An email from the 50's

[Russ_Byth]

Thanks to Cameron Bell for passing this along


Long ago and far away, in a land that time forgot,

Before the days of Dylan , or the dawn of Camelot.

There lived a race of innocents, and they were you and me,

For Ike was in the White House in that land where we were born,

Where navels were for oranges, and Peyton Place was porn

We learned to gut a muffler, we washed our hair at dawn,

We spread our crinolines to dry in circles on the lawn..



We longed for love and romance, and waited for our Prince,

And Eddie Fisher married Liz , and no one's seen him since.



We danced to 'Little Darlin,' and sang to 'Stagger Lee '

And cried for Buddy Holly in the Land That Made Me, Me.



Only girls wore earrings then, and 3 was one too many,

And only boys wore flat-top cuts, except for Jean McKinney .



And only in our wildest dreams did we expect to see

A boy named George with Lipstick, in the Land That Made Me, Me.



We fell for Frankie Avalon , Annette was oh, so nice,

And when they made a movie, they never made it twice..



We didn' t have a Star Trek Five, or Psycho Two and Three,

Or Rocky-Rambo Twenty in the Land That Made Me, Me.



Miss Kitty had a heart of gold, and Chester had a limp,

And Reagan was a Democrat whose co-star was a chimp.



We had a Mr. Wizard, but not a Mr. T,

And Oprah couldn't talk yet, in the Land That Made Me, Me.


We had our share of heroes, we never thought they'd go,

At least not Bobby Darin, or Marilyn Monroe.



For youth was still eternal, and life was yet to be,

And Elvis was forever in the Land That Made Me, Me..



We'd never seen the rock band that was Grateful to be Dead,

And Airplanes weren't named Jefferson , and Zeppelins were not Led.



And Beatles lived in gardens then, and Monkees lived in trees,

Madonna was Mary in the Land That Made Me, Me.



We'd never heard of microwaves, or telephones in cars,

And babies might be bottle-fed, but they were not grown in jars.



And pumping iron got wrinkles out, and 'gay' meant fancy-free,

And dorms were never co-ed in the Land That Made Me, Me.



We hadn't seen enough of jets to talk about the lag,

And microchips were what was left at the bottom of the bag..



And hardware was a box of nails, and bytes came from a flea,

And rocket ships were fiction in the Land That Made Me, Me.



Buicks came with portholes, and side shows came with freaks,

And bathing suits came big enough to cover both your cheeks.



And Coke came just in bottles, and skirts below the knee,

And Castro came to power near the Land That Made Me, Me.



We had no Crest with Fluoride, we had no Hill Street Blues,

We had no patterned pantyhose or Lipton herbal tea

Or prime-time ads for those dysfunctions in the Land That Made Me, Me.



There were no golden arches, no Perrier to chill,

And fish were not called Wanda , and cats were not called Bill.



And middle-aged was 35 and old was forty-three,

And ancient were our parents in the Land That Made Me, Me.



But all things have a season, or so we've heard them say,

And now instead of Maybelline we swear by Retin-A.;

They send us invitations to join AARP,

We've come a long way, baby, from the Land That Made Me, Me.



So now we face a brave new world in slightly larger jeans,

And wonder why they're using smaller print in magazines.

And we tell our children's children of the way it used to be,

Long ago and far away in the Land That Made Me, Me.



If you didn't grow up in the fifty's,

you missed the greatest time in history.



AND NOW.........For those of you too young to remember

Ask your older brothers or sister or grandparents!!!

Thanks for the memories.............

[Mike Cleaver]

