Ryan's Dad

Okay, here’s the most obscure reference I could think of. The “Special Guest Star” actually comes from the show Lost In Space. In the pilot for that show, the devious Dr. Smith was supposed to die at the end of the episode. But the producers changed the ending to keep Dr. Smith aboard the Jupiter II. Jonathan Harris, who played Dr. Smith, agreed on one condition:  He would always be billed as a “Special Guest Star.”  And he was. For the entire run of the series. It certainly made him stand out.

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