Some of these treasured 80s shows have been re-released on DVD like "He-Man & The Masters of the Universe," but those DVDs do not contain all the classic commercials and promos for other shows, which also stir up all the old memories when I see them on my tapes. Back then I didn't appreciate those old commercials. Maybe in twenty years I will wax nostalgic about some of the goofy reality shows that are on TV currently or get excited if I see a Playstation 2 commercial, but there was something so charming and exciting about the 8-bit Nintendo's upcoming "Mario Bros" game back then and none of that seems prevalent now. However, I also watched "The Disney Channel" a lotmainly because none of the shows on that channel were interrupted with commercials. I came across a few episodes of "Welcome to Pooh Corner" on one of my tapes, and that show is truly 80s and truly a gem. It was the first Winnie-the-Pooh show to ever air (even before "The Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh" cartoon show) and it had all the campy charm and wholesome fun, which appealed to kids and adults. I know I am once again getting very nostalgic here, as I often do, mainly because I am growing older and hope to share some of my old memories with my kids somedaybut even more so because these old shows were so wonderful! The Disney Channel as a whole was absolutely wonderful and is nothing like that anymore.
"Welcome to Pooh Corner" was a live action show about Pooh and his friends. It began with a narrator named Laurie, an older gentleman who wore warm and comfortable looking sweaters and had the most assuring voice in the world, and was to me, even more charming than Mr. Rogers. He would open the show with a book on his lap and one of the characters in the form of a stuffed toy on the table next to himusually the character who was to be starring in that particular episode. For example, if the show centered on Roo, he would have a miniature Roo next to him and would begin to explain his dilemmawhether it was how he didn't want to eat his oatmeal or how he wanted to go play with Tigger instead of clean his room. This may sound silly, but there were great lessons to be learned and I just don't think shows of today contain these lessons. Then, the show went into The Hundred Acre Woods, where all the characters lived, and it used live puppets and scenic painted backdrops to show the settings. After the actual episode was over, the characters would do sort of a music video, where they would sing a song that relayed to the episode, and do an arts-and-crafts type segment where they'd show you how to make things like paper plate letter holders to hang in your home. I absolutely loved the show. It's lead-in was "Dumbo's Circus" which was a similar style show starring Dumbo and all his friends, but it didn't have a narrator and it was not nearly as good. I watched it occasionally, more because it was on right before Pooh. I never taped any of those shows, but again, I'd take that over any of the stuff that's on that network today. Back then, it seemed that the channel was there for kids to watch with their families, but now it seems like they are trying to reach the teenage audience and be more like a Nickelodeon-style channel with all it's sitcoms and advertising. I think the main charm of that channel was that it coincided with the huge popularity of Disney World, which was still pretty new in the 80s and the brand new Epcot Center and MGM Studios. There were often Orlando tour shows which aired that made you feel like you were in Florida and made you so excited about all things Disney. I remember my first Grizwald-like drive down to Disney World through South of the Border very clearly too. At Epcot Center, my favorite ride was Captain E-O and at MGM Studios, my favorite was the Backlot Tour where they showed you the TV sets of the "Golden Girls" and "Empty Nest" houses. Neither ride exists anymore. Another show was "Kids Incorporated" which was about a group of kids who had a band, but it always contained lessons of growing up but nothing too heavy and you never really had to ask your parents what the kids were talking about. It used popular 80s music in every show and it too, was truly a classic. "Donald Duck Presents" was another favorite, it showcased Donald and many of the old classic characters in some of their classic cartoon segments. On local TV, Disney was huge too, and "The Disney Afternoon" on Channel 11 featured "Gummi Bears," "Duck Tales," "Tale Spin," "Chip N' Dale Rescue Rangers," and later "Darkwing Duck," "Goof Troop," and a few others which would come and go out of the rotation. Taking classic Disney characters like Baloo the Bear and Chip N' Dale, and focusing on their own current life (like Baloo became a pilot and Chip N' Dale became detectives) was a very popular and agreeable premise. Now you can't find any of those shows on TV. Not on local TV, and not on Disney. I don't know why this is so, because I feel that people in their 20s and 30s like me would love to expose the next generation to all of those same types of programs. Shows don't seem to carry over to the next era anymore, and I feel that by the time I have kids, I won't be able to relate to any of what they are watching. Soon enough, things like "Sesame Street" may even become extinct. At least I have these few tapes, which I will certainly save and show my kids someday.
