OT: - If you grew up in the 50's, you'll remember some of these things from that era. | Page 2 | The Boneyard

OT: If you grew up in the 50's, you'll remember some of these things from that era.

Seemed like almost everyone smoked. TV commercials advertised how cool smoking was.

Actors frequently smoked in movies. John Wayne smoked at least once in almost every movie. He lost a lung to cancer, after smoking 3+ packs of cigarettes per day.
 
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UHF said:
Seemed like almost everyone smoked. TV commercials advertised how cool smoking was.

Actors frequently smoked in movies. John Wayne smoked at least once in almost every movie. He lost a lung to cancer, after smoking 3+ packs of cigarettes per day.
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Smoking in restaurants. It would be very nasty now.
 
Front door open all night and only the screen door locked. Dads' car never locked. Milk in bottles with the cream on top. We even had an old butter churn on the farm and my dad was always on his ham radio.
 
Some of these things persisted thru the 50s and 60s into the 70s and early 80s when I was growing up. We didn't lock doors, kids were pretty free to go around without adult supervision, stuff like that. I don't know when that all changed.
 
UHF said:
Doors to the House were frequently Unlocked even at night.

:eek:
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Our doors were never locked. I remember one time I came home from college. Got dropped off by my ride on I-95 and hitchhiked to my house about 5 miles off the highway. I got home and the damn doors were locked. I had to climb in through a window about 5-6 feet off the ground. I had to try really hard not to break the antique gate-leg table that was right inside the window.

Speaking of kids' shows: There were local kids' shows. I was on the Mr Goober show (channel 8) when I was about 6 or 7. We also had Ranger Andy on channel 3.
 
UHF said:
Seemed like almost everyone smoked. TV commercials advertised how cool smoking was.

Actors frequently smoked in movies. John Wayne smoked at least once in almost every movie. He lost a lung to cancer, after smoking 3+ packs of cigarettes per day.
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Guests smoked and got soused on talk shows.
 
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CL82 said:
I vaguely remember romper room, but I don’t think that I watched it. I definitely remember Rambling with Gambling‘s and I listened to it into adulthood when his son John Gambling had the show. (The show actually was three generations with John gambling being the grandson of the originator.) In one of those odd coincidences of life, as an adult I was friends with a family member of his by marriage. He would occasionally come into town for the holidays.

WOR had a lot of good radio, including Bob and Ray, who were hysterical. Joan Hamburg was another host on WOR. I knew her husband Mort through business. He was as quiet as she is vivacious.

Small world.
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Oh yes. I heard Bob and Ray too. In addition to Joan Hamburg (who my mother listened to) there were the Fitzgerald's (Ed and Pegeen) and another couple that had hour long shows during the morning hours. Mom kept the radio on close to all day when she was home. And their helicopter pilots - doing traffic - one crashed and died. The other promoted some charities and yes, my mother faithfully donated because he recommended them.

Another radio program my parents listened to was Norman Vincent Peale's Sunday sermons. Not sure if they were on WOR or not.
 
Savin Rock in West Haven. Valley Drive-in on Division Ave. in Derby.
Seaside Park in Bridgeport. Fast pitch softball was big. Selling Coca-Cola in Yale Bowl. Delivering Journal-Courier in the morning, The New Haven Register in the afternoon. All high school football games were 10:30 on Saturday morning. Sunday blue laws. Vonetti's Ice Cream Parlor on Main St. in Derby. Frank Gifford and Sam Huff. Anyone play corkball ?
 
My mother kept the radio on all day also. It made the day go by faster. You always knew the hour of the day by what program was on. Remember the Paul Harvey Show? We listened to his show every day. He had a very distinctive voice and delivery.

I remember Romper Room, Kukla, Fran & Ollie. Howdy Doody, Soupy Sales, Bozo the clown, Engineer Bill, and Sheriff John. These children shows were products of our local TV stations. Rocky & Bullwinkle cartoons along with Crusader Rabbit, Buggs Bunny and Popeye.
 
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I remember that hitchhiking was common, safe and very economical...better than Uber. Also, the Saturday AM test pattern signaled the start of a morning of great kid TV watching. Ah, yes, and then there was Payola. Ugh.
 
In the 50s, when the street lights came on, I came into my house and put away my Spaldeen and box of chalk so my brother couldn't get them. Next, I turned on WINS and listened to the Alan Freed show all night. I went to all of Freed's rock-n-roll shows at the Brooklyn Paramount which was just a few blocks from my high school, Brooklyn Tech. Occasionally I did homework while listening to the radio, cuz Tech was an elite school and some of its courses were tough!
 
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AzHusky said:
Listen to Sandy Beach on WDRC and Bob Steel on WTIC.
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I loved Bob Steele’s family stories about Uncle Stainless and Cousin Cold-rolled. And his word of the day.
 
Hoops66 said:
I remember that hitchhiking was common, safe and very economical...better than Uber. Also, the Saturday AM test pattern signaled the start of a morning of great kid TV watching. Ah, yes, and then there was Payola. Ugh.
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Sure. I both hitchhiked and gave rides to others.

