Leave It to Beaver : For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….

For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….

Please ease-up.
It was only television.

Leave it to Beaver, The Andy Griffith Show and any other TV show from the era weren't designed as "documentaries" or shows that were supposed to be "realistic" depictions of modern-day life (in their times).

Please tell us how "realistic" MASH was about military service.

For that matter, neither are most of today's dramas or sitcoms.

Please tell me how SEINFELD was "realistic" and 'represented' 1990s life.
It may have represented a small section of life in uber-wealthy Manhattan, NY, but not overall Americans, the hardworking people who work numerous jobs and deal with children, etc.

Come to think of it: Why didn't SEINFELD include blacks as major cast members?
Or Frasier?

Jerry Seinfeld has been unjustly criticized for thus. He's given-up appearing on college campuses because weak-minded and emotion-laden students in the government-subsidized leftist "institutions of higher learning" can't argue facts and ar blinded by their arrogant and narrow PC visions.

Please spare us your irrational and unfair insistence that entertainment from DECADES AGO must match your narrow and rigid political and societal opinions.



Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….

Dear Doug-Oh,






"You cannot boil a llama and expect it to taste like a grilled monkey".

Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….

Yes of course LITB was just a TV show, a family show, a comedy show that is still enjoyed by many, just like Lucy and Andy Griffith and many others. The problem for me with LITB comes in when people call it a great show. It was not a great show.

The time when this show takes place had social issues that are never alluded to on the show. We do have several mentions of WWII, that Ward was in the Seabees. We have actors and singers of the day mentioned, like Tony Curtis and Sal Mineo. But we never hear about Kennedy and the Cold War, no air raid "duck and cover" actions, nothing about civil rights. Except for Chuey (who we see only in one episode), and a maid, we never see anyone from a minority. Apparently everyone in Mayfield had the same religious beliefs, because they are never discussed. No unemployment in Mayfield, no delinquency. There was one episode about a kid from a broken home, and an episode about an alcoholic, so there's that. But the show was not ground-breaking by any means in the episodes shown. Except for what I mentioned, nothing controversial in the subject matter, nothing that a family could sit afterward and discuss.

That doesn't mean LITB was a bad show; it had good acting, characters one can enjoy and perhaps relate to, and is fun to watch even 60 years later, like Lucy. It didn't have to have controversy like later shows that dared to cross the line. And that is perfectly fine and acceptable. Where I have the problem is when people call LITB a great or a ground-breaking show, which it was not.


Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….

This comes down to your definition of "great show." Your presupposition seems to be that a "great show" is a show that is issues-driven and delves into socio-political topics. You're entitled to that opinion and to rate more highly those shows which exhibit those qualities. To me, greatness is defined by qualities like humor, wit, characterization, dialogue. To me, a show should be judged by how well it fulfills its intended goals, not on some external and arbitrary standard that lies outside of the framework and boundaries set by the show itself.

In my opinion (and I'm sure the opinion of many on this board) LITB was a great show. It was groundbreaking in that it was perhaps the first show to depict the world from a child's perspective and to use camera techniques that highlighted the shifts between the child's and adult's perspective. It was filled with sharp writing that avoided schmaltz and instead injected delightful doses of satire and character comedy. It was realistic in that it treated the ordinary dilemmas and problems of everyday life growing up. It featured superb acting performances, particularly from the child actors, that captured how children think and speak and act.

And let me pose this question: would we really value LITB more highly today if it had addressed topical issues like the Cuban Missile Crisis, Civil Rights, or whatever? Wouldn't this have rather caused the show to seem dated and time-bound? Isn't the universality of LITB part of its enduring appeal today? There are plenty of self-consciously "relevant" shows like ALL IN THE FAMILY that seem terribly dated today, while shows like LITB and TAGS are still enjoyed by wide audiences because they are universal and timeless in their appeal.

Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….

To me, LITB paints an unrealistic view of society in the late 50s/early 60s. It doesn't have to cover the Cuban Missle Crisis per se, but it should make mention of the volatile time when they were all living. Also there were other shows such as Ozzie and Harriet and Donna Reed that featured the trials and tribulations of children, often from their point of view.

