Opening credits
They are now usually shown as text superimposed on a blank screen or static pictures, or sometimes on top of action in the show.
West Side Story (1961) begins with a shot of an ink sketch of the New York City skyline as it was when the film was made.
As the background of the shot changes color several times, we hear an overture medley (not in the original show) of some of the film's songs.
However, Mary Poppins was the first Disney film to have longer closing credits, in which all the principal cast members (and the characters that they played) were listed.
Most Soviet films presented all film-related information in the opening credits, rather than at the closing which consisted of only a "THE END" (Russian: КОНЕЦ ФИЛЬМА, Konyets Fily-ma) title.
Director Victor Fleming's name was also billed before those of the actors in films such as The Wizard of Oz, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Joan of Arc.
However, Hollywood had been releasing films without opening credits for many years before Lucas came along, most notably Citizen Kane, West Side Story, 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Godfather.
"Title-only" billing became an established form for summer blockbusters in 1989, with Ghostbusters II, Lethal Weapon 2 and The Abyss following the practice.
Clint Eastwood has omitted opening credits (except for the title) in every film that he has directed since approximately 1982.
During Lost's fourth season, Harold Perrineau was credited for all thirteen episodes, despite only having appeared in five of them (fewer than some guest stars, such as Jeff Fahey).
The television series Police Squad!, in keeping with its parodic nature, featured a character who only appeared in the credits ("...and Rex Hamilton as Abraham Lincoln").
The Bold and the Beautiful, which is produced by Bell-Phillip Television Productions (a subsidiary of Y&R producer Bell Dramatic Serial Company), began crediting all contract cast members in its opening titles in 2004, four years after The Young and the Restless implemented it (however, unlike Y&R, The Bold and the Beautiful cycles between different title sequences depending on the episode's running time: two that feature credits – including one shorter sequence – and one that does not feature any credits or cast member visuals).
One Life to Live began featuring character credits within the title sequence during the same time period with its "Blue and White" opening.
The most recent soap to include credits for all contract actors in its opening titles was General Hospital after a February 2010 revamp of its opening credits (a credit-less introduction resumed in 2012 with the introduction of a shorter title sequence), though during the final years of its "Faces of the Heart" sequence from April 2003 to September 2004, the names of the main characters were shown alongside video headshots of the cast members in the opening title sequence.
