My 60th birthday is closing fast and I thought I'd share something that doesn't get much attention.
Wildlife and nature shows are very common these days and outlets like Discovery Channel and National Geographic have opened a permanent doorway into life on Earth.
But when I was a little boy shows about the natural world didn't become a commonplace network feature until the 1960's. This is where shows like, "Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom" shared top billing with "Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color", at least on a national broadcast stage.
To go back further in time, "nature shows", were often locally produced and locally broadcast. So what you saw and when you saw it depended on where you lived.
All my life I've been waking up between 3am to 4am - can't help it, it just happens. And that means for all of my life I've been going to the TV set to see what's on first in the morning.
This is where the original "nature" shows were hiding when I was a kid. Better known as "fishing and hunting" shows, early morning television was full of local guys showing great places to fish or reliving an exciting moment hunting in the outback.
Outdoorsmen, (or sportsmen), were the first nature-lovers to populate the airwaves with interesting stories to tell, beautiful places to visit and choice encounters with wildlife across America and the world. To see shows like fishing or hunting, ya had to be up early in the morning, like me. Otherwise these shows were never aired later in the day for a larger audience - go figure.
This is yet another area where the new ABC Network in the 60's shook thing up by airing locally produced shows to a nationwide broadcast audience, along with their own sponsored shows.
My favorite was ABC's "The American Sportsman" series, first to air on Sunday afternoon for guys tired of watching old movie reruns. "The American Sportsman" was unique by combining outdoor activities with well-known celebrities, expanding beyond hunting and fishing to include, river rafting, mountain climbing & skiing, reef diving and surfing.
By the 1970's host Curt Gowdy had a list of guest stars on The American Sportsman that read like a "who's who" of famous entertainers at the time. Before the internet, this was the most unique way to see famous people engage in chosen activities that they personally enjoyed doing.
Also to follow the ABC pattern was a local show that went national, "Bill Saiff's Rod & Reel". This show was famous as a "how-to" guide in the art of fishing.
