The Flintstones and Bewitched questions...

[David*P]

This question is specifically for those you who have all ready purchased Season Six of the Flintstones.

On the episode titled "Samantha" I would like to know if Elizabeth Montgomery and Dick York's names appear in the credits. On the video release of this episode they do not though I know they were on the original broadcast.

I also would like to know if Bewitched is mentioned in the featurette about Flintstones and Pop culture. Thanks!

These two items are what is holding me back from buying this set.

[TV Knowledge Fan]

...you're absolutely right, David- in the ORIGINAL closing credits shown in syndication years ago, Elizabeth and Dick's names WERE featured prominently as "special guest stars". Unfortunately, when Turner Broadcasting acquired "THE FLINTSTONES" (and the rest of the Hanna-Barbera library) in the '80s, and "remastered" those episodes, they did so with only two or three "standard" closing credits that were not part of the original episodes {i.e. the credits now shown in the final two seasons, for the most part, are from the episode where "The Great Gazoo" was first introduced, in October 1965}- I call this their "one size fits all" philosophy....and it's a lousy one! I don't know if this version is the one in the box set. The one I saw on VHS, years ago, of course, had NO laugh track and the "wrong" credits at the end.

As for mention of "BEWITCHED" in the featurette, I don't know, as I haven't see that yet. Because "THE FLINTSTONES" and "BEWITCHED" were distributed by the same studio at the time [Screen Gems-Columbia], ABC wanted a special "crossover" episode for the fall of 1965, to boost "THE FLINTSTONES"' sagging ratings. And, because Hanna-Barbera had animated the opening titles for Montgomery's show, all they had to do was dig out the model sheets, wrap Samantha and Darrin in "Stone Age" garb, and have Liz & Dick's voices present as well (which I believe they furnished under their contract with Screen Gems). Liz once remarked they received portable color TV sets for their efforts in that episide...and she had appeared with Gerry Johnson {"Betty #2"} in the 1964 "BEWITCHED" Christmas episode, "A Vision Of Sugar Plums".

Proceed with caution when you get that 6th season DVD, David....

[David*P]

I actually purchased this set this weekend and I'm glad I did!

First of all, it has a scene at the first of the episode that wasn't present on the home video release. It doesn't have Samantha or Durwood in it but it does give more explanation as to what is going to be happening in the episode because it shows Barney and Fred discussing going out in the wild to camp. It also shows the moving van moving in to the house across the street.

The credits also contain EM and DY's names!!

And in the featurette it shows the model sheets and some of the story board for this episode.

So I'm definitely glad I got it!

[TV Knowledge Fan]

...most of the "teaser" scenes from the final season- the ones that "set" the plot in motion- were omitted (as they were on TV at the time of release). Example- the opening "teaser" scene of "Rip Van Flintstone" has Fred trying a "skatebone" in the supermarket...with disastrous results. This scene was shown before the opening credits, and was omitted from syndication in the '80s. When the "first act" begins, with the check-out clerk determining how much damage Fred has done (with the price of one "skatebone" added), that scene doesn't make much sense unless you saw the 'teaser'.

I'm happy that the "Samantha" episode WAS restored, with the "teaser" scene featuring the moving van, the laugh track, and the original closing credits [WHICH ARE STILL MISSING FROM BOOMERANG'S VERSION!!] intact. The only thing missing, of course, is the "Screen Gems" logo at the very end- but why quibble?

[EmpressDR]

Originally Posted by TV Knowledge Fan

...you're absolutely right, David- in the ORIGINAL closing credits shown in syndication years ago, Elizabeth and Dick's names WERE featured prominently as "special guest stars". Unfortunately, when Turner Broadcasting acquired "THE FLINTSTONES" (and the rest of the Hanna-Barbera library) in the '80s, and "remastered" those episodes, they did so with only two or three "standard" closing credits that were not part of the original episodes {i.e. the credits now shown in the final two seasons, for the most part, are from the episode where "The Great Gazoo" was first introduced, in October 1965}- ...I call this their "one size fits all" philosophy....and it's a lousy one!

Yes, I hate when studios buy out other studios, or buy programs and change the original studio logo or in this case, the credits.
I was so HAPPY with Turner for creating more episodes of the Jetsons, but so mad at Turner for replacing the closing credits for ALL the episodes, so we didn't see George on the treadmill, with the amused cat and dog watching. WHY? Couldn't they have recreated the closing, or just left those alone, and made a different closing for the new ones?

The logo becomes as much a part of the soundtrack as the rest of the aural landscape of a film/TV series. There was actually a different version of Superman III that played in theatres which had NOT the famous John Williams score, but played the opening credits over the toy penguins; Return of the Jedi had many versions in 1993 which was minus the 20th Century Fox fanfare. I hated when Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer creators Rankin/Bass original logo was replaced with an updated version --I've seen DVDs with the original restored since then. and on and on.

[treky]

yes; and on the BEWITCHED DVDs, for ALL the Dick York episodes they put the 1966 closing credits on ....and on the MASH episode "THE INTERVIEW" on DVD they have the edited version that's shown in sydnication. But, they explain that that's because Fox only had access to that one.

To be fair though; I read somewhere that some TV and movie prints are in such bad shape that a DVD print is either impossible or too expensive to be worth making.