That Cool Eerie 'Station Break' Graphic
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Peter Gunn
ecarle — 19 years ago(January 22, 2007 08:34 PM)
Though all the commercials have been sucked right out of the episodes, The four-volume "Season One" DVD set of "Peter Gunns" has a number of episodes (though hardly all of them), which feature, between scenes, the "station break graphic" for "Peter Gunn" which was it own weird, cool little work of art.
You don't get such "station breaks" modernly on TV. The deal was to offer just a "hint" of the show you are watching right before a commercial comes on, or between commercials.
The "Peter Gunn" graphic uses Henry Mancini music, but rather than the throbbing jazz pulse of the show's famous theme, this music is quiet and eerie, just this side of scarysuggesting the middle of the night and a dark alley.
The visuals are that "splatter art" look that fronts the credits, but here something different occurs: along with the words "Peter Gunn" floating into the art, a shadowy, abstract figure of a man slowly twists and forms into view. When "he" is done appearing, he is cool and creepy, all at the same time.
Look for this if you can on the DVD's. It's part of the inimitable "coolness" of "Peter Gunn." -
telegonus — 6 years ago(January 21, 2020 05:30 AM)
The "station break graphic" looks like a slomo version of the opening credits. An afterthought perhaps. I always enjoyed those when I was a teenager watching
Peter Gunn
in late night reruns. Those "poetic" little touches are one of the many things that makes old classic TV fascinating, even beautiful at times. The Warners westerns had similar graphics used when they switched to a station break. Like serious cartoons. No movement, just drawings. Also, the Hitchcock half-hour used a brief, unmistakable ominous sounding tune when it switched for a commercial, with the pen and ink drawing of Hitchcock against a white background and nothing else. Mostly they're edited out now, though last week I caught a brief note or two but no pic of Hitch. -
telegonus — 11 years ago(August 04, 2014 12:58 AM)
They edited out those neat station break graphics for tonights/this morning's
Peter Gunn
so as to squeeze more commercials advertizing upcoming MeTV programs. It's on and off with them on Me. A medium grade episode, noteworthy for being directed by Jack
Tarantula
Arnold, and featuring a climactic fight on a merry-go-round that's obviously channeling the fight scene at the end of
Strangers On a Train
. It's Craig Stevens versus Marc Lawrence this time. Some nice jazz in-between featuring Pete Condoli.