Q 01/05

Which band was first asked to let its song 'Shiny Happy People' be the Friends theme, and turned it down?

A) The B-52s

B) R.E.M.

C) Barenaked Ladies

D) Hootie & the Blowfish

Answer · why

B) R.E.M.

Warner Bros. Television then picked the only available band on Warner Bros. Records to record the replacement. A Nashville radio station later made th...

Q 02/05

Which two Friends creators share the writing credit on the Rembrandts' theme with Allee Willis?

A) David Crane and Marta Kauffman

B) Kevin Bright and Michael Borkow

C) Jeff Greenstein and Jeff Strauss

D) Adam Chase and Ira Ungerleider

Answer · why

A) David Crane and Marta Kauffman

Danny Wilde and Phil Sōlem later added two verses for the 1995 single, which reached the top ten in Ireland and the UK.

Q 03/05

Gary Portnoy co-wrote the Cheers theme with which songwriting partner?

A) Judy Hart-Angelo

B) Carole Bayer Sager

C) Cynthia Weil

D) Allee Willis

Answer · why

A) Judy Hart-Angelo

The 2013 EP Cheers: Music from the TV Series includes Portnoy's demo and several earlier attempts the pair made before landing on the famous version.

Q 04/05

Where did Andrew Gold's 'Thank You for Being a Friend' peak on the Hot 100 in 1978?

A) 25

B) 1

C) 10

D) 58

Answer · why

A) 25

Gold called it 'just this little throwaway thing' that took him about an hour to write. Cindy Fee sang the sitcom version.

Q 05/05

Who wrote the lyric of the M*A*S*H theme 'Suicide Is Painless' for Altman, reportedly in five minutes?

A) Johnny Mandel, the composer

B) Ring Lardner Jr., the screenwriter

C) His 15-year-old son Michael

D) Ken Prymus, the actor who sang it

Answer · why

C) His 15-year-old son Michael

Altman wanted 'the stupidest song ever written' and found his own 45-year-old brain could not manage it. The vocal version hit number one in the UK in...