Date:    Thu, 14 May 1998 19:41:41 EDT
<br>From:    Bapopik <Bapopik[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]AOL.COM>
<br>Subject: Must-See TV (a Japanese phrase?)
<br>
<br>LITTLE-KNOWN PLOT LEAK OF FINAL "SEINFELD"--Jerry declares he's king of the
<br>world, then takes a Circle Line cruise around Manhattan island.  The boat hits
<br>an iceberg and sinks.  Everybody dies, except Celine Dion.
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<br>
<br>     I haven't got Nexis in front of me, but "must-see tv" was the promotional
<br>phrase thought up by NBC honchos to promote its Thursday night lineup.  I
<br>think the phrase is now ten years old.  It's worth recording, because it's
<br>popping up in non-NBC settings.
<br>    Film and the theatre have long had "must-sees."  Sports--notably
<br>baseball--has "must-win situations."  RHHDAS doesn't have this--perhaps it's
<br>not a slang "must."
<br>    Christine Ammer's IDIOMS book has "A MUST  A necessity; a requirement.
<br>For example, _The Louvre is a must for visitors to Paris_, or _This book is a
<br>must for serious students of English_. (Late 1800s)."
<br>    But answer me this, Danny Long:  Did NBC steal "must-see" from Japan?
<br>    These two titles show up in the Library of Congress, and both (I think)
<br>pre-date NBC:
<br>
<br>MUST-SEE IN KYOTO (1985), Japan Travel Bureau.
<br>MUST-SEE IN NIKKO (1985), Japan Travel Bureau.
<br>