Older tv shows

[Dianthus]

My kids like Zorro and The Lone Ranger. My oldest is 12.

[TechWife]

There is a lot of innuendo in the Carol Burnett Show skits. I rewatched some last year and I was surprised at what I didn’t pick up on as a kid, but glad I didn’t have my son watch it when he was young. 

[TechWife]

Does anyone know if the ABC after-school specials from the 70s & early 80s are available anywhere? I loved watching those growing up. 

[Catwoman]

4 hours ago, skimomma said:

I see a couple of people suggested Waltons.  I am not at all a fan of older TV shows, but Waltons is an exception.  We dragged this one out when dd was little and we were trying to find something the whole family could watch.  15 years later, dd still reminisces on how much she enjoyed that show.  

The only warning I would give is that I believe the series spun off from a movie called The Homecoming.  Or that might have been the pilot?  I don't know.  But there is a scene in which Elizabeth gets a gift from the church Christmas toy drive (against her parents' rules) and is gifted a damaged doll.  For some reason this was traumatizing to my dd and I actually remember it being traumatizing for me as a kid.  Not so much than anyone needs therapy, but just a heads up that skipping that one might be a good idea if you have sensitive viewers.

I still remember the doll thing, too!!!  It was terrible! 😣 

[skimomma]

1 minute ago, Catwoman said:

I still remember the doll thing, too!!!  It was terrible! 😣 

I just don't know why it was so scary.  My TV watching was never closely supervised and I saw all kinds of things I probably shouldn't have but this one thing sticks out.  It was second only to the house fire in Little House on the Prairie (which is a hot mess all around anyway).  So.  Great show.  Skip the pilot/movie.....or at least be on the lookout to fast forward.

I brought this all up with dd today during a phone call.  She pointed out that like many/most TV shows of that era, there was a nod to being "racially sensitive," which might have been progressive for the time but did not age well.  But I think Walton's did this better than most and you will likely find much worse examples in other shows of yore.  I thought the show was interestingly ahead of the times when it came to women's rights.

[TexasProud]

14 hours ago, gardenmom5 said:

 

Emergency (fun fact - their script writers were required by the consultant to have realistic rescue/treatment scenarios. They were not happy.  They used actual emergency responder reports. It was the easiest show they ever wrote for.  The FD consultant made the two actors playing the paramedics do the three month (that's all it was then) training course so they'd look like they knew what they were doing. - they didn't actually take the tests.)

Ok, this cracks me up because my elementary school memories are of watching this with my parents and neighbors who were fire fighters and them laughing and making fun of all the errors in it .  I spent many nights in cars watching my parents fight fires. Life of volunteer fire fighters. Then mom switched to dispatching do I sat and listened to calls as the dispatching equipment was in our house. 

[Catwoman]

9 minutes ago, skimomma said:

I just don't know why it was so scary.  My TV watching was never closely supervised and I saw all kinds of things I probably shouldn't have but this one thing sticks out.  

I don’t remember it being scary, but I do remember being VERY upset because Elizabeth had wanted a doll so badly, and then she was so excited to have gotten one… and then the doll was broken. It was so heartbreaking. 

[WildflowerMom]

Omg, a thread after my own heart!!!  
 
With the exception of The Goldberg's and the new Wonder Years, we *only* watch old tv shows.   ' Old ' though to us, just mostly means not playing anymore and year 2000 and lower.  For example, we watch King of Queens and consider it an old show, even though most would not.   It's also no secret 😏 that I am obsessed, like in a wacky way, with the show Frasier.  Obviously, those shows are not young-kid friendly, but I was just discussing mine and dh's old show fascination.    

Dh grew up watching mostly old shows because his mother was very strict.   They weren't allowed to go to the movies, for example.   They didn't even have a tv with a remote control until the kids were late teens.  😱😱😱
 

On the other hand, my father was movie and tv-obsessed and we had a closet of nothing but movies.     Despite being born in 78, I remember when MTV began because my babysitters were also movie and tv obsessed.    My summers were spent watching movies over and over again during the day, the same one usually.   All the John Hughes films, yes I had them memorized.  I was waaaayyyyy too young for that, but cinema was a Big Deal during my childhood.    

When dh and I got married, I don't think I'd ever watched an episode of Andy Griffith in my life.  It was old-fashioned, you know?   Who watches that old crap?!?    Well, dh did.   And guess what?   All it took was a few episodes and I was an Andy fanatic.  Then dh started playing other shows and I got hooked on the 'old stuff'.     Ds also grew up watching the old stuff and still loves it.   He is also a cinema-buff and likes to watch movies, most of which I won't watch.    Just give him Andy Griffith and Game of Thrones and he's happy.  😆

You've already got great suggestions!    I'd add 'Dirty Jobs' (sometimes innuendo) and MythBusters (I think someone recommended that.   You may want to check the episode because sometimes they try to disprove violent movies and there may be a questionable clip.).   
 

