Walkity-Walk Down Memory Lane...

Just a quickie little blog here, before I relive my experiences at the yoga retreat in Naramata....Stay tuned for that, my chickens.

So, for the memory lane thing---I have, in the last short while, been reconnecting with two of my most favorite shows of the 80s. Thanks to Youtube, and the Calgary Public Library, "MacGyver" and "Hunter" have returned to my life!!! I was such a fan of both these shows back in the day, in some small part due to the fact that I had great, big crushes on both Richard Dean Anderson and Fred Dryer. That confession aside, they were GREAT shows. I have included pics for memory jogging purposes, one of Richard Dean, and one of Fred Dryer and Stefanie Kramer.

Who doesn't love MacGyver? Just ask Marge Simpson's sisters, Selma and Patty. They knew a good thing when they wuz onto it! If I could, at some time, have similarly staged a MacGyver kidnap, I would have done it. He was just such a cutie, and seemed like such a lovely guy, Richard Dean did. The character of MacGyver was super cool--I loved his pacifism, his innate kindness, ingenuity and wry sense of humour. It was pretty swell the way he invariably made stuff blow up, too and he sure was a dab hand with the Swiss army knife! A fun, intriguing show, and the additional characters were great, too. I always had a soft spot for Dana Elcar, who played Mac's friend and boss, Pete. The semi-mullet haircut can even be forgiven when sported by Richard Dean Anderson.

I ran into him once. Like, literally. I was at a Flames game, and Richard Dean, a well-known hockey fan (and Flames fan in partic), was at this same game. I rounded a corner, punching and elbowing my way through the throngs, whilst attempting to balance two beers, and I plough right into this tall guy in a brown leather jacket. I apologise profusely, attempting to brush beer off him, and glance up at his face. Well, holy cracker sandwich, if it wasn't RDA. Time kind of stopped, and I continued my now-stuttery and inane apologies. He gave me the sweetest, crinkliest smile, and said not to worry about it, and SQUEEZED MY UPPER ARM A LITTLE. One more delightful grin from him, eyes right on mine, and then I managed to tear myself away and into the crowd once more. Then I peed my pants. RDA continues to endear himself to me with his involvement with the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, and being so outspoken in his support of the sea mammal preservation cause. Go, RDA!
So it's been fun seeing Mac again. Bless the library for having DVDs of this lovely show for me to check out and enjoy.

Hunter was my favorite cop show EVER! The characters were so, so fantastic, and the chemistry between the lovely Fred Dryer and his co-star, Stefanie Kramer, was always amazing. His Rick Hunter had this fantastic, louche, Dirty-Harry-ish thing going, and I loved Hunter and McCall's disrespect for authority. They shot things, and blew things up really well, too. Fred wasn't classically handsome, but man, he was attractive. He was so reliable for beating the snot out of creeps, and giving charming grins and one-liners. Stefanie Kramer is ridiculously pretty, even though she sports some really heinous 80s fashion, and her Sgt. McCall is a great sidekick for Dryer. She drives like a madwoman, too.

It must be said that Dee Dee McCall is a bit of a Calamity Jane; an interesting game when watching Hunter is to see how long it takes in each episode for poor McCall to get shot/slapped/punched/stabbed/molested/generally roughed up. She scarcely ever makes it through a whole show without some violent incident. Though she is no shrinking violet (she is especially good at delivering smokin' kicks to the heads of pimps when she is undercover as a hooker), little McCall constantly takes a licking and keeps on ticking; she's a tough 'un. It's good that she has Hunter, who (mostly) always shows up in the nick of time to help her out. Their relationship was the best part of the show. It's hard to even describe what their partnership was like--there was devotion, friendship, loyalty, irritation, sexual tension, humour and danger in equal parts. A hell of a recipe, I must say. Youtube has all kinds of episodes to watch, and I heart them for that.

It is very good fun to go back in time, with my boys, MacGyver and Rick Hunter, and relive the 80s a little. If anybody else feels like some unorthodox TV watching, go forth and find Hunter and MacGyver. Pleasure awaits! I guess my crushes are still there, a tiny bit.