Laid out with a summer cold, I was watching television this afternoon and feeling fairly dismal until the Beverly Hillbillies episode that featured Ellie May motoring wild through the house on a Triumph Bonneville. Good choice! As you see, Granny wasn’t entirely disapproving, but Jed was ready to travel back to the holler to find a wife who could tame Miss Elly. Don’t know about you, but that’s one girl I hope is immortally wild!
Donna Douglas grew up a real life tomboy in Baton Rouge. After some movie projects — including a co-starring role with Elvis Presley in the film Frankie and Johnny — and a nine-year career playing Ellie May in the Beverly Hillbillies, the blond bombshell gave up acting, as she "refused to act in projects she felt were sexually suggestive or of dubious morality." Today Ms. Douglas is a gospel singer, writer, and speaker in support of various Christian homes, especially in her native south. Gotta love her!
If you are watching “Beverly Hillbillies”, then you’re probably still using a TV with rabbit ears. You won’t be able to do that after Feb 17 2009 because analog broadcasts in the US will cease by then. However, there is a free federal program where you can get a voucher worth $40 toward a converter box. Go to: http://www.DTV2009.gov. I used 2 of these at Radio Shack, and my out-of-pocket was only $20 ea.
If you want to take a TV camping after that date, then you’ll need an “inverter” for your converter. Inverters convert 12VDC to 120VAC. Hopefully, digital travel TVs will be available by then.
Another issue is: what effect will this changeover have on our nation’s landfills? Are obsolete TVs toxic waste? Also, many of these old sets were made with nice cabinets that could be adapted to other uses, but few people in our throw-away culture seem inclined to do this.