Top 20 TV Show Intros of the 70s

Introduction
Entries 16 to 20
Entries 11 to 15
Entries 6 to 10

The Top 5

5

The Muppet Show
1976-1981

Since 1969, Sesame Street had given Jim Henson’s creations invaluable exposure; however, Henson began to perceive that he was being pigeonholed as a children’s entertainer. He sought to create a program that could be enjoyed by young and old alike. Enter The Muppet Show.

I grew up watching the Muppet Show. I loved the chaos of it, how poor Kermit managed to keep the thing going despite the fact that it was one step away from being brought down by all the crazy characters. The Muppet Show featured a different (human) guest star every week. I think that if you made it to the Muppet Show as a guest host, you finally made it in the entertainment business. (Rocky III even riffed on this).

The intro is fun and gets you into the mood for the show. It has ever-changing bits similar to The Rockford Files, The Simpsons, etc. (Statler & Waldorf in the box seats always have a new insult, Gonzo messing up the trumpet in a new fashion). I don’t have a favorite character, but I remember that Beaker always made me laugh.

4

Laverne & Shirley
1976-1983

From WikiPedia:

In the beginning, Laverne (Penny Marshall) and Shirley (Cindy Williams) are seen skipping down the street, arm in arm, reciting a popular German-American hopscotch chant: “One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight! Schlemiel! Schlemazl! Hasenpfeffer Incorporated!” The theme song is entitled “Making Our Dreams Come True” and is performed by Cyndi Grecco.

The opening sequence is very popular and has been parodied in many pop culture outlets, including the movie Wayne’s World, where Garth and Wayne perform the theme song while visiting Milwaukee. The sequence has also been parodied in other languages, on Friends in a Spanish-language track under the title Laverne y Shirley and on Saturday Night Live, in faux Japanese, under the name Rabun to Shuri.

Honestly, I don’t remember too much from the show itself, except for those two guys Lenny (Michael McKean) and Squiggy (David Lander). Michael McKean, of course, appearing in SNL and all sorts of movies and TV shows (including X-Files and Mr. Show). Penny Marshall, like Rob Reiner, would go on to direct movies. Most of the time, the show was set in Milwaukee (they would later move to Burbank). Like Happy Days, the show was set in the 50s and 60s. In the final season , Shirley would leave the show (because Cindy Williams had just gotten pregnant). She picked a good time to leave - the show had bottomed out in ratings by 1983. Most likely the best sitcom about two female brewery bottlecappers you’ll ever see!

3

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
1979-1981

You may or may not know that Buck Rogers first appeared in 1928 in “Armageddon 2419 A.D.” by Philip Francis Nowlan published in the magazine Amazing Stories. In that story, America was conquered by Asian invaders (Hans) with advanced technology. Buck rogers was a World War I veteran who fell into suspended animation in 1927 and slept for 492 years. He awakes in 2419 and eventually helps America fight back agains the Hans.

Buster Crabbe would play the part of Buck in the 1939 (12-part) movie serial. Also, there was a TV series in the early 50s. But nobody except for the old timers really remembers any of that. They do, however, remember Gil Gerard and the total 70s campiness that was the NBC TV series from 1979-1981. My favorite part of the show, naturally, were the babes. I’ll never forget Erin Gray (Wilma Deering) and that one space vampire episode. Pamela Hensley played Princess Ardala and she was majorly hot. Twiki the robot was funny. Then the show went all Battlestar Galactica on us and took Buck Rogers into outer space searching for lost tribes or some nonsense. Remember Thom Christopher playing the Hawk-man to help fulfill the “Spock” quotient? Anyway, the opening title sequence is memorable and South Park even spoofed it.

2

All in the Family
1971-1979

Norman Lear produced this sitcom starring Carroll O’Conner as Archie Bunker and Jean Stapleton as Edith. No other sitcom had the balls that this show had. Nothing was off limits - racism, homophobia, rape, cancer, you name it. Archie may have been the biggest bigot you’ve ever met but he was a loveable bigot and I got a kick out of watching him in uncomfortable situations. Another great sitcom was spun off from this show - The Jeffersons (and yes, Maude too), and everybody is more than familiar with the liberal couple Meathead (Rob Reiner, who would later give us Spinal Tap and Princess Bride) and Gloria (Sally Struthers, who would later give us late night CCF commercials). Lee Adams and Charles Strouse wrote the show’s memorable theme song. I always get a strong dose of nostalgia when I hear it. It doesn’t hurt that the show was set in Queens, where I grew up.

In 1979, the sequel to All in the Family aired on CBS. Called Archie Bunker’s Place, it was also set in Queens and lasted 4 seasons. Jean Stapleton left the show early; it was explained that her character Edith died of a stroke. It should also be noted that Archie Bunker has mellowed out somewhat.

Boy the way Glen Miller played
Songs that made the hit parade.
Guys like us we had it made,
Those were the days.

And you knew who you were then,
Girls were girls and men were men,
Mister we could use a man
Like Herbert Hoover again.

Didn’t need no welfare state,
Everybody pulled his weight.
Gee our old LaSalle ran great.
Those were the days.

1

The Brady Bunch
1969-1974

Everybody knows The Brady Bunch. What more can be said at this point? Let’s just watch and remember the good old days.

Can you name all the spinoffs and movies? Holy crap - there’s a lot of ‘em. (The Brady Bunch Variety Hour, The Brady Girls Get Married, The Brady Brides, A Very Brady Christmas, The Bradys, The Brady Kids, The Brady Bunch Movie, A Very Brady Sequel, etc). The show is probably one of the dumbest things to come out of TV-land but I dare you to find somebody who doesn’t know the theme song. By the way, did Carol Brady work, and if not, why did they need a maid?