What is your earliest memory of TV? (spoiler, antique, Maine)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
We had a black and white. I'd guess about a 20". The screen sat in a big box with doors. About three or four feet high, couple of feet wide. The wood finish was called blonde. The first TV I had ever seen... as best I can recall.
Couple of things I remember. First, that kids show with the Mickey Mouse Club. This was in Fort Worth, about 1955. My other recollection at about the same time was a baseball game. We had just returned from the EuroZone, I was seven. Had no idea what baseball was. A kid from across the street showed me I had to hold my hand over my heart during the national anthem. And I wasn't supposed to talk.
Being American I was surprised to discover that my Scottish husband watched many of the same programmes I did when he was growing up in Glasgow in the 1950s and 60s!
Adam 12, Starsky and Hutch, Emergency, Vega$ (yes it had the dollar sign as the S), the Love Boat, Charlie's Angels, Fantasy Island. I remember our local independent station (KSTW channel 11, now CW 11, Kenny Maine was the sports guy back then and I met him when he came to our school before he went to ESPN) showed cartoons about 3 pm on weekdays, including the racist old Warner Brothers' ones before they were edited/taken out of circulation. I remember the Groovy Ghoulies, the Banana Splits and H.R. Pufnstuff. Many of those were reruns when I first saw them (does anyone remember a show on the Groovy Ghoulies called M*U*S*H which was like MASH only with dogs?) and even though I watched Saturday Morning cartoons, I don't recall too many of the first run Saturday Morning cartoons from when I was little, although I'm sure if I looked up the schedule from those years on Wikipedia, it'd jog my memory. I remember some commercials, and still remember the Hot Wheels jingle "Hot Wheels, here they come. Hot wheels, for '81" and ABC's "Still the One" commercials. A lot of stuff. It's sad really that I can remember tv so well when I think about it. LOL!
My earliest memories of tv were that there was only black and white. The tv station came on around 6 am or 7 am, and ended later in the evening. In its place was a test pattern. I remember Captain Kangaroo, Romper Room, The Ed Sullivan Show, I Love Lucy, and the Honeymooners.
It was only later in life that I pieced together what I had seen: Adam and Nicole Drake's sailboat on The Edge of Night had exploded. It turned out to be one of the show's most memorable moments because the Drakes were one of the show's favorite couples. But I remember it only because of the reactions of the adults in the room when I was just a child.
When I was age six JFK assassination had a similar effect. All the adults crying at one time. I am not sure if there will be a similar reaction today to any event.
Oh, we're the men of Texaco, we work from Maine to Mexico, there's nothing like this Texaco of ours.
1948, Tuesday nights, Milton Berle had everybody laughing. Black and white TV, grainy picture. We all knew what was going to happen when Uncle Miltie yelled, "Make up!" We loved it anyway.
Back then, TV wasn't a 24/7 operation. If I recall correctly, it was about 4PM before the broadcast day began. Until then, there was a test pattern. (My brother thought that was worth watching.) At 11PM, the National Anthem played, a disembodied voice wished us good night and it was done.
Lots of local programming - most of it cheesy, but what did we know?
I also remember watching the moon landing in 1969! I was very small, but I have a very clear memory of my parents telling me I had to watch this report, because it was very important. I also remember that I had an orange, blue, and green striped shirt on when I was watching this.
Then we got to buy green cheese (presumably from Mars), space food sticks and drink Tang just like the astronauts did.
My grandpa watching the soap opera The Secret Storm.
My parents watching the Andy Williams Show, Lawrence Welk, The Ed Sullivan Show.
I was very young when the Beatles were on The Ed Sullivan Show but I remember my parents commenting about how long their hair was.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
