US TV Show Anagrams #9 Trivia Quiz

Answer: Bewitched

Elizabeth Montgomery played Samantha, a good witch married to Darrin Stephens, a mortal with no magical powers. Her powers, or sometimes lack of them, created havoc in the mortal world in which they lived. Samantha's family, all of them witches and warlocks, added to the chaos of the Stephens household with their fun and games. 'Bewitched' was made from 1964 to 1972, with the family expanding with two children, Tabitha (a witch) and Adam who was mortal. Samantha's family included her meddlesome mother, Endora, and Uncle Arthur, the delightful prankster. Mrs Kravitz lived across the road from Sam and Darrin and to her consternation, saw many bizarre things in the Stephens' household. Alas, she was the only one who saw them.

Her husband Abner always missed out on the action and began to doubt Gladys' sanity.

Answer: Damages

Glenn Close and Rose Byrne starred in 'Damages', a show full of intrigue, murder, suspense and corruption in the legal system. First airing in 2007, five seasons were produced before the show finished in 2012

Answer: The Rockford Files

The original premise behind the show 'The Rockford Files' was that Jim Rockford was to play an modern investigator in the style of the Wild West's 'Maverick'. Jim wasn't your normal TV detective/investigator. He'd spent time in prison and his detective agency barely made ends meet.

He lived in a trailer parked near a beach in Los Angeles and rarely carried a gun which is just as well as he wasn't licensed to carry a weapon. For six years (1974 to 1980), Jim Rockford, investigated cases using his wit and tact to get him out of sticky situations. Sometimes his father, Rocky, would try to talk him into getting a regular and safer job, but Rocky also helped him solve his cases if the opportunity arose.

Answer: How I Met Your Mother

Ted Mosby, played by Josh Radnor, was a young man living in New York City and enjoying life with his friends Marshall, Lily, Robin and Barney. 'How I Met Your Mother' showed the life of the friends and eventually led to the moment when Ted met the woman who became the mother of his children. Bob Saget voiced the introduction of the show.

He portrayed an older Ted sitting with his teenage children, telling them about how he met their mother. The show premiered in 2005 and maintained the mystery of who Ted's childrens' mother was until the end when he finally met the woman with the yellow umbrella!

Answer: The Golden Girls

'The Golden Girls' were Blanche, Dorothy, Sophia and Rose, all "more mature" women enjoying their golden years in Miami, Florida. Sharing a house together, they supported each other through crises and happy events, usually with a lot of laughs, and the girls' personalities shone through the writing of the show. Rose grew up on a Minnesota farm and often bemused, if not amused, the other girls with stories from St Olaf. Hugely popular, the show ran for seven seasons until 1992, winning multiple Emmy and Golden Globe awards in its run.

Answer: Spongebob Squarepants

'SpongeBob SquarePants' is a sea sponge with a pet snail called Gary. They live underwater in a pineapple. His co-stars include a starfish, an octopus and Mr Krabs, owner of the Krusty Krab restaurant. Sandy Cheeks is a squirrel who also lives under the sea, but she requires a special suit to breathe under water. Starting in 1999, there have been over 200 episodes made.

Answer: The Mary Tyler Moore Show

In the clue, 'Ted' refers to the character of Ted Baxter played by Ted Knight in 'The Mary Tyler Moore Show', while Lou referred to Lou Grant, another main character. Murray Slaughter was a news writer on the show. Mary Tyler Moore played Mary Richards, an independent, working, single woman in her 30s.

It sounds like nothing new, but when the show was first aired Mary was the first woman of that type in a leading role on television. Mary worked as a producer on a TV news show. Ted was the news reader who wasn't as sharp as he thought he was. Lou Grant (played by Ed Asner) was the executive producer of the news show.

Other characters included Rhoda Morgenstern and Phyllis Lindstrom. Lou Grant, Rhoda and Phyllis became lead characters in their own spinoff series (appropriately called 'Lou Grant', 'Rhoda' and 'Phyllis'). 'The Mary Tyler Moore Show' first aired between 1970 and 1977 in 168 episodes.

Answer: Family Ties

Alex P. Keaton wasn't meant to be the central character of 'Family Ties'. The producers noticed how the audience responded to Alex while the show was being filmed and made Alex a more dominant character. Along with Alex (played by Michael J. Fox) were his siblings Mallory, Jennifer and Andrew.

Their parents Steven and Elyse were hippies in their younger days who settled down to raise a conventional family while keeping as many of their Bohemian ideals alive as possible. Somehow, Alex was born with a conservative mind and his Republican mindset clashed with his parents' more liberal way of thinking.

A sitcom, 'Family Ties' was on the air for seven seasons in 180 episodes between 1982 and 1989.

Answer: Breaking Bad

So you're a chemistry teacher and you find out you have a terminal disease. You want to make some quick cash to provide your loved ones with money after you're gone. What do you do? In 'Breaking Bad', the solution was to become a manufacturer of illegal drugs. Over five seasons, what began as a way of making money devolved into murders, a bomb, divorce, murder and more. 'Breaking Bad' started on air in 2008 and has received critical acclaim.

The Writers Guild of America named it the 13th best written TV series to date in 2013.

Answer: The Shield

'The Shield', set and filmed in Los Angeles, is about a unit of four police officers called the Strike Team within the LAPD. The team used illegal and unethical tactics and methods to control the streets in a manner they saw fit. The unit was very protective of itself and resisted any attempt to interfere with their work.

Whilst remaining part of the LAPD, some of their tactics could have been said to resemble vigilante action. When the Internal Affairs Department began to investigate the team, troubles began within the team itself and it started to implode and self-destruct, leading to the death of at least one of the team members. 'The Shield' was first aired between 2002 and 2008 in seven seasons.