"The Eastland 'Ensider' " - Girls On TV, Not Watching TV!

['80sSitcoms]

Hot off the presses from the latest edition by Parker & Green!

This is another thing I'd thought of on a lower-awareness level, but I just happened to think of it now while not watching the show...the girls didn't have a TV! Like, a "stationed" TV, one that, perhaps, you may picture as sitting against the 4th wall of the lounge. No TV stationed in there, none in the cafeteria or kitchen (of course*), none in the girls' room, as that would be way too entertaining for those girls-on-probation, lol, and not even one in Mrs. Garrett's room. But she seems content to relax and read in there.

*(although, some folks did/do have a little TV on a counter or bolted up in their kitchens)

The only episode I can think of where the girls do watch TV is "Read No Evil" (GH moment ["Garrett Honesty"]: I couldn't remember which episode, I just remembered it was a later cafeteria season one where Blair and Tootie were engrossed in the little TV, and they got Geri sucked in, lol)

I wonder where they kept that little TV? Maybe it was Mrs. Garrett's that she sometimes watched. Oo! And in "Growing Pains", when Blair has her "brilliant idea" for Mrs. Garrett to punish them, one of the stipulations Mrs. Garrett lays on them is "No TV!"---now, she could mean no going to any dorms to watch TV, but, as she has already sentenced them to their room when not in classes or working, that would mean that you'd think there had to have been a TV available there for them to watch right there in the building, hence this little one. In my fan universe, it's a small one Mrs. Garrett bought for herself at some point before summer 1981 (because you would assume the girls knew of her TV before the return-to-school in late summer '81) that she sometimes lets the girls watch, although the girls don't watch a lot of TV.

Yes, Young Lorsie, this is how some people used to watch TV

-

[Lorimar Television]

Originally Posted by '80sSitcoms

Hot off the presses from the latest edition by Parker & Green!

This is another thing I'd thought of on a lower-awareness level, but I just happened to think of it now while not watching the show...the girls didn't have a TV! Like, a "stationed" TV, one that, perhaps, you may picture as sitting against the 4th wall of the lounge. No TV stationed in there, none in the cafeteria or kitchen (of course*), none in the girls' room, as that would be way too entertaining for those girls-on-probation, lol, and not even one in Mrs. Garrett's room. But she seems content to relax and read in there.

*(although, some folks did/do have a little TV on a counter or bolted up in their kitchens)

The only episode I can think of where the girls do watch TV is "Read No Evil" (GH moment ["Garrett Honesty"]: I couldn't remember which episode, I just remembered it was a later cafeteria season one where Blair and Tootie were engrossed in the little TV, and they got Geri sucked in, lol)

I wonder where they kept that little TV? Maybe it was Mrs. Garrett's that she sometimes watched. Oo! And in "Growing Pains", when Blair has her "brilliant idea" for Mrs. Garrett to punish them, one of the stipulations Mrs. Garrett lays on them is "No TV!"---now, she could mean no going to any dorms to watch TV, but, as she has already sentenced them to their room when not in classes or working, that would mean that you'd think there had to have been a TV available there for them to watch right there in the building, hence this little one. In my fan universe, it's a small one Mrs. Garrett bought for herself at some point before summer 1981 (because you would assume the girls knew of her TV before the return-to-school in late summer '81) that she sometimes lets the girls watch, although the girls don't watch a lot of TV.

Yes, Young Lorsie, this is how some people used to watch TV

-

HAHA my grandmother actually had a tiny TV like that! We watched it once, it was black and white! I guess only the dorms got TV's in the common rooms, this was the main cafeteria/ staff area.

['80sSitcoms]

Originally Posted by Lorimar Television

HAHA my grandmother actually had a tiny TV like that! We watched it once, it was black and white! I guess only the dorms got TV's in the common rooms, this was the main cafeteria/ staff area.

Yes, black and white!

But---why do you say "staff area"? I don't think of this building as having any faculty/staff areas in it, but just a cafeteria building.

[Lorimar Television]

Originally Posted by '80sSitcoms

Yes, black and white!

But---why do you say "staff area"? I don't think of this building as having any faculty/staff areas in it, but just a cafeteria building.

Well Mrs G lived there, then the girls room was obviously converted. I don't think any students lived in that building?

['80sSitcoms]

Originally Posted by Lorimar Television

Well Mrs G lived there, then the girls room was obviously converted. I don't think any students lived in that building?

You're right, no students did, but I don't think anyone did, except "the cook". Although, I don't picture Howard living there, but commuting. Anyway, yeah, it seems like that was only true place for a staff member there: the cook/nutritionist's room.

[Lorimar Television]

Originally Posted by '80sSitcoms

You're right, no students did, but I don't think anyone did, except "the cook". Although, I don't picture Howard living there, but commuting. Anyway, yeah, it seems like that was only true place for a staff member there: the cook/nutritionist's room.

Yeah, thats why we usually only saw girls when they had meetings or during mealtimes.

[Impressions]

True, it was kinda ridiculous that they did everything in the cafeteria! But they had a full set in season 1! Whatever happened to that TV? Don’t think we saw that set again til season 9.

[Heenan Fan]

They rarely watched TV throughout the entire series. I remember, I think it was season 9, Natalie got her first credit card and got addicted to one of the home shopping networks. It's one of the few times I remember any of the girls watching TV.