In the past, we could only listen to national affairs from the radio📻, but with this little black box, we can see live big shots. Tiananmen Square is close at hand, and the high bridge of the nose is far away in the horizon. Foreigners with big eyes are really rare. We also have animals in the African savannah - such as cows🐮.
During that time, people were excitedly talking about the scenes on TV, feeling like their heads were about to burst from the weird things they saw. More and more people went to watch TV shows, and the house of Old Uncle Yu was packed.
There is no free lunch in the world. When people got used to watching TV after dinner to spend time, the first TV set, although it was black and white, began to charge 1 dime for full time (from the beginning of the program to the appearance of "Goodbye" on the screen) and 5 cents for half time (some time after the program started). When the program was played, there was a power outage or thundery weather and the money was not refunded. At that time, a sesame seed cake was 2 cents and a popsicle was 5 cents.
At first people were resistant, complaining that the TV owner was stingy, but the objections were ineffective. Doesn’t electricity cost money? Does it cost nothing to clean your house? Is it free to buy a TV? Isn’t the colorful world on TV exciting? Will you play a part for me? At that time, gun fight movies were often staged, which were very attractive, just like smoking cigarettes. Once you become addicted, it is worth the money!
It doesn't matter whether the adults watch it or not. They can't help the children teasing them, and they also want the children to gain more experience. They can't lose at the starting line and add a "TV fee" to their living expenses.
Days are like "goodbye" on TV. Just like the old man selling chili candies squatting at the wall of the auditorium, we have to meet each other on the way to watch TV. The red and white lollipop on the corner is very sweet and hard. It can be kept in the mouth for several hours. With the money to choose one in the hand, the result of the inner struggle is to let the TV go to hell.
Some time ago, there were more and more bare poplar poles in the village. Some families also used high technology to put a color film on the black and white TV screen. The girl looked much more handsome with bright red lips. The rainbow after the rain is as beautiful as the real world, but why are the colors of the zebra🦓 still black and white?
The power of the collective is powerful. The first large color TV set in Murakami was purchased by the public, freeing up a big house🏠. The large color TV set was placed in a specially made large cabinet that could be locked, like a treasure put in a safe, and kept by a retired uncle.
Many people moved to small benches at home and fixed their positions. Every day from the news network to the weather forecast, it was a must-see program. After learning about national events, they switched among the limited channels to find a channel that everyone accepted, until it ended with everyone yawning one after another.
A few years later, the programs on the TV became more and more abundant, and there were more channels to choose from. My parents, who had some spare money, also bought a small color TV. When they went home during the Chinese New Year, everyone gathered together to make dumplings and watch the Spring Festival Gala on CCTV.
Machine-translated from the Chinese original 岁月悠悠之:黑白电视机 (published 2020-02-23). WeChat original ↗