The holiday season brings nostalgia, and with the death of Norman Lear this week, I am steeped in warm memories of the many shows he created that were part of my youth. (At least as re-runs, because most were produced before I was born.) But through the wonders of cable television (and shout-out in particular to Nickelodeon’s “Nick at Nite” programming), these shows were part of my formative development.
Before you ask, “formative? Were you left to raise yourself with a television babysitter?” No, I assure you my parents were great, attentive, and engaged, but watching these shows with them and my grandparents made for many “Good Times.” (see what I did there?)
Family television time has been an important part of my own parenting, because I think the kind of media kids are exposed to matters. (“This is Us” is a great show, made better by experiencing it with the kids.) I have a list of “must sees” from the past that I foist upon them, the way that most parents want to share their favorite movies and music with their kids.
I didn’t realize there are what seems to be 99 seasons of “ER,” but I’m having fun re-watching them and thinking about how politically progressive that show was in de-stigmatizing the AIDS epidemic while also doing an amazing job of depicting human responses that range from admirable to troubling. In many ways, good television gives us a reflection of ourselves and asks us if we like what we see.
I didn’t realize how many of my entertainment reflections were created by Norman Lear. This week, as I learned how many of his shows shaped my worldview, I also saw how clearly his shows — mostly created in the 1970s — capture the ongoing struggles, and suggested solutions, for communities like Geneva. Diverse, growing, and hopeful in some respects; territorial, insular, and afraid in others.
Like “Good Times” and “One Day at A Time,” we have families making the best of life day by day, even when economic struggles throw a wrench in the works. “Maude” let us see the perils of “limousine liberals” who say they care about social issues but don’t want to expend any effort (or risk losing any of their privileges) to change things.
“The Jeffersons” and “All in the Family” were the ones that I spent the most time watching. And what were some lessons learned? For me, it was about humanizing people who had bigoted, offensive views. Not that they should get a pass, but to understand where these beliefs come from. Fear of change, worry about decreased status, inability to process the march of time, and loss of control of things that they probably weren’t in charge of before, but felt like they were. It also taught me about dialogue being the only way forward.
Unlike today’s society, where disagreeing with someone usually means avoiding them in person, blocking them online, and treating them as “other” or “evil,” the living rooms of the Bunkers or the Jeffersons were the meeting place of different generations and different views. It wasn’t a rosy picture of everyone getting along. Rather, it was a depiction of the real and hard work of being challenged in what you believe and not running the other way.
Was Norman Lear trying to get us to all be a bit more courageous? Probably so, given his World War II military service and his founding and leadership of the very important and impactful non-profit, People for the American Way. He wanted America to succeed, and for that to happen, Americans need to be educated about their neighbors’ experiences and be civically engaged.
Watching “All in the Family” with my grandpa (also part of that “Greatest Generation” and a WWII combat veteran) serves as more than just a fond memory. Grandpa explained that the theme song was meant as irony. It highlights those who can’t see the helping hands they were given but want to deny a helping hand to others, who believe everything was better in the past and have no faith in an unfolding future. The song is the opposite of Hank Williams’ “Dinosaur,” an honest assessment of being uncomfortable with changes, asks for pity for his confusion, and concludes that the right thing to do is to let the next generation be. “Those Were the Days” is the complaint of someone who thinks change is bad and must be stopped.
In Geneva, there are people who understand that “Those Were the Days” is irony, and those who think it’s an anthem. That tension played out in the last election. The only way to move Geneva forward will be the kind of courage Norman Lear taught us.
Jackie Augustine lives with her three children in Geneva, where she served on City Council for 16 years. An ethics instructor at Keuka College, she serves on many local boards and is founder of BluePrint Geneva. “Doing the Write Thing” appears every other Tuesday. Email her at writethingcolumn@gmail.com.
DOING THE WRITE THING: ‘Those Were the Days’
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12.12.2023
The holiday season brings nostalgia, and with the death of Norman Lear this week, I am steeped in warm memories of the many shows he created that were part of my youth. (At least as re-runs, because most were produced before I was born.) But through the wonders of cable television (and shout-out in particular to Nickelodeon’s “Nick at Nite” programming), these shows were part of my formative development.
Before you ask, “formative? Were you left to raise yourself with a television babysitter?” No, I assure you my parents were great, attentive, and engaged, but watching these shows with them and my grandparents made for many “Good Times.” (see what I did there?)
Family television time has been an important part of my own parenting, because I think the kind of media kids are exposed to matters. (“This is Us” is a great show, made better by experiencing it with the kids.) I have a list of “must sees” from the past that I foist upon them, the way that most parents want to share their favorite movies and music with their kids.
I didn’t realize there are what seems to be 99 seasons of “ER,” but I’m having fun re-watching them and thinking about how politically progressive that show was in........
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