History Channel Ticking Me Off!!!

[historyfan]

There was a joke once about a softball coach who is talking to his team of 8 year old girls.  Britney, Tiffany, Madison, Brittany, Tiffany, Tiffany, Madison, oh and Taylor, Taylor... etc.

My mom's name is Isabell (spelled just like that) and she has hated it all her life.  She was named after an aunt who died at age 17 in the early 1900's.  Now Isabelle and Isabella are very popular.  I do hate though to hear some young mother call for "Bella!" (thanks to Vampire Diaries and Disney's Beauty and the Beast) in the store.  I think she means "Stella!" (ala Stanley Kawolski) or she is looking for some very old and pudgy Italian woman.

My mom never had a nickname because she discouraged all who tired.  Only one neighbor called her "Bell" and that kind of stuck for a while.

Remember "My Big Fat Greek Wedding"?  Introducing the Greek family: "Nick, Nick, Nick, Nick, Nicki, Nick, Nick...."  lol

[TimM]

And how about George Foreman naming all his sons George!

[Alixz]

I was also thinking about Michael Jackson naming his son Prince Michael.

The Big Fat Greek Wedding joke is on my husband's family, too.  They are Nicholas and Frank.  Every other generation is named after the grandfather before it. 

So we have Francesco (Frank) then Nicholas, then Frank Daniel, then Nicholas William.

Also Nicholas Felix then Nicholas Daniel then Nicholas Adam whose brother is Adam Daniel.

It is sort of like my brother Darryl and my other brother Darryl from Bob Newhart.

Of course everyone has to be called by his full given names, or no one answers anyone because, "I thought they wanted the other Nick."

[bestfriendsgirl]

It is sort of like my brother Darryl and my other brother Darryl from Bob Newhart

Don't even go there ... my husband is Darryl and we never freaking hear the end of it!

[Robert_Hall]

It is funny that Darryl comes up.  I like the name and loved that show.  And, I have a good friend [Canadian, so I do not know if they saw the Newhart shows] named Darryl and he DID have a brother named the same, but, as a middle name.
 In my Greek side of my family, everyone  was a Christopher or Christina. In one form or another.  My mother did not marry Greek so I got Robert.  The Russian side seems to various versions of Nicholas  [nothing to do with the Romanovs, I think the original St Nicholas was a family patron of some sort.

[Vecchiolarry]

Hi,

Yes Robert, we did get the Newhart shows in Canada.  In fact, just last week, CTV here was lamenting the fact that there is not anything now on TV to equal Newhart, Mary Tyler Moore and the Norman Leer shows.

I do like "The Big Bang Theory" and "Two and a Half Men" although they do get a little raunchy often!!

Larry

[bestfriendsgirl]

In fact, just last week, CTV here was lamenting the fact that there is not anything now on TV to equal Newhart, Mary Tyler Moore and the Norman Leer shows.

ITA - I grew up watching the original Bob Newhart series and Mary Tyler Moore on Saturday nights. In our house, we watched what our dad wanted to watch, or watched the 12" black and white in the kitchen with no antenna hook-up (essential in West Virginia because of the terrain.) In fairness though, my dad watched a lot shows he probably wouldn't have watched otherwise, such as The Brady Bunch, The Partridge Family, Welcome Back Kotter, etc.

[Robert_Hall]

Funny how our personal  cultural history goes.  Norman Lear was a dam buster in many ways.   Although Archie Bunker was a take on a British sit com of the times- "Till Death Do Us Part" I think it was, he did open a lot of eyes. Sex, war, racism, gay issues etc.  I did not care much for most of he spin offs- MAUDE being a major exception.
 And, MTM reinvented  American TV.  Brilliant.
 Some would say that those were the "golden age" of US television. I do not know.  I was addicted to I Love Lucy.
 I also remember when my mother bought a separate TV for me so we could watch the Judy Garland Show whilst  nasty stepfather and half brother watched Bonanza.
 Carol Burnett, Sonny & Cher, Gary Moore, etc. Noe have  "stars" using the term extremely loosely,  and  somewhat talented amateurs auditioning in front of the American public.  Every country has those now, I think. Britain pulled the button with "Britain's Got Talent"   That was dreadful. We got it here as well, thanks to Simon Cowell.

[bestfriendsgirl]

My mom didn't let us watch Maude growing up, or Divorce Court, or The Newlywed Game - guess what some of my favorite guilty pleasures are as an adult?  She let us watch Match Game '7X, though, raunchy as it was. Maybe she thought it went over our heads. I had a crush on Richard Dawson (even though he has kids my age) and used to rush home from school to catch the last 15 minutes or so of it. They had VCRs in those days but they were outrageously expensive - my parents didn't get one until the mid-80s, when I was out of college and working.

[Robert_Hall]

Maude ? Well, it was fairly radical then.  Now, it would not raise an eyebrow. And a VCR.  Wow, I bought one of the first to come out and yep, it was costly.  Think I still have the thing somewhere  stacked in the garage. No one wants them now. When I look at all the electronics we have now, many of which I do not even know how to use,  life seemed so simple then. Of course, our parents said the same about their generation.

[Alixz]

Robert - I keep forgetting to mention that I finally saw all three episodes of the new Upstairs Downstairs and it was far too short and too much show was crammed into those three hours.  They covered too much territory and time and left me (anyway) feeling that the story was rushed and not fully developed.

[Robert_Hall]

I did not much care for it either, Alixz. Actually, I think I lost interest

[Petr]

I did not much care for it either, Alixz. Actually, I think I lost interest

Ditto.

By the way, the new episodes of Downton Abby are starting up in England. Too bad we'll have to wait until next year to see them here.

Petr

[Robert_Hall]

That series I do look fowrad to. I loved the first series. Depending on sheduling, I may see at lest some of it when in England  in Novenber.

[jehan]

Maude ? Well, it was fairly radical then.  Now, it would not raise an eyebrow. And a VCR.  Wow, I bought one of the first to come out and yep, it was costly.  Think I still have the thing somewhere  stacked in the garage. No one wants them now. When I look at all the electronics we have now, many of which I do not even know how to use,  life seemed so simple then. Of course, our parents said the same about their generation.

I'm not so sure about Maude not raising an eyebrow today.  Could a character on a sitcom today have an abortion without raising a major controversy?  I don't think the networks would risk it today.