What Was the Last Name of the Children in the Movie E.T.?

“What is the last name of the children in the movie E.T.?” “A friend and I have a bet. He said that Rocky was Sylvester Stallone’s first movie? I don’t think so.” “Two different people played the husband in the old TV show, Bewitched. Who were they?” “I was listening to a show on XM Radio called the Green Hornet. Can you tell me anything about it?” Movie, television, and radio trivia questions are always fun for the staff of the Newton Falls Public Library.

The first question involved using Internet search engines, Google and Metacrawler. The results included links to many movie related sites. According to The Internet Movie Database, the last name of Elliot’s family in E.T. was never given. Looking at some of the other sites, including the official twentieth anniversary website, found no information to contradict IMDb.

The Film Encyclopedia by Ephraim Katz has a great deal of information about Sylvester Stallone’s early career. He worked as an usher in New York City’s Baronet movie theater and in 1970 he appeared in the nude in the off-Broadway play, Score. Katz also lists Stallone’s first movie appearance as being in 1970 in Party at Kitty and Studs/The Italian Stallion. This was followed by two unbilled bit parts in Bananas (1971) and Klute (1972). He was in about 5 other movies before starring in Rocky (1976). Wikipedia [http://www.wikipedia.com/] also lists 2 additional films in 1970. In Lovers and Other Strangers he appeared as an extra and had a starring role in No Place to Hide. More information about Stallone and his filmography can also be found at www.allmovie.com.

Bewitched not only had two actors playing the role of Darrin Stephens, there were two actresses in the role of Gladys Kravitz. The library’s copy of The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network TV Show by Tim Brooks and Earle Marsh gives information about shows from 1946 to 1991. Darrin was played by Dick York from 1964-1969 and Dick Sargent from 1969-1972. The nosy neighbor, Gladys was played by Alice Pearce from 1964 until her death in March 1966. Sandra Gould took over as the character through 1972.

Tune in Yesterday: the ultimate encyclopedia of old-time radio 1925-1976 by John Dunning is filled with information about the shows, characters, plots, actors, etc. The Green Hornet first appeared in 1936. Britt Reid, a slightly flamboyant newspaper publisher, fights crime as the Green Hornet along with his faithful valet, Kato. Some interesting trivia about the show - the Green Hornet and the Lone Ranger were creations of George W. Trendle. He linked the two story lines together; Britt’s father was Dan Reid, nephew of the Lone Ranger. For listeners from 1936 – 1952, this would have been a modern version of the popular western with a car named Black Beauty instead of the Ranger’s horse, Silver.