by Michael Lyons
The store shelves have replaced that lovely plastic smell of pool floats and beach pails with spiral notebooks and pens. That season that seemed so never-ending in June is now unfurling to its inevitable conclusion with Labor Day.
Summer is ending, and it's back-to-school time.
Many schools have already started classes this month, and all students will be back by early September. It's always sad to say goodbye to the sweet freedom of summer and return to the weekday grind of textbooks, homework, and cafeteria food.
But, take comfort in the fact that the ups and downs and highs and lows of school life are something that students have grappled with for generations, as seen in a selection of TV sitcoms that examined school and humorously illuminated the life of a student:
Freaks and Geeks (1999-2000)
One of the most underrated series of all time, this hour-long comedy was executive produced by Judd Apatow before his movie blockbusters like The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up, examined high school life in the early 1980s.
From its spot-on look at its setting of the early 80s (with perfect pop-culture references) to humor and poignancy highlighting everything from first crushes to trying desperately to fit in at school, Freaks and Geeks deserved better than the one-season run it got and should have, and maybe could have, found its audience.
Even though short-lived, the series did serve as a launching pad for a tremendous amount of talent, such as James Franco, Linda Cardellini, Seth Rogen, Jason Segel, and Busy Philipps, as well as writer-director Paul Feig, who would later helm Bridesmaids.
Head of the Class (1986-1991)
This sitcom centered on a class of gifted students in an honors program at a Manhattan high school, and the history teacher, Mr. Moore (Howard Hesseman), who serves as their mentor (Hesseman left in the last season and was replaced by Billy Connolly, as Mr. MacGregor).
Somewhat of a Big Bang Theory before its time, Head of the Class examined the "real world" struggles of these more book-smart students as the show tackled issues from stereotypes to cultural barriers.
Welcome Back, Kotter (1975-1979)
This hit, iconic 70s sitcom is the opposite of Head of the Class.
It is based on the stand-up routine of comedian Gabe Kaplan, who stars in the lead as Gabe Kotter, a teacher who returns to his tough Brooklyn alma mater, James Buchanan High School, to teach.
His students are the next generation of "delinquents" that he once was part of: The Sweathogs. They include the leader, cocky heartthrob, Vinnie Barbarino (John Travolta in the role that launched him to stardom), Freddy "Boom Boom" Washington (Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs), the smooth-talker, Juan Epstein (Robert Hegyes), a con artist who always had a "note from his mother," and the innocent Arnold Horshack (Ron Palillo) who eagerly knew the answer to any question, even if he didn't.
This show appeared on everything from lunch boxes to board games, with sayings like "Up your nose with a rubber hose" that became a large part of the real-life school lexicon. Welcome Back, Kotter was solidly a part of the 1970s landscape.
While the series wound down in later seasons, with some cast members leaving and others looking a wee bit too mature to still be in high school, there is no denying that Welcome Back, Kotter is still one of TV's most satisfying sitcoms.
Room 222 (1969-1974)
This "dramedy" took a different look at teachers and schools and was set in a fictional high school in Los Angeles. Room 222, is centered on understanding history teacher Pete (Lloyd Haynes), his girlfriend, Liz (Denise Nicholas), the school's kind guidance counselor, the wise, and sarcastic, principal, Seymour (Michael Constantine), and the overtly-sunny student teacher Alice (Karen Valentine).
From its folk-song-like guitar and flute opening theme to topics tackled like racial tensions and Watergate, Room 222 perfectly fits the changing and more realistic tone of television in the 1970s.
Our Miss Brooks (1952-1956)
One of the biggest hits from TV's earliest days, the innocence of Our Miss Brooks is the other side of the spectrum from Room 222.
Eve Arden plays the titular character, a sarcastic high school English teacher, in this sitcom that began life as a radio show in 1948. The show's plots usually revolved around simpler situations, like Miss Brooks' dating life, entanglements with the curmudgeon principal (Gale Gordon), or the innocent and gawky student Walter Denton (Richard Crenna, who would later play Colonel Trautman in the Rambo films!).
However, Our Miss Brooks was groundbreaking in many ways, not only for having a female lead but also for that lead being a strong, competent character who would wind up solving challenges for others (including her male peers and the principal).
So, pack that lunch, complete that homework assignment, and be grateful for your teachers daily. As these sitcoms show through their humorous moments, teachers are among those who shape us into who we become, which we realize years later when school days are like these shows: part of our fond memories.
Wishing everyone a Happy Labor Day Weekend and a wonderful school year!
Looking for another book as you head back to school? Check out mine: Drawn to Greatness: Disney's Animation Renaissance, which is available at Amazon , and signed and personalized copies are available at my website: Words From Lyons !
