By Linda Shaffer
I am a bonafide television junkie. I could try to dress this up in a more sophisticated suit but why? Truth is that I love watching all sorts of different things and have learned how to use television to access the world I can’t get to anymore. This brings me joy and helps me learn new things every day.
I know Geezers who maintain that television is for old people who don’t have anything better to do. These same people said the same thing about television when they were young, middle aged and aging. I know they secretly watch TV and always did. How do I know? They always seem to know what’s going on with certain types of programming and they know all the Saturday Night Live traditions. Since that program just turned 50 years-old, I’d say these people are not telling the whole truth. Why? They know about Toonces, Landshark and a whole lot more. It’s time they gave up the charade and joined the fold.
I like to think of myself as the wrinkled, gray-haired poster woman for television. This, coming from a person who spent her life in community journalism. I loved the newspaper business and spent 35 years in that affair. I have nothing to apologize for. I gave it my all and was left sitting in a recliner. I picked up a remote and the rest is history. Mr. S was miles ahead of me. He was the master of YouTube, something I still haven’t figured out. Though we had different tastes in many types of programming, there were things we discovered and used together.
First on that list was Closed Captioning. As avid fans of Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) we tried captioning there first because many of the programs we watched were from Great Britain. With failing hearing, the language got harder to understand for both of us and we decided to give printed words a try. At first it was hard. Choices of typestyles and format were challenging but eventually we settled on one we could both live with. Looking back, I am amazed at how quickly we became reliant on this form of communication.
Once hooked, we added Closed Captioning to other channels and finally, to everything and anything we could get. If they caption commercials? OK with me! At least I know the details. Today, there are few programs here which are not captioned. The words on the screen are not a distraction to me and in fact, keep me informed. The only time they collide is when a program is already captioned in another language. I have learned to turn my captioning off when this happens to avoid a crowd of words.
Next up is dubbing. Mr. S and I had a passion for good movies and television programming. Not all of that was available in English. In fact, some of our favorite programs were in languages neither of us could understand. We experimented with a few movies which had been dubbed in English. In the beginning, this seemed awkward because words coming out don’t match the mouths of the people speaking. Trust me, it’s worth a try and you’ll get used to it. I continue to be fascinated by the idea that thousands of people around this planet are dubbing movies and television shows and commercials and songs and classes and all things spoken so that millions of others can understand it.
Dubbing was and is a way to reach people who don’t have access to Closed Captioning. I know how old fashioned it sounds. This technology is beyond its prime but for some reason, it is still being used. My guess? Not all countries on this planet have the technology and money to spend that we do. Their people do have a hunger for information, inclusion and entertainment. Now there’s a job for a senior citizen. All you need is a complete knowledge of English and at least one other language and the ability to read lines as you watch actors speak them on screen. Piece of cake. Not. Call me first if you get a job doing this.
I am thankful for dubbing and Closed Captioning. I am thankful for television. Now that I’ve gone public, I don’t expect I’ll get Christmas cards from some folks. I’m willing to admit that I know who Toonces the Driving Cat is. That’s the chance you take out here. I am reminded that I need a hearing test. A whole other subject. We’ll get to that later.
Have a great week my friends.