Faux Life: Things That Happen On TV But Not In Reality

[Lugal]

11 hours ago, JacquelineAppleton said:

About SORAS, remember the old IMDb board for Step by Step had a poster write out a scene where Lily meets a pedo French hairdresser? SORAS can bring out deep hatred in some people. It's telling that Brian Bonsall has been wiped from all Family Ties reunions and interviews,

That might have more to do with Bonsall's run-ins with the law rather than any hatred of SORAS.

[Jacqs]

3 hours ago, Lugal said:

That might have more to do with Bonsall's run-ins with the law rather than any hatred of SORAS.

Yeah. Him deciding to get all those tattoos wasn't a good idea either given the association between heavily tattooed men and violence against women. Not too bright, that Mr Bonsall...

[Katy M]

7 hours ago, JacquelineAppleton said:

Yeah. Him deciding to get all those tattoos wasn't a good idea either given the association between heavily tattooed men and violence against women. Not too bright, that Mr Bonsall...

I'm not a big fan of tattoos and have always kind of thought of them as tacky.  But, people should get to make their own choices about appearance that aren't influenced by what the stuff is associated with.  LIke, if a man is losing his hair and just shaves it off (or just shaves it off because he likes being bald) should everyone assume he's a neo-Nazi skinhead?  Or, if someone has blonde hair, or bleaches their hair blonde, should people assume they're bimbos?  

[andromeda331]

This is probably more of a question do teens on TV ever have to cook dinner? I've been watching Home Improvement repeats even when the three sons are in their teens they don't ever have to cook dinner. Its still Jill doing the cooking with Tim every once in awhile. On the Middle no really cooks they always get takeout but except for one time from Axl its usually the Mom bring home takeout with the dad occasionally doing so. Do teens on other shows ever have to make dinner? Growing up my brother and I both cooked dinner in our teens partly because our parents both work but mostly because we were old enough to do so but so we'd know how to cook a bunch of different things when we moved out. I can't remember seeing teens on TV ever having to do that. Maybe its happening on other shows? 

[Bastet]

During the original run of Roseanne, Becky was often used as a third adult in the family (starting at about 14), so if Roseanne wasn't home in time, it was often Becky rather than Dan who was making dinner (but, even then, they were usually popping in the oven something Roseanne had prepped).  Darlene cooked once or twice.

I'm going over in my mind other shows I watched in which teens were part of the core cast to see if I can think of other examples for you, but apparently I didn't watch very many and, of those I did, no teen cooking scenes are springing to mind.

[Katy M]

6 hours ago, andromeda331 said:

This is probably more of a question do teens on TV ever have to cook dinner? I've been watching Home Improvement repeats even when the three sons are in their teens they don't ever have to cook dinner. Its still Jill doing the cooking with Tim every once in awhile. On the Middle no really cooks they always get takeout but except for one time from Axl its usually the Mom bring home takeout with the dad occasionally doing so. Do teens on other shows ever have to make dinner? Growing up my brother and I both cooked dinner in our teens partly because our parents both work but mostly because we were old enough to do so but so we'd know how to cook a bunch of different things when we moved out. I can't remember seeing teens on TV ever having to do that. Maybe its happening on other shows? 

I probably only cooked dinner once a year or so as a teen.  I did do a lot of baking, though.   And, I would make my own lunch.  But, you don't really cook a sandwich.  Or when you pour yourself a bowl of cereal.  I was excellent at microwaving popcorn.

[meep.meep]

I guess Leggo my Eggo doesn't count.

The daughter (Lillette) of the single mother on Rise was shown cooking a few times.  It seems its more common on TV in the "broken homes"

[paulvdb]

I'm sure I've seen teens on tv cook, but I can't think of too many examples off the top of my head. The only one I can think of is Taylor on Finding Carter. But I'm sure there have been more.

In real life I hardly ever cooked when I was a teenager. My mother was a housewife so she would always cook. My brother and I only cooked when my parents went away without us but my mom would often leave us leftovers that we only had to heat up. So we did very little actual cooking. And to bring it back to tv, when my parents were away my brother and I never had big parties like the teens on tv. There was the one time when they were away on my brother's birthday and he had a party with some friends. But unlike on tv my parents knew about it. And it was only a small group of friends and the party didn't get completely out of control like the ones on tv.

[Haleth]

21 hours ago, andromeda331 said:

do teens on TV ever have to cook dinner?

On The Americans Paige was always cooking for herself and her brother, plus doing other chores since her parents were constantly away on "travel agency emergencies."  You know how travel agents always had to be at the beck and call of their clients.

