They're heard, but not seen. TV show narrators have set the scene for viewers for decades, their familiar voices cluing us into what to expect (or how to react) to certain plot developments. And more often than not, these off-screen narrators are well-known celebrities -- making their comments and asides all the more familiar and comforting.

While compiling a list of our five favorite celebrity narrators, only two stipulations were used: First, this list only deals with scripted american programming. Documentaries don't count, nor do any overseas imports. Second, the narrator in question can not have appeared on screen as a regular character on the series (although in some instances, the narrator is a future version of the main character, played by a different actor).

That being said, here are our five ...

Sean Astin is lending his voice to an intriguing new series from Animal Planet. It's called Meerkat Manor, and it's part documentary, part soap opera. I'm not sure how exactly they're going to pull this off, but Astin will narrate thirteen episodes that follow the life and times of a meerkat family. The press release promises all the goodies we've come to expect from soap operas: from backstabbing to love affairs to family feuds. Apparently meerkats are quite the dramatic bunch. The writers even gave all the little fellas names like Zaphod (Beeblebrox?) and Shakespeare, and they're all part of the 'Whiskers' family.

The series begins Friday, June 9 at 8 pm (ET) on Animal Planet.

Adults of "a certain age" (translation: 30 and older) might remember a CBS current-events program called In The News, which aired in between the network's Saturday morning cartoons. These short reports were able to inform young viewers about the news of the week without talking down to them or going over their heads. Most people will remember the program, though, for the distinctive voice of its narrator, Christopher Glenn, who narrated and/or reported over 5,000 episodes of the broadcast, which ran from 1971-1984.

Now comes word that Glenn, who currently works for CBS Radio, is set to retire next month, after 35 years at CBS News (that's as long as I've been alive, for crissakes!). I for one enjoyed In The News, but I rooted for Carter to win against Ford when I was 5, so maybe I was a ready-made audience for the program.

[Thanks to my brother Rich for the tip!]