LETTER: Television, then and now

Every time I look at the prime time TV line up, I shake my head and reminisce about the good ole days. Take 1965, my ninth grade year. It was the mid ‘60s, the times of Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon.
The Marines started the big military escalation into Vietnam — and a dawn of social unrest and protest. Transistor radios blared the tunes of the great British invasion bands — but that’s another exciting
story.  It was television of that era, tuned via bunny ears or roof aerials, that makes so sterling a comparison with TV today. Only three major networks existed, each generating a mix of quality programs
for all ages. Today’s myriad of cable channels offers few that are worthy of my time. 

In 1965, prime time started at 7:30. On Mondays, that hour paired ABC’s “12 O’clock High” with NBC’s “To Tell the Truth” and “I’ve Got a Secret” and CBS’s “Hullabaloo.” Next came “The Lucy
Show,” “Legend of Jesse James,” and “Dr. Kildare.”  At 9 — “A Man Called Shenandoah,” “Andy Griffith,” and Perry Como/Andy Williams shows.  Late nighters at 10 could feast on Ben Casey, Steve
Lawrence or “Run For Your Life.” Wow!  Compare that to today’s Monday line up.

The other nights were equally compelling: Sundays featured “Bonanza,” “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea,” “The FBI” and “My Favorite Martian.” Tuesdays showcased “Combat,” “Rawhide,” “F Troop”
and “McHale’s Navy.” Fridays, my favorites: “The Wild Wild West” and “The Man From UNCLE.” 

Hollywood serviced our country then, providing the comfort of these shows (and movies) amidst the backdrop of a turbulent decade. TV was fun, cute, consoling, educational and lacked the vices so
glorified today. I miss it. Fortunately the TV Land channel repeats some of these past glories, maintaining a flash of goodness in the morass of mindless sitcoms, reality TV, and violence. 

TV then vs. now? Ha. What happened in four decades?  Television has devolved to hellivision. I need a time machine.  Long live nostalgia.

RICHARD HAMNER

Lake Ridge