[meep.meep]

I've never seen The Americans.  My daughter is an actress and one of her actress friends has a job as a travel agent, just because you don't have to be at the beck and call of your clients. 

[andromeda331]

On ‎6‎/‎27‎/‎2018 at 10:29 AM, Bastet said:

During the original run of Roseanne, Becky was often used as a third adult in the family (starting at about 14), so if Roseanne wasn't home in time, it was often Becky rather than Dan who was making dinner (but, even then, they were usually popping in the oven something Roseanne had prepped).  Darlene cooked once or twice.

I'm going over in my mind other shows I watched in which teens were part of the core cast to see if I can think of other examples for you, but apparently I didn't watch very many and, of those I did, no teen cooking scenes are springing to mind.

 

20 hours ago, Katy M said:

I probably only cooked dinner once a year or so as a teen.  I did do a lot of baking, though.   And, I would make my own lunch.  But, you don't really cook a sandwich.  Or when you pour yourself a bowl of cereal.  I was excellent at microwaving popcorn.

 

20 hours ago, meep.meep said:

I guess Leggo my Eggo doesn't count.

The daughter (Lillette) of the single mother on Rise was shown cooking a few times.  It seems its more common on TV in the "broken homes"

 

7 hours ago, paulvdb said:

I'm sure I've seen teens on tv cook, but I can't think of too many examples off the top of my head. The only one I can think of is Taylor on Finding Carter. But I'm sure there have been more.

In real life I hardly ever cooked when I was a teenager. My mother was a housewife so she would always cook. My brother and I only cooked when my parents went away without us but my mom would often leave us leftovers that we only had to heat up. So we did very little actual cooking. And to bring it back to tv, when my parents were away my brother and I never had big parties like the teens on tv. There was the one time when they were away on my brother's birthday and he had a party with some friends. But unlike on tv my parents knew about it. And it was only a small group of friends and the party didn't get completely out of control like the ones on tv.

 

5 hours ago, Haleth said:

On The Americans Paige was always cooking for herself and her brother, plus doing other chores since her parents were constantly away on "travel agency emergencies."  You know how travel agents always had to be at the beck and call of their clients.

Thanks for all comments. Those who didn't have to cook boy were you lucky. 

[2727]

I can't recall many TV kids these days even using the microwave. My sister and I were teens in the 60s and never cooked. I don't remember Laurie Partridge doing so, either. Maybe that's why all the kids on these competitive cooking shows seem so amazing -- TV never modeled that behavior for us!

12 hours ago, paulvdb said:

... when my parents were away my brother and I never had big parties like the teens on tv

Merciful lord, we did that. Not at our house but my parents' weekend cabin. Puddles of beer vomit, souvenirs broken, one guy toppled off the balcony.

[shapeshifter]

From the Instinct board:

On 6/27/2018 at 2:06 PM, mythoughtis said:

The victim has a much better chance if the closest police officer  breaks down the door rather than waiting for our stars to show up.  

I was so sure this tired TV trope was going to wrap up the second episode of Take Two that just aired, but, no, surprisingly, the star was able to call another main character/police officer who was (of course) moments away from the assassin stalking his prey in a busy airport. Of course, the cop had no trouble spotting the professional assassin even though he looked very generic and stealthfully carried a stiletto knife. 

Edited June 29, 2018 by shapeshifter
titles should be italicized for clarity (I'm an academic librarian)

[Anela]

On 6/27/2018 at 9:36 AM, andromeda331 said:

This is probably more of a question do teens on TV ever have to cook dinner? I've been watching Home Improvement repeats even when the three sons are in their teens they don't ever have to cook dinner. Its still Jill doing the cooking with Tim every once in awhile. On the Middle no really cooks they always get takeout but except for one time from Axl its usually the Mom bring home takeout with the dad occasionally doing so. Do teens on other shows ever have to make dinner? Growing up my brother and I both cooked dinner in our teens partly because our parents both work but mostly because we were old enough to do so but so we'd know how to cook a bunch of different things when we moved out. I can't remember seeing teens on TV ever having to do that. Maybe its happening on other shows? 

I'm really sleepy, so can't really think through all that I've watched, but the most recent show was Bosch, and his daughter doesn't cook. In the first or second episode of the latest season, he left sushi for her in the fridge. I don't think she cooks, anyway. 

