Posted on 06/05/2007 10:05:20 AM PDT by pissant
Roy Rogers' recent death, untimely to millions of Americans who loved him, was, in a tragic sense, symbolic of the death of an era of wholesome television entertainment. Actually, the era of good TV has long since passed.
But the black and white clips of Roy Rogers' Hollywood in this week's memorial reviews, provide a jolting look at how far we have slipped.
Roy Rogers was wholesome. His episodes never offended decency. Any child could watch Roy Rogers without a nervous parent monitoring the show to quickly "click off" the bad parts as is so necessary with TV today.
Roy used good language and was never profane. In his films, he unfailingly demonstrated his own fidelity to courage, honesty, and the Christian value of helping one's neighbor.
Roy's weekly mission of "rounding up the bad guys" was always altruistic; self-reward was noticeably absent. His treatment of women was always courteous and respectful. The frontier image of manhood was effectively reflected by Roy Rogers in such a way that any boy emanating him would receive an "A" in civility from his mom.
This in contrast to the recent newspaper headline which read: "11-Year-Old Who Raped 5-Year-Old Says He Learned Sex From Cable TV."
Roy Rogers has been criticized by today's film makers as unrealistic. "Filthy words, savage attacks on women, and selfishness as the primary human motivator," they argue, "represent the real America and are box office winners."
This is, at once, the real lie of Hollywood and its dereliction of duty.
"America is great, because America is good," wrote the Frenchman Alexis De Tocqueville several hundred years ago. His assessment of American character has since been validated a million times: The nation that left 38,000 Americans dead and wounded in one day at Antietam Creek to free the slaves; MacArthur's G.I.s walking the streets of a defeated Tokyo and, instead of returning the brutality of Tojo's forces, handing out Hershey's bars to Japanese children as prelude to massive humanitarian aid; tens of thousands of American service clubs, charities, churches, and individuals, giving help, food, medical aid and comfort during every major disaster this century.
Indeed, Americans give more in charitable donations than all the other nations of the world combined.
Who is right, Roy Rogers or the cynics? The undeniable, historic record of the "good America" of Roy Rogers justifies the next question: Which qualities are the more appropriate model for our TV-viewing children, Roy Rogers' or the cynics'?
Roy Rogers' America did exist and still does.
Every time a boy addresses a woman as "Ma'am," an elder as "Sir," every time there is an act of kindness, every time honesty is practiced, every time one fights valiantly for what is right...Roy Rogers' America exists. And we win.
Happy Trails Roy.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bob Hunter is the Congressman's father
While there was only one Reagan, Hunter certainly comes closest.
Duncan Hunter raise the bar of integrity for the other candidates.
He certainly holds the same values and beliefs in American goodness.
Yep. Not too many apperances for GLAAD and NARAL on his schedule.
Roy Rogers, a man who got in a fist fight during every show, shot bad guys with his guns and had an attack dog that bites. I loved watching his show. It was the best kids western of all time. I wish there was something as good for my 7 year old to watch.
I recall old America too.
It was great.
Roy was before my time. I watched Gunsmoke and The Lone ranger though.
It was great.
I miss it.
It’s a shame that the westerns are gone, they taught good values and individual responsibility...
I guess that’s why we done see them...
>>>Roy was before my time.
Here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVgkcW0luc0
Roy Rogers, Dale Evans & Perry Como: Happy Trails
Do we all have to watch dopey cowboy shows, or can we maybe have wholesome kiddie shows on the wholesome kiddie show channel and then entertainment for grownups on a different channel?
Oh wait, that's what we have now. Yo Duncan, turn on Nickelodeon. No cuss words or anything!
Come to think of it, most of my heroes are also long gone.
We heard it on the radio while driving to Alexandria, Minnesota to go antiquing (that town crawls with antique stores), and I thought I smelled an opportunity to snatch up some cheap memorabilia.
Even within the two hours of the report of his death, I was too late - anything and everything Roy Rogers was really marked UP.
Are Gray’s Anatomy, Desperate Houswives, and Will and Grace preferable to shows like Gunsmoke, Get Smart, and Wild Wild West? I thought not.
Then you grow up and wonder why you ever watched.
His point was a little broader than praising a good kids TV show.
Let's face facts: In the fifties TV was still in its vaudville stage. There were some good shows, but in retrospect many were really, really bad.
Gunsmoke--I've seen a couple of reruns. Horrible show. Basically a corny drama set in the west. you can have it.
Get Smart--camp humor only goes so far. couple of good gags here and there.
Wild Wild West--never seen it
Truthfully, I don't really watch tv shows. I find them to be a waste of precious time. I like movies, and the movies I like are often times not rated G. I watched "Millers Crossing" on tv last night for the umpteenth time. Great movie, great cast, definitely not wholesome.
I can understand nostalgia for wholesome shows. When I was a kid in the 70s, we had The Waltons and Little House on the Prairie. I don't really think that kind of thing sells anymore. It's not like tv networks are jamming stuff down our throats. They have to get ratings to succeed. The customer decides. Free market and all that. I think that tv is a reflection of our culture, not the other way around.
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