You Tube just makes me happy

Howie

I have long been a television aficionado, and have written about my thoughts on the subject often over the years, in this very blog. There are too many posts to mention here, but for anyone who is interested, just type “television” into the search box at right to check them out.

My television viewing began at a very early age--coincidentally--both mine and that of the industry. I remember well, those black and white shows and movies as our family gathered in front of the round screen in the living room to experience what was then a brand new innovation.

I was only about three- or four-years old when my older brother Bobby and I used to visit our grandparents, just next door, to watch “Lassie,” every Sunday night at 6 o’clock. That was our time. My memories are vague about those days, but I’ve heard the stories my mother tells. She said Grandma made us snacks, often popcorn and apples, and sometimes cheese and crackers. Sometimes, there was a rare treat - iced tea and layer cake with coffee-flavored frosting.

The adults in my family always had a pot of coffee brewing. What a perfect way to use the last of what was in the pot. It was, so to speak, the icing on the cake. I don’t often bake these days, but if I make a cake, you can bet the liquid in the frosting is not milk or cream, but coffee. One taste of it, or come to think of it, the very thought of it, always brings me back to Grandma’s kitchen.

While so many details of those days in Grandma and Grandpa’s house are sketchy, I’ve seen “Lassie” many times in reruns over the years. I loved that show. There was always a lesson to be learned, family was the most important thing, and I was smitten with the way Jeff and later Timmy bonded with what I’ve always believed was the most beautiful dog I’d ever seen.

Lassie was portrayed as a hero, a friend, a loving companion, and the adult in me would have to add, well-behaved and smart.

That show has been so imprinted on me that several years ago I had the occasion to buy a Collie, one that looked just like Lassie. We named him Howie. That’s him, top right, and I swear he was the best dog I’ve ever known.

Today I’m a cat person, but if there was a sable-colored, rough-coat Collie that needed a home, the cats and I would make room without a second thought.

Watch on You Tube

“Lassie” and so many other vintage programs and videos that take me all the way back to the early days of my life can be seen on You Tube. 

 It is the latest addition to my TV addiction.

Watching You Tube videos is my go to these days when I can no longer handle all the bad news and ugly politics that fills the airwaves. I briefly touched on this subject in my most recent post, “Hey there, Hi there, Ho there,” as I related to filling the hours that used to be spent with favorite TV shows, still on hiatus due to the writers’ strike this summer.  

In addition to reliving days gone by, I have used You Tube to study instructions on how to repair this or that. I’ve sought answers to the ever-growing questions that elude me like who was that actor or what was that movie.

I’ve watched videos about the neighborhoods where I’ve lived. Pleasant memories always fill my head and my heart as I ‘travel’ to another place and time. I’ve watched countless quilting videos and learned how to knit socks.

You Tube, now owned by Google was purchased for $1.65 billion in Oct. 2006. It is the second most visited website in the world, only after Google Search, according to Wikipedia. It was founded on Valentine’s Day 2005 in San Mateo CA by Jawed Karim, Chad Hurley, and Steve Chen.

I certainly appreciate their work because today, I use You Tube to seek my own happy place and it does not disappoint.

 

We mourn the passing of Andy Griffith, all he stood for

Andy Griffith, Tony Award-nominated and Emmy Award-nominated American actor, producer, writer, director and Grammy Award-winning southern gospel singer. Image taken as President George W. Bush presents him the Presidential Medal of Freedom. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
I do believe the entire country is mourning the loss of television icon Andy Griffith, who died yesterday. 

Andy Griffith was an entertainer for the ages. Generations enjoyed his work, but in my mind, there was none so important as his portrayal of Andy Taylor of Mayberry. There is no need to describe this role because anyone who ever owned a television set knows exactly who Andy Taylor was. Talk about a character-defining role...Many actors shy away from roles that define them, but I suspect Andy Griffith embraced his. 

The Andy Griffith Show was the macaroni and cheese of television. It brought comfort to the souls of generations. 

When we watched it as children, it was a learning experience. With what Andy's calming ways and common-sense solutions to everyday problems each episode was enlightening, inspiring, and always taught us a thing or two about life. Each story had purpose.  

The moral character of our generation was reflected in Andy's good nature. Even when he made fun, it was never with malice. It was never painful to anyone. 

The seriousness of the show was perfectly balanced with genuine humor. Rarely was anything as funny as the interaction between Andy and Barney, perfectly played by the late Don Knotts. Andy's interaction with his son, Opey, expertly played by by the incomparable Ron Howard was sweet, yet stern. It was so clear how Andy admired and adored the woman who took such good care of him, his Aunt Bee, played by the late Francis Bavier. 

Either Andy Griffith was either the world's best actor or he brought much of himself to the role he played. I suspect a little of both. 

So many of us who watched the Andy Griffith Show as children and young adults must admit that while channel-surfing today, if we come across the show we loved so much, we pause, often watching it again. We know the episodes by heart; we have seen the scenes so many times before, yet we continue to watch. It just makes us feel good. There is so much to be said for that kind of repetitive comfort. 

