Page 15 - coccanyoncall_fy19751976

Page 5
Censor At Work
OPINION
On Family Hour?
By Carl Graves
By Mark Guy
How much longer can the middle
"If you can censor a joke today,
class exist?
you'll censor a documentary tomor-
It is being taxed, axed and row. Then what's next?"
legislated out of existence. This was a statement made
A man (or women) who earned recently by Alan Alda, star of
$10,000 a year in 1968 now needs "M.A.S.H.", about the new 7 to 9
$18,000 to buy the same goods. And p.m. Family Hour TV programming
that only buys the necessities, with concept that has pushed many
very few luxuries thrown in. shows out ·of prime time and hurt
ratings in general.
One federal government survey
Carroll O'Connor, star of "All in
shows that by 1980 50 per cent of the Family", Norman Lear of "Tan-
the population will be supporting dem" productions and Danny
the other 50 per cent. What this Arnold, producer of "Barney
leads to is obvious in tod.ay's news. Miller", all objected to the new FCC
Look at New York City.
Family Hour ruling designed to
Then there are the appraisers. keep violence and sex off TV in
They wield axes, demanding an arm early evening hours.
and maybe part of a leg in personal O'Connor charged that the FCC
property taxes. The average in- had overstepped its authority and
crease in the Newhall-Saugus- should not be in a position to say
V alencia area is $200 to $600 a year. what will and will not be shown on
television.
Add this to a 125 per cent
increase in our utility bills the past Norman Lear stated that if the
new ruling had been in effect last
year and the unbelievable boosts in
the cost of food and clothing. year all but one of the episodes of
"All in the Family" could not have
My income has not kept pace. Has aired.
yours? He said that an FCC ruling made
the diapering of a child in an
What happens when this in-
upcoming episode of "All in the
~ flationary process finally brings us Family", TV's No. 1 comedy series,
to our knees?
non-admissable for the family time
If the misguided citizenry that period.
thinks man is basically good and Also hurt by the ruling were the
peaceful has its way, it will have "Mary Tyler Moore" "Rhoda",
legislated away all our guns. This "Phyllis", and "Three for the Road"
will leave us completely open to the series. All but the last have been
revolt of those who will object to pulled out of prime time slots to
"losing" our incomes which have comply with the FCC ruling.
been supporting them in the manner I maintain that the FCC has no
to which they have become ac- April Muhl plays a leading role of Charlotte, one of the love interests in "The right to interfere with program-
customed. Contrast", first campus drama on many months. A Comedy-satire, set in ming, unless completely without
The food stamps, free housing, post-Revolutionary war days, premieres at 8 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 4, with social value or if they encourage
dental and hospital care and all the later performances at 1 and 8 p.m. on Friday and at 8 p.m. on Saturday. unnatural or violent actions. The
rest. Tickets, available at the door of the Little Theater Behind the Bookstore, are FCC's legitimate function is to
$2 for general admissions and $1 for ASH card holders. license stations and to regulate TV
Russia's Premier Khruschev said and radio frequencies not to deter-
in the 1950s that we will bury mine the subject matter of shows.
ourselves and it looks as if we are It will be interesting to learn
doing a good job of it. what reasons the FCC can come up
with for its Family Hour concept in
We have destroyed a presidency,
up-coming litigation instigated by
which may or may not have been for TV series' producers.
good reasons. After all, most of the I assert the FCC is wrong because
congressmen in charge of the in- its ruling will ultimately lead to
vestigations and hearings had voted government-controlled media,
three times not to investigate the which in the long run leads to a
Bobby Baker case, which involved
diluted democracy. Or far worse, no
President Johnson, and which democracy at all.
probably would have been more
sensational than Watergate.
Four Win Birds
These same men have just voted
not to censure Congressman Michael In Turkey Trot
Harrington (D-Mass.) who had
given his sworn oath not to "leak" First place winners in the recent
any information in the CIA hearings Turkey Trot were Fred Lowder,
and then did. Dave Bubnash, Debbi Gartner and
Mike Garcia. All received dressed
We have now practically castra-
turkeys. Trailing Lowder in the
ted the FBI and CIA. Most of our under 29-years-old class were Jim
faith in our government has been
Lopez and Robert Johnston.
destroyed.
Second and third place winners in
Karl . Marx primarily did not the women's division won by Ms.
promote instigation of revolution. Gartner were Debbie Denyer and
Rather, destroy people's faith in More than 30 runners turned out for COC's annual Turkey Trot. First place Tina Janke. Trailing Garcia in the
winners, who received dressed turkeys as prizes, are (left to right) Dave
their government and revolution over-30 category were coach Lee
Bubnash, Fred Lowder, Debbi Gartner and Mike Garcia. Lesser prizes went to
automatically will take place, he Smelser and Don Hellrigel, Spanish
said. second and third place finishers. instructor.
A taxed-to-the-extreme, unarmed Bubnash ran unopposed to win
middle class can function just about WINTER CONCERT wind ensemble, will be presented at the athlete's division. Second
as well as an impotent man ship- 3 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 7, in the main placers won a bucket of fried
wrecked on a desert island with The music department's winter dining room of the Student Center. chicken and third place winners
Racquel Welch. concert, featuring mixed chorus and Admission is free. took home pumpkin pies.