Confession: I love Bob Barker. I teared up today when I learned that he is retiring. I grew up with Bob Barker, even though my parents were communists and highly disapproved of the Price is Right and everything it stood for. I loved it. I loved the bubble-headed prize models, the bouncy-boobed women running to the front, the games, and of course, Bob. My older brother and I used to play a game called "The Price is Right" with monopoly money and various "prizes" we found around the house. My brother always played Bob, and I played both prize model and contestant. My brother seemed to pick up on Bob's manner and mannerisms, including his smooth-talking sexism, and his thinly-veiled mean streak. If I lost a game, the fictional Bob was effective at quickly booting me off the stage. This meant that The Price is Right game frequently ended up with me crying to my mother about what a mean capitalist my brother was. The response was always, "Why don't you play something that doesn't involve greed?"
But greed was why the show was so delicious. Who cares if Bob is a Republican, a sexist racist pig, an animal birth-control activist? Bob might very well be the perfect American.
3 comments:
Aggie...does your love of Bob Barker explain your crush on "Bob?"
Ahh, Aggie, I have fond memories of sitting with my Nanny and Pappy, watching Bob.
It didn't matter to them if the network called his show "Truth or Consequences" or "The Price is Right", we were watching "Bob Barker".
My nephew has a touch of autism and has never said very much. But growing up one of the things he loved to say was, "Come on down!"
My fondest memories of the Price is Right are the days when the Showcase featured a bright red Firebird. Ah, the power of Bob.
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