hee hee
If memory serves, I Led Three Lives was originally titled I Was a Communist For the FBI. I don't know the reason for the name change.
They often switched actors from radio to television. We all remember The Life of Riley, with William Bendix, but Jackie Gleason originated the part.
"What a revoltin' development this is!" :wink:
When I was a kid and they switched Hal Peary for Willard Waterman in the roll of The Great Gildersleve I felt it was an improvement. Now that I listen to the series from an older person's perspective, I believe Hal Peary gave the better performance. Each actor had very nearly identical delivery and sometimes WW's internal dialog was funnier, but HP gave more to it than that. He often invoked a moralist's judgement, making the character poignant from time to time. I recall HP closing one show by making an editorial plea for more funding to build more schools. In California at least, the school was so crowded wheere I first attended that I had to leave at lunch time for the next class to come in for the afternoon.
Out of the west comes the sound of thundering hooves!
Living with my grandparents as a boy, i was afforded a wonderful oppotunity in that my father assuaged his guilt by huge shipments of books--and not just books that caught his eye, carefully selected books. Illustrated beauties, with illustrations by Maxfield Parrish or Arthur Rackham; such a wide range--the novels of Kenneth Roberts, Johnny Tremayne, Drums, The Tanglewood Tales, Robinson Crusoe . . .
There was one, the title of which i no longer recall . . . it was one of those things that slip away, something you recall long after it is gone forever . . . this book told the history of the Texas Rangers. The illustrations were so richly done--a full color plate opposite each new chapter, careful and detailed pen and ink throughout. I learned that the Rangers, dressed in a wide variety of mufti, indicated their authority by hanging a Mexican five peso piece from a ribbon and pin on their coat. The center of the piece was a rayed, five-point star. Small town Marshalls all over Texas, and later throughout the west, would cut a crude star from the lid of a tin can with a tinsnips, and pin the star to their coat. I can almost picture one of the illustrations which shows a ranger stepping down from his horse, left foot still in the stirrup, right leg thrown behind, with the toe about to touch the ground. This became my image of the lone ranger. What was also extraordinary about the plate was that the gaze of the Ranger was not on horse or tack, but on his foeman . . . many, many years later, just a few years ago, i knew a young man is a very successful calf-roper in the IPRA, and i saw a photograph of him taken at one rodeo. Of course, as is the custom of the rodeo cowboy, he is turned out to the nines, in black and silver, with a new white Stetson . . . what struck me so forcefully was his posture: he has his left foot in the stirrup, the rope in his teeth, his gloved left hand on the pommel, and his right leg thrown behind, the toe about to touch the ground--and his eye is focused on the calf. It all came flooding back to me, the illustration in the book, and my mind's eye image of the Lone Ranger, although not in rodeo finery, but the ordinary coat, white shirt, vest and pantaloons of the 1840's. Memory is such a strange commodity. Poor Clayton Moore was never more than a sad, shabby-gentile popinjay to me . . . i never liked the television show . . .
I concur about Clayton Moore. His thin reedy voice was an insult after the deep richness of Brace Beemer's radio voice. To me there is only one Lone Ranger.
On the subject of cowboy stars, my top favorite in childhood was Hopalong Cassidy. One year he appeared in a parade in Fresno. I got very near to him and Topper and scarcely looked at Pinky Lee who was nearby. I think I still have my steer's head neckerchief holder (whatever it is).
too much tv
in the last 20 years TV has become the main subect of human time and concentration, we spend up to 50 years of our time watching it, but don't forget you can turn it off sometimes and live a life of more real exeriences.
remember: live first, work second.
I was little TV - exclusively for sports (usually championships and my team only) and a little news/nature/history shows.
We were in a retarded, brutal environment in my childhood family. Television and radio were among our main means of escape. I will always remain fond of the old shows, no matter how awful most were.
I was a Leave To Beaver, Lassie, Father Knows Best child myself. But, I prefer that to BayWatch, Beverly Hill 9XXXX, Friends, bs that exists today. That show I watched with any consistency was "3rd Rock From The Sun".
I have a new HD TV with HD receiver and will watch anything broadcast over the air in HD. Even plants growing.
The producers of today's shows forgot one prime ingredient: Entertainment is supposed to be entertaining.
Football in HD is awesome.
edgar, Are you serious? There was a time when we didn't have t.v.? WOW!
I know you're putting me on, CI. You probably remember when there was no radio. He he.
c.i. celebrated Gutenberg's grand invention. At the time they said it would be the downfall of all mankind. Morality would fly out the window and teenagers would become degenerate
When i was a chile, we watched television by candlelight . . .
(Did i use that one already?)
Dana Andrews
