I remember going to my grandmother's house on Saturday mornings to watch all of my favorite cartoons! She lived a short bike ride from our house, so I was able to make this visit quite often. What a sweet lady she was and treated me to milk and dough-nuts before making her way to the living room to turn the television on and start a fire in the fireplace.
This Saturday event went on for a few years until one morning mama told my sister Glenda and me that we were getting a Zenith television. I assured my grandmother Herring that I would never stop coming to see her, and she just smiled. The day it was installed, we were so excited, and Grandmother even walked over to see our television.
There were very few channels to watch. As Mama was turning the channel knob, she came upon Annie Oakley, who was soon to become a world famous western star. As the story goes, from 1954 to 1957, Gail Davis appeared in the starring role of Annie Oakley, handpicked by series producer and cowboy singer Gene Autry.
I marveled at her ability to ride a horse, later learning that she performed most of her own stunts.
The real Annie Oakley lived from 1859 to 1926. She and her husband were part of the Buffalo Bill Wild West Show, where she achieved her greatest fame touring America and Europe for 17 years. Her life is loosely based on the the play “Anne Get Your Gun” by Herbert and Dorothy Fields, a musical score by Irving Berlin.
After a time, cartoons lost my interest, Anne Oakley became a favorite for a few years, but my visits to Grandmother's stayed constant. I could count on a delicious dough-nut, a smile and a big hug!
