TV was still young in the early 1960s - there were only three major broadcasting companies in the country: CBS, NBC, and ABC. Looking back, an interesting characteristic of television programs at that time was a lot of focus on guns. There were shows with names like 'Gunsmoke', and 'The Rifleman'. Roy Roger's horse was called 'Trigger' and his dog, 'Bullet'. Some shows' introductions had gunfire in action or gunslingers whirling their pistols. For better or worse, we kids knew how to count out ten steps for a duel, draw our play pistols, and aim. Our training in diplomacy was minimal.

Below is a list of programs I remember from that time:

Maverick
Palladin
Wild Wild West
Rawhide
Bonanza
Wagon Train
Davy Crockett
Daniel Boone
Rifleman
Gunsmoke
The Virginian
Laramie
Roy Rogers Show - with Dale Evans
The Lone Ranger - and Tonto
Cheyenne
Branded
Wanted: Dead or Alive
Colt 45?
'F' Troop

a few that were contemporary at that time:
Dragnet
Magnum, P.I.
Get Smart
The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

and one set in the future:
Star Trek

I Don't Know


Who decided to divide the day into 24 sections?

Whose foot was the length of today's standard ruler?

How long is a lunar month (one full moon to the next)?

Was Orion ever a summer constellation?

Does anyone still play marbles? Jacks? Ping-pong? Does anyone spin tops, or walk-the-dog with a yo-yo?

Does anyone still play Atari's Frogger? Did the frog ever win?

all the way to China

There has long been a popular, colorful bit of North American humor where a character takes a shovel and digs and digs all the way to China. There have been cartoons and comics and literary references to this unlikely way of travel. When I was about five years old, a neighbor kid and I found a shovel one afternoon and decided to go to China. Even though we didn't make it all the way there, there was something satisfying about the trip - and there was an impressive indentation in the yard to mark our efforts.

pre-fab city

his feet search the heated backways
of the flimsy pre-fab city
wandering wondering
at the truth
in a dog's eyes
the live-for-today
enthusiasm
of the squirrels,
the cheerful reliability
of the varied corvids,
the art of the canvas
rain-free sky

TV voices

I hear Bullwinkle's voice, 'Nothing up my sleeve!'

I see Homer Simpson slap his own brow. 'Doh!'

Lucy goes, 'Waaah!' and Ricky goes, 'Ai yi yi!'

Bugs Bunny arrives with a leafy carrot, 'Eh, what's up, doc?'

Jerry says, 'Hello, Newman!'

Newman says, 'Hello, Jerry!'

Elaine says, 'Get outta here!'

Link says, 'Solid!'

and John Denver, 'Far out!'

Captain Jean-Luc Picard says, 'Make it so.'

Porky Pig stutters, 'th, th, th, th, th, th, th, That's All, Folks!'

Red Skelton, 'God bless!'

intentions blocked
by folly focused figments of the mind
and by those outer forces so great so rich so powerful so present everywhere
they cannot be seen
i wander

detached from seeking
who and what i would seek
morsels of success come my way
i stumble upon my watch
at the start of the day
by searching for the broom

monarch butterflies
dabs of color
points of light
high in the sky
so small
so full of life in flight
glide down at sunset
rest through the night
clinging to twigs and boughs
quiet, dark.
damp with dew
they perch in the morning sun
while wings of black
and orange-gold
unfurl and flutter
till dry and weightless.
once more the monarchs rise
in the autumn sky
up and up
on norther currents
they ride the wind
beauty in flight
to winter south
where warm hills
are flowered
and blooms bear
sweet nectar.