Voices
in
Japan

have your say

What are some fondly remembered TV shows from your youth?

28 Comments

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

28 Comments
Login to comment

Monty Python's Flying Circus, Fernwood Tonight, Get Smart, Doctor in the House, Dobie Gillis, Man About the House, Leave it to Beaver. Brady Bunch, Partridge Family and, of course, Benny Hill.

In Canada, we got the best of both entertainment worlds.

6 ( +7 / -1 )

(Cracks knuckles) OK, where to begin?

Kind of depends on how one defines “youth”.

As a 1980s kid: saturday morning cartoons, The Facts of Life, Charles in Charge, Happy Days, Simon and Simon, Dukes of Hazard, the A Team, Mr. Dress Up (Canadian version of Mr. Rogers), Different Strokes, Air Wolf, Magnum PI…..I’m definitely only scratching the surface here.

As a young man in 1990s: Father Ted.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

SMAP×SMAP, a talk and cooking show, was my favorite when I was in youth. SMAP is a male singing and dancing performance group which belongs to Johnny's Entertainment. Before the show was created, such group appear mainly in music shows. The program of SMAP×SMAP includes talking with weekly guests, cooking from their request, music performance, and most specifically, short skits. The group members appear in various characters and perform hilarious and humorous scrips. The group has already broken up and been performing as an actor or host on TV shows. They paved the way for the new field of a performance as an idol group.

-7 ( +2 / -9 )

Another reader demographic phishing question ?

8 ( +9 / -1 )

The shows that influenced me the most growing up were: Mythbusters, WWE, Crocodile Hunter, The Most Extreme, or just basically any long-running show on Discovery Channel, NatGeo, Animal Planet and the History Channel. On cartoons, what influenced me the most the earliest was Popeye, hands down. That show taught me to love vegetables and to stand up for myself.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Blimey.

If course,all the American classics,such as Dukes of Hazzard,The A-Team,etc.

Then Sunday evening telly,All Creatures Great and Small,Tales of the Unexpected.

Was allowed to stay up and watch Not the Nine O'clock News, Spitting Image etc,which may helped shape my facetious outlook on life.

Not many programmes nowadays that can entertain both children and adults on different levels.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Many of those mentioned above but the standouts were Mash & Python.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

The after school, afternoon lineup of The Dick Van Dyke show, The Andy Griffith show, I Dream of Jeannie, The Beverly Hillbillies, Green Acres.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

When I was wee, it was Adventures Of The Gummi Bears, Scooby Doo, Animaniacs, and basically all of Cartoon Network. As a teen growing up in the 90s, Xena and Buffy come to mind but also Golden Girls and Bewitched reruns, which I watched religiously with my gran.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

F-Troop. You Asked For It. Mister Rogers. JP Patches (rather obscure, but a good Seattle-based kids show). Ozzie And Harriet. The Dick Van Dyke Show. The Bugs Bunny Roadrunner hour before Saturday night hockey on CBC. And a few other B/W shows I forget the names of (and obviously reveal my age).

0 ( +1 / -1 )

As a young man in 1990s: Father Ted.

Fantastic show. Everybody around me was talking about "Did you see that episode of Third Rock last night?" and I thought they were mental when Father Ted was on at the same time. I wouldn't say that was during my youth though.

Others from my youth... Allo Allo, Are You Being Served?, It Aint Half Hot Mum, Fawlty Towers, Mind Your Language, The Young Ones, Open All Hours, Fantasy Island, The Love Boat, Battlestar Galactica... yeah there's a lot. Loved the Hannah Barbera shows too.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

I loved the old comedy shows. You had to see the Munsters. Everyone looked like they were dead, except for the stunningly beautiful Marilyn. The family members all felt sorry for Marilyn because she was the "ugly duckling." When she brought a boyfriend over and he saw 9- foot tall Frankenstein lookalike Uncle Herman Munster, the look of terror on the guy's face was priceless. Then there was Green Acres with Arnold Ziffel, the pig who had a full name and was smarter than most of the townsfolk. Mr. Ed, the horse that talked with his owner 'Willlbuurr.' Get Smart with Don Adams but I especially liked Larraby, the spy disguised as a water cooler, house plant, etc. Loved Benny Hill, the "Bawdy Brit" with his racy skits and brilliant comedy. Sanford and Son, "ya big dummy." Rowan and Martin Laugh-In. The Carol Burnett Show with her, Vickie Lawrence, Harvey Korman, Tim Conway and Jonathan Winters. I really miss Johnny Carson's show, which was by far the funniest talk show ever.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Dr. Who

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Stuff that would not/ could not be made today as it would be considered racist, homophobic or something elseist....

Fawlty Towers, On the Buses, Til Death do us part, Black Adder, Boys from the Black stuff, The Sweeney etc

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Sandmännchen or Sandman in English.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

I Dream of Jeannie, Bewitched, Small Wonder, Wonder Years, Mind your Language, Mr. Bean, Allo Allo, Jungle Book and last but not the least X-Files

0 ( +1 / -1 )

MacGyver is my all time favorite. It's weird how a guy how hates guns gained so much popularity in the US.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

UK: The Two Ronnies, The Goodies, Dr Who (not today's version), Mind Your Language, Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em, Love Thy Neighbour, George and Mildred, Benny Hill (I still remember that tea, sugar and milk sketch).

US: Diff'rent Strokes, CHiPS, Wonder Woman, $6 Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman, Charlie's Angels, Little House on The Prairie, The Waltons, repeats of the Munsters

Japan: The Water Margin, Monkey (Journey to the West)

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Lost In Space, Laugh In, Monty Python's Flying Circus, Twilight Zone, Outer Limits, Benny Hill,

Good Times, All In The Family, LHOTP, Colombo, and all the Peanuts Holiday Cartoons...

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Lost in space. Great theme. I also remember being fixated on the monkey with long ears. It didn’t appear much maybe because it keep on ripping his ears off.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker as Doctor Who.

Rolf's Cartoon Club - it broke my heart when we found out he was a wrong'un.

There is a mystifying quality about Little and Large. They were prime time Saturday night TV for at least ten years, but I didn't understand then, and I don't understand now, how they got away with it. If I'd paid for a children's entertainer for a four-year-old, I would want my money back. The simple fact that they got away with it for so long is mesmerising.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQLtjhOLZN4

It's just baffling.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

The Jeffersons.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

I should add Mr. Terrific, Captain Nice and Get Smart.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Dawson's Creek, Ally McBeal, Seventh Heaven and many more!

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Get Smart, Three Stooges, Lost in Space, Gilligan’s Island, Dallas, Happy Day’s, Little House on the Prairie, Good Times, All in the Family, Married with Children, SNL, Living Colour, Martin, Mad TV, Benny Hill and of course, Saturday morning cartoons.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites