Origins
Most series in early television consisted of stand-alone episodes without continuing story arcs, so there was little reason to provide closure at its end. Early series which had special ending episodes were Howdy Doody in September 1960 and Leave It to Beaver in June 1963.
Considered to be "the series finale that invented the modern-day series finale," "The Judgement", the final episode of The Fugitive, attracted a 72% audience share when broadcast. This finale received the highest viewing figures in American history prior to being surpassed by the Dallas episode "Who Done It".
In some cases a series finale proves to be premature, as a subsequent season is created, such as with 7th Heaven, Sledge Hammer! and Babylon 5.
Scrubs aired a two-part episode billed simply as a "My Finale" in May 2009 as the show's renewal or cancellation had not been decided as of its airing, and so it was not known whether the episode would conclude just the season or the entire series.
Futurama has had three designated series finales, due to the recurringly uncertain future of the series. "The Devil's Hands Are Idle Playthings", "Into the Wild Green Yonder (Part 4)" and "Overclockwise" have all been written to serve as a final episode for the show.
Read more about this topic: Series Finale
Famous quotes containing the word origins:
“The origins of clothing are not practical. They are mystical and erotic. The primitive man in the wolf-pelt was not keeping dry; he was saying: “Look what I killed. Aren’t I the best?””
—Katharine Hamnett (b. 1948)
“The settlement of America had its origins in the unsettlement of Europe. America came into existence when the European was already so distant from the ancient ideas and ways of his birthplace that the whole span of the Atlantic did not widen the gulf.”
—Lewis Mumford (1895–1990)
“Lucretius
Sings his great theory of natural origins and of wise conduct; Plato
smiling carves dreams, bright cells
Of incorruptible wax to hive the Greek honey.”
—Robinson Jeffers (1887–1962)