Monday 10 June 2013

"Let's Peek Through, The Polka Dot Door..."

So, the other day, as I was browsing Instagram, another of my obsessions these days, I came across a fantastic pic by photographer tonydetroit of a Polka Dot house:
Instantly, the theme-song to a beloved 80's TV Ontario children's show, popped into my head:  "The Polka Dot Door".  I loved that show.  It gives me the warm and fuzzies to think of the times I would sit in front of the tiny, 25" TV that we had at the time, and wait through the opening theme song, excitedly anticipating what "day" it was going to be (each day had a different theme like Imagination Day, Dress Up Day, or Animal Day).  Ahh, those were the days - comfy, wide-bottomed pants; riding my tricycle on the balcony of our 8th floor apartment; and amazing kid programs on TV Ontario. 

This is what happens when you grow up in the city...you make do :)  Me, riding my tricycle on our apartment balcony, complete with fake grass carpeting.

I'm thinking that my love of TV Ontario programming stemmed from the fact that we did not have cable and it was one of the few channels that still came in clear as a bell (well, maybe more like a bell seen through foggy sunglasses...but still...).

So let's take a little walk down memory lane, shall we?  Back to the days of:


If you were a kid growing up in the late '70's / early '80's in Southern Ontario, you will probably recognize most of the above shows.  The amazing thing is, I used to watch them for their entertainment value.  I didn't realize until now, just how many of them were completely educational!  "Parlez-Moi" had goofy skits with a funny hobo/clown but it was meant to teach you how to speak french.  "Write On" and "Read All About It" were a sitcom and adventure series, respectively, that taught writing and grammar.  One of my favourites, "Math Patrol" had a detective who dressed up as a kangaroo (his disguise, shhhhh!) who had to solve math problems to save the day from evil.  It was fantastic and memorable television.
While I'm sure today's TVO Kids channel has a great amount of terrific programming, the above shows will always hold a special place in my heart and hopefully some of yours as well.

Stay tuned.