I did grow up in the '50s, born in 1946.
Almost every family I knew was similar to the one in "Leave it to Beaver," where mom stayed home and looked after the children while dad went off to work.
You went everywhere by yourself or with your friends.
You came home from school for lunch and a snack always was waiting after school.
Dinner was at six when dad came home, after he and mom had a drink to talk over their day.
After supper, we'd gather round the big old wooden radio in the living room and listen to dramas, musical and comedy shows.
TV didn't come along in our house until '53.
Bedtime came with stories read by mom and dad.
In the morning, the smell of fresh ground, fresh brewed coffee from the percolator on the stove filled the house with an awesome aroma, even though we were too young to drink it.
On the weekends, after school and vacations, you made your own fun.
Nothing was organized, there were no classes or leagues or country clubs.
You made your own fun with pickup games, treks to the beach or swimming hole or just hanging around with your friends.
If you wanted to go somewhere, you walked or got on your bike if you were lucky enough to have one.
Everyone knew everyone else in town and also knew everyone's business.
We looked out for each other but it was rarely necessary.
There were community picnics, yard sales and barbeques and everyone contributed what they could.
Neighbours with cars helped those without.
It was a kinder, gentler, less complicated era with little competition between neighbours to have the biggest, best and latest whatever.
We didn't have Robert Picktons or Paul Bernardos back then.
Criminals similar to those lived in books or on the radio.
You had to be there in that time to really understand what it was like.
We have to lock up everything and live behind bars in some of the rougher neighbourhoods.
Where I grew up, no one locked up anything and if they did, it was in the bank.
I miss those days but am still amazed at how far we've come technologically but saddened that now children are advised not to talk to anyone they don't know and are suspicious when anyone offers to help them.
To me, the loss of innocence is what I miss the most and treating everything as a threat is disappointing.
We call many of the things that have changed progress.
But some of the things we've lost can't make up for that.

[jon]

I'm only 6 years younger, but growing up in East Burnaby, I and every kid in the neighbourhood were warned not to talk to strangers.

The '50s had not even come to a close, likely summer holidays after Grade 1, when a door-to-door salesman knocked on the back door. I answered and he chewed me out for answering the door before my mother got there; children to adopt were already becoming scarce enough in North America that child abductions were becoming a concern.

But, once you got out of metro areas, things were different. Doors weren't locked. In fact, in rural areas close to Edmonton, it wasn't until I and others were hit in the late 1980s by a huge number of well-publicized robberies that farmers started locking their doors. I only escaped because I'd installed the same industrial grade locks with 6 inch screws that we used at work.

[Jack Bennest]

but am still amazed at how far we've come technologically

The note from Cam Bell and Mike’s reflections on his young years are indeed indications of a more innocent time. We basically knew who to avoid - we were warned by parents, neighbours and town folk.

I highlighted the one remark because I want us all too really analyze it.

Cars are better made but still have four rubber tires and a muffler
Homes are lit by electricity generated by dams in BC
We read fewer books and use computers more
Radio is not listened to much these days despite the techno advances
TV broadcasting may go the same way unless it becomes relevant
Phones are smaller and you don't have to crank them
We still eat food from a fridge that is cooked on a stove
We still go into the same bathroom to have a shower after using the same toilet
We still go to barbers and buy slacks at the haberdasher
The planes are a bit more sophisticated and people can travel faster around the
world but my great aunts went to Europe on a ship and I have never been there.
I had a bike and often walk on pavement.

Now here is the question - why am I not amazed by technological advances. I don't think much has changed since I was born and I not sure we are really further ahead.

Now maybe medically there have been many advances but I am not sure that is what Mike was talking about.

[Neumann Sennheiser]

The hilarious and smart Louis CK comments on this topic>
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8r1CZTLk-Gk

[hagopian]

I am just happy that I was around then, and even happier that I won't be here much longer. This Society is one that we were warned about in 1984 and Animal Farm.

[jawbone]

Thanks to Russ and Mike for the postings.

I wasn't born until the late 50's, but recall many of the things mentioned as I grew up in the 60's.

Great memories!

I am also happy to still be around to see the advancements that have been made in technology and medicine since then.

[Mike Cleaver]

