Listen here you young DU whippersnappers. When *I* was a boy 30 yrs. ago

[underpants]

The big things every year were

The Indy 500
Miss America (with Burt Parks)
The Jerry Lewis telethon
The Kentucky Derby (triple crowd chase)
The World Series (and the All Star game)

The NBA was pretty much off the radar screen-but not the NCAA Tourney (I can remember when they switched to 64 teams)

Dumped by ABC Miss America goes to The Country Music Channel
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x3962308

[DBoon]

1. When I was a boy 30 years ago

The big thing was the next Led Zepplin show

[DS1]

2. Miss America is for vacuous assholes

Now, the Adult Video News Awards, now that's for celebrating vacuous assholes, and other orfices :o

[underpants]

4. I know but back then.....

it actually was something that was talked about the next day. Of course I remember watching Ali fight (FOR FREE) on Network TV.

A couple of weeks ago a friend of mine actually paid ~$50 to watch Tyson lose.

[kick-ass-bob]

9. TV was free?

:o

[underpants]

11. Only 3 channels - --- 4 if the weather was just right

Yeppers it was free.

[kick-ass-bob]

17. I remember switching to 'U'

for NBC (on channel 28)

(I WAS the remote control)

[underpants]

20. I was too

we had a TV (when we lived in Ohio) that could only get a station in Indianopolis and then only some of the time. I was the TV changer and tuner.

[evlbstrd]

21. Operated by a smack on the head.

[underpants]

24. A shoe flying through the air makes a certain noise

that shoe usually came from my older brother

[evlbstrd]

32. I am the older brother.

[kick-ass-bob]

34. you evil bastard.

:P

[evlbstrd]

37. That's where it all started...

[CottonBear]

30. We had UHF station channel 17 from Atlanta (Ted Turners original station!)

It was great: Star Trek reruns and pro wrestling!

[LynneSin]

3. Philly news says that the pageant may also move to Nashville

which is a major blow since it's been an Atlantic City tradition since the 1920s

[Arugula Latte]

5. Don't forget the Christmas specials!

The Grinch, Rudolph, Year Without A Santa Claus, etc. We didn't have VCRs or DVDs in those days -- we had to WAIT 'til what we wanted to see came on. And we LIKED it! (pounds table with fist for emphasis)

[underpants]

8. Yep and the Chinese acrobats and cliff divers on WideWorld of Sports

WWS was a must see in every neighborhood I lived in (we moved a lot).

Figure 8 racing now THAT I could get into.

[CottonBear]

14. The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat!

God, I loved Wide World of Sports. :)

That and the American Sportsman. "You only go around once so go for all the gusto you can get!"
:)

[Arugula Latte]

18. Jim MacKay

It wasn't an Olympics without Jim MacKay.

[CottonBear]

28. Jim McKay in that Gold sports coat to be exact!

I loved watching the Olympics when I was a kid. For one thing, it wasn't on 5 different channels so it was much easier to watch! :)

[underpants]

23. Yugoslavian ski jumper Vinko Bogataj

http://www.factmonster.com/spot/02olmaier.html

[Arugula Latte]

31. That wipeout never got old!

I don't even like sports much, but I did like the opening to Wide World of Sports.

[CottonBear]

33. I really looked forward to Evel Knieval wipeouts the most!

I loved Evel. My friends and I would break from swimming, biking and water skiing at the lake house to have lunch and wait for a big, bad crash! :) :evilgrin:

[CottonBear]

36. I love the picture! What memories! Thanks! n/t

[Richardo]

13. You didn't mention Merry Christmas Charlie Brown!

That's like forgetting Poland! :scared:

[underpants]

15. Unveiling of the newest Saturday Morning shows

NBC,a t least, had a special on a Friday night-it was must see. Hell Friday night TV was almost exclusively for the kids back then.

[Richardo]

19. ..and the new car models - a big fall (not spring) event

The cars were redesigned a LOT back then - like from the ground-up. You could tell what model year a car was with a glance.

[Arugula Latte]

16. Sorry! I'm a blockhead!

Now I remember ... the spindly little tree ...

That one was blatantly religious, if I recall. Kinda out there with the Biblical overtones ...

[sandnsea]

6. Is this the problem?

You've got an interesting list there, funny that they're all associated with Republicans now. Sports and young white males being more Republican as well.

What annual events are associated with liberals and Democrats?

[kick-ass-bob]

25. Are you outing underpants as a freeper?

:rofl:

[sandnsea]

47. Oh, absolutely

Good lord. You're under 25, I know, I understand. That's when reading comprehension skills got lost in the schools.

[Richardo]

7. The annual showing of the Wizard of Oz on network TV...

...was a real event.

[underpants]

10. Bob Hope's Christmas Special

with the College Football All American team and his dry ass jokes. Still it was always a must see...for football fans at the time.

I heard an old Lennon song in a CVS the other day "Don't you miss the big time boy You no longer run the baaaaaaall"

Running backs were THE stars back then not really the QB's (though they got the prize white chicks)

[CottonBear]

26. The melting witch and the flying monkeys absolutely terrified me!

I had to leave the room when the witch melted. :scared:

I tried to explain to a little kid that we didn't have VCRs so we had to wait for the movie to come on TV once a year. He just looked at me with a look of total disbelief and went off to play with his dinosaur toys!

[Richardo]

27. I know - it is literally beyond their grasp to not have entertainment

...on demand. (And I DO mean 'demand'.)

[CottonBear]

29. His facial expression was "does not compute. Illogical."

:rofl:

[tigereye]

40. that was my son's reaction as well

when I got the guys the DVD for Christmas. How could you just watch things once... a year! :)

[CottonBear]

42. I made sure that I didn't miss the Wizard of Oz!

I was right there in front of the TV! I looked forward to the movie for weeks in advance! :)

[tigereye]

43. it's hard to imagine now

what a big deal that was!

[micrometer_50]

35. I remember going to Grandma's house for that.

She had a COLOR TV, so the change from b&w to color
when Dorothy got to OZ was spectacular.

[underpants]

38. Actually my grandfather had HBO back then

in West Virginia (test marketing I would guess) I can remember the entire family sitting around watching "A Bridge Too Far" that might have been a little later in the 70's though.

[tigereye]

39. yeah

my sister and I got to eat dinner in the TV room once a year when that was on....

[formerrepuke]

12. Going to McDonald's was a once-or- twice-a-year treat.. and there

wasn't one of them on every other damn block in every single town across the continent.

[trackfan]

44. And a burger, fries & coke went for about $1 (total)

[edbermac]

22. When I was a teen 30 years ago...

There was the latest edition of Playboy and nothing else...of course nowadays the centerfolds still look like the girl next door...that is, if you live in Beverly Hills...

[tigereye]

41. Rocky and Bullwinkle

were so clever and silly. My son is now enjoying them. They are even funnier when you get all the jokes. And the bad puns are wonderfully atrocious!

[Richardo]

45. My favorite Bullwinkle pun of all time:

(Trying to explain something to an evil businessman)

"Y'know for a powerful magnate you sure don't pick up things very fast."

:rofl:

[tigereye]

46. that is excellent!

my son has been having a great time telling me all the bad puns he hears, over and over.

I might steal that, Richardo!

[Chichiri]

48. You walked 17 miles to school.

Barefoot.

Through six feet of snow.

Uphill.

Both ways.

[Kraklen]

49. Let us not forget the Battles of the Network Stars.

Truly a sporting event for every American to be proud of.