Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2009 April 17

= April 17 =

Actor Vic Tayback
Wikipedia needs to add credit to Actor Vic Tayback for his role as a Police Man on the TV Series Love on a Rooftop. He was in the episode called The Brass Bed (1965-66) Season IN COLOR on ABC-TV. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.36.191.0 (talk) 01:41, 17 April 2009 (UTC)


 * You are Wikipedia. Yes.  You are.  Feel free to fix anything around here that is wrong.  Be prepared if someone objects to your fix, and discuss any contested changes in a constructive and civil manner using the article's talk page. But you are certainly invited to make any changes you deem necessary.  --Jayron32. talk . contribs  02:03, 17 April 2009 (UTC)
 * However, it isn't necessary to list every single credit (that's IMDb's function). Clarityfiend (talk) 04:47, 17 April 2009 (UTC)


 * Wikipedia tends to cover only major roles in TV series articles. Otherwise, the list would become way too long to be readable and it's not useful to try to duplicate what IMDB already does. - Mgm|(talk) 11:07, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Where to find number of G, PG, PG13, and R movies distributed to US cinemas per year in recent past?
Where can I find statistics for the number of G, PG, PG13, and R movies distributed to US cinemas each year in the past please? 78.146.249.32 (talk) 11:20, 17 April 2009 (UTC)
 * I can't view these pages at work, so I'm not sure if they have what you're looking for, but our article Motion Picture Association of America film rating system contains links to the MPAA Film Ratings website and a searchable ratings database. Tomdobb (talk) 12:11, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for trying, but none of those links give the statistics required. 89.242.147.172 (talk) 14:17, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

Sword and sorcery
I remember once seeing a movie where there was a family of wizards. The mother sacrificed herself on gigantic teeth to let the rest of the party pass. A warrior-woman, the main character, killed three incarnations of the father on horse. What's the name of the movie? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.234.113.71 (talk) 17:33, 17 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Problem Child 2 Sammy Wilson (talk) 18:01, 18 April 2009 (UTC)
 * I don't think that was a helpful suggestion, Sammy. DJ Clayworth (talk) 16:00, 20 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Probably not, but it made me laugh. --Richardrj talkemail 16:04, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

the real story behind "One"
I'm trying to find out the story behind the song "One" from the Broadway musical A Chorus Line. When I tried getting some help from the performing arts division of the New York Public Library, I got a rude answer. If someone out there can help me, I'd appreciate it very much. Thank you.69.203.157.50 (talk) 20:30, 17 April 2009 (UTC)


 * What kind of story are you expecting? One was written for A Chorus Line as far as I know. Do you think there is more story than that? You might find this article or this book interesting. DJ Clayworth (talk) 20:59, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Actually, I'm trying to figure what the song "One" is about, to tell you the truth.69.203.157.50 (talk) 21:11, 18 April 2009 (UTC)


 * OK. Basically it's about "star quality": the idea that some people "got it", and that those people get and deserve all the attention, overshadowing everyone else around them. It contrasts with the rest of the show which is about the people who sweat blood for their one tiny chance in the spotlight. DJ Clayworth (talk) 15:58, 20 April 2009 (UTC)


 * It's a fantasy. One of the original proposed "reality" endings was a bare stage with an offstage announcement of when rehearsals would begin. (Sounds somewhat downbeat to me.) Since dancers have been eliminated, they return in the fantasy of "One." It's also metaphoric. Having established that each dancer is an individual, the finale pictures them merging together, losing their individual identities until they all look alike and dance in synchronization, at last unified as one entity. Pepso2 (talk) 21:29, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

movie credits
Why does every single show on TV (and movies too) list the name of EVERY SINGLE person who did anything at all on the show? Of course, the main star has an vested interested in getting their due credit recorded, and the significant people behind the scene, the director, producer, main hairdresser, of course want to be able to prove what the put on their resueme, and have their name recognized by their peers. But why does the assistant lighting guy, or or some second unit camera-man care about his/her name in small letters at the end of the show? How does it benefit their career to have that information physically attached to every copy of the show? Isn't there some easier way to prove to your next employer that you have the right experience in the trade?

Duomillia (talk) 21:04, 17 April 2009 (UTC)


 * Unions. That is why movies like Pulp Fiction pay fines for not placing the opening credits at the beginning of the film. --  k a i n a w &trade; 21:22, 17 April 2009 (UTC)


 * This is asked surprisingly often. See Jan 6 2007, Feb 5 2008, June 20 2008, Oct 24 2008, and Jan 7 2009. Adam Bishop (talk) 03:17, 18 April 2009 (UTC)


 * Even if this stuff wasn't dictated by union contracts, the question "why does the [fairly minor participant in the production] care about his/her name in small letters at the end of the show?" is kind of interesting, because for a lot of people, getting their name in the paper or otherwise being noted is a surprisingly big deal -- perhaps because it makes them feel important, or simply because it validates something for them. A bit of public recognition tends to make people feel good, even if it's just knowing that you've left a little mark of yourself somewhere in the small print. -- Captain Disdain (talk) 11:50, 21 April 2009 (UTC)