GREAT BEND, Kan. - On November 1, 1967, I waited in line with hundreds of Great Bend kids to meet an astronaut. As a scrub-faced seven-year-old, I was awed when I saw him arrive at J.C. Penney Toyland in his silver space suit and space helmet.
He wasn't a real astronaut, I now know. But as a seven-year-old, you suspend disbelief. The "astronaut" was "Major Astro," a guy named Tom Leahy who had an afternoon children's program on KARD-TV, the NBC affiliate in Wichita. Each afternoon "Major Astro" would delight youngsters in Wichita and Western Kansas with his program, in which he played an astronaut on the moon showing cartoons from a space station. We only got one channel in Great Bend - KARD-TV, so "Major Astro" was the only game in town.
A few days ago, I posted something on Facebook about "Major Astro," and I got a huge response from baby-boomers, all favorable, and way beyond what I expected. And I have thought a lot about why people in their fifties still light up at the mention of "Major Astro."
Me, in the 1960sI was born in 1960, so I missed "The Sixties" in terms of the counter-cultural stuff that was going on late in the decade. But the 1960's experienced by American children was unique. It has been said by many that President Kennedy presided over the "high water mark" of America.
Things were simpler, and dreamier, and people believed that the USA could do anything, that anything was possible. The space program seemed to embody that 'can do' spirit of America. And to Kansas kids, "Major Astro" was an embodiment of that possibility, that America could do anything, that anyone could grow up to be an astronaut, that everything was, as Major Astro said "All Systems Go." And to children living on the vast Great Plains - whose endless horizon seems to suggest that anything is possible, we were all optimists. We had our "Major Astro" secret code, our Davey Crockett coonskin caps, our autographs from Major League Baseball players who actually cared.
Things were different then, because all Americans were on the same page.
Everybody wanted America to succeed. In the post WWII era, we weren't Democrats or Republicans, we were Americans, and everybody rooted for the USA. We were proud of our leaders, proud of the institutions of our government. World War II's unifying spirit lingered for a long time.
Maybe it was crazy, but my parents and their ancestors decided to build great schools, great universities - they were concerned about the common good.
The attitude was "we're all in this together," not "every man for himself." People voted for bond issues to build great schools, even though it meant sacrifice. The Depression and WW II had taught people the value of unity and sacrifice.
In Obama's book, The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream
Politics was always a tough business, but in that postwar ambiance, Democrats and Republicans worked together for the common good. They had served in World War II together - they were Americans first, Kansans first, Democrats and Republicans, second.
Major Astro in the studioToday, we have Red States, Blue States, FOX News and MSNBC, and Americans aren't on the same page any more. Pessimism, skepticism, and partisanship dominate our politics. America is fragmented.
And I think that the reason people pine for that simpler time of their baby boomer childhood is that back then you knew that everybody was on the same page, that there was nothing but good times ahead for America. Major Astro's sign-off at the conclusion of the program was reassuring: "Join me next time when everything will be a-okay, and all systems will be go. Happy orbits, boys and girls, I'll see you tomorrow." He would then put on his space helmet, and exit the studio to his space ship.
Of course, Major Astro was not an astronaut, but a chain-smoking TV guy who sold cars on the side. But we thought he was astronaut. He had us fooled. But from what I can tell, we baby boomers enjoyed every minute of it.
If only things were that simple today.
Marty - here it is March 2010, and I've just now read your nostalgic missive about one of my own childhood heros, Major Astro. In fact, apparently since I am just a few months older than you (Oct. '59) I was at that event in Great Bend as well. I was enjoying the trip down Memory Lane until you invoked the "O" word. At that point, you derailed and lost a world of credibility with me, but since we are both People of the South Wind, I will agree with you on one point: it WAS a simpler time.