The Waltons
Possibly the most disappointing show growing up because it teased you with joy only to consistently deliver melancholy. The cranky grandparents were no fun and somebody was sick all the time. The good times were never that good. It may have been "real" in its portrayal of life, but it was a major downer and was a sort of televised punishment for being home sick from school.
Little House on the Prairie
Also a downer, 19th Century-style. I remember an episode where somebody is blind (probably Laura Ingalls, maybe not) and there's a big brush fire. It was scary and scared me away for good and I never returned. No amount of Michael Landon's tenderness could bring me back.
All in the Family
I didn't get it. Probably well done given those involved, but not entertaining for my young self. Everybody fighting does not equal entertainment. However, "Meathead" remains a great nickname.
CHiPs
Inspired some very deliberate bike riding. I'd go outside during commercial breaks to pretend I was a highway patrolman, and I had the suberbike from that superbike epsiode, even though that bike wasn't all that super. Also, the show almost always featured the cheesy smile freeze frame at the end... a huge plus. Extra bonus points for having Leif Garrett featured in one episode.
Emergency
This was very much in the vein of ChiPs. I had an Emergency 51 fireman's hat that was sweeeeet. This show also had the trademark cheesy endings = great tv. I think they did a couple crossover episodes with ChiPs, or, in my head they did, and those were doubly good.
Mork and Mindy
Another comedy that was more sad than happy for me, perhaps an indication of child-onset Robin Williams Fatigue Syndrome. I was most enthralled by the cool attic room, not unlike our bedrooms growing up. Mork did inspire us to sit on our heads, which was cool. Nannoo nannoo was fun to say.
I think this is a solid (though shallow) concept to return to on low content blog days in the future. No overblown digression or analysis, just a quick romp through our televised past, this time a few choices from the 70's. I encourage this to be used as fodder for debate or further examination, but can just as well be, for now, just fluff.
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7 comments:
FIRST OF ALL, it was Mary that was blind and she was blinded FOR LIFE, not just an episode. You could be more sensitive, Cunado! Also, she married a blind man (Adam) before starting a school for the blind.
Being strapped for content on my own blog, I am going to develop this idea past its breaking point and blog about the husbands of Little House on the Prarie now.
I totally stand by your take on The Waltons, though. Add that to Thirtysomething and Sisters to complete a pan-decade depressing portrait of adulthood.
Ooh, Little House is a sensitive topic, verrrrry revealing.
Sorry, Mary, I didn't mean to credit Laura with your blindness.
I look forward to your expose on Prairie spouses. It certainly is not where I expected any of my inane blabbering to lead. Good on ya!
Cunado, we've known each other all these years and I don't think we've ever discussed CHiPs or Emergency. They were my favorite shows. I also had the Emergency 51 helmet (as well as an awesome plastic oxygen tank that you could strap to your back). Mike and I would roll all our toy fire engines in front of the TV when Emergency came on.
On a not-quite cable channel I get called Retro TV, they show reruns of Emergency. I have watched a few, and man was it a bad show.
Very cool, I had no oxygen tank. I do remember attaching a pre-fannypack fannypack to my bike full of rescue supplies (probably consisting of a bandaid, some kleenex and a pencil). We did a lot of slow motion bike crash scenes at my friend Doug Averill's house. He had a little brother named Andrew that they nicknamed "Feezer." In 80's sitcom fashion, they later added a baby girl to the family, and her name was... wait for it... Marney. We've come full circle!
I made it through about 8 minutes of an Emergency episode recently. ChiPs, while also bad, stands up a little better. It's a little more character driven, perhaps.
I just want to point out that I enjoy that Jack was awake at 3 in the morning, Pacific time, to comment on this. Jack has become nocturnal.
Oh, me too. I saw 6am on his post and wasn't sure what time zone it was representing, either way I was going to be impressed. The gigging musician must, simply must, avoid exposure to sunlight. All of which makes the band name somewhat curious.
Sure there was a lot of depressing TV back then. But nothing compares to ABC's hat trick: Grey's Anatomy, Brothers & Sisters, and Private Practice. Talk about wanting to slit your wrists. Is anyone's life this bleeping miserable?
Someone should do a study to see how many have died so needlessly at the hands of sub-mediocre TV. I suspect a big business plot to control the population.
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