’s a show about the antics of eccentric pensioners, it was inevitable that if the series continued long enough (and boy, it did) the original cast would eventually die. Over time, the show became a veritable conveyor belt of older actors and comedians, including, but not limited to: Burt Kwouk, Stephen Lewis, June Whitfield, Russ Abbott, Norman Wisdom, Bobby Ball, Jim Bowen, Bernard Cribbins etc Basically anyone who had been an actor in a not-completely serious role in the past was in the lineup at some point. ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2023, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/25 "2023-10-01T20:39:16Z")
Another British show which has had a host of famous names pass through is the soap opera Coronation Street (1960 - present). In some cases, it’s a famous person doing it as a bit of fun (some fella called Charles had a cameo, apparently); but there are plenty of examples where it was an early break for someone who went on to (much) greater things: national treasure Joanna Lumley; Patrick Stewart; Ben Kingsley; and so on. Here’s a list > **[Famous people who have appeared in "Coronation Street"](https://coronationstreet.fandom.com/wiki/Category:Famous_people_who_have_appeared_in_%22Coronation_Street%22)** > > This is a list of famous people who have appeared in Coronation Street. With the definition of famous, this context means famous for reasons other than being in the programme. (ETA: click on “Other” at the end of the alphabet to display all names at once) j ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2023, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/26 "2023-10-01T21:56:45Z")
I don’t know if [Bonanza](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052451/fullcredits/?ref_=tt_cl_sm) had more guest stars, more quality guest stars, or more “hey it’s that guy” guest stars than any other show, but its probably near the top in any list you can develop. I looked through the IMDB list and found some unusual entries like Bob Barker, Bobby “Boris” Pickett, Scatman Crothers, and Tor Johnson, as well as a whole posse of child/teenage actors who went on to better things: Jodie Foster, Gary Busey, Lisa Eilbacher, Beau Bridges, and Ron Howard. ---
**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:** [October 1, 2023, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/27 "2023-10-01T22:35:29Z")
Oh, I had a big boyhood crush on Ms Ford. I thought she should have had, at least, a steady TV career. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2023, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/28 "2023-10-01T22:41:06Z")
The X-Files had pre-fame appearances by Seth Green, Jack Black, Jewel Staite, and Lucy Liu off the top of my head. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2023, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/29 "2023-10-01T23:01:23Z")
Whenever we’re watching a UK movie or TV show and see an actor who looks familiar to us, and we can’t pinpoint from where, we’ll look them up on imdb. 99 times out of 100 it’s from _Midsomer Murders._ ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2023, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/30 "2023-10-01T23:23:58Z")
> [@Love\_Rhombus](#): > > …and I’ve seen more than a few famous faces on Perry Mason, such as Harvey Korman and James Coburn. And long enough ago that folks are sometimes hard to recognize. I saw one a few weeks ago, and there was something familiar about one of the actresses. I couldn’t quite place her, though; had to look up the episode on IMDb. [![](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BM2Q4YThiYTUtNzU0NS00YWJmLWIyYTktZWE0ODhhM2FiMjgyXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjUxNDg0Nzc@._V1_.jpg) ](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BM2Q4YThiYTUtNzU0NS00YWJmLWIyYTktZWE0ODhhM2FiMjgyXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjUxNDg0Nzc@._V1_.jpg) Marion Ross I also saw Gavin MacLeod just a couple nights ago, but but he was a little easier to spot. ---
**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:** [October 1, 2023, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/31 "2023-10-01T23:49:11Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I also saw Gavin MacLeod just a couple nights ago, but but he was a little easier to spot. With or without hair? ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2023, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/32 "2023-10-01T23:51:07Z")
A quick survey of the 1500 names in the Love Boat cast list shows: Terri Hatcher Ray Milland Jessica Walters Carol Channing Milton Berle Melissa Sue Anderson Peter Scolari Parker Stevenson Julia Duffy Patrick Duffy Tim Robbins Len Lesser (Seinfeld’s Uncle Lou), and many many more ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2023, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/33 "2023-10-02T01:56:46Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > With or without hair? Bald on top, with a fringe of dark hair. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2023, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/34 "2023-10-02T03:49:00Z")
