Due to the loss of my job last July, my husband and I suspended our satellite/DVR television coverage about six months ago and just very recently "got back on line". As a result of those six months sans TV, I happily found that there IS fulfilling life to be had out there without it.
That said, we did miss watching our weekly favorites together: Fringe, House, CSI or CSI Miami, Leverage, The Closer, Mental, Mentalist....those hour-long dramas sprinkled with a good helping of suspense, science and/or mystery are the ones we like to save & watch when we're together. During our "real TV" drought, on those evenings in which we hungered for and hunkered down for an hour or two of mindless entertainment, we'd end up borrowing or purchasing cheap "b-rated" compilation DVDS, which typically consisted of five or so fairly bad sci-fi or disaster movies or, in one case....was comprised of 10-15 episodes of.....Bonanza. And so, for the first time in recorded history, I got a little hooked on a western TV show and got a slight crush on the most charming of the 60's western TV characters- Adam Cartwright.
Yes, I spent a week, in the presence of my husband, falling a little in love with Adam and those other three handsomely rugged men from "Bonanza". Adam particularly so, not just because of his dark good looks, but because, like me, he would rather have worked out his problems doing something which involved "cerebral grease" than to be out doing something which involved a lot of heavy elbow grease. Now that was my kind of hero!
Like I mentioned, I've never been a western-"phile" but I just got this crazy little crush on those four good-looking Bonanza guys. (Yes, even Hoss had his own good looks, a big-teddy bear appeal, not unlike my husband's). These guys were charming, unlucky-in-love, hard-working and loyal to the bone.
That said, we did miss watching our weekly favorites together: Fringe, House, CSI or CSI Miami, Leverage, The Closer, Mental, Mentalist....those hour-long dramas sprinkled with a good helping of suspense, science and/or mystery are the ones we like to save & watch when we're together. During our "real TV" drought, on those evenings in which we hungered for and hunkered down for an hour or two of mindless entertainment, we'd end up borrowing or purchasing cheap "b-rated" compilation DVDS, which typically consisted of five or so fairly bad sci-fi or disaster movies or, in one case....was comprised of 10-15 episodes of.....Bonanza. And so, for the first time in recorded history, I got a little hooked on a western TV show and got a slight crush on the most charming of the 60's western TV characters- Adam Cartwright.
Yes, I spent a week, in the presence of my husband, falling a little in love with Adam and those other three handsomely rugged men from "Bonanza". Adam particularly so, not just because of his dark good looks, but because, like me, he would rather have worked out his problems doing something which involved "cerebral grease" than to be out doing something which involved a lot of heavy elbow grease. Now that was my kind of hero!
Like I mentioned, I've never been a western-"phile" but I just got this crazy little crush on those four good-looking Bonanza guys. (Yes, even Hoss had his own good looks, a big-teddy bear appeal, not unlike my husband's). These guys were charming, unlucky-in-love, hard-working and loyal to the bone.
So, today, as I heard of the passing this week of Pernell Roberts , the last of the four actors who portrayed them, I wanted to tip my hat to the Cartwrights. Because, as Baby Boomers and lovers-of-things Americana may know, the Cartwrights stood for various values which are best not to be lost in our society today:
1) Undying loyalty to family
2) Looking for the best in everyone, especially in the unlovable
1) Undying loyalty to family
2) Looking for the best in everyone, especially in the unlovable
3) Taking in and caring for the underdog
4) Treasuring "the land"
5) Courage under fire
6) Appreciation for other cultures and ethnicities
6) The ability to laugh at ourselves and those we love.... a trait most undervalued
And I'm sure you could add to this list. Yes, TV is quite a vast wasteland, as said by FCC Chairman Newton Minow in 1961, but I think Mr. Minow may have forgotten that there is always gold to winnow out if you're open to discovering it....
And so today I tip my hat to.....the Cartwrights.
4) Treasuring "the land"
5) Courage under fire
6) Appreciation for other cultures and ethnicities
6) The ability to laugh at ourselves and those we love.... a trait most undervalued
And I'm sure you could add to this list. Yes, TV is quite a vast wasteland, as said by FCC Chairman Newton Minow in 1961, but I think Mr. Minow may have forgotten that there is always gold to winnow out if you're open to discovering it....
And so today I tip my hat to.....the Cartwrights.
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