Darrington Library Blog

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Back in the Day


Remember back in the day when TV was visible via antenna? There were no monthly fees, just an initial investment of an antenna and a television. Oh, you don’t remember that? Then you are just too young! This will be a history lesson for you.

After walking all over the property to find good reception, the antenna was eventually planted in the back yard, the front yard, the side yard, or even on the top of the roof depending on where the best reception could be found. Those were the days when we had more time, got more exercise, and even talked a bit with each other. We had more time because we really didn’t watch much television since the quality of the picture varied from bad to worse with the blowing of the wind. The wind caused the antenna to spin around so we got exercise by running outside in the storm to return the antenna to the best direction for viewing. Someone else stood in the doorway looking at the television so they could yell at the person outside when the picture was back to as good as it could get. The normal conversation during the process was, “Can you see the picture yet?” Soon the person in the house yelled, “Not yet, keep turning” so you see, we had some good conversations going on. Eventually the right position for the antenna was found and the next task was to secure it and that definitely wasn’t an easy task. As soon as we thought it would stay, it slipped back the other direction a quarter of a turn and we were back to the beginning of the process.

While the television picture often was little more than moving shadows accompanied by voices, there were a number of innocent, fun, shows that provided entertainment for determined television audiences. Sno-Isle now has many of those TV series on DVD in the library collection. They are a lot of fun. Check out I Dream of Jeannie for some good laughs; Leave it to Beaver for some ideas on how to raise good kids; Mission Impossible for a suspense filled hour; and Bonanza for a television trip back to the wild west. Additional recommendations by our staff are Different Strokes and I Love Lucy. Add your favorites to the comment section of this blog and give our readers ideas for selecting the perfect television series to enjoy on a long rainy afternoon.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hah! I am just old enough to remember the antenna days! It was so annoying back then, but kind of a fun memory now. Since we're going retro here, I would also recommend the Brady Bunch, the Andy Griffith Show, the Muppet Show, and Get Smart.

Anonymous said...

I too am just young enough to remember the antenna days...we used to also beat the side or top of the TV (as if that would jostle the antenna back into position!). Other good family fun shows included: The Waltons, Little House on the Prairie, Alias Smith & Jones, Here Come the Brides. I'd agree that the Andy Griffith Show, Get Smart and the Muppet Show were faves too!
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