There's Not Enough...

Christmas Eve, Christmas Day/Night, then the day after, I climbed up-down, up-down, over and over again through our 400 channels. There's lots there, of course, with lots likewise not there.

The short list of missing shows goes like this...

• Marty Tyler Moore
  

• Rhoda

• Phyllis
  

• Dick Van Dyke
  

• The Three Stooges

• The Honeymooners

• The Munsters

• The Addams Family

• Donna Reed

• Leave It To Beaver

• All In The Family

• My Three Sons (especially the original b&w episodes)

• The Bob Newhart Show - both versions. The second show was simply called Newhart.
  

Alright, most of these shows are ancient to an awful lot of people. There's no arguing with that. There is, though, something else they are; timeless. And they are nowhere to be found. Plus, they are all mindless, largely pointless, yet very amusing and extraordinarily well-written and well-produced situation comedies. And they were all very well-cast, too. Sadly, I can't seem to find any of them anywhere on my television.

It would by my opinion that upon this short list of sitcoms are all shows that hold up as well today as they did the day they debuted. Unlike a lot of other sitcoms that look almost disturbing today, shows that you make you wonder how and why they ever made it to the network, these half-hour pieces are still appealing.

For the sake of comparison, I suppose, mentioning a show or two that didn't hold up is necessary.

• Mork and Mindy. Enough said? Sorry, it doesn't work today, didn't work a year, five, ten years ago. Once upon a time, yes, it did. Mork and Mindy is a show that is not timeless. My opinion only, let's make sure and note that.

I say we need an Old Fart Channel, or perhaps less offensive, My Geezer Channel. OFC or MGC, we need one of these to accommodate picky grumps like me who want to re-live 1958, 1968, 1978. Surely you get the idea here.

Right you are, TVLand is out there, but for whatever reason or reasons, TVLand has jettisoned most of the aforementioned shows, although they did once air them. Contractually, it might be that they no long have rights to the shows. Why, I'm not sure, but my guess is that these shows have been mothballed for now rather than them being unavailable for airing.

I want them back.

I also want back...

• Petticoat Junction Again, as with My Three Sons, who's hiding the earliest season's b&w episodes? Let's go, let's have them. And while we're at it, how about My Favorite Martian and Dennis The Menace. Oh, and what kind of man have I become? How could anyone forget The Three Stooges? Sorry, guys.
  

One final thought this time around. Christmas brought a revelation, a watershed event.

Finally, after thirty years plus, I couldn't look at A Christmas Story again, not one more time,not even for fifteen minutes, not even at some of the best and classic scenes. Enough. Stop.

Even It's A Wonderful Life wore a little thin this year. It looked a little too familiar, so did The Wizard of Oz.

Bring it on...My Geezer Channel.