I did spend my years until I was 21 in smaller towns and military enclaves.
We lived first in Trenton, Ontario and I was born in nearby Belleville.
We lived in Rockliffe Park in Ottawa, near the old air base and at RMC in Kingston, twice in both cities before heading west on my dad's military retirement to Kelowna, then a town of 16 thousand people.
I stayed there until '67.
All were small communities where everyone knew everyone else.
There was no need for Block Parents or Amber Alerts.
Everyone looked after everybody's children and pets.
As for technological advances, I'm thinking mainly electronics.
Computers and everything that came with them including the Internet and email, instant messaging, social media, anything for which you used to have to go to the library, digital recording that anyone can afford, cell phones, even satellite phones that work from almost anywhere, communication satellites, GPS systems, something that would have floored my pilot father, all the medical equipment and advances, cameras that don't require film and can instantly show what you've shot, the list is endless.
Yes Jack, we don't have flying vehicles but we do have some that don't require fossil fuels and are filled with electronic devices that monitor performance, service intervals, air bags, emergency communications (in GM vehicles,) anti roll and self inflating tires, tire pressure monitors, etc.
Toilets and showers have been improved with lower water use.
We have energy saving LED lamps.
The list is endless if you do some research
Look at all the things on your desk that weren't there in the first half of the last century.
Instead of the daily journal, there's the computer, the laptop, the netbook, the various book readers, the cigarette lighter sized stick that you can carry digital information around in your pocket, the Ipad, the cell phone, the answering machine, both hardware and software, little speakers that produce big sound from tiny digital files, all sorts of wireless devices including mice and keyboards and speakers, etc.
In the kitchen, the microwave, the coffee maker in all it's variations, induction cookers, mixers, choppers, you name it.
In the living room, the 50 inch flat screen LED or 3D colour tv that's less than an inch thick and the digital surround sound system that fills the room as well as a theatre.
The DVD players and recorders that also play cds and other media, the PVR and yes, even old videotape, unheard of until the very last days of the last century.
Electronic banking and credit and debit cards.
If you take a look around, there's lots to see.
The emergency 911 system that gets help to you as fast as humanly possible.
Computer controlled traffic lights with embedded sensors that know when your car pulls up to an intersection.
Those same lights can be controlled by police, fire and ambulance in some circumstances and yes, even buses.
Flights into outer space.
If you take a look around, there's lots to see.
Much of it wasn't even imagined in the '50s, except by scientists and futurists and science fiction writers.
We have come a long way.
But I do miss the simpler, more innocent days of the '50s and early '60's.

[Jack Bennest]

I cannot deny anything that Mike is saying. My story is more related to these facts:

In the morning the windup alarm rings, out of bed - pull on socks and boots and out the door for
a walk. Same light switch, same light bulb, same house. Get back read magazine, out to library - get books.
Ride bike. Go get a shirt with cash from bank. Drive home in car, tires and muffler.
Same furnace as in the late sixties. I stayed in my grandmothers house that had 1 wire electrical service.
Same bed, same sheets, same pillow. Same chat at the coffee shop. Same newspaper.

Most of the technology people take for granted now are toys in some way - distractions from the common way we do
business in our lives. They are not really essential. Millions thought smokes were essential until we gave them up. We all should have a FB free day, don't use email for a week. Turn off TV for a month. You won't really miss that much if you are inventive.

I know many people who live a simple life and don't use all these tools. They are just as happy. I think we have not made real advances. We eat better, we may have better medicine, we may live longer but is the quality of life any better. We have way more stress and new diseases have surfaced to replace the old ones.

Any way - it is not to argue but to think - do we delude ourselves some time that the rush rush rush is actually progress?

[hagopian]

Turning off the tube is a great idea.
The constant whine of Anderson Cooper, and now the most ridiculous TV promo ever.....Dawna Friesen, with more make up on than Little Richard, earnestly intoning " I'm coming home....." finished me off.
I am a child of TV like a lot of the people around here, exo the y and x's that lurk and make funny faces at people with a job and some chops.....and being a TV kid, I have had my brain rotted for years from the idiot box. The hours wasted. Scary. Now check the 100's of channels and there is literally nothing on.

So, I have done the unthinkable. I cancelled the high end cable and now have basic, and have left the set off. It will be there if needed. I watch films on my computer big screen, and I never watch sports live....so I am good to go.

Best wishes to Radio Fan and all of the great people here. I am going to polish the dog and go outside and leave the TV off.
The NET, is still an addiction, but, when my supposedly swell Mac died, I realized that I sit in front of the glowing screen a lot too.
Hmmmmmmmmmm.

[J Kendrick]

Most of the technology people take for granted now are toys in some way - distractions from the common way we do business in our lives. They are not really essential.

... and all of it because of that single invention of the silicon chip... all the way back there in 1958... when life was so much simpler, and so much less expensive, I might add.

... and just how many of us have even the slightest idea who Jack Kilby actually was and how much he has changed all our lives?

[johnsykes]

Your responses to Cam's initial offering are amazing. I have made so many suggestions during earlier posts, that the time I spent in radio, never mind the time I was a fortunate teenager, were the best years of my life. Yes, time has changed many things....an awful lot not for the better. I cringe when I think about the future.....thankfully I won't be a part of it. I will leave that to my kids and grandchildren sadly. I believe many in our world have screwed things up so badly. No one gives a damn about speed limits on our streets, never mind our highways. And on it goes.............................gotta be first, you know.