Up until the late sixties, everything outside of our world was black and white. Or so we were lead to believe when we gathered around the family television set. I Love Lucy, Gunsmoke, Flipper and The Ed Sullivan Show. Walter Cronkite gave us the news of Vietnam in black and white. On Sunday nights we watched Wagon Train and The Wonderful World of Disney. Then it happened...color.
Grandma and Grandpa had the first colored set in our family. I remember the first time I ever saw the NBC peacock in color! Wow! We had been told by both parents and grandparents that if we napped during the day, we could stay late that first Sunday evening to watch Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color. Mr. Disney explained how they would have the same great programming but in color. He then turned the program over to Professor Ludwig Von Drake.
Each year, when the income tax came, my parents bought a large, expensive item. It was our family tradition. It might be a refrigerator, stove, or washer. You get the idea. The year came when the return was used for a 19" portable colored television.
Back when color was new, everyone seemed to be an expert on adjusting the color. The rule of thumb was to adjust the red on the picture, never on a person's face. It was a Sunday afternoon when dad decided the color was just not right. After several minutes, he announced, "There, the color is perfect!". He was right, the grass on the golf tournament was a perfect emerald green. I have often since wondered, "Is the sky really that color purple in Florida?"
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