Remember when you saw someone by the side of the road you would pull over to see if they needed help? In the days before cell phones, if your car broke down you couldn’t just call for help. People were pretty good though about stopping, giving you a ride so you can get gas or changing a tire.
 
Jingo said:
In the 50s, when the street lights came on, I came into my house and put away my Spaldeen and box of chalk so my brother couldn't get them. Next, I turned on WINS and listened to the Alan Freed show all night. I went to all of Freed's rock-n-roll shows at the Brooklyn Paramount which was just a few blocks from my high school, Brooklyn Tech. Occasionally I did homework while listening to the radio, cuz Tech was an elite school and some of its courses were tough!
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Lucky you. :)
 
Remember one of the opening lines from the "Twilight Zone"? "Don't touch your TV set, we control the horizontal". If you said these words to a kid today, they would have no clue what you are talking about. A lot of things have gotten worse, but some things have gotten much better: TVs, cars, etc. When's the last time you had you had a flat tire on the road or over heated? Couldn't drive to the beach without seeing 3 or 4 cars broken down along the way. What else has gotten better?
 
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Skeets said:
Remember one of the opening lines from the "Twilight Zone"? "Don't touch your TV set, we control the horizontal"
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That was “The Outer Limits”. Twilight zone was:

"There is a fifth dimension, beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge.”
 
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UHF said:
Seemed like almost everyone smoked. TV commercials advertised how cool smoking was.

Actors frequently smoked in movies. John Wayne smoked at least once in almost every movie. He lost a lung to cancer, after smoking 3+ packs of cigarettes per day.
Expand ...
My doctor when I was a child smoked. I remember him smoking while listening to my heart with a stethoscope.
 
UHF said:
Seemed like almost everyone smoked. TV commercials advertised how cool smoking was.

Actors frequently smoked in movies. John Wayne smoked at least once in almost every movie. He lost a lung to cancer, after smoking 3+ packs of cigarettes per day.
Expand ...
The one that always sticks out to me is from Miracle on 34th St. The lawyer is in his apartment getting ready for bed. He brushes his teeth and when he finishes he picks up his cigarette and takes a long drag off it then climbs into bed.
 
We had door deliveries galore in Hartford. Sealtest milkman, Bond bread man, fruit truck, laundry man, egg man, and the insurance man came to collect premiums. Had my Winky Dink magic screen. Sob stories on Queen for a Day. 15 minute national news at around dinner time with John Cameron Swayze yes 15 minutes, Dave Garroway’s Today Show, and Kate Smith just because it was a TV show. Roller skates with key clamps that made a cool sound on the sidewalk. Cap guns. Walking to school to Junior High and high school even though both were about 15 blocks away. But most of all I Remember Mama and test patterns. Well not most of all, most of all Mickey Mantle and the Mickey Mouse Club and every boys’ crush Annette Funicello.

ETA. Almost forgot. Gas wars. Nearby gas stations undercutting each other to prices under 25 cents a gallon while pumping gas, checking oil, wiping windshield and tire pressure. Now a gas war is making sure the station matches the highest prices around, pumping your own while the staff is busy ringing up cigarettes, soda and junk food.
 
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This will never come back.
Remember when the TV went on the “blink”?
Parent would call the TV Repair Man.
He’d show up with this big black case that had a bazillion tubes and widgets in it.
He’d pivot the TV off of the wall, place a mirror in front of the screen so he could see what was going on from behind it-take off the back panel and work his magic.
Picture would go through all kinds of contortions- he’d reach in his case and replace what was needed.
Little by little the picture would come back.
A MIRICLE!!
TV back in business!
HALLELUJAH!!
The universe is saved!
Just in time for Soupy Sales!!!
 
Skeets said:
Remember one of the opening lines from the "Twilight Zone"? "Don't touch your TV set, we control the horizontal". If you said these words to a kid today, they would have no clue what you are talking about. A lot of things have gotten worse, but some things have gotten much better: TVs, cars, etc. When's the last time you had you had a flat tire on the road or over heated? Couldn't drive to the beach without seeing 3 or 4 cars broken down along the way. What else has gotten better?
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Streaming music and the ability to download songs onto your computer or tablet and then listen to them when you want.

For better or worse, reliable sites for medical information on the Internet. I stress the word reliable.

Problem can be if a person obsesses on these innovations and avoids interaction with family members.
 
Stymie said:
This will never come back.
Remember when the TV went on the “blink”?
Parent would call the TV Repair Man.
He’d show up with this big black case that had a bazillion tubes and widgets in it.
He’d pivot the TV off of the wall, place a mirror in front of the screen so he could see what was going on from behind it-take off the back panel and work his magic.
Picture would go through all kinds of contortions- he’d reach in his case and replace what was needed.
Little by little the picture would come back.
A MIRICLE!!
TV back in business!
HALLELUJAH!!
The universe is saved!
Just in time for Soupy Sales!!!
Expand ...


We whacked the side of the TV to fix the issue. Anyone else do that?
 
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