Rare Opening The Dick Van Dyke Show

For Season 3, this alternate opening aired occasionally. Here, we see Dick Van Dyke sidestepping the ottoman, but then he trips on the carpet. The black formal wear is a giveaway that you're seeing this version. Oh, Rob, take note: Fair use and education regarding classic TV history are the reasons for this posting, thanks!

Category:

Comedy

Tags:

• Dick
• Van
• Dyke
• Show
• Alternate
• Opening
• Credits

[peterfinnfilms]

How is this rare? It can be found in the DVD sets.

[jed6271]

@peterfinnfilms - OK, it is not very rare, but rather it is uncommon since it was only seen on a few episodes. What makes this uncommon is the black evening wear the cast is wearing, and the stumble on the carpet. The sidestepping of the ottoman (without the carpet stumble) was a very common version seen most often in the final 2 seasons.

[caatcher]

It's even less rare than that. CBS showed reruns of the series every weekday morning between August 1965 and September 1969. It was called The Dick Van Dyke Daytime Show, and this clip was the opening sequence they used for all the episodes of the series.

[jed6271]

@caatcher -Thanks for adding that note here. Do you (or anyone) have a clip to upload of that Daytime version of the opening?

[nsnatsin]

Born the day of body language

[tomservo56954]

The REALLY rare one is the first season opening, where a folder marked THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOWS spills out promo pictures, then switch into the credits, with scenes from the episodes produced by the time the show premiered and a quite different arrangement of the theme, with rhythmic bridges. And it's the only one where Mary Tyler Moore is billed above Larry Matthews (in a freeze-frame).

[MarkJ1961]

@MarkJ1961 Also, in the 1960s, sitcoms rerun on CBS Daytime had a "mid-break bump" at approx. :15 or :45 mins, between two one-minute commercials. The mid-bump was 5-secs long with a visual related to the series and a BRIEF rendition of the theme/jingle. There was also text flashed: "Stay tuned for Part Two". Andy had a cartoon of the squad car. Gomer reruns had Carter shouting at Pyle with a "speech balloon" of "Stay Tuned...",

and DvD had Rob and Laura in the kitchen embraced-and-kissing.

[MarkJ1961]

@MarkJ1961 The DvD Daytime opening was indeed used on CBS daytime reruns starting in 1965, but it might have been dropped from Sept.1966 onward since the show ceased production of new episodes at the end of Spring 1966, and prime-time airings on CBS ended with Sept.1966. It's been over 40 years since the CBS daytime reruns though. Andy of Mayberry was the CBS daytime rerun title 1964-68, but it went "back" to Andy Griffith Show for CBS daytime reruns with Fall 1968 thru 1970.

[MarkJ1961]

The DvD Daytime Show opening had the usual Rob coming in to kiss Laura/etc, but I don't remember if he trips over, bumps into, or simply side-steps the ottoman. There is no announcer voice-ing over the actors' names, but instead the names are flashed on the screen visually. The "Daytime Show" opening has also been seen in some episodes rerun in syndication over the years, including on Nick-at-Nite and TV-Land.

[Hikikomori013]

A great master of physical comedy; just the right touch without wild exaggeration. He looks so natural.