Showing posts with label Television. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Television. Show all posts
Saturday, July 2, 2016
Friday Night Fights (Soundtrack of my Life)
Does anyone remember the Friday Night Fights that used to come on television in the 1960's? Recently there was a network fight broadcast that brought back memories of the old sports series sponsored by Gillette. There were other events besides fights, but the boxing is what stands out in my memory. And actually I think for a while the fights on Friday nights was a regular series. The following post recalls some of the memories stirred by the recent boxing broadcast on television.
In this post I offer another in my Soundtrack of My Life series. Robin at Your Daily Dose has been doing the Soundtrack of my Life posts on her blog for a while now. I had done a few of my own "life soundtracks" on my Tossing It Out blog as well as the song series (starting at this post) I did for my 2014 Blogging from A to Z April Challenge on Wrote By Rote. Be sure to visit and follow Your Daily Dose for more Life Soundtrack info. For some background music while you read the post you can listen to this Boston Pops recording of "Look Sharp, Be Sharp" which was the theme song used by Gillette.
Friday Night Fights
Rarely in my lifetime have I taken much of an interest in sports. Boxing has sometimes had an almost morbid draw for me--I like movies about boxing--but mostly I've tried to avoid this brutal sport. Not so with my father. He enjoyed viewing boxing matches. When one came on the tube and he was watching, the energy and passion he displayed might make you think he was fighting the match himself.
Actually I used to sometimes get scared when he was watching boxing because he'd be shouting, throwing air punches, and displaying what appeared to be anger. But he was like this about all sports. He was more than just a sedentary audience member--he put himself into the action with commentary and physical acts such as jumping out of his chair and pacing in a tight quick circle in the living room. His head would shake and his jowls would flap as he roared out acclamations of encouragement or yowls of disgust. You'd think he had some stake in the event, but he was just another armchair spectator among the millions in living rooms across the nation.
Back then our house wasn't all that big so my mother, sister, and I couldn't help but be witness to my father's sports fan antics. We could hear him throughout the house and if I didn't stay in the living room for the entire fight, I would at least have to peek in now and then to see what was happening. Even though my father could be somewhat scary when he was watching sports, he was always a source of curiosity as well as an odd source of entertainment. I wasn't as interested in the fights as much as I was my father's reactions to whatever was happening.
From the opening strains of the Gillette theme song to the events that unfurled during an hour or two on that tiny black and white television set in our small living room, Friday Night Fights are a mainstay in my memories of childhood. As many memories as I have of this, one might think that the fights were on every Friday night, but they weren't. But when those fights were on, my father was there. He loved those fights. My guess is that he might have wished that his son loved watching those fights as much as he did, but I didn't. However, my dad was plenty of entertainment while the fights were on. I do remember that.
Did you have a father or family member who was a huge sports fan? Was there a sporting event that was always on in your home on a regular basis? Do you tend to get highly involved when you are watching a sporting event?
Saturday, June 9, 2012
Hot Fudge Sundays
Mister Ed (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
My Favorite Martian (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Publicity photo of Jon Provost and Lassie from the television program Lassie. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Beatles performing "Help!" in August 1965. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Ed Sullivan Show (Photo credit: Wikipedia) When it comes to my days of childhood, I remember Sundays more than any particular day of the week--especially Sunday nights. Perhaps it was a sense of routine that lasted for years. Sundays had a wonderfully predictable sameness to them. There were certain characteristics of that evening that made Sunday stand out more so that any other days.Much of it had to do with television. I'd be plopped in front of the TV set for the lineup on CBS every Sunday night. From the time I was a child until my teenage years, Sunday evening would start off with Lassie. I liked the show more when I was smaller, but it became an obligatory staple as I grew older.
An assortment of half hour comedy programs followed Lassie over the years. These shows were among my favorites in television comedy. There were great shows like Mr. Ed, My Favorite Martian, and It's About Time. Many were tried, but none lasted more than a few years which was probably for the best.
Next came the centerpiece of the evening--The Ed Sullivan Show. This was the the program that drew my entire family to gather around our one small black and white TV and later our 25 inch color television that we finally acquired in 1967. My father was always hopeful for a variety act, especially a juggling act. All the greats of the entertainment world were on the Sullivan show. I was particularly excited to see the appearances of the latest rock artists such the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and the Jefferson Airplane. Every performer dreamed of one day appearing on Ed Sullivan's show. My father also had that dream.
Later in the evening, after the Sullivan show, a series of other variety shows came and went. There was the legendary Judy Garland in her own show. The late 60s featured the sometimes radical, but always entertaining Smothers Brothers Show and the Glen Campbell Good Time Hour. The channels were limited back then but CBS had a decent Sunday night lineup that managed to hold my interest for many years.
The other big feature of our Sunday nights was the hot fudge sundaes. Often my mother would serve this special treat for us to enjoy as we watched the Sullivan variety show. She made the sugary hot fudge from Hershey's cocoa powder. Mixing the cocoa powder and sugar with milk, vanilla, and a dash of salt and heating them into a bubbling hot mixture would render a divine chocolate sauce that was perfect over vanilla ice cream. With a delicious sundae and a night of good television, the thought of school the next day didn't seem all that bad.
I haven't had one of those hot fudge sundaes in years. And now Sunday night doesn't seem to have the same great television that it used to have. I miss those Sundays and I miss those hot fudge sundaes enjoyed with the family of my childhood. Sunday will never be the same.
Do you remember the Sunday night shows of the 50s, 60s, and 70s? What were some of your favorite TV shows when you were growing up? Did you have a special night when the family would gather for what became a sort of tradition in your household? Have you had that granular sugary chocolate hot fudge sauce made from Hershey's Cocoa?
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