Public television is in the midst of a pledge drive, and in order to increase donations they’re replaying old classic television clips.
I found myself wondering how many living souls who’ve come across the offerings really appreciate them. I saw Richard Kiley performing “The Impossible Dream” from Man of La Mancha. And I saw a young Dick Van Dyke singing “Put on a Happy Face” from the old musical, “Bye Bye Birdie.” Another snippet showed the cast of “Oklahoma” singing the title song.
On another day, a retrospective of Bing Crosby’s career taught me things I never knew about the famous crooner. Last night PBS showed a documentary on Peter, Paul and Mary.
I was too young, or wasn’t even born yet, when some of these classic films, musicals and performers hit their stride. I grew up in a rock-n-roll world, and craftsmen like Crosby were beyond my scope. I am reminded that Frank Sinatra, himself, is reported to have called rock music — during a time when Elvis Presley was in ascendance — “the most brutal, ugly, desperate, vicious form of expression it has been my misfortune to hear.”
I don’t blame Sinatra for saying it. Rock and roll was designed to appeal to the young, and its’ contrasts with Sinatra’s style was as jarring then as it still seems to some today. But as I watched those PBS shows, I became just a little bit disappointed that the styles of the past (along with the spirit) seems so hopelessly outdated in 2015. When I listened to Kiley sing “The Impossible Dream” I was impressed with the optimism of it, the way it gives voice to lofty human desires all of us innately feel in our hearts. Van Dyke’s version of “Put on a Happy Face” might embarrass us today for the sheer sappiness of it. But I was impressed, once again, with the innocence that emerged from the performance.
Optimism and innocence are largely lost in popular entertainments today. Back then, the great performances encouraged and uplifted us. Too many entertainments today — songs, movies, books — seem intended not to uplift or inspire, but to shock and to tear down. There are many exceptions to this, of course. But it seems, sometimes, that the old way, which sought to point the audience toward what is best in the human spirit, is being discarded for what leads to pessimism and negativity.
The world today is saturated with entertainment options. You can still find Bing Crosby recordings if you look hard enough, but why bother? We’re always on to the next thing; most of us have little time or inclination to consider our grandparents’ favorites. I understand that, of course. I still prefer Neil Young to Bing, the Beatles to Frank.
But after watching those PBS episodes, I found myself wishing that young people today could stop for a moment to learn, to watch, to listen and appreciate a different era and try to plumb what were simpler, more optimistic times.
And I wonder: If they did step back into the past, would they even be able to understand it?