Television From Another Time

When my father went to Viet Nam in June 1968, my family moved to the town of DuPont, which is right next to Fort Lewis, Washington.


Being a small town, there was not a whole lot going on. On top of that, the winter of 1968-69 was one of the worst winters in years. School was canceled for four days because of the heavy snowfall. Add to that that we were less than three years removed from being English-speaking-TVless when we lived in Germany.


To pass the time, TV became our friend. We started watching syndicated reruns on TV. We found some of them to be rather funny. But what would I think of them many years in the future?


One of the shows we enjoyed was My Favorite Martian. We would laugh at the exploits of Los Angeles newspaper reporter Tim O’Hara (Bill Bixby) and the Martian (Ray Walston) he found. Tim’s landlady was a widow by the name of Mrs. Brown (played by Pamela Britton). In 1969 I thought Mrs. Brown was a ditsy middle-aged woman and I did not think too much about her.


I found the show again in 2000. I had just reclaimed my bachelorhood and, of course, I ordered cable service that included every channel known to man. One night I found an episode of My Favorite Martian. I thought it stank. There was one big surprise, however – Mrs. Brown. The person whom I saw as just as just a ditsy middle-aged woman in 1969 I could now see was an actress playing a ditsy woman. As for the middle-aged part, well, I was now in my mid-40s. Um, I though Mrs. Brown was rather cute, thank you. But the show was terrible. The 1960’s humor of a woman-hungry guy seems disgustingly sexist in 2000.


Another show we used to watch was Car 54, Where Are You? If you have ever seen many early television programs, you know that they make Grade B movies seem like Gone With the Wind. Car 54 certainly fits into that category. The production values, well, what production values?


Joe. E. Brown (Toody) was an old Borsht Belt comedian who couldn’t act his way out of a paper bag. His partner was played by Fred Gwynne (Muldoon, later to be Herman Munster). I saw a couple of episodes in 1977, and I still found it funny. I just recently discovered it again. It is still funny. What makes it so funny and so enjoyable? It shows people in everyday life, and they like and respect each other. A commenter on IMDB.COM said that he had a relative who was a police officer who said that Car 54 was more realistic than Adam 12.


Another thing I notice about the show is the black officers in the 53rd Precinct. They belong there. They are not there to make any social statement, they are not there to show how hip and progressive the producers of the show are. They are there because, well, they are there – as well they should be. Godfrey Cambridge got his start on the show. So did Nipsy Russell.


The shortcomings of the show add to the charm of it. Much of the humor is Jewish humor. And it is great. Even the intro to the show is funny, as they show Toody and Muldoon in their patrol car, playing chess, handcuffed together without a key, with Toody trying to write a report not knowing he has sunglasses on, and so on.


Innocent humor from an innocent time.

The Faces of 9/11

If a picture is worth a thousand words, here are 22,000 words about that day we will never forget. In memory of those who perished and in honour of those who survived. Today, we reflect and remember. But the anger remains. And we pray that our leaders have half the courage of the great man who wrote these words:

One ought never to turn one's back on a threatened danger and try to run away from it. If you do that, you will double the danger. But if you meet it promptly and without flinching, you will reduce the danger by half. Never run away from anything. Never!
Winston Churchill

No Words

How a TV show says Goodbye to a Beloved Character

OK. Call me a sentimentalist. I appreciate good writing for movies and TV that grab you by the heart without making you feel as though you are being manipulated.

The English Soap Opera “Coronation Street” debuted in December 1960. Fay traveled by time machine to see the premier episode and has been a fan ever since. Like any soap, characters come and they go. Some of the characters become part of your life.

In 1977, a married couple entered the cast, Jack and Vera Duckworth, played by William Tarmey and Elizabeth Down. They were not a perfect couple; they were a real life couple. But they loved each other.

Having been on the show for years, and starting off as a middle-aged couple, the Duckworths were getting along in years by 2008. At that point, Elizabeth Down, in less than perfect health, felt that she needed to retire from the show. As a result, her character, Vera, died.

By 2010, William Tarmey wanted to retire. He was convinced to stay on a bit longer as the show neared its fiftieth anniversary. He agreed. His leaving the show, aired in November, 2010 in the UK, was one of the most beautiful pieces of TV script writing I have ever seen, bringing Down back for Tarmey’s final scene – a feat of brilliance.
ac


This week the show finally hit the CBC (we are about ten months behind in Canada). While I saw this scene many months ago on YouTube, Fay wanted to wait until the show came up.

I won’t go into the plot details; I think you should just enjoy some fine script writing that says goodbye to a beloved character.

The bad news is that the CBC who is more concerned with showing the 472nd promo for the Rick Mercer Report than keeping a program intact, butchered the scene. I had to show this scene on YouTube to Fay for her to appreciate the beauty of it.

I know you probably do not know the show, but I hope you enjoy some great writing and acting.

Close Listening to Old Songs.

A couple of weeks ago I was listening to some tunes on the way home from work. One of the songs I heard was my favorite Motown record, This Old Heart of Mine” by the Isley Brothers.

I have loved the song ever since it came out forty-five years ago, but – other than the chorus when they pretty much echo the lead singer – I have never understood a single word the background singers were singing. That day I was not cranking it, nor did I have it playing softly in the background.

All of a sudden the words jumped right out and bit me in the eardrums. “Darling I’m weak for you. Darling I’m mad about you.”