| Reality television shows have been a
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| | time, the music was dropped altogether
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| craze for the past few years. You
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| | with the scripts being penned by Oswald.
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| may not realize that the first reality
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| | The subject was once again their own
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| tv show was first aired in the 1950s. It
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| | family life including their two sons,
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| featured a band leader and his family.
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| | played by actors.By 1949 the actors were
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| The show actually started on the radio
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| | replaced by the real David and Ricky,
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| and was a husband and wife affair. The
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| | largely as a
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| children were brought in and later, after
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| | result from pressure from the boys
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| it had transferred to tv, the kids grew
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| | themselves and a guest appearance by Bing
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| up, got married and their wives were
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| | Crosby who brought his own two sons
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| also in the show.It was called The
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| | along to appear in the show. If Bing's
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| Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet and had
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| | kids
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| its
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| | could do it, then so could Ozzie's
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| roots in a spot on a radio show in 1935
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| | kids.In 1952 the show was premiered on
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| and lasted 31 years until it ended its
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| | ABC television. By now David was 16 and
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| tv run in 1966.Oswald Nelson was born in
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| | Ricky was 12. The theme continued to be
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| 1906 in New Jersey. He studied law at
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| | the family. Many of the comedy script
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| Rutgers
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| | ideas came from incidents that actually
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| University and was also a keen musician.
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| | occurred in the Nelson household. If the
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| To help pay the fees, he was a
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| | boys took up a hobby, that would be
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| part-time football coach. He also was in
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| | featured. When David and later Ricky
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| a band, playing saxophone. In time, he
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| | started
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| learned to play most of the band's
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| | dating girls this was also included and
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| instruments.When the depression hit in
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| | became a regular theme.By the time he was
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| late 1929, Oswald realized that there was
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| | 17, Ricky began to take an interest in
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| no
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| | the new rock 'n'
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| guarantee of a job at the end of his
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| | roll music that had taken hold of so
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| studies. He enjoyed playing in the band
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| | many of his generation. He once dated a
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| and
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| | girl who swooned over Elvis Presley. Not
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| as this was a proven source of income,
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| | wishing to be outdone, Ricky told her
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| he decided to form his own band and try
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| | that he was cutting his own disc, a fact
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| his luck.The Ozzie Nelson Band had
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| | that had absolutely no foundation.
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| moderate success playing lowly clubs
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| | Wishing to turn this white lie into
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| around New York and the
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| | reality he asked his father to pull some
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| East Coast. When a competition was run
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| | strings. By 1957, Ricky had a recording
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| by the New York Daily Mirror for
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| | deal and released Fat's Domino's song I'm
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| readers to vote for their favorite band,
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| | Walking. Ozzie duly produced a special
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| he and the band obtained hundreds of
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| | script of The Adventures of
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| unsold newspapers and sent in votes for
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| | Ozzie and Harriet that would feature the
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| themselves. When they won the
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| | new song. A few years back this may
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| competition the publicity spurred them
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| | not have had any great effect, but by
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| into a bigger league and they could at
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| | the late 1950's television was rapidly
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| least scrape a living. Oswald recruited
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| | being taken up across the country and
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| beautiful 23 year old vaudeville
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| | I'm Walkin' became a big hit. Ricky
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| showgirl Harriet Hilliard
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| | was an overnight pop idol. Oswald soon
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| as lead singer in 1932. They soon fell
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| | realised that the tv show was a perfect
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| in love and were married within three
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| | way to promote Ricky's records and that
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| years.Their big break came when they
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| | the show would attract more viewers,
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| were booked at the Glen Island Casino.
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| | especially teenagers. From this point
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| Their performance was broadcast on
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| | onwards, Ricky's songs would feature in
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| national radio. In those days radio was
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| | many of the episodes. When they couldn't
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| as
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| | be incorporated into the script, a song
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| big as tv is today and this exposure led
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| | performance by Ricky would simply be
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| to their first big hit And then Some
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| | tacked on to the end of an episode.When
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| along with regular spots on The Baker's
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| | the boys finally married - David to June
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| Broadcast
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| | Blair in 1961 and Ricky to
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| radio show from 1935. They were then
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| | Kristin Harmon in 1964 - the
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| recruited to do regular spots on another
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| | art-imitates-life theme was taken to new
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| popular radio show, The Red Skelton
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| | heights
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| Show.In 1936 Harriet gave birth to their
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| | when the wives were cast in the show to
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| first son, David, followed in 1940 by
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| | play themselves.Had The Adventures of
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| brother Eric, later known as Ricky.Ozzie
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| | Ozzie and Harriet not been cancelled in
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| and Harriet were increasingly inserting
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| | 1966,
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| comedy skits between musical
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| | maybe the show would still be playing
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| numbers, and this seemingly spontaneous
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| | with Ozzie and Harriet's grandchildren
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| repartee went down well with the
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| | taking up the baton. What was striking
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| audience. These were basically skits
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| | was the way that the scripts, all written
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| based around the couple's family life.
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| | or supervised by Oswald, paralleled
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| When
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| | their real life so closely.When Ozzie and
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| Red Skelton was drafted in 1944, Ozzie
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| | Harriet cracked their first joke on stage
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| and Harriet were offered the vacated
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| | together back in the
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| timeslot and filled it with The
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| | 1930's, little did they know that this
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| Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. Oswald
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| | would lead to one of the longest running
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| decided to major on the comedy
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| | shows on tv and the grand-daddy of
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| scripting, with the music taking second
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| | today's reality tv.
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| place. In
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