Dear Readers,
When I see a rerun of a show I loved as a child, I get a nostalgic feeling. Seeing those shows not only makes me feel like a child again, it’s like visiting an old friend.
I watched a wide variety of shows from Westerns to sitcoms.
Variety shows were abundant when I was growing up. I especially enjoyed The Ed Sullivan Show, The Red Skelton Show and The Danny Kaye Show.
It seems like there was a Western on every channel, and I’m sure I watched all of them at some point. My favorites included Bonanza, High Chaparral, Cimarron Strip and The Big Valley.
My dad enjoyed watching military shows, and I found myself watching them, too. Combat!, Jericho and Garrison’s Guerillas were among my favorites.
A number of sitcoms were popular then, and they can still make me laugh today – I Love Lucy, The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Andy Griffith Show,Make Room for Daddy and Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
To add a little danger and excitement to my life, I watched Hawaii Five-O, Mission: Impossible, The Mod Squad, The Avengers, and my favorite, The Man
from U.N.C.L.E.
Then there were family favorites, such as Leave It to Beaver, My Three Sons, Family Affair and, for the animal lover in me, Lassie, Flipper and Mister Ed.
I also loved the short-lived show, Here Come the Brides. I was devastated when it was canceled.
The Wonderful World of Disney was something I looked forward to every Sunday evening. I still love to watch old Disney movies.
Popular music was a big part of my life, too, so naturally, I became a fan of American Bandstand and The Monkees.
Often when we watched TV in the evening, we’d have popcorn. I can still see my dad at the stove holding the covered skillet over the burner and shaking it as the corn popped. Popcorn was his favorite snack, and it’s one of mine.
Watching television was an activity our whole family enjoyed. When I see some of these old shows now, I can feel my family around me, and it makes me feel happy and comforted.
Love, Kate Marchbanks