A couple I thought of and can't remember if they were mentioned earlier:  The Munsters, Gomer Pyle USMC (I hate this one, but ds liked it when he was young), Cosby Show (regardless of the ass on there, it's still a quality show), ALF, Partridge Family, Dennis the Menace, and cartoons, the Jetsons and Flintstones. 
 

 

 

[TechWife]

1 hour ago, Catwoman said:

I still remember the doll thing, too!!!  It was terrible! 😣 

I remember this too!

I just sorted toys from our annual toy drive and had to discard a few used toys. Thankfully, the vast majority of people donate new toys without question.

[TechWife]

1 hour ago, Catwoman said:

I don’t remember it being scary, but I do remember being VERY upset because Elizabeth had wanted a doll so badly, and then she was so excited to have gotten one… and then the doll was broken. It was so heartbreaking. 

OK everyone - here's the movie. She unwraps the doll around the 47 minute mark, but I'm telling you that you need to watch starting just before the 46 minute mark - John-Boy was mischievous. For context, the kids are reciting Bible verses in exchange for a gift. It is very traumatic - no wonder we all remember it.

 

[Resilient]

5 hours ago, Elizabeth86 said:

Has anyone said Gilligan’s Island? Dh and I have been watching Columbo, but the kids don’t care for it. 🤣

I am pretty sure I have Columbo memorized.

[skimomma]

18 minutes ago, TechWife said:

OK everyone - here's the movie. She unwraps the doll around the 47 minute mark, but I'm telling you that you need to watch starting just before the 46 minute mark - John-Boy was mischievous. For context, the kids are reciting Bible verses in exchange for a gift. It is very traumatic - no wonder we all remember it.

 

Yep.  Just relived that.  Yikes!  It is the cracked face that was scary to me.  And still is!  But now I want to watch the whole thing.....

[AroundtheCorner]

33 minutes ago, WildflowerMom said:

  It's also no secret 😏 that I am obsessed, like in a wacky way, with the show Frasier.   

Frasier is my *favorite, favorite* show!  I also mostly watch 2000 or earlier shows. I’ve loved introducing my late teen/young adult kids to shows. Frasier, of course, Everybody Loves Raymond, King of Queens, Mad About You, Friends, House, ER, Unsolved Mysteries, Murder She Wrote

We love older shows too  I Love Lucy, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Bewitched, Leave It to Beaver, Donna Reed , Alfred Hitchcock

Anyway, I had to chime in when I saw a fellow Frasier lover. I’m currently rewatching yet again, and just finished season 7.  

[WildflowerMom]

8 minutes ago, AroundtheCorner said:

Frasier is my *favorite, favorite* show!  I also mostly watch 2000 or earlier shows. I’ve loved introducing my late teen/young adult kids to shows. Frasier, of course, Everybody Loves Raymond, King of Queens, Mad About You, Friends, House, ER, Unsolved Mysteries, Murder She Wrote

We love older shows too  I Love Lucy, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Bewitched, Leave It to Beaver, Donna Reed , Alfred Hitchcock

Anyway, I had to chime in when I saw a fellow Frasier lover. I’m currently rewatching yet again, and just finished season 7.  

Yay!!!   I'm watching it right now! 😆.   There's another Frasier fan here, too, but my brain is fried right now and I can't remember who.  🤦🏻‍♀️   Hopefully she will chime in!   Are you on Reddit?   They have the best Frasier sub there!!!    It is the best group of people!    Please join us!   https://www.reddit.com/r/Frasier/ 

[AroundtheCorner]

Just now, WildflowerMom said:

Yay!!!   I'm watching it right now! 😆.   There's another Frasier fan here, too, but my brain is fried right now and I can't remember who.  🤦🏻‍♀️   Hopefully she will chime in!   Are you on Reddit?   They have the best Frasier sub there!!!    It is the best group of people!    Please join us!   https://www.reddit.com/r/Frasier/ 

I am on Reddit, but haven’t seen that sub. I’ll go check it out. Thanks!

[gardenmom5]

54 minutes ago, WildflowerMom said:

 

On the other hand, my father was movie and tv-obsessed and we had a closet of nothing but movies.     Despite being born in 78, I remember when MTV began because my babysitters were also movi
 

So was my mother.   She didn't even give a second thought to the very age-inappropriate movies to which she dragged me to see, or the TV shows that were being viewed.

26 minutes ago, Resilient said:

I am pretty sure I have Columbo memorized.

I'm terribly sorry to bother you, but there's just one more thing I don't quite understand . . . . . . 

[Dianthus]

Oh, "How it's made" is very fun for all ages.

[katilac]

8 hours ago, skimomma said:

 The only warning I would give is that I believe the series spun off from a movie called The Homecoming.  Or that might have been the pilot?  I don't know.  But there is a scene in which Elizabeth gets a gift from the church Christmas toy drive (against her parents' rules) and is gifted a damaged doll.  For some reason this was traumatizing to my dd and I actually remember it being traumatizing for me as a kid. 

