Where Are They Now?

Indeed, where are they now? Where are the actors, the singers, the celebrities of our youth? Where are the artists who entertained us at the movies, on radio, and that small television screen in our living rooms? Where have they gone?

It's unfortunate that no one lives forever but in the case of those entertainers we knew back in the 1950's their art, if not the people themselves, still lives but it's not always easy to see them where we once did. No, that place has been taken by others who quite seem to measure up to the artistry of those we grew up with. Yet, thanks to DVD's, old video tapes and retro TV cable channels we can view them once more.

The Lone Ranger and the Cisco Kid still ride the range and fight injustice. Sky King still flies the Songbird in the western skies, and even Sgt. Bilko still tries to get rich with his many schemes. And, of course, Lucy Ricardo still tries to get into show business despite the best efforts of her husband, Ricky, to prevent her.

We can also view some of the singers, Dean Martin, Rosemary Clooney, Bing Crosby, Eddie Fisher and Perry Como. And let's not forget the comedians Bob Hope, Red Skelton, George Burns & Gracie Allen, George Gobel and Wally Cox. Then there were the stars of situation comedies; among them Robert Young, Eve Arden, Lucille Ball, Stu Irwin and so many others over the years.

These were the pioneers of television entertainment who spent their lives honing their craft in vaudeville, the legitimate theater, radio, movies and some in night clubs. The used the new medium of television in the 1950's to bring to a new generation the tried and true routines that had proven successful on radio and in the movies. Some soared and some fizzled but the experiments were indeed fascinating to view.

We watched variety shows that featured everything from circus acts and singers to stand up comedians. We were also exposed to bits of culture with abbreviated ballet dances to opera singers singing one of their more famous arias. There were medical shows that delved into the trials and dilemmas of those who chose to heal the sick. Detective shows that highlighted the fight against crime by police forces and private detectives were also quite popular during that time. And, of course, the venerable western that galloped across the screen. And then was my favorite science fiction and fantasy which were represented by many juvenile and adult presentations.

All of these shows featured actors and actresses that flashed across the small screen in what turned out to be a very quick progression. We had our favorites and those who proved not to be too popular. But, we watched and were entertained by them all.

Now, as we look back we stop and wonder how and where the time went we also pause and ponder where these performers are now. Reality then rears it head and we fully realize that a majority of them are no longer with us. They exist only on bits of celluloid, magnetic tape, vinyl records, publicity stills, kinescopes and video tape - all of which is slowly being transferred to CD's and DVD's so that we again may see what we saw when it was new and exciting.

I can't begin to relay how many times I've heard young people who sit in fascination watching those old shows and then openly voice their wonder at why entertainment today is not as fresh, not as versatile, not as meaningful as contemporary attempts have been. It gives me hope that perhaps imagination is not extinct and the future of entertainment may find the soul that has lain dormant for so long and revive it once more for newer generations.

From Radio and Movies to Television to Radio and Beyond

One of my earliest memories is of listening to the large console radio in our living room on Saturday nights to the old time radio programs that were still in vogue. There was Gunsmoke, Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, Gene Autry's Melody Ranch, Edgar Bergen & Charlie McCarthy and a host of others. Back when there was no FM radio, only AM and the stations were few and far between.

We listened to KMRC out of Morgan City, KCIL out of Houma, KTIB out of New Orleans and late on Saturday nights WSM and the Grand Ol' Opry out of Nashville.

On Sunday nights my father would pile us all into the car to take a trip to Morgan City to see a movie at the C-Wall or Opera House theater. Those were the days when the seats were uncushioned and oftentimes plastered underneath with chewing gum. The theaters had the smell of old popcorn and spilled Coca-Cola. The screens were large but not as large as they would become with Cinerama and Vista Vision among others. For 90 minutes to two hours we would view that weeks feature, along with the weekly newsreel and cartoon.

Then came 1955 and our first television and the Sunday night trip to the movies soon petered out. It wasn't long though before movies came to that small box sitting in the corner where once had stood the old radio. Saturday mornings was our favorite time because we could view live action shows reminiscent of the old movie serials and radio programs we seen and listened to.

But then came a new and marvelous invention - the transistor radio. It was a marvelous little toy that came in a variety of sizes, most being a trifle larger than a pack of cigarettes. Each one of us at one time managed to obtain one and could listen to music, news, sports and weather anywhere and anytime; as long as the batteries lasted.

It was the beginning of the age of micro miniaturization that would ultimately lead to tape recording devices the size of books (and smaller), portable televisions, personal communication devices such as transistorized CB radios, long distance walkie talkies, wireless telephones and on to cell phones. It allowed for the eventual development of personal home computers, i-pods, laptop computers and i-pads.

We were all eyewitness to a geometric expansion of technology that has filled our world with many electronic devices that seem to have captured the fascination and time of many today. Yet, there has been an alarming consequence. Many have neglected the sharpening of their own senses and have failed to understand and utilize adequately the "computer" we were all born with. Society, as a consequence seems to be a bit poorer for it and the current crisis this nation faces can be, in large measure, attributed to that rapid rise in technology and the equally rapid decline in moral values in the generations that followed us.

Still there are pockets where the moral values of the past still hold sway. Places where the beliefs of our forebears are still taught and learned by people who have not surrendered their identities or ability to think for themselves. In the end their ideas and ideals will defeat the forces that currently besiege this nation; from within and without. It has been said that faith can move mountains. Let those with faith stand together and work to achieve what is best for our nation and remove authority from the hands of those who have abused it.