Maybe I am sensitive to this because I am only slighty younger than Beaver, and so lived during the same era. And yes we had problems like breaking a window and tearing our pants and the like. We shot marbles and flipped baseball cards, sure. But we also had interaction with kids from minorities, confusion about the USSR, questions about where babies come from, etc. I get that these subjects were taboo to mention on TV back 60 years ago, but yes I think if LITB had mentioned the fears we all had about the Bomb for example, it would have been a better show, because it would have been more representative of the society it was aimed at. It was fine as it was, but not ground-breaking to me. But that's just me. So we can agree to disagree about it.

Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….

<<but we also had interaction with kids from minorities>>

Great rerun on today about Beaver's friendship with a Hispanic boy, Chuey, who only speaks Spanish.

Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….


It was not a great show.


I strongly disagree. LITB is easily and by far the best show of all-time. None is greater.


The time when this show takes place had social issues that are never alluded


Good! Great! Wonderful! If LITB was a soapbox for pushing evil liberal ideologies (which AFAIK, all other soapbox shows of the type you are talking about do), then LITB would have sucked and no one would be watching or talking about it today.

Everything you are saying that LITB should have done, steely, LITB is great precisely because it didn't do that! Conversely, modern shows are garbage because they do do that!


didn't have to have controversy like later shows that dared to cross the line.


"Dared to cross the line?" Is that codespeak for "pushing the evil liberal agenda?" Thank God LITB didn't ruin itself by doing that! LITB is great because it stands up for good morals and opposes evil ones!

Reading your post is like entering Opposite World or something, where everything that happens is the opposite of reality.


a ground-breaking show, which it was not.


You'd be hard-pressed to find any sitcoms from the last ~40 years which are anywhere near as good as LITB in terms of characterization, acting, or storytelling, or promoting good morals. LITB tells a complex story and also a good moral lesson in almost every single episode. In contrast, most modern sitcom episodes do not even have any story or morals at all...and they star moronic stand-up comedians who can't act...and they consist entirely of banal & juvenile lines (many involving gutter humor, which LITB never did) that are never funny.

In other words, compared to any modern sitcom, LITB is Masterpiece Theater and modern sitcoms are The Three Stooges. That gigantic contrast proves without any doubt how very ground-breaking LITB was!

Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….


The time when this show takes place had social issues that are never alluded to on the show.

Addressing societal issues does not make a great TV sitcom.

Please tell me how these shows (which are generally considered 'great') regularly addressed societal issues, news and injustices:

-Seinfeld
-Frasier
-Cheers
-Everybody Loves Raymond

-The Bob Newhart Show
-Newhart

Others, like MASH, did tackle the touchy topics, but it wasn't the show's focus.

Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….

I won't comment on other shows, just this one. I'll leave other shows' comments on their respective forums. LITB was a show that depicted late 1950s and early 1960s life in a town called Mayfield, somewhere in America. It was a fine show, as I said before. I love the show, I have watched it for decades, I watched it today and will again tomorrow. But I feel that this particular show could have addressed, in some way, the issues that many felt in towns across America. For whatever reason, it did not do that, except a couple of times.

I have no problem if people in this forum want to consider LITB a great show; you are entitled to your opinion as I am mine. I simply feel that this show could have represented the people and the community a bit more in line as to what was really going on in America at that time. Didn't have to be every single episode; after all, my friends in elementary school did not discuss the Bomb with me every single day. But the fear existed; I would bet in real life the fear existed for the cast members at that time. Why not have a show about it? That's all I'm saying.

Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….

A little unfair to question why TV sitcoms don't/didn't address societal issues. Nothing wrong with shows that did like Growing Pains, All In The Family, or Blossom, but people also want to be entertained and to use TV as an escape from the issues facing society. These shows were made to help people forget about their fears. Plus I think this show does an OK job in tackling everyday childhood issues, like peer pressure (Beaver often got into stupid situations at the behest of his friends), trust, responsibility, bullying, humility.