It was a TV movie that they hoped would be ordered as a series. At least a couple of the actors were changed for the series. And that scene with the doll is a shared national trauma. 

8 hours ago, gardenmom5 said:

And the "actor" who drove it - was a real fireman.    

Mike Stoker, lol. I don't think the poor man was expecting youtube tributes and fanfiction when he signed on for this. 

7 hours ago, kbutton said:

I don't remember it well enough, but Saved by the Bell might fit your criteria.

No, no it does not. 

[TechWife]

2 hours ago, skimomma said:

Yep.  Just relived that.  Yikes!  It is the cracked face that was scary to me.  And still is!  But now I want to watch the whole thing.....

I think I know what I’m doing one evening this week.

[WildflowerMom]

Ok, somebody link to a pic with the freaky doll.   I need to see it.  I looked on that linked video, but I don't know where the doll comes in.  

[TechWife]

I just asked dh if he remembers Elizabeth getting a doll & he said yes immediately, that it was a Christmas episode & the doll had a broken face. I’m in for the shared national  trauma @katilac.

[TechWife]

8 minutes ago, WildflowerMom said:

Ok, somebody link to a pic with the freaky doll.   I need to see it.  I looked on that linked video, but I don't know where the doll comes in.  

At minute 47. 

[WildflowerMom]

8 minutes ago, TechWife said:

At minute 47. 

I watched the scene.   The lady handing out the gifts...  😱   She would've scared me as a kid!   

[Shoeless]

2 hours ago, Spirea said:

Oh, "How it's made" is very fun for all ages.

My son loved that show! DH and I always look for the gross food episodes to see what's going to be pooped out of an industrial extruder, lol!  Yes, we're juvenile, what of it? 😉 💩

I used to work in the same strip mall as a candy company that was featured on How It's Made. The owner of the company is kind of a jerk, though.  I dug his car out of the snow and gave his battery a jump, and he never even said thanks!  The candy is very good, though.  

Edited December 14, 2021 by MissLemon

[Shoeless]

I'm almost done watching the complete Inspector Poirot series, which is excellent, but not appropriate for young viewers. The first few years might be ok depending on how sensitive the viewer is, but the later years are downright dark.

It's definitely one to save for after the kids are in bed.  If you want to watch a very, very good version of Murder On the Orient Express, you cannot do better than David Suchet as Poirot.  He has a monologue about abandoning the Rule of Law that hits hard in these times. 

I will have to give the Waltons another watch when I'm done with Poirot. My grandmother tried hard to get me into the Waltons when I was a kid, but I didn't like it. Now I realize she was probably trying to show me something of what her life was like as a girl. 

[gardenmom5]

2 hours ago, katilac said:

It was a TV movie that they hoped would be ordered as a series. At least a couple of the actors were changed for the series. And that scene with the doll is a shared national trauma. 

Mike Stoker, lol. I don't think the poor man was expecting youtube tributes and fanfiction when he signed on for this. 

No, no it does not. 

Patricia Neal had a stroke - she wasn't able to do it.

one of the real fireman - (according to Mantooth) was a complete ham and loved it.

[bevwdi]

Netflix still has a DVD rental subscription.

 

What about Star Trek? I still think Next Generation is better than Original Series but both are age appropriate. Also there are years and years of older Doctor Who.

[elegantlion]

23 hours ago, katilac said:

Ah, my first fandom . . . 

I still have my Emergency lunchbox I had when I was probably 8 or so. 

13 hours ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle said:

 

I met Randolph Mantooth, who played John Gage, about fifteen years ago at an EMS conference. He’s a genuinely nice person.  Since retiring from acting, he’s become a huge advocate for first responders. He’s lobbied frequently for increased pay, federal recognition and PTSD awareness.   

That is so awesome to hear. 

 

As for TV shows, here's a list from IMDB, obviously preview for your personal requirements.  

[TechWife]

1 hour ago, bevwdi said:

Netflix still has a DVD rental subscription.

 

What about Star Trek? I still think Next Generation is better than Original Series but both are age appropriate. Also there are years and years of older Doctor Who.

I’m not sure about Next Generation meeting the OP’s criteria. There is a lot of innuendo, much of it not subtle at all. Also, it addresses some hot button moral issues. 

[gardenmom5]

Ok - not an old show, but it is squeaky clean and very funny.

 

Jeanne Robertson is a speaker/comedienne.  She has a lot of her videos online.  She just passed away last summer - but she's really funny.

[skimomma]

15 hours ago, katilac said:

And that scene with the doll is a shared national trauma. 

 

I am so relieved to know it is not just me!  Ha ha!  Shared national trauma!  I love it!  At least I know where it is now and we can skip that part when we watch it as a family.