My parents weren't together for most of my childhood, so mum was a single mother, and she taught me how to cook, do laundry, etc. I remember being really happy to be trusted with things, like learning how to make tea for everyone, until I got to do that all the time for my grandma ("ooh, put the kettle on, will you?" So many times a day). Mum first taught us how to use the grill in the oven, so we'd make things like grill steaks (frozen food), hot dogs, canned food in a saucepan on the stove. I made cakes and cupcakes, cheesecakes, things like that, when mum was around. As I got into my teens, she taught me how to make things like spaghetti sauce, so that I could have dinner ready when she got home from work. 

Mum didn't have to do that growing up. Her mum was a SAHM, unless she was helping my grandad. When mum and dad married, she didn't know how to cook, or do laundry. He finally taught her to do both. She worked full time starting at the age of sixteen, though, because her family needed the money. She tried to make dad a cherry pie, and didn't know that she had to pit the cherries. She tried to make him chili, and didn't soak the beans. We still have the cookbook that he bought her, and taught her to cook with. He was self-sufficient in his teens, getting a paper route to pay for his own clothes, and other things he needed. I feel so spoiled, when I think of what his childhood was like.

[Jacqs]

It's always interesting the mismatch between actors and the ones playing their "parents" and "siblings". Judith Barsi's Eastern European heritage was obvious in her hair and features and usually contrasted sharply with the "all-American" types usually cast as her family in various shows and commercials.

[Joe]

All dogs chase balls, snatch them out of the air, and bring them back. In real life, some dogs get the ball on a rebound, or wait for it to stop. Sometimes when they chase a ball, they even overshoot. Sometimes they decide not to return them. I had two dogs in my teen years. One completely ignored thrown objects. The other was a generally fierce german shepard, but balls outright scared him.

[andromeda331]

2 hours ago, Joe said:

All dogs chase balls, snatch them out of the air, and bring them back. In real life, some dogs get the ball on a rebound, or wait for it to stop. Sometimes when they chase a ball, they even overshoot. Sometimes they decide not to return them. I had two dogs in my teen years. One completely ignored thrown objects. The other was a generally fierce german shepard, but balls outright scared him.

So true! One of our dogs would always get the ball the first time and bring it back. But when we threw it again she figured out it she was going to have to do that for the entire game and didn't want to. So instead she'd get the ball and not bring it back or lay down on it. The other just looked at us after we threw the ball like what do you want me to do.

[Browncoat]

I had a dog who loved brand-new tennis balls.  She'd chase it once, then lie down somewhere with it between her paws, and methodically bite off all the fuzz.  And then lose interest entirely.

[Annber03]

24 minutes ago, andromeda331 said:

So true! One of our dogs would always get the ball the first time and bring it back. But when we threw it again she figured out it she was going to have to do that for the entire game and didn't want to. So instead she'd get the ball and not bring it back or lay down on it. The other just looked at us after we threw the ball like what do you want me to do.

LOL. Dogs are smart little things, aren't they :D?

Your last sentence reminds me of a funny commercial I saw years back (can't remember what it was for) where this guy and his dog were playing fetch in the front yard. The guy threw the ball, but it went too far and landed in a passing garbage truck. The dog stopped at the fence, watched the truck driving away with the ball inside, and looked back at the owner like, "...um...how am I supposed to get that?" 

[ABay]

@andromeda331, are you sure your dog wasn't a cat?

Edited June 29, 2018 by ABay

[Smacky55]

On 6/29/2018 at 9:12 AM, Joe said:

All dogs chase balls, snatch them out of the air, and bring them back. In real life, some dogs get the ball on a rebound, or wait for it to stop. Sometimes when they chase a ball, they even overshoot. Sometimes they decide not to return them. I had two dogs in my teen years. One completely ignored thrown objects. The other was a generally fierce german shepard, but balls outright scared him.

So having never actually had a big dog in my whole life this blows my mind. It makes sense....but I just never thought about it. 

One thing I hate on tv is that people will always wear their shoes on the bed and they never ever barefoot in their houses. 

[topanga]

On 6/22/2018 at 4:34 AM, Joe said:

I saw two people carrying a pane of glass or maybe a mirror today. Hijinks didn't ensue. They didn't drop it. No one crashed into or through it. Nothing like that. I feel cheated.

 

On 6/22/2018 at 6:29 AM, shapeshifter said:

But, OTOH, if two people were pushing a cart of spherical objects, a fleeing suspect will run into them momentarily.

Or carrying a wedding cake down the sidewalk. Something’s gonna happen to that cake. 

[shapeshifter]

3 minutes ago, topanga said:

 

Or carrying a wedding cake down the sidewalk. Something’s gonna happen to that cake. 

Definitely. But I can't recall ever seeing anyone carrying a cake down the street, on TV or IRL.

