OPENING SEQUENCES

AnnouncerBill Wolff, 1995

The announcer, Bill Wolff (June 2, 1927 - February 27, 2014), narrated these words from May 4, 1964 - June 26, 1987:

Up until June 26, 1987, Bill Wolff announced all cast changes prior to the episode's prologue or at the beginning of the first scene in which the particular character was featured. For these occasions, Wolff narrated these words:

Epigraph

(May 4, 1964 - January 17, 1966)
"We do not live in this world alone, but in a thousand other worlds."

The show's epigraph perhaps originated from "Letters of John Keats to His Family and Friends" (73.- To George and Georgiana Keats. Hampstead, October 13 or 14, 1818.): "I feel more and more every day, as my imagination strengthens, that I do not live in this world alone but in a thousand other worlds." The epigraph was used less frequently by December 1965, then completely dropped by January 1966.

Show Closing

At the show's close, Wolff said, "Join us each weekday at this time for the continuing story of ANOTHER WORLD." From 1970-1976, he added these words, "... and one half hour from now over most of these stations, be sure to watch the continuing story of SOMERSET." From 1996-1999, a voice-over would state, "Tomorrow on Another World," and give highlights of the upcoming episode.

Opening Sequences

There have been five different opening sequences:

Original Opening Sequence





The Original ran from May 4, 1964 - January 18, 1966. A white circle was drawn clockwise on a black background. The completed circle flared then extended outwards to fill the screen, revealing in its middle a pattern of interlocking rings which eventually filled the screen. The camera then slowly zoomed in to the original circle, identifiable as brighter than the others. As it got closer, the words "Another World" in white letters became visible behind the pattern. When the original circle passed the boundaries of the screen, the pattern of rings disappeared, and the title screen was evident: A fine mesh background, the words "Another World," and a set of interlocking circles to the left centered in the middle of two vertical stripes, all of this in sepia tones.







Second Opening Sequence

The next logo, the Interlocking Rings, consisted of the words "Another World" within a circle of overlapping mini circles and ran from January 19, 1966 to September 4, 1981. A kaleidoscopic image of a circle of interlocking spectrum-colored rings shifted into focus. Then a kaleidoscope of the title "Another World" came into focus in the middle of the circle.









Third Opening Sequence

The third opening, the Block Letters, debuted on September 7, 1981 and began with a circle widening to reveal the profile of a man and woman. This profile pulled back so that the words "Another World," one from either side of the screen, rotated to come together and face the viewer. The lettering was gold, the background, a dark-blue sky. An unidentified, out-of-focus image glided across the face of the letters. There were two versions of this opening, one with the profile and one without.







Fourth Opening Sequence

The fourth opening segment, the Computer Enhanced, was introduced on October 26, 1987. It incorporated the Another World theme song and featured clips of the major characters currently on the show. It began with a man's and a woman's hands reaching to clasp each other. These hands belong to Lawrence Lau (Jamie Frame 1986) and Joanna Going (Lisa Grady). It ended by freeze framing on a particular clip and scripting the words "Another World" in white letters on a clear space of the screen. There has been a total of 47 different clips.

For a period in the United States from 1994-1995, the broadcast of the opening segment was abbreviated. This version featured the Rachel clip, then the "hands" clip superimposed with a larger version of "Another World."



Last Opening Sequence

On March 4, 1996 the last version of the opening sequence, the MTV Style debuted. It featured new graphics that emulated the current MTV-style trend. Fast-paced clips featured all current contract players and were colored in either blue, yellow, or black tints and sepia tones (there was also a yellow/green version of the logo at one point). The clips were filmed (on film) on location around New York City (including Manhattan's Stuyvesant High School) and within the studio. The segment was edited by an outside post-production house.

The new logo was the words "another world" all in lower-case, underlined, and at times shadowed. It appeared several times throughout the segment, often flashing different formulations of "another," "world," "aw," "a," and "w." At the end the logo appeared against a box containing the letters "aw," again in lower-case. Appearing at various points was a gyroscope within a larger circular mesh.

On April 27, 1998, Another World began using alternate abbreviated versions of the opening.

Last Opening Sequence - Full Version

Detailed Description of the 1987-1996 Opening Segment


Character clips were either outtakes from actual episodes or stylized shots done expressly for the opening segment. Approximately every six months the opening credits were reformulated owing to the influx and outflow of actors.

Each clip was shown within a "circle," with the outside consisting of the same image only out of focus. While in the early 1990s this circle was more strongly defined, it did not exist at all during the first few years. For each reformulation, the clips changed slightly. They were displayed for a longer or shorter time, with a bit at the end and/or beginning added or dropped.

Below are the characters/actors who appeared in the opening segment along with an explanation of the clip's derivation (whether it's an extract or stylized). A line separates reformulations. Clips which were superimposed with "Another World" are indicated by "AW," along with the yeardates of their tenure. The presence of more than one character per clip is indicated by joining them with the word "and." The presence of an actor in more than one clip is indicated by the notation, e.g., "1 of 3." The reinstatement of a former clip is indicated by the letters RE.

October 1987

February 1989

May 1989

October 1989

August 1990

December 1990

September 1991

December 1991

April 1992

August 1992

April 1993

July 1993

October 1993

December 1993

July 1995

November 1995

Detailed Description of the 1996-Present Opening Segment

Below is a consecutive list of the characters appearing in the opening segment. Most characters had several consecutive clips that constituted their segment. Various formulations of the logo were interspersed with or were incorporated into the clips; at points appeared out-of-focus couples or their shadows. Twenty-seven actors appeared in the original version.

March 4, 1996

Added:

July 1, 1996

Added:

Removed:

August 22, 1996

Added:

Removed:

January 3, 1997

Added:

Removed:

March 3, 1997

Added:

Removed:

"Blue logo" replaces "brown logo" as end title. Clips reordered in the following manner, with shortened music:

April 23, 1997

Removed:

June 16, 1997

Removed:

Added:

September 15, 1997

Removed:

Added:

October 20, 1997

Removed:

Added:

February 16, 1998

Removed:

Added:

March 31, 1998

Removed:

Added:

December 15, 1998

Removed:

Added: