I am a big PBS fan. I have been for a long time. The rest of
my household hasn’t shared my enthusiasm. Sure the kids watch the kid’s shows
but when it comes to news, science, art, etc at night I only watch when the
house is empty. But yesterday we had a breakthrough.
With some second rate Will Ferrell movie queued up on
Netflix I turned to PBS as the kids were still making their way to bed. The
show described the importance of arts education and happened to feature a few
well known Hollywood actors. As I mentioned I’ve always had a fondness for PBS
but these familiar faces were key in engaging the curiosity of the second half
of our homes audience of two. PBS took it from there. As usual the show was
engaging and educational and by the end it wasn’t I but my PBSphobic viewing
partner who said, “Maybe we’ll only watch PBS from now on.”
Boy did my heart sing. I had to stifle my “I told you so”
inclinations and only let my boasting surface to a degree that expressed my
excitement for a new discovery of a jewel that had been sitting in our shared living
room for the last 12 years.
And it happened again. Tonight, with Will at the ready,
Antiques Road Show revealed $2 garage sale items yielding auctionable values of
$2000 and collected comics appraising at $450,000. The hook was set, but there was still a big battle
to win before tonight’s trophy would be landed safely in the boat.
The Road Show prompted curiosity in the next show but the
momentum for PBS’s foothold in our household hit a serious barrier, a program highlighting
the impact of Sci-Fi on American culture. This may have been the PBS equivalent
of Kryptonite because if there is one thing that the lady doesn’t like it is
Sci-Fi.
Fortunately there were cookies in the oven. For one I love
cookies, but more importantly that also meant there were also cookies to put in
the oven which delayed the start of the Ferrell flick. To be sure, I was given
notice, but between each batch the magic of PBS played its part in making my
dreams come true and by the time all the cookies were cooling we were both
engaged in the documentary. Wonder of wonder, miracle of miracles, my wife was
watching PBS and a show about Sci-Fi.
So what’s next? Well, in between the Sci-Fi doc and a film
about the trash trade in Egypt, tomorrows behind the scenes show on Broadway
musicals was advertised, and we made a date. I just hope it can compete with
Sunday Night Football.
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