It Seems Like Yesterday

Dobie and Maynard

A rush of nostalgia washed over me recently with news of the passing of several cultural icons who were part of my life, albeit their influence was virtual since the space between me and them was a screen. Or, in one case, airwaves.

We like to think that our iPhones and social media have prompted a new reality when, in fact, most folks of my generation grew up with neighbors on their television sets.

A quick look around the TV block and I see the Nelson family -- Ozzie, Harriet, David and Ricky. Around the corner, Wally and Beaver sit in an upstairs bedroom, big brother giving the Beav a life lesson.

I'll never forget Spin demonstrating to Marty how to treat a pair of new Levis by kicking them around the corral in the dirt before slipping them on. For the uninitiated, Spin and Marty were a spinoff (pun intended) from the Mickey Mouse Club.

And what baby-boomer mother did not have a crush on Dobie Gillis? Played by Dwayne Hickman, Dobie posed as a 17-year-old heart-stricken teenager with huge crush on Thalia Menninger, played by the blonde, avaricious beauty, Tuesday Weld.

"He's very cute," said my mother about Dobie, who was actually in his mid--to-late twenties. His dark hair was dyed blonde to give him a more "cornfed" appeal, according to Dwayne Hickman's obituary in the New York Times this week. He died of Parkinson complications. He was 87

Besides the fetching Tuesday Weld, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis introduced America to Bob Denver, as Maynard G. Krebs, the lovable Beatnik, or television's version thereof. This was BH, before hippies. Whenever employment was mentioned, Maynard flinched. "Work!" he would cry. And we all laughed. Denver would go on to make a name on Gilligan's Island.

Dobie carried the distinction of playing the first angst-ridden teenager in a television series, albeit his angst was softer than that of a Shark or a Jet a la the currently-revived musical, West Side Story, of the same era. His obituary called the show "quietly subversive" since it was presented from the viewpoint of a teenager, beginning each episode with a Dobie monologue next to a replica of Rodin's "Thinker."

Sheila James (Kuehl) played Zelda Gilroy, a brainiac who had the hots for Dobie. She later became the first openly gay person elected to the California State Legislature.

Others who were part of the prodigious cast: Warren Beatty, Ellen Burstyn, Mel Blanc, Ron Howard, Michael J. Pollard and Steve Franken as the flamboyant Chatsworth Osborne Junior.

Hickman's acting career ended early, due to his indelible image of being Dobie. He couldn't shake it. The name was essentially tattooed on his smiling face. His career transitioned behind the scenes as a studio executive.

My personal connection with Dobie Gillis was a yellow pull-over shirt with a diagonal stripe across the front, purchased for me by my mother. The label proclaimed it a Dobie Gillis edition. RIP Dwayne Hickman.

The Ronette's, Ronnie far left

Ronnie Spector, lead singer of the female trio The Ronette's, died this week at age 78 from cancer. Known for their ground-breaking hit, "Be My Baby" in 1963, the group, led by Ronnie's powerful voice and unabashed sexuality, including heavy mascara and short tight skirts, signaled a new direction for women in rock music. In addition, the song was arranged by Phil Spector who introduced what was known as the "wall of sound" to rock arrangements.

When Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys first heard "Be My Baby" he cried tears of discouragement. "I'll never produce anything as good as that," he reportedly told his girlfriend. Wilson was the genius behind the Beach Boys, their arranger, songwriter and leader. 

The Ronettes shared touring bills with the Rolling Stones in the 1960s. Listening to them warm-up backstage, the Stone's Keith Richards said of the group, announcing their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: "They could sing all the way through a wall of sound. They didn't need anything."

The Times obituary called Ronnie Spector a "touchstone for women in rock music, from Chrissie Hyde of the Pretenders to Amy Winehouse."

Veronica "Ronnie" Bennett was married to Phil Spector following their initial big hits. She endured an abusive, turbulent relationship with Spector who was sentenced to prison in 2003 for the murder of a woman at this home. He died last year at 81.

Ronnie continued to record and play music although never equaling her early fame. In 1986, her duet with Eddie Money, "Take Me Home Tonight," reached No. 4 on the Billboard chart.

"I'm just a girl from the ghetto who wanted to sing," she said in 2007. RIP Ronnie Spector.

Sidney Poitier receives the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama,  2009.

Actor Sidney Poitier died this week at age 94, the first Black performer to win an Academy Award as Best Actor for his role in the movie, Lillies of the Field. Anyone who was alive in the U.S. between 1963 and beyond will have heard of him. He needs no introduction, but he deserves a huge "thank you" from all of us.

Born in Miami and raised in the Bahamas, Poitier knew hardship and poverty early. It's difficult to believe that at one time his spoken English was barely understandable. For me, his clear, elegant, velvety voice is the first memory that comes to mind.

He won a place in acting school by serving as the theater's janitor without pay. His big break came when fellow student Harry Belafonte missed a rehearsal and Poitier filled in. 

He was criticized by more militant advocates of the Civil Rights Movement for being too sanguine. He represented peaceful integrationist roles in his film career, especially in the 1967 films In the Heat of the Night and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner. In 2009 President Barack Obama presented Poitier with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Other luminaries who died this week include actor Robert Saget, 67, and U.S. Senator Harry Reid, 82, who was instrumental in helping President Obama pass the Affordable Care Act.

To all those who recently passed from this life to the next, may you find peace. If you were fortunate enough to make a difference toward the greater good, a special thanks. 

Epilogue:

At age 13 when I showed up in Spokane, Washington wearing my Dobie Gillis edition pullover yellow shirt with the diagonal stripes across the front, one of my new friends said: "Wow, look what they're wearing in California!"