Aside from music, TV is my jam. Just as I can rhapsodize on the highs and lows found in Neil Young’s oeuvre, so too can I discuss at length many different shows and series—and not just because I covered many of them for various TV magazines and websites during the course of my working career. There are a myriad of things to watch, these days, with most available at the click of a button.
That wasn’t always the case. As I’ve noted before, in 1970—not long after I turned 5—my family jetted overseas to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where we remained until mid-’75. Jeddah’s lone TV station primarily programmed—as one might expect—Arabian fare, which explains why we owned a small black-and-white TV that collected dust more often than not. However, as I wrote in this remembrance, some Western fare occasionally made its way onto the airwaves when a test card would have otherwise been used. My main TV memories from those years consist of watching Betty Boop and Mighty Mouse cartoons, though vague recollections of The Brady Bunch, The Invaders and UFO float forth, too. The bulk of my free time was spent outdoors doing this ‘n’ that with friends.
In late summer of 1975, by which time we’d settled in suburban Philadelphia, our options expanded to channels 3 (NBC), 6 (ABC), 10 (CBS) and 12 (PBS), plus the UHF independents 17, 29 and 48, which aired reruns and local sports.
My folks enjoyed the NBC Mystery Movie, aka Columbo and McCloud (though not so much McMillan & Wife), while I enjoyed pretty much everything ABC: The Swiss Family Robinson, The Six Million Dollar Man, Happy Days, Welcome Back, Kotter, Laverne & Shirley, The Bionic Woman and Donny & Marie. In a few years time, Mork & Mindy joined the club and became a big hit within my middle-school set. Nanu, nanu!
The Old Grey Cat 
I love a good Nick at Night session with Laverne and Shirley!!!
LikeLiked by 2 people
old times were good times. we came of age during the Golden Age, it would seem. lucky us.
LikeLiked by 1 person