Andy Griffith represented to so many of us, not just a great television experience, but we took it so to heart. We expected the world around us to be like living in Mayberry, the mythical town that represented an ideal small community. It was always disappointing to learn that the world in which we live is just not like that. The passing of Andy Griffith magnifies that disappointment. We now know the world will never be like Mayberry. With Andy no longer living, a little hope for that dies too.

Sadly, TV ain't what it used to be

I cut my teeth on television shows like I Love Lucy, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, Lassie, The Honeymooners, and Family Classics. I confess that as a child of the 50's and 60's, television largely influenced my formative years and beyond.

Andy Williams performs on The Andy Williams Show

Early television was more than just entertainment. It was a reflection of values, morals, and proper behavior. It inspired children to think. It showed us how to do well, grow up successful, and get along well with others. 

Every Sunday night, my family would gather around the television set at my grandparents' house to watch Lassie. 

As the star of the show, who didn't love this beautiful, perfect pet dog. Lassie and her supporting cast told stories--always with a happy ending--always with a lesson to be learned,  usually from Ellen or Gramps, the wise elders. Children like me were inspired to think and ask questions about what we'd seen, learned. Lassie invoked discussion with my own grandparents.

In the 50's and 60's, television was rich with a variety of entertainment. We watched shows like The Andy Williams Show, and The Carol Burnett Show, and many others. Variety shows offered a glimpse into the entertainment world through music, theater, and comedy. Viewers were transformed into another world. Entertainment didn't take over the networks but they had a prominent place.

There were also soap operas, dramas, game shows, children's shows, the famous Saturday morning cartoons, and all other types of programming.

Some of my favorite moments in television included the Mickey Mouse Club which included short serials. My favorites were The Adventures of Spin and Marty, which had a western theme centered around two boys who became friends at the Triple R Ranch.  Another was Corky and White Shadow, also a western, about a girl and her dog whose adventures often got her into trouble.

Who can forget comedy skits by The Smothers Brothers, or the hilarity of Laugh-in? These were designed strictly for entertainment purposes, mimicking a night out but in our own living rooms.

There was drama that took us to new heights with Twilight Zone, One Step Beyond, Outer Limits, Playhouse 90, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, and Naked City--all of which teased our imaginations and tweaked our senses.

Television was a spectacle that inspired a generation.

What the hell happened?

Today, television has one goal--to make money. Isn't it ironic that the act of getting rich has cheapened it?

Today television provides just enough mindless entertainment to keep people watching, always with an eye on keeping the money flowing. Often times it is so sensationalized that we rarely even think about it anymore.

Television, with some exceptions, rarely makes us think. It no longer guides the way for young children or evokes thoughtful conversations, or questions. Instead, they become dazed by the vivid colors and loud sounds.

Murder was often a topic of discussion in the olden days, but it was done much more tastefully. Viewers were not subjected to endless pools of blood, gaping stab wounds, or shooting victims whose brains splatter against colorless walls. They didn't have to. And we were better for it.

We didn't have to see Rob and Laura Petrie or other couples portrayed on TV shows peel each others' clothes off on camera to understand the man/woman relationship they shared. The play between them was apparent enough. Left to our imaginations, it may have even been more provocative.

Women didn't have to wear gowns cut down to their navels to be beautiful.

A one-hour television show now is only about 45 minutes long. The rest of the time is taken up by commercials. Gotta make money! Television programming no longer focuses on content. The focus has completely shifted to the commercial programming. The content must now fit between the time slots for the product sales.

There is nothing more disheartening to me than watching a television drama that is chopped at a crucial moment in the story line to sell some prescription drug, Viagra, tampons, toilet paper, or any other endless number of other products.

This incessant desire to dumb down our television programming is most evident in the news shows.

For example, I've watched Good Morning America since it premiered in 1975. I have been a long time fan of the show, but no more. It used to be a good way to start the day. It was rich in news, weather, and important features.

I can't stand to even watch Good Morning America these days. Its best feature is George Stephanopoulos, who is way over-qualified for the kind of mediocre program GMA has become. While Robin Roberts is a lovely woman, her sappy interviews are painful to watch. Its latest focus on celebrity couples, courtroom drama involving bizarre murder investigations, and the back and forth between Dan Abrams and Nancy Grace is tiresome and annoying. The mediocrity that has overtaken the programming is sickening. Where is the hard-hitting journalism?

If there is a segment I'm interested in on GMA, it isn't usually worth the wait. The endless teases and long commercial breaks are brutal. More often than  not, I opt for turning off the television and simply reading the news on the computer. It just isn't worth the aggravation.

One more thing that is totally annoying about television today, is the endless breaks in programming. Shows once ran for most of the year with a few reruns in the summertime when viewers were busy enjoying the longer daylight hours and warm temperatures. Nowadays, shows are rerun often, with only a few new episodes sandwiched between them.

I feel so sorry for the generations that have missed the wonderful medium that television used to be. But then, television is not alone. There are so many once-powerful institutions that have been taken over by mediocrity. Sadly, much of it can be traced back to the god of the 21st century--money.