I’ve been watching Pee-Wee as Himself on HBO Max. Paul Reubens explaining the influence that Fifties TV had on him brings to mind its lasting impressions on my young self.
While I am only three years younger than he was, that’s enough of a difference for me to have few if any memories of watching TV before the Sixties, although I was exposed to plenty of Fifties reruns. Reubens loved watching I Love Lucy, a show that I have spent my entire life actively avoiding. My appreciation of Lucille Ball extends only to Star Trek originally being a Desilu production.
My favorite TV series that launched in the Fifties, and was successful enough to continue into the Sixties, is Leave it to Beaver. The interplay between the characters has some of the best sitcom writing of its day.
Another show I liked, for a very specific reason, is The Donna Reed Show. That specific reason is named Shelley Fabares (pronounced “fab-ray”). Shelley set the standard for my definition of femininity. She was the perfect girl. Along with Shelley, there are a couple of other ladies in my “Ultimate Girls Next Door” list, all safely older than myself.
Shelley’s BFF was Annette who, as popular as she was, wasn’t my type.
As I have pointed out in past years, my favorite member of The Mickey Mouse Club was Cheryl Holdridge. Teenage Cheryl was quite a flirt as Julie in Leave it to Beaver.
As I got older, I became more aware of Carol Lynley and Tuesday Weld. I later learned what explained my — ahem! — growing interest in seeing them on TV. Carol and Tuesday were called something unique to the era. They were “sex kittens.”
Ann-Margret, only a year older than Carol and two years older than Tuesday, was leader of the sex kitten pack, but she seemed more adult and intimidating. Maybe because she’s Swedish? 😉