Theme Songs From US Sitcoms (1960-1969) Quiz

Answer: The Fishin' Hole

"The Andy Griffith Show" lasted for eight seasons and 249 episodes. The titular star was the sheriff of the fictional town of Mayberry, NC. The series was in the Nielsen Top 10 its entire run and spent its final season at Number One. A spin-off series, Mayberry RFD (1968-1971), continued for three more seasons with many of the same characters. The series is still popular in reruns today.

The theme song of the series was "The Fishin' Hole" which was written by Earle Hagen and Herbert W. Spencer. Though the song appeared on the series strictly as an instrumental, there were lyrics written for the song.

Answer: The Ballad of Jed Clampett

"The Beverly Hillbillies" is a classic fish out of water tale where Jed Clampett and his family (the "hillbillies") are often ahead than the "sophisticated" city-folk. The series ran for nine seasons and 274 episodes.

"The Ballad of Jed Clampett" was the theme song for the series and reached Number One on the US Billboard Country Singles chart. Paul Henning composed the song, which was performed by Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs.

Answer: Jose's Theme

"The Bill Dana Show" was set in a New York City hotel and focused on the character of Jose Jimenez, a bellhop at the hotel. The series ran for two seasons and 42 episodes. The series was known for periodically using dream sequences. Like "The Andy Griffith Show", "The Bill Dana Show" was a spin-off of "Make Room For Daddy". Bill Dana would later portray Jose Jimenez in a cameo appearance on "Batman" (1966-1968).

Earl Hagen wrote the song "Jose's Theme" which served as the theme song to "The Bill Dana Show".

Answer: Best Friend

"The Courtship of Eddie's Father" ran for three seasons and 73 episodes and was based on a 1963 film with the same title. In the series, the young Eddie attempts to assist a widower father in finding a new wife and himself a new mother. Bill Bixby, who portrayed the father, would begin his directing career by direction eight episodes of the series and would receive an Emmy nomination for his role.

Harry Nilsson wrote and performed the theme song to "The Courtship of Eddie's Father", "Best Friend".

Answer: With a Little Love (Just a Little Love)

"The Debbie Reynolds Show" ran for one season of 26 episodes on NBC. In the series, the title star played a housewife married to a newspaper sportswriter. The shows creator and several writers had previously worked for Lucille Ball and this series had a somewhat similar feel. The series came to a premature end over a disagreement between Debbie Reynolds and NBC over the advisability of selling commercial spots to tobacco companies.

Jack Marshall and Tony Romeo wrote the theme song for the series "With a Little Love (Just a Little Love)".

Answer: Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)

"The Doris Day Show" lasted for five seasons and 128 episodes. The plots, settings, and characters were in a constant state of flux with the only constant being Day herself. Despite this the show was relatively popular during its run.

Jay Livingston and Ray Evans composed "Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)" for Doris Day to sing in the 1956 film "The Man Who Knew Too Much". It became Doris Day's unofficial personal theme song and various versions were used during the show's five year run. The original recording in 1956 made it to Number Two on the Billboard Hot 100 back in 1956.

Answer: Rise and Shine

"The Flintstones" was inspired by Jackie Gleason and the episodes of "The Honeymooners". The series ran for six seasons and 166 episodes and was the longest-running prime-time animated series in the US until "The Simpsons" would break that record 30 years later. The series is well known for its juxtaposition of "modern" problems and "prehistoric" technology. Interestingly during the series, Winston Cigarettes was a sponsor and one can find black and white commercials where the cast of "The Flintstones" advertise the cigarettes.

"Meet the Flintstones" (with its explanatory lyrics) might be the more familiar theme song for the series but the instrumental "Rise and Shine" served that role during the first two seasons. Hanna-Barbera veteran Hoyt Curtin composed the music.

Answer: Seattle

"Here Come the Brides" was set in Seattle, WA, in the 1860s. The premise of the series was an attempt to convince single women to move to Seattle to help balance the gender population of the town and keep the male workers happy. The series lasted for two seasons and 52 episodes. The series had solid ratings in the first season but declining ratings in the second would lead to its cancellation.

The theme song, "Seattle", had music by Hugo Montenegro and lyrics by Jack Keller and Ernie Sheldon. In the series, both an instrumental version and a version with the lyrics sung by The New Establishment were used. Outside of the show, Perry Como released a single version of "Seattle" in 1968 that would reach Number 38 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Answer: Sometimes I'm Happy

"The Joey Bishop Show" would last for four seasons and 123 episodes, beginning on NBC and moving to CBS for its final season. The show was another spin-off of "Make Room for Daddy" and was a vehicle for its star. Joey Bishop portrayed a "public relations man" who underwent various experiences and misadventures.

Wile the theme song for the majority of its run was "Joey", the first season theme song was "Sometimes I'm Happy", written by Vincent Youmans and Irving Caesar.

Answer: Cousins

"The Patty Duke Show" ran for three seasons and 104 episodes and ended mostly due to additional cost involved in transitioning from black and white episodes to color ones. In the series, set in Brooklyn, Patty Duke portrayed Patty Lane and her "identical cousin", Cathy. This leap in logic was justified by Patty's father and Cathy's father being twin brothers (both portrayed by William Schallert).

Sid Ramin and Robert Wells wrote the theme song for "The Patty Duke Show", "Cousins". On the series, the song was performed by the Skip-Jacks.