Wayne Fitzgerald was a film title designer who created memorable title sequences for hundreds of movies and television shows. Among his most notable projects were the titles for “The Graduate,” the “Godfather” series, “Chinatown,” and “Footloose.” On television, his credits included “Dallas,” “Matlock,” and “The Dick Van Dyke Show.” Working first for Pacific Title and then striking out on his own to form Wayne Fitzgerald FilmDesign, Fitzgerald was at the forefront of a midcentury shift in style for title sequences. In early Hollywood, the title was simple, a single shot with the movie’s name and a few key personnel credited. As movies became more complicated and more and more names began to be credited in the titles, the sequences got boring – until designers like Fitzgerald got creative. He worked to create a sequence that would set the stage for the movie that followed, as when he introduced “9 to 5” with a hectic montage of people busily starting their workdays. Fitzgerald won three Emmy Awards for his work.
