So randomly on TV today was “Benny Hill”
It is hard to find a comedy series that has had the impact and nostalgic adoration in the US on the level of Benny Hill. There is certainly nothing comparable to it as far as American TV can provide. For nostalgia purposes I feel the closest we can suggest is either “Soap” or “The Carol Burnett Show” These programs were pure comedy that transcended the time period they lived in. Thus their allure survives.
After “Benny Hill” I came upon another piece of .. ummm.. err. Modern Nostalgia occurred.
The latest episode of “Zoom” was on PBS. Zoom is now entering its 6th season… or would that be its 13th season.
For those who’ve never seen the show. Zoom was a children’s show produced at WGBH (Boston’s PBS affiliate) from 1971-1978. The show’s material was written from submissions from viewers, the kids were a mix of races and looks to make a potpourri of kids next door. There was someone you could relate to. In 1978 the show vanished away into thin air leaving only the address.
Zoom (Z – double O – M) Box 3-5-0, Boston Mass, “0 – 2 – 1 – 3 – 4”. And if you know what I’m talking about; you know damn well, you thought that zip code as melodically as the preamble to the constitution.
In 1999 after tons of research, legal issues over rights, and other messes, the show returned. Different yet unchanged. The bellbottoms, horizontal stripes, and bare feet were gone… but the mix of uniformity, individuality, kid written material, and natural talent fed right back into the complex equation. Zoom lived again.
shimmeringjemmy watched the new episode. We are both strong supporters of home education. As a result she took immediately to the value of the show. Not merely on an educational level but how it treated children. At the end of the episode it showed a clip from the old series.
Bernadette (Yup, the asian girl and the s*#^ with her arms that left all us young boys with undeveloped motor control in a tizzy.) The segment was Bernadette trying to explain how she did the trick with her arms.
I was very impressed because as I watched the current episode, all the segments were still there. Construction project, kids chatting, and even “Fannee Doolee”. I commented about how little the show had changed beyond 70’s motif music and modern music. Then I pulled out one of my treasures. “Zoom, best of the 70’s”
I showed her the tape which was a mishmash of the original 70’s series. It truly was fascinating how little had really changed on the show. I was even more amused when they showed “Fannee Doolee”
shimmeringjemmy told me that it was a good thing that this show wasn’t on when she was young. She’d never have been able to pull away. I commented to her that in looking at Zoom, Benny Hill, and Escape From Witch Mountain (see other posts)… I actually make a lot more sense as a person.
I think next week I will inflict “Free To Be You and Me” on her 😉
Mwa ha ha ha!!!!