View From the Phlipside - TV Parenthood

My name is Jay Phillippi and I've spent my life in and around the media.  TV, Radio, the Movies and more.  I love them and I hate them and I always have an opinion.  Call this the View From the Phlipside. 

 
In the past week two icons of parenthood on television passed away.   Barbara Billingsly played one of the prototypical ‘50’s moms as June Cleaver on “Leave it to Beaver”.  Within days she was followed by one of the iconic ‘70’s TV dads who curiously played a dad from the ‘50’s, when Tom Bosley died.  Bosley of course was Howard Cunningham, Richie’s dad on the hit show “Happy Days”.  Both actors created roles that will carry their names and memory long into the future.  

For me it was a moment to consider the place of parents on TV.  As dad myself it interests me to see how parents have changed in many ways.  The dads from the early days of TV in the 1950’s bear very little resemblance to the dad’s of today for example.  Compare  Ward Cleaver and Jim Anderson from “Father Knows Best” to modern media dads like Homer Simpson or Red Forman from “That ‘70’s Show”.  There are some good and understanding dads out there but by and large dads take the hit on TV.  They are grumpy or silly or totally out of touch with reality.  Curiously Moms have fared somewhat better over the years.  They still have their Roseann Connors out there among the clan but on the whole I think Mom’s are still treated generally better than Dad’s.  And yes, it’s certainly possible that I’m biased on that score.

The question for is why did this happen?  In my lifetime our culture certainly has become much more youth oriented.  Since parents have traditionally been the enemy for young people that’s probably a large part of it.  And don’t kid yourself you’ll find the same kid versus parent story lines all through our culture.  Romeo and Juliet have much more in common with Bart Simpson than they do with Beaver Cleaver.

In the end I know that being a parent is hard enough without the culture assuring everyone that you’re a bumbler at best and out right irrational otherwise.  Remember that the next time you laugh at some TV parent’s foolishness.  Wouldn’t be bad to see a June Cleaver or Howard Cunningham now and then.

Barbara Billingsly  died at 94, Tom Bosley was 84.

Call that the View From the Phlipside.

"The View From the Phlipside" airs on WRFA-LP Jamestown NY.  You can listen to WRFA online HERE
Copyright - Jay Phillippi 2010