There were several things that made it likely that a television show would have many appearances by (eventually) well known actors. One is, obviously, that the show lasted a long time. A second is that the show had few bottle episodes: > **[Bottle episode](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bottle_episode)** > > In episodic television, a bottle episode or bottle show is an episode produced cheaply and restricted in scope to use as few regular cast members, effects and sets as possible. Bottle episodes are usually shot on sets built for other episodes, frequently the main interior sets for a series, and consist largely of dialogue and scenes for which no special preparations are needed. They are commonly used when one script has fallen through and another has to be written at short notice, or because of b... If each episode had few actors on it, it meant that the show didn’t have as many actors over its history. A third is that it was the kind of show where you expected minor actors in each episode to appear once and never again. One example of such a show is police and detective shows where each episode is about a single crime which isn’t mentioned in future episodes. Another example of this is shows where there is no continuing story at all. This was more common in American television from its beginning to about the mid-1960s. This was shows like _The Twilight Zone_, _Outer Limits_, and _Alfred Hitchcock Presents_. There were also shows that had “theater”, “playhouse”, and the names of the sponsors of the show in the titles (which really don’t exist anymore). They were sort of like going to a different play every week at the local live playhouse where there was no continuity between the plays. ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2023, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/35 "2023-10-03T17:00:23Z")
Jamie Lee Curtis does a cute bit part as a waitress in one. ---
**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:** [October 3, 2023, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/36 "2023-10-03T18:13:39Z")
> [@Banksiaman](#): > > The Australian soaps _Home and Away_ and _Neighbours_ churn through young talent. Chris Hemsworth and Margot Robbie are just some of the recent alumni, along with Craig Pearce > > The argument about why Australian actors are well-regarded in Hollywood is that these soaps give you excellent training. A lot of _Home & Away_ especially is filmed outdoors on beaches - the expectation is that if you are a young hunk or starlet you will turn up on time, know your lines and not waste time on multiple takes before the sun goes, and you are not special and will not be treated as such. I saw Margot Robbie being interviewed someplace and she attributed her ability to cry on demand to her experience on the show. ---
**Author:** ![bryanmaguire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d07c76/32.png) [@bryanmaguire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bryanmaguire)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2023, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/37 "2023-10-03T20:04:50Z")
The british drama series Crown Court ran for 879 episodes over the course of 12 years. the format was 25 minute episodes and 3 episodes usually comprised a single case. It was unusual in that an actual jury decided on guilt or innocence and they scripted 2 different endings to cover this. Everybody working in british tv at the time showed up in it including future oscar winners Ben Kingsley and Brenda Fricker. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crown\_Court\_(TV\_series)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crown_Court_(TV_series)) ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2023, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/38 "2023-10-04T12:02:48Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > The Twilight Zone. **The Outer Limits** , too Donald Pleasance David McCallum William Shatner Leonard Nimoy Eddie Albert Bruce Dern Robert Culp (3 times!) Adam West Barry Morse Carroll O’Connor Grace Lee Whitney and a bunch of others ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2023, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/39 "2023-10-04T13:11:37Z")
One day, we will look back on the Harry Potter movies as a showcase of all the great British actors of the time and realize how lucky we were to get them in the same series. One shame is Stephen Fry never appears in any role in the movies. He did such an incredible voice-acting job on the audio books, it’s hard to separate the series from him. ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2023, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951/40 "2023-10-04T13:26:32Z")
A lot of people have been on Archer, including Brian Cranston, Rene Auberjonois, Timothy Olyphant, Jon Hamm, Burt Reynolds, Anthony Bourdain, Patton Oswalt… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shows-where-everyone-eventually-had-a-part/990951.md?page=3)