YOUR VOTE MATTERS! Please vote in every election. Thank you.

Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….


Addressing societal issues does not make a great TV sitcom.

Please tell me how these shows (which are generally considered 'great') regularly addressed societal issues, news and injustices:

-Seinfeld
-Frasier
-Cheers
-Everybody Loves Raymond

-The Bob Newhart Show
-Newhart




I won't comment on other shows, just this one. I'll leave other shows' comments on their respective forums. LITB was a show that depicted late 1950s and early 1960s life in a town called Mayfield, somewhere in America.

The other shows, and any other TV show of the era, ARE important.
Notice Seinfeld, Frasier, Cheers, et. al., never or rarely addressed touchy topics.

They were COMEDIES, not dramas !!!

By definition, comedies don't necessary handle difficult situations, like dramas would.
To expect LTB to be DRAMA and do things other comedies of the time did is unfair and unrealistic.

Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….

But LITB DID address difficult issues on at least 2 occasions. Once about alcoholism and once about divorced parents. See, it would be easy to do shows about getting pants ripped or losing haircut money and what to do; those shows write themselves. It takes talented writing to write about kids talking about the controversial stuff that did actually go on in real life, even in a "comedy" show. Just my opinion.

Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….


The problem for me with LITB comes in when people call it a great show. It was not a great show.


It would appear that your problem is with opinions that stray from your narrative of what a great show is. I think LITB is a great show but that is my opinion and should not be a problem for you or anyone else, as it is a personal opinion.


he time when this show takes place had social issues that are never alluded to on the show.


Its intended purpose was for entertainment, an escape from the social issues that plagued the era. The show was filmed for the audience of that time who were living with the social issues that surrounded the era.


But we never hear about Kennedy and the Cold War, no air raid "duck and cover" actions, nothing about civil rights.


It was not a show meant to portray a historical view for generations to come, it was to entertain those watching it during the first run. It was programming for that generation to escape the reality of the daily life they were living in a society they were experiencing.


Apparently everyone in Mayfield had the same religious beliefs, because they are never discussed. No unemployment in Mayfield, no delinquency.


Why would this be discussed? It is a show about the Cleaver family and their associates/friends, not about the community.


Except for what I mentioned, nothing controversial in the subject matter, nothing that a family could sit afterward and discuss.


It was an entertainment show not a drama. It was for laughs not education values, if a family wanted something to discuss they could discuss all the social issues you say this show avoids by default of living in the time. Again, a show for the simple value of entertainment does not have the purpose of educating children or family on current events but they did attempt to have a moral line to follow with a lesson to learn.


Where I have the problem is when people call LITB a great or a ground-breaking show, which it was not.


You want an awful lot from a show that views the world through the eyes of two young brothers. However, opinions vary and to some it was ground-breaking for being the first show to have a finale and use flashback clips or addressing alcoholism, broken family, or maybe because on a personal level they could relate and it did bring their family closer....you just never know. What you find ground-breaking others may not and vice versa. Lighten up a bit, sometimes a personal memory or special moment is associated with things.


Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….

To put it simply I still love LITB after all these years. It was a show about a certain family, yes they were all white, but most shows were in the 50's. It showed the viewpoint of kids and their parents. Granted they didn't get social but frankly I just enjoyed the small problems They tackled. It was and is great entertainment and that's why so many people come her to talk about it.

Re: For those that disparage 1950s-60s TV….


But LITB DID address difficult issues on at least 2 occasions. Once about alcoholism and once about divorced parents. See, it would be easy to do shows about getting pants ripped or losing haircut money and what to do; those shows write themselves.


I don't think it's true that those sorts of episodes "write themselves." It takes great skill and wit and imagination to do what LITB did on a daily basis. It's easy to imagine those sorts of episodes being lame and trivial. And conversely, I don't think it necessarily takes a great genius to treat controversial issues. Plenty of shows were issues-oriented but we never watch them today because they're dated and have no artistry. We're talking about subject matter here, not level of skill or talent. And you're right to single out those two episodes of LITB as examples of the show taking on difficult topics.
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