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Some things we read, we forget in a few minutes. Some movies don’t affect us farther than the theater door (or the moment we stand up to leave). Others, however, endure. I still love the Dig Allen, Space Explorer, books I discovered at a school book fair in third grade. Thanks to the wonders of the internet, I located most of the series for our son, who loved them, too. Janet Lambert’s YA romances about the Parrishes and the Jordans, two Army families, engrossed me over a couple of summers. Thanks to book sales through Weekly Reader, I managed to obtain most of those.
On television, I loved to watch Guy Williams as Zorro on The Wonderful World of Disney. I sneaked looks (I can admit this now because both my parents are gone) at Anne Francis’ short-lived series, Honey West, about a woman private detective who kicked serious butt. My mom didn’t approve of that or The Man From U.N.C.L.E. or Star Trek. Just as water has a way of finding its own level, I found my way to Napoleon and Illya and Kirk and Spock and Mrs. Peel of The Avengers.
I also loved Superman and Batman and the Legion of Super-Heroes, all of whom consumed a huge chunk of my allowance every month. Then there was Nancy Drew, whose adventures were my rewards for monthly trips to the orthodontist. I remember being aghast when the books rose in price from $1.00 to $1.25.
My enjoyment of Williams’ Zorro led me to Tyrone Power’s and, eventually, to Antonio Banderas’. Star Trek and Superman led me to science fiction and a stint in fandom. The same daring and determination I admired in Nancy Drew led me to books and televisions shows and movies with strong female protagonists such as attorney-detective Avery Andrews, Stargate SG-1′s intrepid scientist and explorer, Col. Samantha Carter, tomb raider Lara Croft, and journalist Murphy Brown. My interest wasn’t limited to fictional women. I also admired HelenKeller, Elizabeth I, Joan of Arc, and pioneering doctor Elizabeth Blackwell.
How about you? What interests did you form in childhood that remain with you today? What movies, books or television programs you loved remain among your favorites?
5 Comments
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Monica Belus 
A lot of my influences reflect yours, Nancy — Honey West (stumbled upon one day after school, and while I had wonderful memories of this short-lived show, try as I might, I found little about it when I was putting together a workshop on kickbutt heroines of pop culture), the Legion, every superheroine I could find and not a few superheroes, Star Trek. I was influenced more by the Hardy Boys than Nancy Drew (never finished one to this day); we had the Hardys around because my mother translated those into Japanese), various anime and manga because we lived in Japan, fantasy of all kinds because that was what my older siblings all read, and my mother leaned toward faery tales herself. But I didn’t discover the Parrishes until I was almost out of my teens, in a used bookstore!