TV - The 60's

As I have been looking at TV in the 60's I realized I didn't watch much during those years and a lot of it I only saw if it went into re-runs years later. I did not have a TV for most of that time. There was no moral issue or any statement being made. We just didn't have a TV.
As I was growing up, there was no TV in our home until 1956. I was 12 then so it was never part of my growing up as is the same case with a lot of people in my age group.
In our home we watched a show on a specific night then we turned it off.

Look closely at this and see how little choice we had in programing in those days and this may explain some of it.


1960 -This guy and this show scared me to death. The Twilight Zone had some of the creepiest stories and I still remember parts of some of them.

Ben Cartwright and his three sons (by three wives, I might add) rode herd over the Ponderosa spread in 1860s Nevada in one of the most beloved series of all time. The first TV Western to be shown in color, it ran for 14 seasons; was the top-rated show for three of those years (1964-67). My Mom, who was so not into TV, was crazy about Ben. All phone calls, flitting about and talking had to stop when this show came on. She sat in her chair with her chin resting on her right hand, totally mesmerized. It was one of the few Westerns I ever liked.
1960 Television-See how wide they are starting to get. Curtis Mathis used to bring a Color TV to your house to let you watch for a week in order to sell you one. It took several big guys to bring it in. Did we ever buy one? NO. Everyone in the apartment building I lived in at the time took a turn on their free offer and we would go into each others apartments and watch TV every night.
The Dick Van Dyke Show-One of the funniest shows ever on TV. The writing was sophisticated and you actually had to have a brain to get some of the jokes. I still love this show and would watch re-runs as it is timeless.

1961-A good year to be ill, especially if you got Dr. Kildare when you were rolled into the hospital.

Mr Ed-Was about a horse who owned by Wilbur Post. Mister Ed was not just any horse, he talks to Wilbur! But this gets Wilbur in all kinds of trouble because Mister Ed won't talk to anyone else, so Carol, Wilbur's wife, thinks that Wilbur loves Mister Ed more then he loves her, because he spends so much time with Mister Ed. Mister Ed also talks on the telephone and goes out of his barn to cause mischief, which Wilbur gets blamed for. It was one of the funnier shows of that time.

The Andy Griffith Show-Little Ron Howard as Opie. Was that not the cutest face in TV land?

The Beverly Hillbillies


Mayberry R.F.D.- the spin-off of the Andy Griffith show. Andy got tired of the doing the show so this one was created. It's premier had the largest number of people ever watching a spin-off.
Peyton Place-I never went to my Mother's house on the night this show was on as she would not let me watch it even though I was a grown woman. I read the book when I was in my early teens, hiding under a blanket, with a flash light, after my Mother went to bed.....


Hogans Heroes

Adams Family


Death Valley Days-had quite a few emcees but this in the one we all remember.
Man From U.N.C.L.E.

Batman

Dark Shadows-never watched this but I sure know a lot of people that did. It had a cult-like following that included my formed MIL. She would race home from work to catch it.

The Dean Martin Show-still one of the funniest variety shows ever. I love to watch the video of them. I lived with a girlfriend, who worked nights, that would ask me to call her when he was on TV and sit the phone by the speaker so she could listen to it.

Hey Hey, We're the Monkees.....


"Tonight we have a reallllly BIG Sheeewwww!" That was always the lead in. The Ed Sullivan Show ran from June 20, 1948 to June 6, 1971. It was on every Sunday night at 8 p.m., and is one of the few shows to have been run in the same time slot, weekly on the same network (CBS), for more than two decades. It was hosted by entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan.



Ironside-loved this show


Star Trek-was not a Trekkie and never saw the show until it was canceled and they had all the marathons of all the shows. Probably the only reason I saw it then, I was dating a guy that loved this show. Oh, what we watch for love.

Here Come The Brides-I had no idea the few times I watched this, that it was loosely based on a true story. Sixteen years ago I found out about Asa Mercer, who was a Seattle pioneer, that took a ship to the east coast to find Civil War widows. His idea was to help settle Seattle by providing brides for the rough and tumble loggers, miners, etc. He was accused of white slavery. He was quite misunderstood. I would love to write a fictional book based on the facts of this story.

MOD SQUAD- This television detective show was so indicative of its time While all crime drama shows incorporate ideas of their era, most could be made 'contemporary' with a few simple updates in fashion and technology. Not so with The Mod Squad. The show worked because of its clothes, its language, its attitudes and, of course, its timing. The shows topics, such as student unrest and anti-war statements could only have worked in the late 60s. The characters all had troubled pasts and they were unified to help the youth of that time.