Wayne Fitzgerald put a thrown-pillow ballet at the beginning of “Pillow Talk.” He opened “Bonnie and Clyde” with an evocative montage of vintage photographs. He started “Footloose” off with two dozen pairs of dancing feet.

Mr. Fitzgerald, a prolific designer of title sequences for film and television whose work included some of the most memorable opening moments those mediums have seen, died on Sept. 30 on Whidbey Island in Washington State. He was 89 .

The death was confirmed by his wife, MaryEllen Courtney , who said his health had deteriorated since he contracted the flu last spring.

Mr. Fitzgerald, who lived on the island in the city of Langley, began designing opening titles in the 1950s, when not much thought was given to them. But during his career, and to a significant extent because of his career, those segments came to be regarded as something of an art form, a chance to impart information, set a tone and capture the attention of an audience still settling into its seats.