The Friendly Giant was a staple of my childhood, arriving on Canadian TV in 1958, or about the same time we got our first TV.
Looking at the Wiki entry showed me there was a lot about the show I didn’t know. That it started in Wisconsin and was coaxed to relocate to Canada. That it was ad libbed. That it was on the air until 1985, producing 3,000+ episodes.
Watching a clip of the lead-in to a show showed me that it wasn’t only my knowledge that was lacking. I didn’t remember that episodes were only 15 minutes. That the effects were so cheesy. (Have you seen that paper mache castle? Oh my goodness.) That the pace was soooo slow.
What I remember most clearly – although I couldn’t have quoted it accurately – was the welcome to the castle:
One little chair for one of you,
and a bigger chair for two more to curl up in,
and for someone who likes to rock, a rocking chair in the middle.
Followed, of course, by this:
Look up.
Look waaaay up.
Now what made me think of The Friendly Giant? Just this, seen in Conway, near where we were staying this winter.
For someone who likes to rock, indeed. It might have been cheesy and slow, but it made a lasting yet gentle impression.
I like the photo !
Ralph – Thanks!
A photo packed with human presence. 😀
Barbara – And yet, no people. Saved me having to ask them to leave . . .
“one two three o’clock, four o’clock, rock…. we’re gonna rock around the clock tonight…” I just can’t imagine Bill Haley in a rocking chair.
Jim T
Jim T – Hahaha. It wasn’t until I looked at the title in the email that I realized the other use of “rock.”