The Miscellaneous Thought Thread

smooch

smooch

Well-Known Member
Rich T said:
Television back then had much stricter rules and standards regarding dress, language and content, so there’s a definite “Leave it to Beaver” upper-middle-class formality and properness to much of what was broadcast.

The plus side was that great shows like “The Twilight Zone” had to be *very* creative and not rely on gore or offensiveness to shock.

The downside was that those regulations turned a blind eye to stereotypes and of-its-time sexism.

One of my favorite shows, “Mr. Ed,” had this doozy of cringiness—a rare stumble for this otherwise charming series:
Wilbur: You’d make a good secretary, Ed!
Mr. Ed: I’d look silly sitting on your lap.

It occurred to me that this joke is so wrong, outdated and ousted from popular culture that most younger folks watching today would have NO IDEA what “secretary” and “lap” have to do with each other. Thank goodness. It’s weird today to realize how entrenched in pop culture the pretty secretary on the boss’s lap image had become in the 50’s snd 60’s. It was in comics, tv, movies, ads... freakin’ everywhere.

Long story short: Vintage TV is a fascinating filtered window into both the ups and the downs of society back then.
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My favorite show! That's why I love The Twilight Zone, it's suspenseful and everything is done tastefully and relies on things like psychological thrill rather than gore and shock factor. It really makes you think. Speaking of vintage TV I fell down a rabbit hole a few years ago on YouTube of old videos I guess they would play in high schools around the 50s(ish) about how to do different things like respecting your family, asking a girl on dates, how to do well in school, how to make friends, etc. I know they aren't accurate to how people actually behaved but it's so interesting to see the sort of expectations of culture back then. The first one I saw was one called Young Man's Fancy and all the related videos I just sorta explored, very fun to look at if you're bored.
 
Communicora

Communicora

Premium Member
Smooch said:
My favorite show! That's why I love The Twilight Zone, it's suspenseful and everything is done tastefully and relies on things like psychological thrill rather than gore and shock factor. It really makes you think. Speaking of vintage TV I fell down a rabbit hole a few years ago on YouTube of old videos I guess they would play in high schools around the 50s(ish) about how to do different things like respecting your family, asking a girl on dates, how to do well in school, how to make friends, etc. I know they aren't accurate to how people actually behaved but it's so interesting to see the sort of expectations of culture back then. The first one I saw was one called Young Man's Fancy and all the related videos I just sorta explored, very fun to look at if you're bored.
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That sort of thing is so interesting! I read and collect old etiquette books because they offer a fascinating glimpse into how people were supposed to behave in years past. Because of this I now know the proper protocols for hiring a private train car to bring guests to a social event at one's country home. Information that will surely come in handy one day.
 
socalifornian

socalifornian

Well-Known Member
Earnings call at 1:30pm pacific tomorrow

Disney’s Q3 FY20 Earnings Results Webcast - The Walt Disney Company

Listen here: https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/app/uploads/2020/07/q3-fy20-earnings.mp3 DOWNLOADS: Earnings Report Financial Reconciliations Audio Transcript Forward-Looking Statements: Management believes certain statements in this call may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the...
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Disney Irish

Disney Irish

Premium Member
mickEblu said:
How different would the Haunted Mansion be if Walt Disney didn’t pass away in 1966? We ll never know but one thing is for certain - it wouldn’t be exactly the same.
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True, and think how different the entire Park would be. I suspect a lot of what we cherish about the Parks today wouldn't be there if Walt had lived into the 1970s or even 1980s.
 
mickEblu

mickEblu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Disney Irish said:
True, and think how different the entire Park would be. I suspect a lot of what we cherish about the Parks today wouldn't be there if Walt had lived into the 1970s or even 1980s.
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I agree but not because I think he would go bulldozing attractions like POTC or HM on a whim. I agree because their are just big question marks about what would have been approved in the 70s and beyond.
 
Disney Irish

Disney Irish

Premium Member
mickEblu said:
I agree but not because I think he would go bulldozing attractions like POTC or HM on a whim. I agree because their are just big question marks about what would have been approved in the 70s and beyond.
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I agree he wouldn't just bulldoze on a whim. But at same time I suspect he wouldn't have any issues bulldozing a "classic" attraction in favor of building something new. In his mind it looked like nothing was "untouchable". So yes I suspect the whole Park would look completely different today had he survived into the 70s and 80s. And yes I agree, would we get attractions like Big Thunder, or would he have done something else. We'll never know.
 
mickEblu

mickEblu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Disney Irish said:
I agree he wouldn't just bulldoze on a whim. But at same time I suspect he wouldn't have any issues bulldozing a "classic" attraction in favor of building something new. In his mind it looked like nothing was "untouchable". So yes I suspect the whole Park would look completely different today had he survived into the 70s and 80s. And yes I agree, would we get attractions like Big Thunder, or would he have done something else. We'll never know.
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Let’s say he lived until he was 80. I think the chances are slim to none that he would have decided to replace POTC or HM by the late 70s/ early 80s. Those attractions cost a lot of money, were extremely popular and were and maybe still are the pinnacle of imagineering. Plus their was still a lot of space to add new attractions elsewhere in the park. Lastly we don’t really know if he thought anything was untouchable. This isn’t canal boats of the world we re talking about here. He liked the idea of having a park because he could always tinker with it but that doesn’t mean he would consider getting rid of these monumental attractions especially when land wasn’t an issue back then.
 
Disney Irish

Disney Irish

Premium Member
mickEblu said:
Let’s say he lived until he was 80. I think the chances are slim to none that he would have decided to replace POTC or HM by the late 70s/ early 80s. Those attractions cost a lot of money, were extremely popular and were and maybe still are the pinnacle of imagineering. Plus their was still a lot of space to add new attractions elsewhere in the park. Lastly we don’t really know if he thought anything was untouchable. This isn’t canal boats of the world we re talking about here. He liked the idea of having a park because he could always tinker with it but that doesn’t mean he would consider getting rid of these monumental attractions especially when land wasn’t an issue back then.
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We'll just agree to disagree here, because ultimately neither of us are going to be right or wrong on this. My personal opinion is that he would have considered only the carousel untouchable, but everything else was fair game. I'm mean just look at the fact he razed an entire land. So the idea he wouldn't have touched a couple attractions because "they cost a lot of money" is a little far-fetched in my mind.
 
mickEblu

mickEblu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Disney Irish said:
We'll just agree to disagree here, because ultimately neither of us are going to be right or wrong on this. My personal opinion is that he would have considered only the carousel untouchable, but everything else was fair game. I'm mean just look at the fact he razed an entire land. So the idea he wouldn't have touched a couple attractions because "they cost a lot of money" is a little far-fetched in my mind.
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I’m right.
 

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