“Ozzie and Harriet” and “Leave it to Beaver” were my favorite shows.
My home life as a kid was the exact opposite of those shows.
I watched those shows like a starving man looks at a piece of pie. They gave me the social cues as to what family life COULD be like.
I am thankful to God I gave my kids a great childhood and home life.
““Ozzie and Harriet” and “Leave it to Beaver” were my favorite shows.
My home life as a kid was the exact opposite of those shows.
I watched those shows like a starving man looks at a piece of pie. They gave me the social cues as to what family life COULD be like.”
Wow. You are describing my childhood too.
My parents split up when I was around 5 or 6 years old (cant recall the exact year). My mother was the one who got custody of us. Problem was that she was a mentally ill, mean, abusive psychotic. Before my parents split up, I dont recall seeing that side of her. The split mustve done something to worsen her mental state. And she went really wild on us kids. Screaming, cursing, nagging, hitting, etc pretty much every day of the week.
As a result I sought solace, comfort, and escape through watching syndicated reruns of all sorts of classic tv shows (as well as cartoons and movies) every day of the week. My particular favorites were the comedy, family sitcoms. The more innocent the tv show, the more I loved them. My number one favorite at the time was the brady bunch.
Leave it to beaver and ozzie and harriet would become a favorite in later years because they didnt air those shows where I lived at the time. Ozzie and harriet I never saw until about 7 years ago when I ran across a dvd of 4 episodes in the bargain bin if my local supernarket. I bought it, watched it, and became hooked on the series. Buying or renting more episodes whenever I can.
I have to quote you again:
“I watched those shows like a starving man looks at a piece of pie. They gave me the social cues as to what family life COULD be like”
So true. The same way a starving man dreams of eating food, those of us raised in mean, angry, abusive, dysfunctional homes dream of being happy and belonging to a nice, normal, loving home. I watched those shows (and still do) to see how family members (yes, I know theyre not really family. Just actors. Though in ozzie and harriet, they are indeed a real family) are supposed to behave and treat each other.
I wish I could say that I wound up with a better life today, but that is not the case. Dont want to go into more details except to say that I am just as miserable today as I was when I was a kid, if not worse off.