[riley702]

Getting it into the car!

[ratgirlagogo]

3 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Definitely. But I can't recall ever seeing anyone carrying a cake down the street, on TV or IRL.

I associate this almost exclusively with silent film comedies and professional wrestling.  In wrestling the cake just has to be somewhere in the building, maybe sitting on a table........

[Jacqs]

That early episode of Full House where DJ is irritated by Stephanie keeping her awake on the night before the first day of school? Yes, she tricks Stephanie into putting on a kindergartener-sized prom dress, but I've always wondered why the flipping heck the Tanners had a kindergartener-sized prom dress in the first place? Or should i just repeat the MST3K mantra?

[shapeshifter]

I have no memory of ever attending a real life auction with live bidding (just a few silent auctions for charity), but I'm pretty sure that it's only on TV that someone accidentally scratches a nose or makes a flirtatious gesture to someone across the room or signals an accomplice and winds up being responsible for a $400,000 bid on a work by an unknown artist.

[riley702]

I've been to plenty here in the boonies and have never seen it happen. One of my favorite auctioneers was funny and would say things like, "It'll last all your life - if you die when you oughta.", "If this works, we'll refund your money.", and things like that.

[andromeda331]

I know I've said this before but watching an old castle rerun reminding me of it. There's a big black tie event or gala, or ball or something the character suddenly has to go to. Usually, a woman.  She races home to go through her closet and usually has a friend or sister with her as she pulls out ugly dresses or ones for night clubs.  Except she should know immediately she has nothing to wear and usually lives in LA, New York or any kind of big city so she would hightail it to one of the millions of stores that sell evening wear and find something appropriate quickly. 

Edited July 2, 2018 by andromeda331

[Jacqs]

2 hours ago, andromeda331 said:

I know I've said this before but watching an old castle rerun reminding me of it. There's a big black tie event or gala, or ball or something the character suddenly has to go to. Usually, a woman.  She races home to go through her closet and usually has a friend or sister with her as she pulls out ugly dresses or ones for night clubs.  Except she should know immediately she has nothing to wear and usually lives in LA, New York or any kind of big city so she would hightail it to one of the millions of stores that sell evening wear and find something appropriate quickly. 

Also: the child beauty pageants in dramas and sitcoms that are much lower budgeted than Toddlers and Tiaras so the girls wear ordinary party dresses that you get at the mall and their own hair instead of wigs. I'd also like to see a child beauty contest on TV that was like the one in my medium sized town - a fun, local thing that no one took seriously, not a JonBenet caked in lipstick and blush monstrosity.

[andromeda331]

Only on TV do serial killers and other psychos always end up being guard by one person. That person who will either ended up being overpowered and killed or is now in cahoots with the person they are guarding. Sent to the hospital for some medical problem and again only one guard watching the serial killer or psych. Then everyone is surprised when they breakout! At least give them a bunch of guards. The state does want to keep them in jail right? Same with witnesses testifying for the prosecution. They end up being watched by one police officer. If their lucky. If their not lucky they have zero guards and the criminal their testifying against keeps trying to kill them.  

[2727]

11 hours ago, andromeda331 said:

Sent to the hospital for some medical problem and again only one guard watching the serial killer or psych.

How many times have we seen The Villain put on surgical scrubs and easily gain access to the person being guarded? Like as not they'll then add poison to the IV line.

[riley702]

11 hours ago, andromeda331 said:

Sent to the hospital for some medical problem and again only one guard watching the serial killer or psych. Then everyone is surprised when they breakout! 

 

28 minutes ago, 2727 said:

How many times have we seen The Villain put on surgical scrubs and easily gain access to the person being guarded? Like as not they'll then add poison to the IV line.

OK, the second post negated my response to the second, which is that most hospitals will handcuff a violent person to the hospital bed.

[Orillia]

And when The Villain is making their escape , there's always someone pushing a cleaning cart so they can then grab the cart and push it into the chasers to slow them down.

[proserpina65]

On ‎06‎/‎06‎/‎2018 at 11:06 PM, JacquelineAppleton said:

If a woman wants to be a stripper - or indeed be sexy for a guy - there's nothing inherently wrong with that - but it should have been explained to these dim-bulbs that the poor boy - and yes, at 18 he was still a BOY in many ways - didn't want a naked woman for his birthday. My brother, when he turned 18, was eager to visit the local nightclub. He asked to come home within half an hour after experiencing the drunks and the used condoms in the toilets.

Many 18 year olds would want that, but not with all their family there, and probably not at the Olive Garden.

