----------------------------Original message---------------------------- <<did I hear right (I haven't checked my tape)? Did one individual identify CITIZEN KANE as being released in 1949 (!)? He was making the point that Orson Welles was the *first* director-as-star. This also seems a dubious claim when you consider other directors who had their names above the titles long before Welles--such as Cecil B. DeMille.>> Yes, you heard right. Shocking, no? Griffith, DeMille, Fritz Lang, Alfred Hitchcock, John Ford -- for God's sake, even Capra preceded him (His autobiography was called "The Name Above the Title." The most shocked and horrified perosn would unquestionably have been Orson Welles! This comes from taking a shallow, trendy view of film history. Note that the clips are generally from established and heavily covered films. No attempt at correcting the public record or making new discoveries here. As for your second point, this kind of error comes from virtually ignoring the entire history of film prior to the mid-Thirties. This series is sub-titled "One Hundred Years of American Cinema", right? It actually covers about sixty years (and not particularly well or extensively, considering it's ten hour length -- Saul Turell and Paul Killiam did it better thirty years ago!) I can't remember a more inept major series. I shudder to think that this could become ammunition for the argument that we don't need PBS. I am delighted now that they have been equally inept in publicizing the show. That might be the smartest thing PBS has done in years. Gene Stavis, School of Visual Arts, NYC