I changed out of my school clothes,
then went out to the living room, turned on the TV and sat on the
floor to watch, “The Howdy Doody show”. There was only one TV station
in Seattle, called ”King TV” in 1950, and it was on the air for only
three hours a day, from four in the afternoon to seven at night.
We had the first TV in the neighborhood. There were just a few
curious neighbors coming over to view the new wonder called TV, but
that was about to change, with a program that introduced, “Gorgeous
George” and the” Mask Marvel” called “Big Time Wrestling”.
Neighbors from four blocks away were showing up with their
grandparents, first cousins, and kids. My father had to put his foot
down; our living room would be full of people, while we were eating
dinner in the kitchen. My father told our neighbors, that they had to
wait until his family was finished with dinner, before entering the
house.
It was not uncommon to be sitting at the dinner table and see
our neighbors gathering outside of our front door. My mother played
host to all of our neighbors sitting in the living room.
My parents purchased ice cream by the gallon, and no doubt they
had to purchase additional bowls too. The adults got chairs to sit on,
and the teenagers and kids had to sit or lay on the floor.
I had the job of moving the “Rabbit Ears (antenna) upon the
direction from my father. The problem with this job, usually the best
reception on the TV, was when I was holding the rabbit ears with my
left hand and my right arm was up in the air.
The largest gathering of neighbors at our house, took place the
night “Gorgeous George” was going to rip the mask off “The Mask
Marvel”. When “Gorgeous George” entered the ring, there was so much
yelling and booing you would have thought you were in a football
stadium, George was a mean man. “Gorgeous George” had the “Mask
Marvel” in an arm lock, and he was pulling for all his worth on the
Mask.
George got the Mask about half off the head of the “Mask
Marvel”, but a referee stepped in and made George break his hold,
“Mask Marvel” had a chance to redeem himself, but when George stepped
back, the Mask fell to the mat unconscious. We were never to see the
face of the” Mask Marvel.”
We gained back our living room in 1953; most of our neighbors had TV’s
by then.
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