TV
10 shocking facts you didn’t know about your favourite TV shows
Just like their characters, every TV show has its secrets! Here are some amazing facts you may not have known about your favourite shows.
- Star Trek – the transporter was created as a cheaper way to send the Enterprise crew to a planet rather than filming them “landing” the ship on a different planet each time.
- I Love Lucy – remember Fred and Ethel’s constant arguing? Well, apparently that wasn’t acting. There was no love lost between the actors who played them (Vivian Vance and William Frawley) off screen either.
- Friends – before Lisa Kudrow took the part, the role of Phoebe was originally offered to Ellen DeGeneres.
- Lost – the pilot episode, which cost around US$12 million, was so expensive that the network chairman who approved it was fired.
- Seinfeld – the cast was so frightened by the actor hired to play Elaine’s father that his character only appeared in one episode, despite originally being planned as a recurring role.
- The X-Files – Gillian Anderson, who played Scully, was 10 inches shorter than co-star David Duchovny and had to stand on a box to balance out the height difference in most scenes in which they appeared together.
- The Sopranos – you know the gun used in the show’s logo? HBO executives added this so people wouldn’t mistake it for a show about singing.
- Batman – Burt Ward, who played Robin, uttered the phrase “Holy ____, Batman!” more than 360 times.
- The Twilight Zone – the show’s creator Rod Serling initially wanted Orson Welles to read the opening narration but couldn’t meet his salary expectations.
- Doctor Who – in 1988, Paramount proposed a Doctor Who movie starring either Michael Jackson or Bill Cosby as the Doctor.
Which of these shows was your favourite? Tell us in the comments below.
Related links:
5 classic TV series to revisit
5 actors fired from hit TV shows while filming