tv shows

Wow, this is probably a weird, obscure belief. When I was about 4 or 5 years old I saw an episode of "Mr. Roger's Neighborhood" where a little girl was getting a check-up at a doctor's office, and the little girl was in her underwear when the check-up took place. I believed it was "wrong" that someone would allow a child (or anyone for that matter) to be shown in his or her underwear on TV. I didn't realize back then that that's how people were supposed to be seen during a check-up at a doctor's office. Even when I found out that that's the way people were supposed to be seen during a check-up, I didn't know why this was because as a kid, the only things I remembered my doctor checking that was below my waist was my heart (and the occasional shot in the arm) and usually he'd just slip his stethoscope under my shirt instead of having me take it off (at least that's what I thought...)

Spencer

In an episode of the tv show "The Flying Nun", sally field explains her ability to fly is because of several factors, one of which was how much she weighed. I immediately ran into the bathrom to measure myself on the scales, in the belief that if I also wieghed that amount there may be a chance that I could fly.

Harrow

The TV show "I Dream of Jeannie" featured Larry Hagman in the lead role of "Major Nelson," an astronaut. The show made such an impression upon me that I thought Major Nelson was a real astronaut that the show was based on. When I asked my father how many times Major Nelson went to the moon, he explained to me that he was just an imaginary character and didn't really exist. But to me "Nelson" sounded so much like a real astronaut's name, that I found it hard to believe. I later got a book out of the library about astronauts and searched all throughout it for any sign of a Nelson. Of course, I never found one. But I wonder--if one of those Apollo astronauts had the last name Nelson, would I have been convinced for a good while longer that Major Nelson was indeed a real astronaut? Hmmmm...

Gary in NY

When I was very small, I used to watch Have Gun Will Travel on TV with my Grandmother. The lead character always gave out his business card which said "Wire Paladin." So, I thought his first name was "Wire." (Every week I'd say, "Let's watch Wire.") I never even thought about it until a few years ago, when my husband and I were watching old reruns of it on TV. When Paladin pulled out the business card, I burst out laughing.My husband looked at me like I was a lunatic. When I explained it to him, he REALLY thought I was a lunatic!

Ozzdog

I used to think that the characters on TV shows were real people. For example, I used to watch re-runs of Bewitched all the time, and I really wanted to be friends with Tabitha.

I also wondered why some of the people (in what I later learned were old programs) dressed in such out-of-date clothes.

Athazagoraphobia

When I was very little I used to watch the cosby show and I thought Cliff Hustable and Claire Hustable were actually married like in real life, and theo,vanessa and all them were his actual kids. When I found out Bill Cosby was married to someone else I was very confused. I thought he had two wives!

Vinnifer

I used to think "The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air" was actually a prince and one day he had to go to court for some parking tickets(or whatever) and I remember thinking "he can't get in trouble, he's the Prince!"

SarieBear

Until I was about 15, I beleived my Father was the person who sang the "Cheers" TV Show Theme Song.

Dustin

I used to believe that actors would volunteer to die whenever I saw someone get shot in a scene. In fact I remember that it was a scene from TJ Hooker movie.

Anon

I remember when "That 70's Show" was going into it's 10th year. I seriously thought the name would change to "That 80's Show".

DON'T PANIC

On "Sesame Street", there was a song called "Big Kids Cry". It was about three "tough kids" (they looked like Muppet versions of a typical biker gang, heavy metal band, punk band, etc.) who sang about how it's okay for anyone to cry no matter who they are and how old they are. When I was a kid, I thought they were crying because they misbehaved (and that crying itself was a misbehavior), so I was scared of that song as a result.

Spencer

As a tot, I believed that anything on telly was completely fictional.
I loved watching Star Trek, but I was always asking my dad, 'How can they afford to send the actors, cameras, and sets into space?'

Andreas Harris

My husband used to play Alias Smith & Jones with his brother and his friend. The brother and his friend were Smith and Jones and my husband was Alias...

Anon

When I was kid and I watched "little house on the prairie" I could never understand why if they have cameras that can film then they don't have a TV

Anon

I used to believe that there was a TV program called "To be announced" as I saw it in the TV guide all the time.

Anon

There used to be a wonderful TV programme called "Animal Magic" presented by Johnny Morris, who dressed as a zoo keeper and talked to animals. I was in my thirties before I found out he wasn't really a zoo keeper.

Liz

There used to be a segment on Sesame Street where they built a picture of a tunnel and then it became real and a train started coming towards the screen. Well, I used to think that it was going to come through the tv set and I used to run away crying.

Anon

I used to believe that "Wheel of Fortune" was called "Squeal of Fortune." I don't know why.

Joey Schwartzman

after watching too much Gilligan's Island, i had the idea that quicksand could be found anywhere, and i was always afraid i'd fall in some when i least expected it. it wasn't until much later that i realized there will never be quicksand in new york city.

scoop

Up until about 9 months ago, I believed that the people like Maria and Luis on Sesame Street were real people not characters being played by actors. Amazing what you can learn when you have a child of your own!!

Julie