Friday, October 2, 2009

TV Families

Growing up in the 1950s and 1960s I used to watch a LOT of television. Probably not as much as kids today spend on computers and TV, but probably more TV than I needed to watch. Most of it was in black and white.

I remember seeing lots of TV shows about families.



I often wondered just why in the world MY family wasn't like THOSE families. Dads were always wise and understanding. Moms always seemed to wear pearl necklaces and high heels even when vacuuming.



These families always seemed to be smiling a lot and enjoying being with each other.



These TV families certainly were NOT like mine! I wondered if other kids in my class lived in families like the ones I saw on TV. I assumed they probably did.



In the 60s we started getting color TV shows. I liked the animated shows the best. I especially liked the Jetsons. I was sure that one day I would be driving a flying car.



One of the few shows my mother watched was Family Affair. It wasn't my favorite but I thought it was okay. It was just another one of those families that seemed to live a life much different than mine. This family lived in a city and that was different for an Iowa farm kid.



My favorite show about a family was Bonanza. That show had everything I liked - horses, guns, men drinking, men acting like men and not pansies. I wanted to be just like Ben Cartwright when I grew up.



Of course, the Andy Griffith Show was one of my favorites, too. I thought having a dad like Andy would have been pretty nice. I felt sorry for Opie that he did not have a mom, but Aunt Bea seemed to fill the role.



Of course I could never get enough of Barney and how he made me laugh.



Thanks for walking down this memory lane with me. I think I'll go watch a rerun of a TV show that was just fun, light hearted entertainment. That's the way TV should be.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

ALL great shows that I grew up with as well. I can still hear my dad laughing at Barney, Hoss Cartwright and oh... let's not forget Red Skelton! What fun times those were.

Di

Small City Scenes said...

I grew up with those show too. Most had a lesson to be learned too. Great fun. MB

larkspur said...

Russell, TV sure isn't what it used to be, huh? Thanks for the nice reminder of quality entertainment.

(Wow, that sounds like something an old person would say! ;)

Jo said...

Hey, how did Betty from "Father Knows Best" get into that picture with Andy, et al, on "The Andy Griffith Show"!? Hmmmm ... a little hanky panky going on in the perfect world of sit coms?

My mother always dressed up whenever she went out, but at home she used to wear pedal pushers and one of my Dad's shirts, and she was always outdoors "grubbing around in the garden" as she used to call it. She loved landscaping and had a wonderful garden. But there were times when I would think, "Omigoodness... is that my mother?" Now, I am the same way. *heh*

I loved "Family Affair". I wanted to live in their apartment.

Anonymous said...

I enjoyed the stroll down memory lane. I loved a lot of those programs.

I remember when Bonanza first came on. My friends and I were crazy about Little Joe.

Hilary said...

Ahhh all fine shows.. such a nostalgic jolt. :) When the page first loaded, I could actually hear the opening theme from My Three Sons.

Brenda said...

We still laugh ourselves silly with Andy and Barney episodes. Love Barney Fife. No one I knew had those kinds of families. They were just someones made up dream. Most families I knew where more like Archie Bunker and Edith. RoseAnne was too crude for my taste, and I didn't really know anyone quite like that family. I am having trouble remembering some of the names of these shows. Could you tell...ha.

Finding Pam said...

You forgot Gunsmoke, which was one of my favorites. Where did the time go? Seems like just yesterday.