From Don Barrett's website, www.laradio.com under the "LARP Rewind" section, we see what happened on the music scene on radio and the programs found on television on December 10, 1961 (Sunday). That website is free for the rest of the year (3 more weeks) if you follow the simple log-in instructions provided. check it for current and past news and stories about Los Angeles Radio People. Don will be ending the current daily format of the LARP site after around a dozen years that I have been following it. Check it out, especially the Archives section.
The songs playing were Big Bad John, Please Mr. Postman, Goodbye Cruel World, The Lion Sleeps Tonight, and Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen. All of these are now genuine oldies. Right off-hand, I can name the Marvellettes as the artist for "Please Mr. Postman," and The Tokens singing "The Lion Sleeps Tonight," a song that made a couple of comebacks over the years. "Goodbye Cruel World" was a sort of novelty song by Bobby Darin and Neil Sedaka sang "Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen." I don't remember who did Big Bad John at the moment, but all of these songs told a story and something that you could understand pretty easily, unlike a lot of what sells now. Maybe that's why they are so well-remembered.
On television, we’re watching Lassie, Maverick, Candid Camera, Bonanza, and Dennis The Menace.
IF you happen to remember the songs from actually listening to radio live, add in this fact: that was 48 years ago. And each of the television programs listed on that Sunday night lineup were very popular programs, all having years of success, with "Dennis the Menace" having a shorter run than the others. You may have seen all of these in reruns at one time or another.
Do you remember that television programs were nearly all still broadcast in black-and-white then? Gradually color television became more widely seen with more programs produced in color, or as NBC called it, "Living Color" and starting off shows with the NBC Peacock showing the colors.
The other popular Sunday night show that was not mentioned here was on CBS on Sundays, "The Ed Sullivan Show." If you remember watching it, you need no further explanation. If you were not so old to have seen that show, it was a variety show of assorted acts, hosted by Ed Sullivan and broadcast "live" from New York.
The "Ed Sullivan Show" would be where The Beatles would be introduced to U.S. audiences in just over 2 years later in early 1964. The British Invasion period of music would begin with these four relatively unknowns appearing on that show for 3 successive Sundays to change things in a big way. The Beatles' "hair" length they had then was considered radically different. Today it would not get much attention with all the styles that we have to compare.
Now with hi-def digital, satellite and cable television, and LCD and plasma big screens, you see that we have come a long way from that technology of those days, as well as the kinds of programs you can find now. We have gone through VCRs and now moved on to DVDs and DTRs as part of the changes that many could not seriously imagine back then. And along the way, we have all grown up and become much older.
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