TV Characters ruled my young years.
TV characters made a big impression on my generation. We were the first kids to enjoy that Saturday morning ritual in front of the TV. In the 50s and early 60s, Saturday morning was not entirely a cartoon venue. Shows like Fury, My Friend Flicka, Rin Tin Tin and Sky King were dramas with real actors. Certainly, my devotion to animals has roots in these shows, The “save the day” mentality ran deep in those shows.I still laugh when I picture (June Lockhart) asking Lassie to go home and find her keys on the counter, near the cookie jar, THEN bring them to Timmy and have him come along not without dropping by the barn to grab a rope so he might pull her out from beneath her car which rolled over her leg as she stopped to investigate a gopher hole where she incidentally lost her other set of keys!
And they say, “Truth is stranger than fiction.” REALLY?
By the time I was 10, I had a healthy understanding of the plausible but chose to be entertained by those early shows.
Then came Star Trek. My adolescent years revolved around the swashbuckling tales of space exploration. It did not have to be believable and I had been tempered in the ridiculous and was ready for adventure. Forgive my pun, the sky was the limit and my imagination was set free.
There are many who scoff at that low budget, out-of-the box, science fiction show. The writing was deep and those who appreciated it, saved it from the “Dopey Show” graveyard.
Captain James T. Kirk was just the role model for me. His courageous investigation of new worlds (which in your teens applies to life) along with his ability to do what HE BELIEVED was right, many times in spite of rules and traditional thinking, made me proud.I became a student of civil disobedience and a believer that cunning is our best weapon. The topics of that show crossed many social barriers and made me think…yes, thinking and reconsidering forever became a part of me and I am grateful.
A favorite scene of mine which introduces the old to the new. Star Trek remains a thought provoking experience and has grown better with age!
If you haven’t ten minutes to watch this clip…watch only the last two. They encapsulate the Captain Kirk that I admire.
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