 

On ‎06‎/‎11‎/‎2018 at 3:35 PM, Annber03 said:

Same :D. Sometimes if I'm in a store and I hear a song I like there, it's all I can do to try and keep from doing more than simply tapping my foot or humming along :p. 

I've been known to dance in the ice cream aisle at WAWA if a good song comes on.  And in the elevator at work - to music that's only in my head; god knows what the guards who watch the security cameras think about that.

[Browncoat]

2 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

And in the elevator at work - to music that's only in my head; god knows what the guards who watch the security cameras think about that.

I generally wave in the direction of the camera when I do something like that.

[Maharincess]

On 7/11/2018 at 1:23 PM, proserpina65 said:

Many 18 year olds would want that, but not with all their family there, and probably not at the Olive Garden.

 

I've been known to dance in the ice cream aisle at WAWA if a good song comes on.  And in the elevator at work - to music that's only in my head; god knows what the guards who watch the security cameras think about that.

What's a WAWA? 

[Bastet]

28 minutes ago, Maharincess said:

What's a WAWA?

It's a gas station/convenience store chain on the East Coast.  (It's mighty popular with a lot of folks in that neck of the woods, so I've heard about it even though I don't live there and haven't even been in one when traveling, but I'll leave extolling its virtues to someone familiar with it; all I know is they have a lot more to offer than the average convenience store, thus the excitement.)

Edited July 20, 2018 by Bastet

[Moose135]

I'll often stop at Wawa stores when I'm near one - they are primarily located in the Mid-Atlantic region, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, and Maryland.  You can get gas and go inside for a ton of stuff - made to order sandwiches (sort like Subway, but with about 28 times the choices and better tasting), soda, snacks, breakfast sandwiches, and more.  And as @proserpina65 noted, ice cream!

Edited July 20, 2018 by Moose135

[Browncoat]

2 minutes ago, Moose135 said:

I'll often stop at Wawa stores when I'm near one - they are primarily located in the Mid-Atlantic region, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, and Maryland.  You can get gas and go inside for a ton of stuff - made to order sandwiches (sort like Subway, but with about 28 times the choices and better tasting), soda, snacks, breakfast sandwiches, and more.  And as @proserpina65 noted, ice cream!

But not in the western part of Virginia!  There aren't any near me that I know of, but when I travel east, I usually stop in one if there's one that's, well, convenient.  I like them a lot.

[Maharincess]

Thanks @BastetI've never heard of it. So it's kind of like a bigger 7-11?

[Ohwell]

I never see anyone actually turn off their laptop.  They just slam the lid down and that's it.

[CoderLady]

1 minute ago, Ohwell said:

I never see anyone actually turn off their laptop.  They just slam the lid down and that's it.

I also never see anyone charging their laptop after all those repeated lid slammings, or dealing with acquiring a Wi-Fi connection, or finding anything less than a blazing fast, safe public connection.

[Maharincess]

Only on TV do 4 people crowd tightly around one side of a small table in a restaurant and leave the other side of the table wide open. 

I know it's done for the shot, it looks ridiculous.  I'm watching it happen on a show as I type this. 

Edited July 20, 2018 by Maharincess

[Anela]

I have friends who rave about Wawa, so I've heard about it, too. One girl new to the NJ area, loves it. 

[AuntieL]

11 hours ago, Maharincess said:

Thanks @BastetI've never heard of it. So it's kind of like a bigger 7-11?

Kind of a cross between 7-11, a sub shop and a bakery. Better breakfast sandwiches than McDonalds and frankly I like their made to order sandwiches better than most sub shops. Yes I'm a WaWa girl. 

[jah1986]

1 hour ago, AuntieL said:

Kind of a cross between 7-11, a sub shop and a bakery. Better breakfast sandwiches than McDonalds and frankly I like their made to order sandwiches better than most sub shops. Yes I'm a WaWa girl. 

Wawa girl here and I think it's way better than 7-11.  They also usually have clean restrooms which matter when you're traveling and have to stop for gas.  There was also something called the Wawa effect or culture or something where people are generally nicer and a bit more polite at Wawa's.

[Ohwell]

I don't know if all Wawa's are like this, but the one thing I don't like is that you have to touch the screen to place your order instead of speaking to a person.   Considering how many hands have touched that screen, that's just nasty.  

[shoregirl]

2 hours ago, jah1986 said:

  There was also something called the Wawa effect or culture or something where people are generally nicer and a bit more polite at Wawa's.

Except the parking lots where its every man for himself ?

[AuntieL]

Heh especially in the mornings. Although nothing beats Shoprite the day before the 4th of July weekend.