Something About Mystery on PBS

What is that woman moaning about, anyway?

A few weeks ago the New York Times had a piece celebrating the 50th anniversary of PBS. To celebrate, 

50 of its writers shared their reasons of why they love the network. 

The heavy hitters are all mentioned. Fred Rogers. Bob Ross. Julia Child. Downton Abbey. The Civil War. Wishbone (hey, tell Brad Strickland). Number 37 is titled “the best way to get in the mood for murder”, and Alexis Soloski lauds the title sequence of Mystery!:

It begins in a flash of lightning, followed by widows, detectives, tombstones, a mysterious invalid and a body sliding slowly into a lake. Before audiences could enjoy their polite murder of the week on “Mystery!” (later, “Masterpiece Mystery”), they could delight in this louche and spooky animated opening, courtesy of the deliriously macabre illustrator, Edward Gorey. (Gorey produced several versions; into one, he inserted a bearded be-furred self-portrait.) Later, tragically, the program shortened the sequence, but the originals, via YouTube, can still chill the spine and gladden the heart.

The original versions are indeed lamented, and you can thank the Internet for preserving them.

Happy 50th birthday to PBS and happy 40th birthday to Mystery!