Pluggers by Rick McKee for November 24, 2014

I wish we could get reruns of Gunsmoke!

Don’t watch ‘Gunsmoke’ reruns but I don’t watch the evening news—it is just so DEPRESSING ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

i watch rockford and gunsmoke everyday. nowadays i have a new appreciation for festus. tip for geezers: unload yer shootin iron befor gunsmoke begins or you will end up needing a new t.v.

Dang. I’ve been a plugger for at least 35 years

Here in St. Louis they run “Chips” and “MASH” during the news hours. I worked nights during those years and never got to watch those shows when they were new. Now I skip the news and enjoy myself.

Gave up on television news a helluva long time ago. ESPECIALLY local news with the blathering, non-stop come ons…. “in minutes we will be telling you of (insert horrific tragedy here) with our FIRST DISCOVERY TEAM!!!!” and they do the same thing with weather. The national news on television is not much better. Now, (and for the last 15 years at least), I get all my news listening to NPR.

NPR is even starting to wear on me!

I prefer reruns of The Virginian over Bonanza, but can’t get either since we cut the cable.

There are a few ‘over the air’ stations which offer old westerns (really old – 30’s to 50’s – though some are very good.)

Just like your kids, you’re ignoring the news, Plugger.

let me see – NEWS?political parties blame each other – checkwars of all kinds are going on all over the world – checksomeone somewhere killed somebody, had a car accident, did a despicable act of horror, abused someone etc. – checkpeople are hungry, sad, hurting, bored, lonely – checkrich and famous people are well tediously predictable and we should be impressed because they are rich and famous – checkanother blockbuster movie because people are bored – checkweather is happening – checkopinions stated every minute with little facts but make great headlines – check_______ discovered to cause cancer – check_______ latest scientific ‘theories’ called ‘facts’ based on a new inconclusive theory, because we need funding – checkwe’re all going to die – checksports happened and someone said, did something that is outrageous to us – check30 commercials per hour that do nothing but promote our sexual short comings, how to buy our latest happiness, and remind us of what we are missing – ad nauseam – check

yep I guess that’s why I don’t watch NEWS? – every channel, same thing, same stories just rearranged a little with different names to help the ‘reporters’ if you can call them that, keep their jobs

even Gilligan’s Island is better than news IMHO

HOW TRUE!!!!!!!

I was willing to put up with “original reporting”; “[this] next” when in fact it was ten minutes away; if-it-bleeds-it-leads; “breaking news” which happened three days ago but we just got the 9-1-1 tapes; and the abandonment of “who, what, where, when, why” reporting. But when the professional meteorologist weather man started expressing himself like an over-precious shopping network host and the professional meteorologist weather women began dressing in sleeveless shrink-wrap (talk about TMI!), we went to the Rocky and Bullwinkle show. More amusing and MUCH more intelligent. For news I drop in on the headline news channel just long enough to ascertain no emergencies are brewing; and for weather it’s the weather-scan channel or TWC on line.

Lately, it’s been The Wild, Wild West!

Real Pluggers like us, don’t have cable! Ditch the cable, get an antenna and you can view Gunsmoke, Perry Mason, the original Hawaii Five-O, Green Acres, and the list goes on!.And it’s all FREE! Well, except for the commercials anyway…

DH was watching Gunsmoke reruns and I scoffed, until one day I sat down and watched with him. I was blown away that the plots, the writing and the acting seemed far superior to anything new these days. There’s also some history in there, about the railroads being built, drought, dust bowl,, even references to life post Civil War.and early frontier days. Then I had fun recognizing actors who became well-known later. Usually, I recognized their voices before I knew them by their young faces. I gained a whole new respect for early TV and the Gunsmoke actors, writers and directors. The only thing that bugged me was how clean and dressed up the women were. Not just Miss Kitty’s ladies, either. Even farm women had corsets and 18" waists and wore a ton of clothes. Puhleeze!

I object to when a correspondent is sent abroad to report on an event that could easily be covered by standing in front of a green-screen overlayed with foreign footage.

metzkel: When your anchor station has Charles Koch on its board of directors, that can happen.